Grace (BWWM)

Chapter Twenty-Six

There's a frown on my face and I'm sure it's been there for the past two days. Something is wrong with Grace, but she's not saying anything. She's been out of it since the day she went to see her sister.

"You won't eat?" she asks after glancing at my food.

"No. No Grace, I won't eat."

"Okay," is all she says before standing and clearing the table. She doesn't even take a jab at me or make a joke. She just moves around on autopilot.

I've asked her what's wrong, but she says she's fine. Yet she's been quiet. She's like a robot, and I don't know why. I'm frustrated and she doesn't even notice.

I glance at her plate of food and notice the untouched leftovers. It's been like that for the past two day-she's been leaving some of her food, saying she doesn't have much of an appetite. I watch her go from one place to another, no expression on her face as she moves merely to accomplish her tasks.

It truly hurts me to see her like this. I've tried to talk to her, to no avail. I've tried to give her some time, to no avail. I've tried to give her some space, too, thinking maybe she just needs to work through things alone. But no. Nothing has changed.

Ty and Nova have talked to me about it, concerned for their mother. I told them I'd see what I can do. The thought worried me all day until I determined that I would try again. I'm not giving her an out until she opens up.

She continues her robotic movements, not once looking at me. It's like I'm not here.

I watch her a little while longer before getting up. She's so absorbed with whatever is going on in her mind that she doesn't notice me come up behind her.

I place my hands gently on her forearms and she jumps, startled. She angles her neck to look at me but doesn't say anything. She only looks surprised, not even annoyed. There's not much emotion on her face at all.

"I didn't mean to scare you," I say softly. She looks at me a while more before nodding and turning back, ignoring me. Or rather, returning to that space in her mind. But I tug her out of it as I run my hands down her arms.

Grace goes still then gently shrugs my hands off, not saying anything. I wrap an arm around her waist. She shakes her head, her hands gently pushing my arm away. So I turn her around and step closer, bracing her against the sink.

Her eyes go to mine before falling away. My jaw clenches as I feel my heart dip. I take hold of her chin, but she shakes her head, looking away. I won't say it aloud, but her rejections hurt. Having someone you love reject you in such a way hurts.

"Grace." My tone is clear. I've been trying to be patient, but she needs to let me in so we can talk about what's going on. I thought we'd gotten past putting up walls. What's going on here? Obviously whatever happened was big.

"I should finish with the table. There's more to do," she says, her voice monotone. And then she tries to move. But I don't let her. She just stares ahead for a while before taking hold of my forearm and trying to push it aside. Being larger and stronger, I don't budge.

"I should finish with the table," she repeats in that same tone. I don't say anything but watch as she continues to push, not even looking at me. She stops, still staring ahead, but it seems like something cracks a bit within her. She blinks, then pushes with more strength.

"There's more to do, Joe," she says as if she's trying to reason with me. But I don't move. She pushes and pulls, trying to move my arm. The more she tries, the more she seems to realize that I'm not moving, and the more her walls drop. Bit by bit, I watch as they crumble.