The Distressed Little One

I woke with a start. It was the chirpy ringtone of my phone which had disturbed my dreamy state. I glanced to find the name I had been unintentionally avoiding. Usually, I don't let anyone get to me easily but since this call had been rejected many a times , I picked it on the second ring. There wasn't any bad blood between us, and though I usually found charms deceptive, this caller had what felt a genuine charm. I could've easily guessed the reason behind the communication, and was proved right after an exchange of pleasantries. Some demands felt unreasonable, yet my faith in her let me believe these were justified. There was a long pause after the phone had been passed , and no effort was made to hide the displeasure expressed to talk to me. I know I should've been appalled , what with these people approaching me and not wanting to interact with me at the same time. But I wasn't . How could I be ? Even though it had been a long time since I saw or even talked to her, I knew well enough that disrespect wasn't the reason of her reluctance. After a bit of coaxing, she was brought on the line. She did not say anything, but again , she did not need to. Her breath through the line expressed the dilemma she stood at. I greeted her and tried to control my emotions as choked words came back at me. I tried teasing to uplift her mood, but she had been drifted into the well so deep, there was no coming back, at least not until I hung up. So I tried to come to the topic, and asked about the fact which I already knew. Not that I doubted my facts, I had to steady my self and my voice into a gentle caress if I wanted to do what I was expected to. I wasn't paid for this in cash or kind, it was out of sheer respect and relation that I did so. As she continued, I was equally horrified and impressed by the caller. And it was then that I understood her hesitation.Shame. She thought that she had let me or the caller down. But it simply wasn't the case! In fact, I would've praised her even if she did half of what she had been able to . Though I did not tell her this, I did tell her that though for her, even sky wasn't a limit, what she had done was equally acceptable. She did not find me convincing though, hell it didn't even convince me. Though I was mortified that I had been contacted after a long time and only when things went downhill, it even pleasured me that I was considered their 9-1-1, contact in case of emergency. That I was the Supreme Court, approached only if it couldn't be handled by the lower ones. I gently asked her if she wanted to delay this conversation , and I would've even approved cancelling it all together if she wanted because I knew that it wasn't just my advice but also the devotion she showed toward me was what had always helped her. I scheduled another call in the near future and tried to calm her with my soothing words. We said our goodnights and I hung up, saving her the trouble of doing so. I went back to my lounger where I had been dozing earlier and reclined, thinking about both of them.