I feel so drained by the time I stop crying. Going back over all of what happened with Jenny made me feel like that exact same scared and solitary fourteen year old again. Pretty much any time I have to bring up my sister I end up feeling like this. My therapist has been trying to help me get past it. She's a big reason why my anxiety got so bad. He hopes being at uni and out of her reach will do me a world of good. He is probably right.
As much as it brought up a lot of difficult stuff, I am glad I told Ali about all of this at last. I should have told him about it all sooner. We don't say much for a while. He just holds me and I curl into him. I feel safe here. I guess in a way, Ali and his house is starting to be what home is supposed to feel like; warm, welcoming, loving. A sanctuary.
Eventually, we decide to go to bed. I take the mugs to the kitchen and wash them out before we head upstairs. I take my meds then get in bed and immediately snuggle down into the pillows. I feel Ali climb in beside me and start running a hand through my hair. A little contented purr rumbles in my throat as I nestle in. A weight drapes across my feet as Athena climbs up on the foot of the bed with us. I hear a faint scratching sound and turn to look over my shoulder.
Ali is sitting up in bed, one hand laced in my hair and the other pinning a newspaper to his thighs with a pen flicking back and forth between his thumb and forefinger. He's got glasses on. I've never even known he had to wear them until now.
"Since when do you need specs?" I ask sleepily.
"Hmm? Oh. I kind of forget them a lot. But I usually use them when I'm reading or doing the crossword. I dunno if it's something about how they print papers but I always find it hard to read the words."
"Fair enough" I say and go to turn back "seven across is Reptilian, by the way."
"Smartass" is the quick reply. I laugh.
"Don't be up too late doing that, okay?"
"I know, I know"
"I'm going to sleep."
"Goodnight, love you"
"Love you too. Night."
YOU ARE READING
Table For Two
RomanceHarvey Trent is just starting at Bath Spa University. He's come out to his flatmates because he doesn't want to hide anymore. He goes on a date within his first week and it goes... disastrously. The one saving grace is his server, Ali Doherty. Later...
