You drew stars around my scars

it's not fair

Taylor had a morning of interviews – starting at 7am, then finishing at 2pm. She couldn't pick Jessica up from the treatment centre after lunch but Andrea had stepped in and offered to collect her and stay with her until Taylor was back. In her mind, Taylor had promised herself she would be back in time to eat Jessica's snack with her – knowing that the girl hated eating in front of other people still, even if that person was Andrea.

Taylor had recapped all the rules with her Mum – just in case she couldn't get back, she really didn't want to cause any unnecessary worry.

On the day, the interviews had gone well and Taylor and Tree arrived back at Taylor's as quickly as they could but they were well into Jessica's snack time. Taylor's guilt was already increasing but she put on a calm face as she walked into the house. As the pair of them headed into the dining room, her eyes scanned the teen for any signs of distress. She immediately noticed Jessica's tense muscles, hunched shoulders and her vacant stare. Taylor's heart broke for the girl knowing what a battle it was.

She walked over casually, standing next to Jessica and placing an arm around her shoulders – giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

As Jessica looked up at her, she reached her arms around the blonde's waist – hugging into her closely. Taylor placed a hand on the back of Jessica's head – trying to reassure her that she was there for her now but the teen's chin wobbled as she tried to hold back her tears.

Taylor looked down at her – smiling softly "Hey, you're ok!"

Jessica nodded as she laid her head against Taylor's stomach. The teen looked towards Tree – giving her a small smile too but there was a layer of panic bubbling underneath.

Taylor turned back to Andrea, a quizzical look on her face.

Andrea purposefully kept her voice light "Jessica just has a tiny bit of her snack left, so if you two want to go into the living room – we will be in as soon as she's done..."

Taylor was about to shoot down the idea, saying she'd sit with them but Jessica's voice cut through first "I want her to stay!"

Andrea smiled kindly at the girl "no, we are going to finish it – just you and me. You can see her in a minute, when you're done..."

Taylor's guilt immediately bubbled up and she gave Andrea a hard stare. She knew Jessica would be panicked and she didn't like causing the girl unnecessary distress.

The teen looked back up at Taylor again, her voice wobbling as she spoke "I don't like it!"

Taylor glanced down at the food, "you do like it baby – you have it all the time!"

Jessica shook her head, ready to argue again but this time Tree stepped in "Andrea is right, you are nearly done. I'm going to borrow Taylor for a bit and you can come right in when you've eaten the rest of your snack!"

Before either of them could protest, Tree grabbed Taylor's hand and led her away. Taylor glared at her as the redhead nudged her down onto the sofa "why did you do that?! She was upset – I could have helped!"

Tree nodded, her voice kind but firm "I know you could, but this is part of recovery – eating in different settings. You can't always be there Tay, she's managed 80% of it – she can do the rest but as soon as you step in, she relies on you. She has to know she can do it without you – even when it's hard!"

Taylor sighed, knowing she was right but still hating causing the extra upset. She rolled her eyes slightly "you used to do this to me too, remember?"

Tree smirked slightly "yeah, I remember when I gave you lunch and left you with the rest of the team while I had an imaginary meeting"