The Moment | hs au

Elastic Heart

Two sopping wet girls enter Margo's loft. Monica has been silently crying since they departed Liam's apartment.

"Are you alright?" Margo asks Monica. She shakes her head under all the shivering.

Taking Monica's hand, Margo leads her past the living room to the bathroom.

"You can cry, you can let it all out." Margo says, turning on the shower.

"Where do you live? I can call you a taxi when you're done." Margo says but upon seeing the look on Monica's face, she bites her tongue.

"Never mind."

"I live in Pittsburg." Monica says quickly. "I have a plane ticket for Monday."

Margo nods.

"I'll get you some dry clothes." She says, Monica sits down on the toilet lid with her face in her palms, sobbing. Margo is hurting, but she'll never let anyone know that. She's got thick skin. She holds everything in, she's always had to be strong for the sake of other people.

She returns to the bathroom to find that Monica is in the hot shower. The mirrors are already steaming up.

"I brought you some dry clothes." She sets them on the counter, taking a moment to feel the warmth of the air in the bathroom on her skin. Her bones are still shaking when she softly closes the bathroom door.

Feeling like it doesn't matter, she peels her dress off and sits on her bed in her underwear until she hears the shower turn off. The comforter is soft on her bare legs but the wooden floor is hard under her tired feet. The bathroom door opens and Margo almost doesn't recognize the girl that steps out. Her eyes are puffy and red and her hair is matted to her neck. Monica doesn't seem phased that Margo is nearly naked.

"You all right if I shower?" She asks and Monica nods slowly and whispers a thank you.

Usually, Margo would be beyond pissed off at the girl her boyfriend cheated with her on. But Monica is so vulnerable at this moment and she clearly had no idea. Monica needs someone right now.

Margo turns on the water and let's it warm up. She takes off her remaining undergarments and slips into the steamy water. She's instantly warmed up.

For some odd reason, this is when it all hits her. Liam clearly never loved her. She was off his mind and replaced with Monica constantly. He lied. Quiet tears slide over here cheekbones. Angrily wiping them away, she cleans up and exits the water.

She puts on a brave face-Monica needs one-and walks out into her loft. Monica has evidently found the TV remote. She is sitting on the sofa watching Four Weddings when Margo clears her throat.

"Do you have anyone you can stay with? Not to be rude, but I really don't have food or space for you here." Margo says evenly. She holds her towel up around her chest and puts a hand on the sofa to lean on.

Monica looks up with tears shining in her eyes.

"I thought I had Liam." Her voice cracks at the end and soon she's a crying mess again.

Bitterly, Margo says, "Yeah well, I did too. Do you have anywhere to go?" Her attitude has completely flipped towards this girl. She felt empathy earlier, now she's completely over it.

Monica shakes her head without looking up, clearly hurt by Margo's tone.

"Great." Margo sulks over to her closet and puts on some fresh undergarments and a loose tee shirt. She turns off the lamp by her bed and the entire loft goes dark. The only light comes from the television, or the massive windows opposite the room. Trying to ignore Monica's sniffing, Margo throws the sheets over her head and plunges her index fingers into her ears.

As if she only blinked, the loft is suddenly silent and Margo realizes she had fallen asleep. Sweating profoundly, she pushes the blankets off her head and instantly feels refreshed. The biting air soon gets her feeling cold.

And that's when she remembers Monica.

Sitting upright, Margo squints into the loft. She strains her eyes to see the sofa but the darkness forbids it. Sighing, she pulls a blanket off the end of her bed and creeps across the loft. The moonlight outlines the curled up girl on the sofa. Margo tries to delicately lay the blanket over her, but ends up making Monica squirm in her sleep.

Margo goes back to her bed and sighs, looking out the window. She has to let Monica stay here, she can't just dump her on the street. Two days. That's it. Then she can be all alone, just how she likes it.

Except, now she doesn't have Liam. Now Margo truly is alone.

The early morning traffic is what wakes up Margo. Beeping horns and the constant chatter of crowds. The trees on the sidewalk are starting to turn orange, a true sign of autumn.

Margo tosses around in bed for a bit, then just decides to get up. She pulls a pair of black skinny jeans on and a cut-off tee. She tries to be quiet in the bathroom for the sake of Monica.

"Hey Margo?" Monica's hoarse voice comes through the bathroom door. Margo, while still brushing her teeth, opens the door and looks expectantly at Monica.

"I don't have any clothes." She says in a quiet voice, looking bashful.

"Awesome."