Home

Silence

Ali's POV

Alone at last. The silence is deafening. It's taking every ounce of me to not run over to her and kiss her. But I must be patient.

"So, what would you like to do now? Are you hungry? I can make you something to eat if you'd like" I asked shyly. "I think I'll settle for a shower for now. When I get out, can I have some breakfast? If that's not too much to ask" she replied nervously ringing her hands. "Of course I can do that. I'll start when I hear the water turn off" I replied. Averting her eyes to the floor, Emily smiled ever so sweetly like she's done for all these years. That smile is one of the things I love most about her. It made my heart skip a beat when she did that. My Em is still in there. She'll come back to me.

As soon as I heard the water turn off, I started the eggs, bacon, and lemon blueberry pancakes.... Emily's favorites. I wonder if she'll remember that she loves them. Before long, breakfast was ready. Emily was already sitting at the table... in the chair she always sat in. She chose her oversized pj's and French braided her still wet hair. Looking at her in that moment was like dejavu. This was our routine on the weekends. I hope this stirs something in her because she's acting exactly the same way she did before that horrible night.

With widened eyes she said, "Oh goodness. This looks great. Smells amazing too. Thank you". I grabbed my cup of tea and sat down at my usual seat next to her. She was so hungry and was clearly enjoying every bite. That's another thing I love about her. The girl loves to eat. Wanting to break the silence I said, "So Em, do you have any questions for me? I'm an open book". She paused for a moment and said, "Well can you tell me about how I became friends with you, Aria, Spencer, and Hanna? I feel like that would be a good start".

So I preceded to tell her about the first day we saw her our freshman year of high school. Minus the part about me being attracted to her. I don't want to overwhelm her with that. She laughed at the story and was surprised she acted that way towards me. She also said she couldn't believe that I used to be your typical queen bee. "You seem too nice and too good of a person" she said. "Emily, would you like to look at your old photo albums from high school? I can tell you more stories" I suggested. "Oh sure! Maybe that will help me remember something" she responded. For the next few hours, we sat on the couch looking at old pictures. For each picture I shared the story behind it. It seemed like Emily couldn't get enough and continually urged me to keep sharing stories. We laughed a lot during those hours. With each passing hour, Emily relaxed more and more. It made the world of difference to me that she appeared more at ease around me. It felt like old times again. Only with a new circumstance. It's amazing to me that even with this memory block between us, the connection still remains. It's undeniable. It's organic and effortless. I'm probably crazy too, but I swear I caught a glimpse of the same way she used to look at me. Maybe I am crazy and was just willing it to be there.

At around 3 o'clock, Emily decided she would take a nap before dinner. I didn't want our time to tend but I knew she still needed her rest.