The Matchmaker

Chapter 11

When Shannon stopped in front of Amy’s house she sat in the car for a few minutes as she composed herself. She wasn’t in the right frame of mind for shopping but she owed it to Amy. She needed to prove she wasn’t going to be controlling anymore. That said all she wanted to do was lock herself in her room and hide away from everyone until it had all blown over.

She was just about to step out of the car when Amy bounded out of the house. Shannon couldn’t stop the smile that came to her lips. Amy looked good dressed in the same jeans from the day before and wore a white fitted top. She had taken the advice from the day before seriously and as much as Shannon felt guilty for the previous days’ events, she still felt proud of the fact that Amy wanted to change. If she didn’t she wouldn’t have.

Unless, of course, she was scared of how Shannon would react. That thought saddened her and she hoped it wasn’t the case.

Amy jumped in the car with a big smile and Shannon was surprised at how happy she looked from the previous day. It perked her up with the thought that perhaps she had helped after all.

Before either of them could say good morning, Amy looked at Shannon with a look of concern crossing her face.

“You look awful, Shannon! Are you okay?”

“Gee thanks for the vote of confidence, Amy.”

Amy’s eyes widened in horror. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean-”

She trailed off and shook her head. Shannon realised how harsh she sounded and chided herself for being so rude. All Amy wanted was a friend and it seemed as though Shannon wasn’t even capable of that.

Shannon took a deep breath and took Amy’s hand. “I didn’t mean to snap, I’m sorry. I’m just having a bad morning.”

Amy looked genuinely concerned. “Is everything okay with you and Brian?”

Hearing his name made Shannon turn cold. “I don’t want to talk about it. So where are we heading? I’m happy to travel up to Brisbane if you like?”

It was obvious Amy wanted to continue with the conversation but she knew better so kept her mouth shut. “Brisbane is too far. I’m happy with whatever you suggest.”

Shannon wasn’t going to argue, she didn’t have the patience to debate any decisions. On the trip to the shopping centre Amy chatted happily and admitted she had mustered up the courage to tell Justin she wanted to know him better. Shannon forced a smile on her face in an attempt to make Amy believe she was happy for her. Deep down she felt completely wretched for forcing her to do such a thing. She hoped it would be for the best and didn’t leave anyone with a broken heart. She took solace in remembering how they reacted when they first met and that gave her a glimmer of hope that it wouldn’t go so badly.

Amy never once stopped talking but Shannon didn’t mind as it meant she didn’t have to talk. She feared if she did talk she would open up to Amy and tell her everything. She wasn’t ready for that yet.

When they started shopping she was glad to be able to push her thoughts aside for a while and just focus on what they had intended to do. While she was there to help Amy she ensured she didn’t dominate any decisions. When things didn’t look good she told her so tactfully, otherwise she let Amy do all the choosing. She was surprised at how well she did and when they had bought all that they needed Shannon concluded Amy had good taste in clothes.

The final stop was the hairdressers. Before they went inside Shannon pulled Amy aside.

“If you decide you don’t want to do this, I understand.”

“No it’s okay, I want to do this. You were right what you said yesterday. A new look will do me good. I should have done it sooner but I never had the motivation to do so. Now that I do, well, I might as well go all out but I don’t want to get it cut really short.”