The Notebook

Good Morning!

Laura opened her eyes. For a moment she didn't know where she was. Then the memories hit her. She pushed them away.

Slowly she tried to get up. Her body was sore. Every movement hurt.

She managed to go to the bathroom which wasn't easy, cause of the dizziness and the pounding pain in her head, apart from her bandaged feet.

The light she turned on over the mirror blinded her like the midday sun in her last vacation in Italy.

She looked at her reflection and almost screamed out. She looked horrible. One eye was purple and swollen. The other one was red from crying. There were big black lines on her cheeks which used to be her mascara. Tears wanted to come back but she swallowed them down.

She turned on the faucet. Water ran over her hands. She closed her eyes and concentrated on breathing and the relaxing feeling the cold water on her skin gave her.

She washed her face and managed to turn her tousled hair into a pigtail.

Slowly she walked downstairs.

Benedict sat in a chair in front of the fire and read the newspapers.

"Morning!", she said with a scratchy voice and slowly walked over to him.

Ben looked up. He smiled. "Good Morning! Well actually Good afternoon!"

Laura sat down in the chair next to him. She tried to smile.

"How are you feeling?", he asked while he folded the newspaper and laid it on the side table next to her.

"Ok.", she lied. Her throat was as dry as sandpaper, she sounded horrible.

"Tea?", Ben asked her.

She nodded. "Please."

He walked to the kitchen. She just stared into the fire and listened to the cracking wood.

Shortly she was frightened as Benedict suddenly stood next to her with a cup of tea. She took it and whispered a "Thanks."

He sat down again and looked at her as she took little sips of the black tea. She almost couldn't stand the look in his eyes. Of course he had questions but she was too confused to even answer her own. But there was also something different in his eyes, something she couldn't identify.

"Listen I...", she began.

"Do you...", he said at the same time.

"I can't talk about it yet.", Laura finally said after they looked at each other for a moment that felt like a lifetime.

"Oh I didn't mean to... If I did something that...", Ben stuttered.

"It's not your fault. I know you have questions... It's just that I can't talk about it yet.", she explained.

"So you remember...Okay. Take your time. And I'm sorry if..."

"Ben could you please stop apologizing! You've done nothing wrong!", like Brian did, she added in her thoughts.

She felt guilty for being that harsh to Ben but all she wanted to is forget what happened on the way home after the party.

They both stared in the fire again.

"Would you like to eat something? My mum made chicken soup.", he broke the silence.

"Where are your parents?"

"They left yesterday after you fell asleep."

"Yesterday?!"

"Yeah!"

"Oh." Laura's mind was spinning. Did she really slept that long?!

"So do you...?"

"Soup would be nice."

Ben got up. He was half way in the kitchen as Laura's words made him stop.

"Ben?"

He turned around.

"Thank you... for everything."

"It's my pleasure." He smiled.

Laura smiled back and this time, she meant it.