Her Brother's Best Friend - Aching Hearts Series #2

The next step

Writing at late night and on an empty stomach isn't a good idea. The weirdest things happen, like...finishing a story way before you'd thought...xD

CHAPTER 57 - THE NEXT STEP

ONE MONTH LATER

"How's it going?" Vanessa asked with a giddy smile, dangling her feet above the rug.

Emily shrugged, scanning her closet for something good enough to wear for the night out with Riley alone. "We go on dates. We talk. He recounts me things about our past, I record everything. Then I try to piece it all together at home."

"Nothing yet?"

Emily sighed, grabbing a maroon lace dress. "Snippets here and there, but nothing more than that." She half smiled. "I do admit it's nice spending time with him, though. Riley is ..." she turned back to her friend, a small grin playing on her lips, "Riley is a really nice guy."

"You guys were like ... the it-couple. Or would have been, hadn't fate been so cruel." Vanessa sighed, dropping back on bed. "In the end, you guys barely had time to live your love."

Emily nodded. "Yes, he told me that." She turned back to her clothes. "Said we've encountered a lot of bumps on the way."

"That's an understatement." The honey-blonde girl snorted, making the other chuckle. "You guys have been so jinxed, you'd think you must have pissed off the author real bad."

Emily laughed, shaking her head. "Nah, in that case our roads would have never crossed again."

"Yeah, but, Jeez, Romeo and Juliet had it easier."

The brown-haired girl laughed as she pulled out a pair of dark blue jeans and a striped pullover with a grey cardigan, having decided to opt for something simple on such a peculiar date. "Romeo and Juliet died, Vane." She argued.

"Yeah, but ... wait, what did you just call me?" Vanessa arched an eyebrow, mildly excited.

Emily frowned, turning back to her. "Uh ... Vane? Why? If you don't like it I –"

"No, it's not ... why did you call me that?"

"Uh ... I don't know, it just slipped ... is it wrong?"

Vanessa leaped to her feet, enthusiast, and before she could say one more word, Emily found herself wrapped up in her friend's tight hug, for how confused. "You're starting to remember!" Was all Vanessa exclaimed.

"Uh ... yeah, snippets, I told you, I –"

Vanessa pulled back, gripping the girl's shoulders. "No! That nickname! You've always called me that, yet this is the first time after ... well, you know what."

Emily blinked her eyes, surprised. Lately words did slip more often, be it nicknames or references of some sort, Riley said the same. According to Seth it was the brain's way of dealing with the memories she was recollecting, as if she'd switched on some sort of button, and now memories had a small door to pass through. They just needed to be encouraged.

Her therapist never said, but she knew he thought it, too, because she was sure it was true: the big change was Riley. Spending time with him, being pushed by him to recollect all the lost memories, being incited, stimulated to do so was way more effective than simply gathering what Vanessa could tell her or what her dreams showed her. Somehow she felt that was the second time Riley played such a huge role in her life.

They were close, Emily felt it. Her memories were getting closer and closer, and it was all thanks to Riley. It was like staring at a painting from afar: at first, she could only tell there was a canvas, but with Riley's help she'd been nearing, and by now she could tell the outline of that painting. With time, she'd get to see it whole. Meanwhile ... well, meanwhile the journey was nice.