Crushing On You

Arc 3: What Love Can Do

Leigh felt too disappointed to finish her soup.

"Okay I finished washing up all of your soiled clothes and I have called my guy to buy you a new pair of school shoes. Oh and yes I have scheduled a session with your new psychologist and don't worry. You don't have to leave. She'll be coming here." Sairah came into the kitchen with an air of excitement. She smiled at her little sister who was sitting at her table, appearing to be down in the dumps. "She's a great person okay Lee-Lee? She's one of my friends." Sairah wriggled her brows.

Leigh frowned. "D-do I know her?"

Sairah nodded. "Yeah. You met her. She's an actual lesbian remember?"

Leigh's face lit up but she didn't smile. "Nicole is it?"

Sairah winked.

Leigh sported a short smile as she played around with her alphabet soup but then she frowned. "Wait she's done studying psychology? How long has it been? Wasn't she a teen at high school last we saw her?"

Sairah rolled her eyes. "Leigh she has all of her stuff in order. She studied for the full seven years okay?"

"But wasn't she in high school last I met her?"

Sairah shook her head.

"She wasn't?"

"Well she was but she later got accepted into a program and had to leave all of us to begin to pursue her dreams." Sairah wiped away an imaginary tear before smiling again. "Don't worry babe she'll take care of you. She'll totally understand all of your troubles since she's well . . . like you in a way."

Leigh-Anne felt a little less nervous about her session now. "Gee Sairah thank you. You must have had to do a lot to ensure that the psychologist I'm seeing is your friend."

"Not really." Sairah sat in front of her and pouted. "Can't you eat the rest of it hun?"

Leigh blew a raspberry. "No not really. I don't really feel up for anything to eat you see." She pushed the bowl away.

Sairah looked at how downcast Leigh appeared. "What's got you like this? Did more boys corner you today at school?"

Leigh shook her head. "Nothing like that." She started to remember everything that led up to her current state. When I get really anxious I tend to feel ashamed of myself. I don't know. I like it when I keep it together. I just feel as if I've been regressing since we've moved here. She pouted and felt ready to cry.

"Lee-Lee what's wrong?" Sairah asked her gently. "You can talk to me can't you?"

Leigh looked up at her with watery eyes. "S-Sairah I don't want to have a trial against Mum." She said in a little broken voice.

Sairah frowned. "What? Why not? Don't you think that it'd be better to live with me than her? She doesn't understand you or your condition. She's gonna drive you insane Lee-Lee. Why are you saying this?"

Leigh sniffed. She looked into her bowl which was a bit of distance away now. "S-Sairah she's my mum. I can't just leave her all alone. Everything she's done has been for me and well she believes that she knows what's best for me. It'd be like me slapping her in the face if I just left her like that. Isn't it bad to abandon your parents? I mean she's done so much for me. She's raised me and-and taken care of me and loved me. I can't just-"

Sairah was shaking her head in disgust. "I can't believe this."

Leigh watched as Sairah got up. "What?"

"Mum tried to get into your head last night didn't she? What you're saying sounds like the shit that she'd say for sure."

Leigh gulped. Was it that obvious? "Well . . . she did speak to me but I actually started to consider what she sa-"