Before and Now (GirlxGirl)

Chapter 8

Gracie's POV:

I was standing behind our school. It was now 4:26 P.M.

The sun was shining brightly, reflecting on the broken pieces of glass on the asphalt. Creating little rainbows everywhere.

Oh, the beautiful irony.

I saw it everywhere now. It followed me everywhere. So obvious.

How was I so blind? And how had everyone around me could have been so blind?

They were supposed to be my family, my friends. They were supposed to care about me, to love me. Yet, they were just as blind as I had been for the past two months.

My mind was twirling in a nightmarish spiral impossible to escape. My thoughts were all over the place. I...

« Gracie ».

I turned around, facing the woman that was my lover in my past life.

She was standing there, innocently looking, her aviator glasses on the bridge of her nose. She was wearing a simple light blue sweater, way too large for her. A black trouser, where she hid her hands deep in its pockets, with matching colors sneakers and the visible straps of her backpack. She looked cute like that but also strangely vulnerable.

I looked up at her face. She quickly averted her gaze, pushing her glasses up her nose.

« I...I brought some snacks...if you're hungry? » she said clearing her throat and taking off her backpack to open it.

« W...Wait » I looked around. No one was here but someone might see us. I wasn't ready to explain to the girls or my family my connection with Colleen. I didn't even know it myself.

As I looked back at Colleen, I saw that sad expression again but she was quick to pull herself together. In just a microsecond it disappeared behind a soft smile.

« We should go somewhere else » she suggested, knowing fully well what I was thinking « Where no one will see us ».

« Where? »

She put back her backpack on her shoulders, looking at the ground in thoughts.

« Uh... » she started playing with her sleeves « I...uh ».

I remembered the treehouse. It was the perfect time to go there. First, because it was secluded and second because I needed to know. I needed to see it for real.

Maybe it will help me regain some memories. It was my chance.

« The treehouse »

Her head jerked up, eyebrows raised and mouth wide open. She had stopped playing with her sleeves. Her mouth moved as she was about to speak but nothing came out.

It must be how people looked like when they were in shock?

I thought I really needed to explained myself because poor Colleen looked like she was about to have a heart attack. I couldn't help but find her confusion quite endearing but I needed to put that girl out of her misery.

« I do n...not remember...yet » I let out.

She frowned, clearly even more confused.

« Then...how...how do you know about that? » Before I could reply her eyes widened « Wait...do...do you know...about... » she gestured from her to me back and forth.

« Ab....about us? » I tried to guess what she wanted to say. In result, she nodded slowly in shock.

« How?...Did someone tell you?...No...No, it's impossible. No one knew. So,... »