BLUE LACE

05

"Paige?" She breathed, her heart pounding. She heard Paige sigh on the other end, relieved.

"Hey, Em." She whispered.

"Are you okay?" Emily started "I tried calling you and texting you, I was worried..." Her words coming out so fast that they ran together. Paige's voice was still soft, calm.

"My dad took my phone. I don't have your cell memorized. I had to look at the swimming roster for your house number.

I'm sorry its late but I had to hear your voice." Emily's body relaxed slightly, but something in Paige's voice still made her uneasy. She sounded too calm. so much so that it sounded forced. There was a moment of silence before Emily asked.

"Paige, what's going on?" She heard Paige sighed again only this time it wasn't the relief she heard before. God, she could tell even over the phone that Paige was fighting in her head. "Paige?" She pushed.

"Em, my dad is trying to keep me from you. And my mom won't stand up to him..." Emily felt sobs forming in her chest. She knew Paige could hear her struggling to breathe.

"Em, listen to me!" She pleaded "I'm not going to stay away from you, okay? I couldn't!" She could hear Paige fighting back the pain in her voice, masking it with her stubborn anger. Paige got that stubbornness from her dad and Nick McCullers always got what he wanted.

Emily was falling apart.

"Em, i need you to trust me, I'll prove it to you" Paige begged.

It was no use. She trusted Paige with her life but she couldn't keep herself from being completely afraid of losing her.

Maybe it was all the emotions of being with Paige for the first time, maybe it was partly because the she was physically and mentally drained, and maybe the reason didn't really matter because the truth was that she was falling to pieces without Paige near her. She felt vulnerable and alone. This shouldn't be happening.

Everything was finally falling into place. This had been the best 24 hours of her life and now, she felt like her happiness was being ripped from her.

"Em? I gotta go." Paige whispered softly, after several minutes of listening to Emily try to steady her breathing. Emily held her breath now, listening carefully to the softness in her voice. Memorizing it in case she never heard it again.

"I love you." Paige whispered. Emily released the air from her lungs in one rush, smiling through her tears.

"I love you too." she said, tears stained her cheeks. She let the phone fall to her lap after a few minutes. Her chest ached and she couldn't bring herself to move. She hated feeling so helpless.

"Emily, what's wrong?" Her mom appeared in the doorway, walking to sit beside her daughter. Emily's lip trembled as she broke down again.

"Her dad is trying to keep her away from me. And what he wants..he gets" She cried, leaning into her moms shoulder.
She felt her moms arms wrap around her instantly, pulling her close, her jaw clenched against the top of Emily's head.

Trying to find the right thing to say.

"Do you love her?" She asked softly. Emily pulled away to look into her mom's eyes.

"Yes." Emily said surely.

"And I could tell by talking to her a minute ago that she loves you too."

"What did she say?" Emily asked, looking surprised.

"Oh that's between Paige and I." She smiled. "There's nothing Nick McCullers could do to keep her away from you Emily. She ran a hand through Emily's hair, soothing her. "Tests make you stronger." she added. Emily nodded, trying to cling to that hope.