Faded Memories

Chapter 19

Buzz.

Buzz.

I groaned as I rolled over, not happy about the vibrating that was occurring on my bedside table.

Buzz.

I squinted at the light, annoyed at myself for forgetting to close the blinds the night before. It honestly felt like I had been asleep for about ten seconds since I last woke up, having woken up 4 times previously that night from a range of different nightmares. My brain couldn't comprehend my mother coming back into my life it seemed, having suddenly started to sprout memories that I didn't even realise I had stored in my mind.

"Hello?" I picked the phone up, my eyes not having adjusted enough yet to have read the caller ID. There was a pause at the other end, as if the person was contemplating whether they were right to have rang me or not this early on a Saturday.

"Amelia?" The familiar voice filled my ears: Alice - Carter's mother. A sudden wave of panic overtook me: what if something bad had happened to Carter? I'm pretty sure I'm useless to her other than informing me about something having happened, I mean, why would she need me? "Honey, I'm so sorry to ring you so early. Carter mentioned that you aren't going on the trip this weekend, and I know how much Leo loves you, and, well... how do I say this?"

"Alice, It's okay. You can say whatever it is that you need to say." I smiled as I held the phone between my ear and my shoulder, grabbing the glass of water that was on the side and taking a sip. I felt slightly nervous on this call, not sure what Alice was about to say.

"Would you be able to look after Leo tonight? I know that is such a big thing to ask and it's so last minute so forgive me now, but Michael left early this morning for a police thing and he's not back until tomorrow so I was meant to be watching Leo. But, the thing is... I've just been given an opportunity to go to a conference that might push me up higher in my job-"

"Alice, I'd be more than happy to watch Leo tonight. What time do you need me to come over?" I know that I was meant to be keeping my distance from Carter, but technically he's not going to be there this weekend. Alice and Michael had been so lovely to me each time that I've seen them, I couldn't just leave them in the lurch when I had nothing better to do. Besides, I loved Leo. Although, how they trusted me to watch their own child when I was practically a stranger was abnormal to me.

I popped over to Trevor and Ellen's later that day to see whether they would let me borrow their car for the night, very well knowing that they didn't go out on weekend's because everywhere was busier than normal. This time though, I wasn't going to lose the car. It wasn't going to magically return to their house without me, it was going to remain on Carter's driveway the entire evening and I would drive it home tomorrow. I would.

A short while later and I had packed a small overnight bag, making the short journey over to Carter's house - feeling very strange that I would not be seeing him at all over the weekend in his own home. I had barely even knocked on their front door, before it was flung open wide and an adorable little boy launched himself at me.

"Amelia!" Leo sang, almost knocking me over in the process of jumping onto my body. "I can't believe you're staying the night - Carter's going to be so jealous when he finds out!" He burst out into laughter, before suddenly speeding off down the corridor and into the kitchen. I entered the household almost silently, feeling as though I was intruding, before Alice came into view.

"Thank you so much again, Amelia - you're a lifesaver!" Alice walked towards me and gave me a slight hug. "Okay, so, there's some food in the fridge, but I know Leo will beg you for a pizza so there's some cash on the counter. I don't think there's much else you should know, but there's a list of emergency numbers on the fridge - Oh! Leo has football in the morning, but don't worry if he misses it - I can't expect too much of you!"