FAR FROM ERIS • FreenBecky •

E P I L O G U E

Freen's eyelids closed again as if pushed by an invisible force. She couldn't stay awake no matter how hard she tried, and her patience was starting to vanish.

-I think you should go to bed- a voice from the door of her office said.

-The problem is that lying down, I'm unable to sleep- she sighed.

-Freen, it's normal. You have less than a week left until your due date. It's odd that you're still standing, given that it's easier to jump over you than to walk around you right now.-

-Thanks for reminding me that I'm a belly with limbs, Nam.-

-You're welcome- she chuckled. -I can't wait to see my niece's face.-

-I wish you didn't have to wait another day, I swear, I'm desperate. I need her to come out- Freen grumbled, pointing at her belly.

-You'll miss being pregnant afterward, you'll see- Nam said, turning to leave the hallway.

-Nam- Freen stopped her. -I don't know how to thank you for everything you're doing for me.-

-Don't be silly, I would do anything for you,- she looked directly into Freen's eyes. -I would never, listen to me, never let you go through this alone.-

-I know- Freen said as her eyes welled up. -Now it's going to be the three of us against the world, right?-

-Always.-

Freen fell silent again. Her desk was covered in notes, the computer was on, and the word processor blinked in front of her eyes. It had been a month since she finished writing her third book, and she felt empty. Although she should be nervous about what was to come, she felt strangely calm as she caressed her nine-month belly.

She had always wanted to be a mother, and when her relationship ended two years ago, she decided not to wait to find the right person to take that step. She had already turned thirty-five, and she didn't want to keep waiting for life to bring someone who truly wanted to start a family with her.

But she was fine. She was happy somehow, although that emptiness remained there, like a hole in her chest. Nam had personally taken care not to let her fall during those years, and in the final stretch of her pregnancy, she had forced her to move in with her so she wouldn't be alone at any moment; neither before nor after the baby arrived.

Her phone lit up on the table, and that jump in her stomach bitterly reminded her that she no longer texted her. Two years had passed, and she still remembered that feeling. But that decision to separate, painful as it was for Freen, was the best thing that could have happened to her. She needed things, she needed more. And she would do it with her, or alone.

The flower shop was quiet that day. There was no music, no one humming, no laughter from customers who always came with their stories. Becky had been enjoying the silence for several days. She had learned to appreciate it over time. She supposed that after spending so much time with Freen, she ended up being infected by that inner world of hers that isolated her from the rest of the universe.

She missed her very much. She saw her everywhere; in the flowers she manipulated, in the colors of the furniture, and in the empty spaces on the floor where she had often observed her sitting while reading. She saw her in the reflection of the shop window as if she were a ghost, she heard her walking down the apartment hallway even though she wasn't there, and sometimes she caught her scent while walking down the street. As if they had crossed paths in different realities and she couldn't see her, but could feel her.

-Hello stranger- Irin said entering the shop. -Can I come in?-

-Hi- Becky smiled.

-It's pretty quiet around here- she said looking around. -The bookstore isn't exactly bustling either.-