Touch The Sky | ✓

Sixteen

Over the next few days, I continue to process how I feel in my brain.

Life without Seth feels slightly less colourful. I notice it mostly in the day-to-day aspect, where something small happens and I immediately want to text him about it.

When we finally make the decision at work and choose who to send away with Mr Garth's brother, and who their replacement will be, it's Seth I want to tell. When Karen brings in soup for both of us one day, I want to message Seth and tell him that it wasn't as tasty as his.

When Terry phones me, telling me that he still hasn't spoken to Mom, it's Seth I want to turn to for advice on how to be there for my baby brother.

So, I don't really surprise myself when on Saturday, a week after I last saw him, I pick up the phone and dial his number.

With each ring, the sick feeling in my stomach grows. What if he's deliberately ignoring me? What if he just doesn't want to talk to me?

I should give Seth more credit, though.

When he does answer, he sounds a little out of breath. 'Hello? Cora?'

'Hey,' I say simply, not really sure what to do. 'Is this a bad time?'

Something shuffles in the background. 'No, no. It's not a bad time at all,' he quickly assures me. 'What's up?'

'Can I come over?' I blurt out.

Honestly, all I've wanted to do all week is just to seeSeth. To hear his voice and have him pull me into one of his tight hugs again. I've become so used to him.

'Sure,' he agrees immediately. 'I mean, yeah, of course. When were you thinking?'

His unreserved affirmation sends a bolt of confidence through me. Despite the fact I haven't spoken to him all week, he does actually still want to see me.

'Is, um, is now okay with you? I mean, it'll take me a while to get to you, but yeah. I can set off now?' I suggest.

I can almost hear the smile in his voice as he tells me that it's fine.

Unable to keep the smile off my own face, I quickly get changed into jeans and a woollen cream jumper. I pop into Rose's room and explain that I'm going to see Seth.

She just grins at me.

As I sit on the underground, the realisation that I don't really know what I'm going to say comes crashing down. All-too-soon, I'm at the stop where I need to get off and reluctantly, I stand up from my seat and leave.

The walk to his flat from the station seems to pass by in an instant and by the time I reach his building, I still haven't made any progress with what I want to say.

Still, I ring the buzzer, in the hope that seeing him might inspire me somehow. I can only try, right?

I climb the stairs up to his apartment to find that he's standing at the door, waiting for me.

We look at each other for a moment before I move towards him. Wordlessly, he opens his arms to me and I find myself once more enveloped in his scent.

After a while, I pull back and look at his face. 'Hey.'

'Hello,' he murmurs softly, a gentle smile lighting his face.

Neither of us move for a while and I feel a very strong tug in my abdomen at the sight of that smile just sitting casually on his face.

'Do you want to come in?' he suggests eventually. 'I made some lunch.'

To his credit, Seth has pulled out all the stops in the forty minutes or so that he had. Out of the oven, he pulls a big pan full to the brim of nachos.