ᴛʜᴇ ʀɪᴠᴀʟꜱ ᴄᴏɴᴛʀᴀᴄᴛ

₀₂₅

𝘙𝘏𝘠𝘚 𝘔𝘖𝘖𝘙𝘌

I'VE NEVER SEEN SOMEONE AS focused as Wren. She takes in all the news about her mother like someone is telling her ice cream flavors. Totally blank.

We haven't actually seen her mother-Margo. But we've heard just about everything that is wrong with her. The doctors said that she'd gone from bad to worse since yesterday night to this morning. Her airway is restricted but having surgery would cause more harm then good.

Just listening to this makes me uncomfortable, I don't know how Wren is managing to keep it together. It's her mother. And she's acting like she's a doctor talking about a patient she doesn't know.

After a few more minutes of the doctor talking to Wren, she walks away. Wren turns to me with her mask on tight, but when she sees i'm the only one in the room, she lets her eyes fall.

"You don't have to stay here. I know you have work to do and this is probably the last thing you want to be doing. I won't cry if you leave." She shrugs.

"I'll stay." I take a seat on one of the chairs and she follows.

It's quiet, but oddly not awkward. There's a tv playing faintly in the back and I pick up a magazine. Wren looks into space. I feel a weird tug inside my chest when I look at her.

"Do you want a coffee?" I ask, getting to my feet.

"I'll go with you." She stands up and we walk to the food area.

I order a black coffee and Wren orders a green tea with lemon. I almost smile at how perfect the drink order matches her.

She picks out a small bracelet at the gift shop and before she can pay for it, I add in two wrapped brownies, and hand over my card.

Wren's eyes search my face as I take my things off the counter. She then slides the bracelet off the counter and places it in her fist.

We walk out of the gift shop and Wren takes my wrist in her free hand, and starts leading me to the elevators. "I'm just going to give her this bracelet and then we can leave." She says; my arm still in her grip.

I slide my arm up so that I can intertwine our fingers. Wren looks at our hands before looking at me.

"If you do things like that, i'm going to start thinking you like me." You have no idea.

I rub my thumb on her hand in response. She narrows her eyes at me. And then the elevator stops and opens. Surprising me, Wren doesn't let me go as we walk to her mothers room.

We walk into a room and hear the beeps of machines, then the sound of heavy breathing. I see a woman, who's wrinkled but otherwise young-looking; sleeping. She has the same hair color as Wren, but that's it.

Wren walks over to her mother and lets go of my hand-not before I give it a squeeze. She looks strangely disassociated when she lifts her mother's hand and slips the bracelet on her wrist.

It's a simple gesture but I feel like it has a heavier meaning. One that i'm afraid to ask about. One that i'm afraid that if I do ask about, it'll make me fall deeper and deeper.

Wren places her mother's hand down and stares at the woman on the bed before rubbing her own nose-almost irritated-and turns back to me. Neutral.