Slipperless Series (Book #1)(33)

I closed my eyes for a moment. “I need for you to promise you won’t judge me.”

“Oh Fiona, don’t be silly. Why would you even think such a thing?”

She filled my vision once more as I reopened my eyes. I shrugged as I started to reply. “It’s hard to explain.”

“Try.”

“Um, I don’t know. I just don’t fit in. On the other hand, I never have, so it’s not really a surprise.”

My grandmother remained silent for a moment or so before she spoke once more.

“Fiona, I want you to listen to me, all right?”

I nodded. “Okay.”

“My dear…” she began as she folded her hands in her lap. “You’ve made so much progress the past few years while you were in college. You’ve been making friends, meeting people. Whatever the problem is, it can’t be so bad that you’d want to go back to the way you used to be. You can’t hide yourself from the world.”

“I know.”

“I was so worried about you during those years. Worried you’d always be a loner, grow up with no friends with your nose always buried in your schoolwork or a book. But look at you now. You’re becoming a woman. And while I think the idea of an office romance is a bad one, it’s clear you’ve at least got him interested in you. That should make you feel good about yourself.”

As she finished her thought, I pulled my knees in towards my chest, hugging them close while leaning back in the recliner. If I believed Gabe was interested in me, she would have a point. But, I had no idea if he was or not, and at this point, my life in the lab would be far easier if he wasn’t. As I ruminated, my grandmother repositioned herself in the bed, assuming an upright, focused posture.

“Fiona, the truth is someday soon… I won’t be here any longer.”

No sooner had she uttered the words than the emotions of the day I buried came roaring back. Almost on cue, my eyes filled with liquid and before I realized it rivulets of wet heat ran down my cheeks.

“Please d-don’t s-say that…” I muttered.

“Well, it’s true dear.”

My upper body convulsed as the notion of her being gone from my life overwhelmed me.

“Fiona, come here. Come give me a hug.”

The springs in the old recliner twanged as I stood. Walking over towards her, I wiped at the fresh discharge of tears, drying my face as best I could. I reached over and hugged her frail body as my grandmother extended her arms around me. She patted me on the back, soothing me with ‘there there's’ and ‘it’s okay’s’. We embraced for a few more moments until at last she spoke once more.

“Sit down, Fiona. Tell me what’s happened.”

I told her everything. I left nothing out. Though I’d been keeping it all a secret for a while now, I didn’t see the point any longer. The situation was getting to be more than I could handle. I needed help.

“What do you think I should do?” I asked her as I finished. “I don’t understand why they are being so mean. I haven’t done anything to them.”

“Well, for starters,” she sniffed, as she straightened her posture in the bed again. “Never let them push you around, if that's what is really going on. Furthermore, the answer to their behavior is obvious, Fiona.”

“It is? What do you mean?”

“Don’t you see? They’re jealous of you. The only question is, what are you going to do about it?”

I shrugged. Reaching down, I touched my bracelet for a moment. As I did, I felt my grandmother’s thin fingers wrap around my shoulder.

“You can’t let them win. You realize that don’t you?”

“Yes,” I said, as I let out a deep exhale. “I know.”

“Okay then. I’ll ask you once more. What are you going to do about it?”

“I don’t know for sure. For now, I’m catching up as fast as I can. I’m doing everything in my power to avoid a huge fight with them, as it will only make things much worse. It’s getting more difficult by the day though.”

My grandmother reached towards my hand, wrapping hers over it until they both covered my charm bracelet. I glanced up at her, and a reassuring smile came to her face.

“Fight. Never back down.”

I smiled back at her. “Now you sound like Gabe.”



GABE

After the minor flare-up in the lab with Fiona’s experiment, things had more or less returned to normal. Over the past several days, I’d received word from Andrew that the apparent friction between Fiona, Amanda and Melissa cooled. As I mentioned, in any other circumstance, I would have put a stop to the catty bullshit myself, but Fiona needed to rise to the challenge.