Vanessa
After a hot bath and a warm meal, Alice finally calmed down.
With the rain now ceased, we sat in the garden in silence – Ryan and Owen included – as Alice slowly sipped on her coffee. Ryan and I exchanged glances, silently asking the other to speak first. The situation had grown from serious to awkward in the last hour with everyone unsure on how to address it.
Alice and I were close but most of the times, when we spoke about certain issues, I was the yapper and she the listener who only spoke when she felt to need to drop a comment or two. I never had to coax her into talking about herself, and I had no clue how to do that now.
“I’m okay, you know?” Alice said with a soft chuckle as she set her cup down.
As if released from an uncomfortable spell, Owen and I sighed simultane
