| Chapter 14: Elizabeth let out a sigh of relief as she took off her apron and tossed it onto the wooden counter. She grabbed her coat and purse off of the hook and looked outside. "Great, it's raining." She threw up her hands in exasperation and returned the coat and purse back on the hook. She turned around and walked back over to the counter. "There is no way I'm walking home in that." "So stay here." A male voice said. Elizabeth whirled around. "Lucky! You scared me, what are you doing back here?" "It's raining, Elizabeth. You said so yourself that you wouldn't go anywhere in that." Lucky walked behind the counter and filled a cup with soda. He shrugged after taking a long gulp of the cola. "So stay here. Ruby won't care." Lucky grabbed a magazine from behind the counter and moved across the room to sit at one of the tables. Lizzie rolled her eyes and followed, sinking into the chair across from him. "I take it you didn't find Emily?" Lucky was silent, he only stared at the magazine page. "Lucky, you have to talk to her." "What if she won't listen?" Lucky finally looked up and stared at her. "What if she won't hear me out?" Elizabeth folded her arms across her chest. "And what if she does?" Elizabeth sighed. "Listen, Lucky. A half a month ago, I wouldn't have cared less about your friendship with Emily. In fact, I would have wanted any of the possible competition out of the way. But I've seen how much Emily needs you." She leaned forward. "And how much you need her." Lucky was silent, his eyes were focused on the table. "You have to tell her, Lucky. She needs you a lot more than you realize." Lucky stood up. "I'm gonna go get something to eat. Do you want something?" "Honestly Lucky, you can really get on a girl's nerves." "I'll talk to her. I want to be there for her, Liz, I do." He ran his fingers threw his hair. "I just don't want to screw things up more." Emily lifted her hands and face to the rain. It had washed away her tears. The rain was good at that-washing away pain. The ground around her was mud now. In fact, the whole park ground was mud. Her skirt was matted against her legs and her hair was in tangles. She ignored it all. "Look at all of the trouble she caused us." Her grandfather's words had stung. She wished that she could forget them but they played over and over again in her mind. Like a broken record. Am I really that much trouble? She wondered. Am I really in the way? She shook her head and lowered her hands. Why am I always in the way? Emily sank to the ground and lay her head down on the now wet grass. Rain pelted her back, but she didn't even notice. She curled into a ball and let the rain fall down on her. Edward's voice repeating in her mind. Breaking her heart. "Look at all of the trouble she caused us." |