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“THOUGH SYMPATHY ALONE can't alter facts, it can help to make them more bearable.”
Bram Stoker, Dracula
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ROSE EVENTUALLY LOCATED Grace in their shared bathroom. She had checked the bedroom earlier but found it empty; she hadn’t thought to look in the bathroom.
She sat down on the floor next to Grace and put an arm around her.
“What on earth’s the matter, hon? I got a cryptic text from Sophie saying that you and I needed to talk. Have I done something to upset you?”
Grace scrubbed her face with the corner of her sleeve, trying to eradicate the last trace of tears.
“Oh, Rose, I can’t tell you. But I promise it’s not you. You’re great, I’m the one who’s a bad friend.”
Rose looked alarmed. “You have to tell me now. I’ll worry myself to death otherwise.”
“I can’t,” Grace hung her head, “you’ll hate me.”
“I don’t care what it is, I’ll never hate you, okay? We’re forever friends.” Rose reached for the tissues as Grace began to cry again.
“You will. I’m so sorry, the thing is...” Grace hiccupped and sniffed into the tissue, “God, I don’t know how to say this...I’ve been in love with your boyfriend for years.”
“Oh.” Rose pulled away ever so slightly. “Does Leo know?”
“Not Leo.” Her tears began to fall, “Ben. I’m so sorry.”
“Ben?” Rose blinked, trying to take it in. “You’re in love with Ben?”
Grace nodded and blew her nose. “All that time you were together, I tried really hard to meet someone else but they don’t compare. He’s so amazing. He’s kind and generous and everybody likes him. He’s handsome and talented, do you know he plays the piano at a grade nine?” Her voice softened as she thought about him, “He loves the sea; his brothers like cars but Ben likes boats, he prefers the quiet of the ocean to the noise of a racetrack. Every summer his parents rent a gîte in the south of France and he sails every day. Sometimes he goes fishing with his dad, he knows how to fillet a fish and cook it right there on the boat. He goes blonder in the sun and gets a million freckles on his shoulders.” She stopped, realising who she was talking to.
“Go on,” said Rose gently.
Grace found she couldn’t stop, she’d bottled all the information inside herself for too long, “His favourite colour is yellow. Every day he gets toast and beans for breakfast but he never eats the beans, he just likes the toast soggy from the sauce. His favourite drink is lemonade, he likes it with loads of ice. He’s scored seven tries this season in rugby, twelve last year, as well as one drop-goal. He’s an Aquarius, his horoscope said that he would have trouble in his home life today if he didn’t watch his finances. I know his timetable backwards, I know everything about him. And I know he’s still in love with you.”
“Good gracious! How on earth do you know all that?”
“Because I listen when he talks, even though he was talking to you, not me, most of the time.”
“I don’t remember him saying all that.” Rose handed Grace some more tissue. “You’ve got it bad, huh?”
Grace sniffed some more, “How much do you hate me?”
“I don’t hate you at all, you moron! I might have been a bit miffed when Ben and I were together, but even then I didn’t feel half as strongly as you clearly do. I probably would have ended it years ago if I’d known! I’m completely in love with Leo. I like Ben, but only as a friend.”
“But I’ve been lusting after your boyfriend, whilst you were going out with him! It’s just so not cool. I feel like the worst friend ever.”
Rose hugged her. “You’re the nicest friend ever. You chose our friendship over a boy all this time. Not every girl would have done that. Now, stop crying, because it’s making you resemble a bullfrog. You’ve gone all puffy, and you won’t get Ben looking like that.”
Grace hugged her back, “But I don’t want to get Ben, not when he’s still hung up on you. And even if he wasn’t, he’s getting off with Jenna Mayhew now, so it’s a moot point.”
“Pah, you are a million times better suited to him than Jenna. She’s all looks and no brains.”
Grace sniffed some more, “I wish that were true, but she’s really clever too. She’s prettier than me and smarter than me. I’m just so incredibly average in every way. You and Sophie always get noticed, but I never do.”
“Oh, Grace, please don’t think like that, you get loads of attention, you’re just downright fussy. Lets deal with the Jenna issue later. I’ve got to get you to realise that, first of all, I don’t care about you liking Ben, and secondly, that Ben doesn’t still care about me. I talked to him when I got together with Leo and he was fine about it, not that bothered at all.”
Grace shook her head, “I’m sure you’re wrong. He’s just good at hiding his feelings.”
“We’ll see.” Rose was sure she wasn’t wrong. “In the meantime, how about we get Sophie on the case? She’s much better in these situations than me.”
Grace nodded, just very glad it was all out in the open at last. It was a massive weight off her shoulders that she hadn’t even realised she was carrying around.
If Rose was truly okay with it, then maybe she should fight for Ben?