reached out to find him; she really forced it. The feeling was faint, but it was enough of a handhold for her to grasp. There you are. She let the sensation recede again, happy to let the angry feeling dissipate.
Ari's thoughts lead her to the other figure in the garden. Perhaps I can find the other one too. She closed her eyes and tried to search for the positive feelings she now associated with the second person. In her mind, she held the image of the silhouette. She searched, finally glimpsing a trace of it somewhere off in the distance.
The two sensations were such a contrast to each other. Both so distinguishable, both so different to the vibes radiated from people she knew, her friends and her family. No one else could affect her the way the two strangers did.
For now, they were nowhere near her and that brought relief. She had been living cautiously, in fear of one of them showing up.
If somebody wanted to find me, it wouldn’t be that hard, they’d be here already , she told herself.
She pushed the shadow figures to the back of her mind, no longer searching for them. In fact, she went so far as to hide them away. Years of practice meant she could ignore all but the most severe emotions around her. Looking for them had become an addiction. She had to stop. It was time to get on with life.
It took a few days, but then she started getting back into her normal routines. She needed to rid herself of all the worry. After all, there would be no point going on holiday if she was too scared to leave the hotel room.
*****
Ari had been a crappy friend to Nevaeh these last few months and was set on making up for it before they went away together. Nevaeh had had her final shift at the garden centre the previous week. It would be a safe bet she would be at home now. Just to be sure, Ari flicked Nevaeh a quick text, letting her know she was on her way.
Ari pulled at the bottom of her navy blue shorts. They put her legs on display, nearly all the way up, but they were so comfy to run in, and that was what she intended to do after seeing Nevaeh.
“Hey stranger,” Nevaeh wrenched open her front door before Ari had a chance to knock. Red glass panels in the middle of the blue wooden framing reflected a cheerful glow. Nevaeh pulled the door wider, until it rested against the hooks of the coat rack behind it. Ari kicked off her shoes, adding them to the pile, and stepped inside.
“I'm just getting something for breakfast. You want some?”
Ari followed Nevaeh to the kitchen, watching as she tried to flatten out the knots of hair on the back of her head. Her pyjamas, red and black oriental shorties and singlet, were well worn, the hem frayed.
“No thanks, I'm heading out for a run after this. But I'll have a drink,” Ari replied. Going by Nevaeh’s attire and the crease line on her left cheek, Ari assumed her text had proved to be the incentive for Nevaeh to get up. Not a big surprise, considering it was only 9:00 am.
Ari heaved herself onto a bar stool and rested her elbows on the kitchen bench, watching her friend fix herself some porridge.
“Hello, Ari,” Mrs van Houten’s face brightened. “Have you come to take Nevaeh out for a bit of exercise?”
“Not likely Mum,” Nevaeh screwed up her nose. “Not at this ungodly hour.”
“A bit of fresh air would do you good, love.”
“I’m saving my lungs for the Phuket fresh air.” Nevaeh put an arm around her mother and gave a squeeze.
Nevaeh’s focus rounded on Ari again.
“Oh, that reminds me, I've got something to show you.” She bounded out of the kitchen.
“How are you going, Ari?” Mrs van Houten asked.
“Getting better by the day.” She’d been saying that since the accident, and it was finally beginning to feel true.
“I’m happy to hear it. We miss seeing you around the place.” She gave Ari’s arm a motherly rub. Nevaeh reappeared at the doorway with a flourish.
“Ta da.” A new bikini hung from a small coat hanger.
Ari's thoughts lead her to the other figure in the garden. Perhaps I can find the other one too. She closed her eyes and tried to search for the positive feelings she now associated with the second person. In her mind, she held the image of the silhouette. She searched, finally glimpsing a trace of it somewhere off in the distance.
The two sensations were such a contrast to each other. Both so distinguishable, both so different to the vibes radiated from people she knew, her friends and her family. No one else could affect her the way the two strangers did.
For now, they were nowhere near her and that brought relief. She had been living cautiously, in fear of one of them showing up.
If somebody wanted to find me, it wouldn’t be that hard, they’d be here already , she told herself.
She pushed the shadow figures to the back of her mind, no longer searching for them. In fact, she went so far as to hide them away. Years of practice meant she could ignore all but the most severe emotions around her. Looking for them had become an addiction. She had to stop. It was time to get on with life.
It took a few days, but then she started getting back into her normal routines. She needed to rid herself of all the worry. After all, there would be no point going on holiday if she was too scared to leave the hotel room.
*****
Ari had been a crappy friend to Nevaeh these last few months and was set on making up for it before they went away together. Nevaeh had had her final shift at the garden centre the previous week. It would be a safe bet she would be at home now. Just to be sure, Ari flicked Nevaeh a quick text, letting her know she was on her way.
Ari pulled at the bottom of her navy blue shorts. They put her legs on display, nearly all the way up, but they were so comfy to run in, and that was what she intended to do after seeing Nevaeh.
“Hey stranger,” Nevaeh wrenched open her front door before Ari had a chance to knock. Red glass panels in the middle of the blue wooden framing reflected a cheerful glow. Nevaeh pulled the door wider, until it rested against the hooks of the coat rack behind it. Ari kicked off her shoes, adding them to the pile, and stepped inside.
“I'm just getting something for breakfast. You want some?”
Ari followed Nevaeh to the kitchen, watching as she tried to flatten out the knots of hair on the back of her head. Her pyjamas, red and black oriental shorties and singlet, were well worn, the hem frayed.
“No thanks, I'm heading out for a run after this. But I'll have a drink,” Ari replied. Going by Nevaeh’s attire and the crease line on her left cheek, Ari assumed her text had proved to be the incentive for Nevaeh to get up. Not a big surprise, considering it was only 9:00 am.
Ari heaved herself onto a bar stool and rested her elbows on the kitchen bench, watching her friend fix herself some porridge.
“Hello, Ari,” Mrs van Houten’s face brightened. “Have you come to take Nevaeh out for a bit of exercise?”
“Not likely Mum,” Nevaeh screwed up her nose. “Not at this ungodly hour.”
“A bit of fresh air would do you good, love.”
“I’m saving my lungs for the Phuket fresh air.” Nevaeh put an arm around her mother and gave a squeeze.
Nevaeh’s focus rounded on Ari again.
“Oh, that reminds me, I've got something to show you.” She bounded out of the kitchen.
“How are you going, Ari?” Mrs van Houten asked.
“Getting better by the day.” She’d been saying that since the accident, and it was finally beginning to feel true.
“I’m happy to hear it. We miss seeing you around the place.” She gave Ari’s arm a motherly rub. Nevaeh reappeared at the doorway with a flourish.
“Ta da.” A new bikini hung from a small coat hanger.
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