𝓥𝓲𝓸𝓵𝓮𝓽

I knocked on the door.

I waited at least a minute before deciding to raise my fist again, when I heard a creak from the other side and then the door was sliding open.

Katie stood there, her hair was uncombed, and it looked as if it had been a good week since her hair had last been washed.

She wore pajama shorts decorated with mini characters from The Wizard of Oz and a plain white t-shirt that sat rested near the nape of her neck.

"Violet?" She mumbled - slightly confused, slightly surprised.

"Hi," I said, sneaking a glance past her into Dominic's living room. It was still very tidy. Katie hadn't touched a thing.

"Can I come in?" I tried when she didn't say anything.

"Oh.. Yeah, yeah." She opened the door a little wider and allowed me inside.

I sat gently on the sofa, watching as Katie numbly went into the kitchen and got herself a glass of water from the sink.

"How... How long have you been here, Katie?" I asked, genuinely curious.

She shrugged, staring into the sink. "A couple days."

I nodded. She slowly walked into the living room, sitting down heavily as if she had weights tied to her body.

"How are you? And your dad?.. Have you talked to him recently?"

She sighed, "... no."

I waited, but she never answered my other questions.

"Katie... you should come over. I don't think Clara would mind if you joined us one evening."

She nodded, but I didn't know if she really processed what I had said.

I stood up then, walked over to her, and took her hands. "Come on, Katie. Go take a shower, okay? I'll make you something to eat... We can talk about anything you want after, okay?"

She stared at our hands, and very quietly, she made her way to the bathroom. It took another hour until I actually heard the water running, and then another until I saw her open the bathroom door.

I used a can of soup I found in the pantry and set the bowl before her at the dining table.

I coaxed her to eat every few minutes until she finally took a bite - and slowly, she finished the bowl.

I stayed with her all day. I cooked for her, did her makeup, and tried talking to her.

I waited until she fell asleep later - which was very early - and left. She was my friend, and I was going to take care of her and make sure she was okay.