Touch The Sky | ✓

Twelve

The following few days have me so busy with work that I hardly have any time to concentrate on anything. I've been rushing to finish deadlines, as well as needing to figure out who I want to send away with Mr Garth's brother.

Rose doesn't miss my absent-mindedness around the flat, eventually coming into my room on Friday evening, settling on my bed.

I look up from my laptop, where I've been looking through some files, and raise a curious eyebrow. I've felt like the last few days have been completely out of kilter and we haven't really spoken all that much.

There's not even any time to greet her before she starts.

'Are you mad at me?' she asks immediately. 'Are you upset with me because I didn't tell you about Terry, even though I knew?'

Her question takes me by surprise, because I've never thought anything like that. 'What? Why would I be mad at you?'

'I just feel like you've been off since Tuesday and I don't know, I guess I just thought it might be because you're upset with me about Terry,' she explains, her eyes steeped with worry and her shoulders tense.

I nearly laugh and shake my head quickly. 'I'm not mad at all, Rose,' I reassure her. 'I actually really appreciate that you didn't say anything. It wasn't your place to tell me and it's good that you kept your word by not telling anyone. I already knew you were a fantastic friend, but the fact you're willing to be that kind of person for my brother too, shows just the kind of wonderful person you are.'

She smiles, clearly feeling better, but it quickly fades. 'What's been going on, then? You've been a little out of sorts the last couple of days.'

I glance at my laptop and groan. 'I just... There's a lot going on at work at the minute. I have to pick somebody to go off to Italy for a while with Mr Garth's brother to create a travel guide, or something. I don't really get why I have to send someone from my team, though.'

A frown appears across her face as well. 'That is a bit weird,' she agrees.

'Yeah,' I nod. 'So, I'm just kind of looking through things for it. I've got a few people in mind and then I think I'm going to talk to each of them about it and see whether any of them actually want to go, you know?'

'Fair enough,' she replies. 'It does all seem a bit of a bizarre situation, though.'

Her words spark something in my head and I push my laptop aside, looking at her intently. 'On the subject of bizarre, how are you doing? You've been a bit preoccupied yourself, lately.'

She lets out a breathy laugh, looking away for a moment. 'I've been spending a lot of time with Terry,' she admits. 'It's been nearly killing me knowing that he was talking to me about it and not to you. I don't know, it all just made me feel very awkward.'

I don't let the fact that he was confiding in Rose and not me sting, because I know that's not really fair on Terry. As he told me yesterday, he was speaking with her about it because she understood. Telling people about her sexuality is something that she still has to deal with now, when she makes new friends. But at one point, she too went through the difficulties of telling those closest and dearest to her, just like he is now.

'Yeah,' I murmur. 'I don't... I can't get angry, though. It's always been his to tell, whenever he felt ready. I'm just glad that he's got there with me, you know?'

Rose reaches over and squeezes my hand hard. 'He's lucky to have someone like you in his life,' she tells me warmly. 'Really.'

I return her smile. 'He's lucky to have you, too. Thank you, for being there, for listening to him recently. I know that it meant a lot to him and it also means a lot to me, too. He and I are both lucky, actually, to have you around.'