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“I know, and I agree, but one battle at a time.”

“Shit, yeah, of course. We’ll get through this.” Lydia’s brain stumbled over the we part of Halle’s sentence. Where was this sudden support coming from? “Halle, why are you doing this? I mean, why now?”

Wiping a French fry through a glob of burger sauce, Halle chewed on her lip. “We should have been there for you more. Fe and me. I’ve known you just as long as I have Fe, and there is nothing I wouldn’t do for either of you. I know Fe’s my best friend, but you’re just as important.”

“Really?” Lydia couldn’t help the surprise laced around that one word. Halle’s shoulders deflated a smidge. Shit, had she offended her with that comment? “Sorry, that sounded bad. It’s just we’ve never been particularly close. We only hang out with Fe, so I’m a little surprised to hear you say that.”

“It’s fine. You’re right. The truth is, I always wanted you to be friends with me, it’s just—”

“Fe went all possessive.”

“Kinda. But we’re not kids anymore, and Fe has a life outside our friendship. Why can’t I? Sometimes I think we have more in common, anyway.” Lydia could see where Halle was coming from. Even though they weren’t allowed to spend a lot of time together as kids, Lydia remembered a few conversations that revealed they had music, movies, and books in common.

“Alright then. Friends?”

“Friends. And as a friend, it’s my job to help you through this, Lyds. Fuck all those arseholes who left. You don’t need them.”

“I can’t exactly blame them.” Lydia sighed. It was true. Her ex-partners hadn’t signed up for any of her baggage. “A new relationship should be exciting and sexy. I couldn’t give that to them.”

“I disagree, but whatever. Their loss. I want to help you concentrate on getting better.”

“That’s very sweet, Halle.”

“I’m a sweet kinda gal,” Halle winked.

“Who’s a sweet kinda gal?” Fe’s voice broke through the atmosphere like a knife.

“Hey, sis, what’re you doing here?” Had Lydia done a good job masking her disappointment at being interrupted?

“I knew you were on shift this afternoon, so I stopped by to see how the appointment went. Like I said, I plan to be there for you more than I have. Hey, Halle.”

“Hey, sweetie.” Did Halle look just as disappointed?

“So, the doctor?”

“Well…” Lydia chuckled. “It went slightly off the rails at one point.”

“Oh?” Fe was tucking into Halle’s fries like she’d not eaten all day.

“So, we go in, and he’s being—”

“Rude, that’s what he was. He didn’t even have the courtesy to look at you.”

“Oh, you went in with her?” Why was Fe looking at Halle like that?

“Of course I did. I wanted to see what this clown was going to say.”

“He looked like he was going to piss his trousers when you started scribbling in your notepad. What was that about?”

Halle smiled brightly, causing something odd to happen in Lydia’s chest. “I wanted to throw him off. I had a feeling he was going to dismiss you. So, I thought if he believed I was taking notes of the conversation, he might pay a bit more attention.”

“And did he?” Fe asked, taking the milkshake Halle was holding, drinking it liberally.

“Fe, do you want some food? You’re eating and drinking all of Halle’s.” Lydia couldn’t explain why she was so pissed at her sister’s actions. That meal was my way of saying thank you to Halle.

“She doesn’t mind,” Fe commented, still chugging on the milkshake. Lydia dared a glance at Halle, who shrugged.

“Anyway, he was a little more attentive but still—”