Page 24 of Elijah

Amy’s eyes narrowed as the temperature around us dropped considerably.

“I can do it myself, thank you. I’ve been doing it for the last five years on my own.”

“Oh and who’s fault is that?”

If I thought the look she’d given me before was murderous, the one she gave me then was that of an assassin about to finish their kill.

“Let me up,” she snapped, pushing against me. “I don’t want you touching me.”

“Fine by me.” Feeling anger bubbling inside me at her sourness, I unceremoniously tipped her from my lap, watching as she scrambled to her feet. “And it was a pleasure saving your fucking life, don’t mention it.”

“Thank you, I really appreciate it,” she spat back.

“You’re so fucking ungrateful, it’s unbelievable,” I replied, standing up. “Well next time, give someone else a shout.”

“There won’t be a next time. I don’t need you, I don’t need anyone.”

Amy’s face was emotionless as she stared at me and I couldn’t help but feel pained. Where had the warm, fun, sweet, Amy gone? Had our break up really turned her into this hard-faced woman who did nothing but snipe and complain? Maybe it had, but I refused to blame myself for that – I had done nothing wrong.

“You may not Amy, but be careful,” I said, exhaling. “Get some proper ladders and make sure someone is with you.”

She gave me a very slight, sharp nod of her head and turned and hobbled to pick up her shoe, lifting a foot behind her to slip it on. I took that as my cue to leave and walked away with my heart still thudding in my chest, not sure if it was because of what may have happened, or because I’d had her in my arms once more, or because when I walked back into the kitchen, I noticed the vase with a bouquet of hand tied wild flowers on the table.