Chapter 28
SEASONS OF LOVE
Laura
Laura drops Becca off at the entrance to A)
A semi-hysterical laugh erupts from her throat.
Just how does she explain how her choir night has gone – and just how much trauma is it appropriate to dump on an unsuspecting eighteen-year-old on a Tuesday evening?
And why is it she can connect with Abby easier than she can connect with her own daughter these days?
Even as she asks herself the question, she knows the answer. It’s because Abby, unlike Robyn, and definitely unlike Aidan, doesn’t take her for granted. She’s interested in what she has to say and doesn’t expect Laura to do everything for her.
She taps a message back.
Choir was great. All a bit of cheesy eighties fun. Bit of a family crisis for a friend after – with her at hospital. Will prob need caffeine first thing, so it’s a date.
That’s suitably informative but also suitably vague, she thinks as she presses send, takes a deep breath and gets out of the car and walks towards the hospital. Abby replies straight away with a sad face emoji.
Oh no! Hope ur friend is okay. C U in the morning!
Laura hasn’t phoned or messaged Aidan or Robyn.
She tells herself it’s because she wants a bigger picture before she does, but the reality is she is afraid their response will be centred on what they have to try to do without her rather than concern for the woman lying in hospital, and she is so not in the mood for that nonsense.
Oh God, she thinks as she walks up the steps towards A&E, is it possible that she just doesn’t like her family very much at the moment? What does that say about her?