Excerpt from Leadworth

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Rest.

Make sure you rest.

I woke up from the nicest dream. Yellow and orange trees burned bright in my minds eye, soft grass between my toes. Everything was rosey-toned and smelled of lavender.

Good dreams were so unusual for me that it left me feeling unsettled once I fully woke up.

I opened my eyes, and stared at the sky above me, much less pink than the one in my head. I rolled out of the bed. Pond's house. Wedding day. Details rolled back in slowly.

I went and stood in the open doorframe, bleary eyed and listening to the bustle of Amelia's parents below me.

Across the hall, standing in her doorway, Amelia was holding herself up the same way I was, hands on the frame. We locked eyes over the staircase bannister.

We both opened our mouths to speak, though I'm sure neither of us knew what we were going to say, but we were interrupted.

"Amelia, what are you doing out of bed so early my love?"

We both started, and looked at the cheery woman climbing the stairs with a tray of breakfast.

Amy and I looked at each other, and when I looked back the woman was staring at me, stone still.

"What... what is happening? Amy?" She looked back at Amy for some sort of explanation.

"She, uhm... she's here for the wedding."

"What? Just like that?" Tabetha stared at me. "After all this time?"

"Yeah I..." I swallowed, trying to stop my head from spinning. "I'm sorry about the er... inconvenience."

Tabetha frowned, and then glanced at Amy. "I guess you'd better go downstairs. Amy, dear, here's your breakfast. Stay up here as long as you'd like. Big day ahead, but no need to rush."

I walked down the stairs numbly, listening to the Ponds retreat into Amelia's room.

I didn't even take a step past the bannister before a portly, well-dressed man with a receding hairline came barreling through.

"Oh, I - " he froze, and gave a nervous chuckle. "Hello, Omara."

"Hello, Augustus."

"Tabetha didn't say we were having guests."

I didn't know what to say to that. I managed a weak, "No?"

"I didn't know you were coming to the wedding, Omara. From what Amelia told me, you were quite... adamant about not seeing her again." He seemed guarded.

They were all protective of her. I couldn't blame them. No doubt, she told them all everything.

"Well, I... I guess that I..."

Tabetha came down the stairs, looking nervous, and suddenly I was facing both of them. I looked at my feet.

"Breakfast is ready," she said, trying to keep her tone bright while looking at me sideways with concern. "Why don't we all go eat?"

I followed them into their kitchen like it was a dream, and very slowly served myself a plate of food that I knew I wouldn't be able to keep down.

Tabetha took her husband a plate of food at the table, and I stood in the middle of the kitchen with my own, feeling like I might pass out.

"Amy told me she let you in last night," Tabetha said politely. "We're glad she did."

This hung in the air, and I considered walking right out the door and heading to the airport.

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