"I found her"

Ch. 17

Ben's rental house was quiet...to quiet.

No laughter

No joy

No Grace

I lay on the king size mattress, looking at the ceiling fan spin and spin. It was hypnotic and not in a good way. I rolled over on my left side and stared out the window. Fog was blurring the glass.
I finally got off of the bed and walked into the kitchen. I grabbed an energy drink from the fridge and gulped it down, hoping that it'd give me energy to do things instead of lay in bed all day. It didn't.
I scrolled through my photos while I lay on the couch. We looked so happy...until I ruined everything. Wait, it wasn't me who messed it all up. I sat up. "That woman who kissed me...this isn't my fault...it's that woman's." I said to myself. "I have to call Grace." I said as I opened my contacts. I clicked on her name and held my phone to my ear.
"Andrew what-" "That woman who kissed me, I knew her. I remember now." "That's just perfect." "Wait wait wait! Grace don't hang up! Just," I sighed. "Grace, it was your sister." I heard Grace gasp. "No. You're just saying that because you don't want me to blame you for-" "Grace, it was your sister." "No!" "Grace-" "I have to call her." That was all she said before she hung up. I threw my phone on the couch and sighed. It was true, it was her sister.
          It was about 9:30 pm when Grace called me. "Hello? Grace?" "You were right, it was her." Grace said through a sob. "Andrew?" She sobbed. "Yes?" "Can you come back?" She asked through a sob. "Yes. I'm on my way." I said as I started throwing clothes into my duffel bag. "Andrew I'm so-" "No, this has to happen in person. I have to be with you."
        I drove to the hotel and rushed to the room. I hurried into the elevator and quickly pressed "4". I impatiently tapped my foot on the floor. It dinged and I ran out the door. I rushed to room 215 and knocked on the door. Grace opened the door, eyes red from crying. I didn't wait a second to hug her. I picked her up and just held her. "I'm so sorry. I-" "Shh, shh, it's okay." I interrupted. I finally set her down and let go of her. "Oh my God, you're crying." I said as I wiped away her tears. She smiled weakly. "I'm fine. Now I am." She said. She sniffled. "I am so sorry." She said as more tears flew down her face. "No, no, no, hey, listen to me..." I pulled her face up with my finger. "It's okay." I smiled. "I'm okay." I told her. "Okay?" Grace only nodded. "Okay." She said. "Come here." I said softly as I pulled her in by her head for a hug. Her face was on my chest and I stroked her hair. I kissed her hair. She looked up at me. Grace sighed. "God, I love you." She said before she kissed my lips.