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>Chat with Ruth.
Lorene takes a seat next to her friend and holds her hand with a comforting smile. “I don’t think it was selfish at all, Ruth. Honestly, spending time with you two means a lot to me right now, even if I fell asleep for some of it.”
Ruth looks away. “even still, i should’ve known you needed to sleep… it would’ve been a lot more comfortable for you if we just hung out in the sleeping bags and you fell asleep there… or if we’d gotten ready for bed and you could at least doze off in pajamas or something…”
Lorene pokes the girl’s forehead. “Don’t be silly. Seriously, you’re thinking too much about it.” She scoots a bit closer. “What’re you writing down for today?”
“it’s nothing too special…” The dark-haired girl slides the book a little closer for her to see.
Lorene skims over the page. It’s written less like a diary, and more like a journal, with some portions of her day underlined with arrows pointing to comments on the side. Ruth stays quiet as she reads. It didn’t really have any insights or thoughts about the disappearances, which did make sense; she’d only learned about it a few hours ago when her parents told her about the predicament. It’s not quite finished, and she was still in the middle of writing about setting up her room for their arrival. Lorene pulls Ruth in for a side-hug as she reads the final lines. “Well, I’d say there’s not much you need to improve on today, Ruth, so cheer up! Sounds like it was pretty relaxing, as it should be.”
“…hey, lorene.” The girl’s voice is even quieter than usual. Lorene looks up at her, a little concerned. Ruth’s eyes are hidden behind her hair. “…how do i get stronger?”
Lorene blinks, surprised. “What do you mean?”
“it’s just…” The girl looks down. “lorene, you’re strong. really strong, you know?” The girl fiddles with her fingers. “if my parents went missing, i don’t know if i could do anything… i’d probably just hide in my room and cry.”
Lorene brushes Ruth’s bangs behind her ear. “You’re plenty strong, Ruth. You just don’t know it yet.”
The girl’s eyes are watery. “if that’s true… how come you always go to olivia when you need help? why does olivia always go to you?” Her voice is a little shaky. “i know i’m weak. i’m timid, and i cry. but... i want to become someone you guys can rely on too.” She looks up at Lorene. “how do i become someone like you…?”
>What do you even say?
