A/N: A Ruby/Heather friendship ficlet that takes place near the end of Lock and Key – after Nate leaves but before graduation. After I re-read the book the other day I found myself concentrating on Heather for some reason and what she'd thought after Nate left. I considered writing it from Heather's pov, but it was surprisingly difficult for me to get inside her head.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize from Lock and Key. It all belongs to Sarah Dessen.
It was almost a week after I'd seen Nate off at the airport and I still found myself adjusting to it. I had been so worried about him for so long and now that he was somewhere I knew was safe I felt like I didn't know what to do with myself. It felt right, natural, to have someone to worry about and now that he was not here everything was different. He called me every evening the past week and that quickly became the most anticipated part of my day. I'd promised him I'd start getting on my Ume page again so we could keep in touch that way too, but I would always prefer the phone calls – hearing his voice, knowing he was okay, would always be better. Even though Nate was gone, I still worried about him and I couldn't wait until he was back in Wildflower Ridge with me, Cora and Jaime.
I was finding myself silently thanking Olivia's friendship a lot this week. Rumors were circulating like wild fire around school about Nate's sudden disappearance. Sometimes I would catch snippets in passing, other times people would come right up to me and ask. One thing was for certain though, know one knew what had really happened to Nate, and I wasn't going to tell them. Olivia helped to keep me distracted from it all, whether she knew she was doing it or not.
Now, I was at lunch, half listening as Olivia and Gervais debated what movie Gervais should see upon the weekend's arrival. It was my lack of attention that didn't allow me to notice when a sudden hush fell over the two. In fact, it wasn't until I heard my name, spoken tentatively, that I noticed anything at all.
"Ruby?" I blinked and drew my eyes away from my bottle of water, which I'd been staring at mindlessly, and found we were now in the company of Heather. "I don't mean to intrude," she said politely, "but can I talk to you in private for a minute?"
Heather was a nice girl, too nice really, but this did not actually mean we were friends. What she would want with me I was uncertain, but I was intrigued so I agreed. With a quick word to my friends I stood and followed her out into the hallway, a guarded look on my face. When she stopped walking, far out of anyone's hearing range, she turned toward me.
"Were you able to help him?" she asked bluntly.
It took a moment to realize she was talking about Nate – that I wasn't the only one who knew or cared – but when I figured it out it made sense she would want to know. I wondered what she'd thought first when he never showed back up to school. Did she worry his dad had taken things too far? That he was seriously injured? Near dead? Actually dead? I felt guilty for forgetting that she did care too and not letting her know he was okay, letting her worry when I knew how awful and nerve-wracking it was to do so. I only nodded in response to her question, not sure how she would feel about the fact that I had been able to help him when she had not. I guess I wasn't really too surprised when caring, helpful Heather broke into a smile and pulled me into a huge, slightly awkward hug.
"Thank you," she whispered relief clear in her voice. "Thank you for helping him."
Again, I only nodded. However, this time it was not out of apprehension of her response. This time I really didn't know what to say to her. Here she was, thanking me for something I did not do for her, or even for myself. In the end, the nod seemed to be enough for her and she stepped back a moment later, a more relaxed smile on her face.
"Did he end up back at his mothers?" she asked.
"Yes," I said, knowing I'd have to talk some time in this conversation, "he left on Sunday."
"Send him my best wishes will you?" she asked hopefully. "Tell him I'm proud of him and that if he ever needs anything he can just call me, always."
I bit back the possessive retort on the tip of my tongue and smiled back. It wouldn't do any good to be protective when I knew she was only trying to help. "I will," I told her, "but, you know, he's not the type to ask for help – even with less important things than his dad."
"I know," she nodded, a soft smile on her face, "but it's always good to know someone's there if you need to ask, right?"
"Right," I nodded, I knew exactly what she meant, of course, now that I had my own little family of often overbearing but always there helpers. And Nate needed that too. The more people he had willing to help him out, the more likely he was to accept it from one of them. I would deliver her message. Surprising myself, and probably her, I gave her a genuine smile. "Thanks Heather."