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Chapter 37

John smelled the flowers as he made his way from the car to the front door and wrinkled his nose at the large bouquet. He should have requested nice smelling flowers, but either he was coming down with a cold and his sense of smell was already lost or they didn't give off any scent at all. Either way, they were at least pretty to look at and John was sure that Clara would like them.

However, when she opened the door John found her agitated and quite nervous and his hopes of having a date night instantly faded away. Something was up.

"Is everything alright?" he asked instantly upon seeing her face.

Yet Clara's gaze wandered to the flowers. "Are those for me?"

"Yes," John replied with a proud grin. He had chosen the largest and prettiest bouquet of them all just because he had felt like doing something nice for Clara. "Do you like them?"

Finally Clara cracked a smile as he handed her the flowers. "They're gorgeous. Thank you!" she said sincerely and smelled them, immediately wrinkling her nose as well, "Okay, the smell is. . . well, it takes some getting used to. But they're still gorgeous. Why though? What's the occasion?"

"Well, I passed the florist's on my way here and thought," John paused, "I didn't really think, to be honest. I was just hoping you might like them."

"I do," Clara confirmed with a smile and pushed herself up on tiptoes to peck him on the cheek, "Thank you."

When Clara turned around John followed her inside the house and watched as she found a vase for the bouquet, but still he couldn't quite shake the feeling that something was wrong.

"Clara, is everything okay? You seem-"

She turned around in an instant before he could even finish the sentence, staring at him through large, terrified looking eyes. "I've asked Bonnie here," she blurted out and his hopes of spending a night out with Clara immediately went down the drain.

"Oh, but that's-," he paused, "That's good. You'll get to talk."

"No, it's not good," she complained loudly and started pacing the kitchen floor, "It's terrible. I don't wanna talk to Bonnie. I don't wanna see her. I don't even know why I've asked her to come here. This is terrible."

John stepped forward and gently reached out to take both her hands, finally causing Clara to come to a halt. She inhaled deeply and he could clearly see how upset she was about the impending meeting with her sister. There had to be a way John could calm her down.

"Clara, darling, it's going to be fine," he said calmly, "If you don't wanna do it alone, I can stay. I'll be right here with you."

"Thanks," she whispered sincerely and then took a deep breath once more, "I know you think I should talk to Bonnie, I know it probably won't be as bad as I'm imagining it, but I've spent the past few nights thinking about everything she did to us, everything she said and I'm worried and nervous about what's going to happen when she shows up here and that worry is starting to make me nauseous."

"Hey," John said softly and stepped a little closer, pulling Clara into a tight embrace, "I'm right here, remember? It'll be fine. She's your sister, not a monster."

"And you've really checked," she remarked gruffly.

John looked down at her and a frown wrinkled his forehead as he let her go. "Why are you bringing that up now? You know I wanted to kiss you and not Bonnie."

"I'm sorry," Clara apologized instantly and held out her arms, "Please, hug me again."

He didn't hesitate to pull her back into the embrace and he couldn't help but utter a soft laugh at her state. She really was nervous about meeting her sister, but John was absolutely certain that it would be good for her, for them both. It was unlikely that they would become friends, but maybe they finally managed to bury the hatchet.

"I've spoken to Bonnie before and I sincerely believe that her intentions are good," John told her.

Clara raised her head to look at him, but she didn't let go. "Why did you speak to her?"

"Well, obviously I can't tell you about our meeting before my accident. I think your grandmother let me know that she was in town and I just. . . I don't know. I suppose I wanted to help you," he explained, "I was going to give Bonnie some money to start over, but then the accident happened and I forgot. I only later figured out that the cheque was meant for her, so I went to talk to her about that."

She grumbled in response. "Why are you such a decent person? It's annoying."

John was about to reply when the doorbell interrupted his attempt to speak and Clara stepped away from him, inhaling deeply.

"It's gonna be fine," he reassured her before Clara went to open the door.

John sat on the sofa right next to Clara whereas Bonnie chose to sit on the chair on the other end of the coffee table, keeping a safe distance between the sisters. He reached for Clara's hand and squeezed it softly. He was sure that it was going to be fine even though neither of them spoke for a very long moment.

"I think I owe you an apology," Bonnie started eventually, "And it's long overdue."

"Oh, you think?"

John gave her hand another squeeze, reminding her to be nice. She was really edgy.

"Alright, go on," she said.

Bonnie nodded softly. "There is no excuse for my behaviour as a teenager and I'm really sorry that I've caused you and Dad so much trouble after Mum died, but at that time I felt extremely alone."

"You weren't alone, Bonnie, you had us! And you chose to push us away!"

"I know that now," she argued, "But I was just a kid. I felt alone, I felt like I didn't really belong and I missed Mum. I know that I was a brat, I've realized that later than I should have, but, you know, you've got a lot of time to think when you're in prison."

John felt Clara tense up under his touch.

"So, that's really what you've come here for? No hidden agenda, no other motive?" she asked in disbelief.

Bonnie gave a soft smile in response. "When I was in prison I realized that the people I had thought were my friends had all abandoned me. I had no one and, before you say it, I know I'm the only one to blame for that. So I called the only person I knew who would listen to me."

"Grandma," Clara finished her sentence.

Her sister nodded.

"You can't expect me to pretend that nothing happened. You were awful, Bonnie, not even to me as much as to Dad. He tried his best to help you and you repaid him by getting into more trouble," she replied and John heard her exhale sharply as her shoulders sank, "I remember the conversations we had about you, how often he came into my room, crying, asking me what he should do, asking me what he had done wrong. I hated you. Not because you were a bitch towards me, I hated you for what you put Dad through."

"I'm sorry," Bonnie replied ruefully.

"We can't be friends, Bonnie," she went on and when John looked at her sister he saw the disappointment on her face, "Not right now. I need to be sure that you really mean it. I won't promise anything before I can see that you've truly changed."

"That seems fair," she agreed quietly, "And I really appreciate that you listened to me. I didn't expect anything else."

Suddenly Clara's hand was gone as she rose to her feet and crossed the room to the shelf from which she retrieved the box Bonnie had given her through John. Carefully she approached her sister and handed it back. Bonnie looked up at Clara, apparently not really sure what was happening.

"You should have this back," Clara said, "Mind you, I kept the ring. You were never a jewellery person, but you should have the photos. She was your Mum as well as mine."

With a smile Bonnie took the box out of her hands. "You know there's such a thing as digital copies?"

"It's a nice gesture," Clara said brusquely, "Just accept it."

"Alright," Bonnie replied with a smile, "Thank you."

Once Bonnie had left, John and Clara both sank down on the sofa with a heavy sigh and she instantly leaned her head against his chest. Gently John laid his arm around her in a comforting gesture.

"I think it went well," he said, "What about you? You don't seem happy."

"I'm not. I don't know why," she replied and raised her head to look at him, "Can we stay inside, eat lots of unhealthy food and watch a movie?"

With a smile John bent down and placed a kiss on her lips. "Absolutely, darling."