A/N Thanks so much Logi123 for noticing this chapter was missing. Sorry for the confusion!

"Good morning!" Amy greeted Mrs. Ashcroft as she entered the room. She smiled back at Amy weakly. She was feeling tired today.

"Do you want me to read the newspaper?" Amy asked holding it up. She'd seen people read newspapers to old people.

Mrs. Ashcroft shook her head. Amy should've known she would be too liberal to listen to anything from the Wall St Journal, the only publication Amy's own mother read.

"Just talk," Mrs. Ashcroft suggested quietly.

"About..." Amy needed more guidance.

"You," she said with a smile.

Hmm. Amy paused. She wasn't great at talking about herself on command. That was more Karma's forte.

She had been away for a while though. Driving across the country with a band no less. She ought to have something to share. Karma's mom dozed in and out and Amy, rattled on, taking breaks to just enjoy the silence. She'd always felt more at ease around Karma's mother than her own.

About an hour later when Amy was getting ready to go, when Karma's mom opened her eyes and looked over at her. "You didn't mention Reagan," she said with a confused expression on her face.

Amy was surprised she'd retained any of the information she'd been spouting. "She wasn't with us," Amy informed her.

Karma's mom continued to look confused. "I thought that's why you went?"

Karma entered the room at that exact moment. And Amy was hoping it would be lead to a swift change in topic, but no such luck.

"So what compelled you to go on this adventure then?" She pressed.

Amy glanced awkwardly at Karma, whose eyes were glued to the floor. "I just needed a change I guess," Amy replied. "Now that Karma's back I better be going. I promised Lauren I'd quiz her on SAT flash cards this afternoon." Amy grabbed her bag, eager to make a quick exit.

"Maybe you should go too," Mrs. Ashcroft suggested to her daughter. "Smart to be thinking ahead. I'm just napping anyway."

Karma wanted to spend time with Amy. Even awkward time. "That okay?" Karma asked, knowing Amy wouldn't say no. Especially in front of Karma's mother.

"Of course," Amy said feigning as much enthusiasm as she could.

The girls left the hospital. "Meet you back at your house?" Karma asked.

"Uh huh," Amy nodded. She texted Lauren from the car to give her the update. It wasn't the first time that Lauren had to be their buffer, but Amy knew she wasn't going to be too happy about it.

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Lauren was waiting in the kitchen when Amy arrived. "Hey. There's leftover spaghetti in the fridge," Lauren offered.

"Okay thanks," Amy replied. She wasn't feeling hungry.

Karma rang the doorbell and Amy let her in. "Hey," Karma said with a smile. She'd been smiling a lot lately. Especially for someone who's mom has cancer.

"Hey. Lauren's got the flashcards in the kitchen." They sat down at the table, ready to begin quizzing each other.

"Okay," Lauren said, "I read that we'll be able to memorize them more easily if we use them in sentences." Karma and Amy exchanged glances, judging Lauren's seriousness. "Well," she continued, "I guess I'll start."

"Fortuitous," she said. "It was fortuitous that Amy came home from tour in time to take the August SAT. Fortuitous." She said again.

Amy rolled her eyes. She pulled a card from the deck and read it aloud, "Discombobulated," she said. "I am discombobulated because I don't really know what I'm doing with the rest of my summer... Or life for that matter."

Karma's turn. "Deleterious," she said it aloud and then paused. There were so many things that felt deleterious. Amy had thought spending the summer with Karma would be deleterious to their relationship. Karma had argued that being apart from her best friend would be deleterious to her mental health. Now she was afraid that the most deleterious thing of all might be honesty.

Lauren interrupted. "C'mon Karma. You are taking forever. Deleterious means damaging or harmful. Now give us a sentence."

"Secrets can have a deleterious effect on friendships." Karma finally said.

Amy wasn't sure what to make of that one."Is there something you'd like to share then?" She asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

Karma jumped down her throat. "Amy why are you being like this?"

"Like what?" Amy asked.

Karma paused to give it some thought. "Like I'm horrible to be around?" She said angrily. "Like you don't even care about me," she added, her voice growing sadder. She looked at Amy waiting for her to respond, but was only met with silence. "I don't know why you even came home if it was going to be like this," she said.

"I don't know either," Amy said, standing up from the table. "Let's pretend I didn't." She stormed off to her room.

Karma looked over at Lauren. "Okay..." She said awkwardly. "So..."

"You should probably go," Lauren advised.

Karma nodded. "Probably for the best."

Karma left and Lauren wandered upstairs. She knocked on Amy's door and slowly opened it. Amy was lying face down on her bed.

"Wanna talk?" Lauren offered. Amy only moaned. "Because you know, not that I'm one to usually side with Karma but it does seem like something's up. You two haven't been your normal disgustingly close, nausea inducing selves." Amy sat up and glared at her. "I mean I get why... but..."

"But what?" Amy snapped back with more hostility than even she was expecting. "Maybe I act like Karma is horrible to be around because Karma IS horrible to be around. Because when she's around everything feels perfect and exciting and amazing. And then she leaves the room and I'm left with reality and it's physically painful and I can't stop fucking crying." As if on cue the tears began to fall.

Lauren was about to reply when Amy continued. "And maybe it seems like I don't care about Karma because I'm TRYING not to care about Karma. I can't do this in between anymore." Amy finally exhaled.

Lauren put her arm on Amy's shoulder. "It's okay," she said. "I know. I get it." They sat for a moment. "But Amy?"

"Yeah?"

"You've got to come up with a plan because you can keep doing this." Lauren gestured to Amy's teary disheveled self. "And I certainly can't keep doing all this sisterly stuff."

Amy laughed and nodded. "Okay," she said. "Thanks."

Amy laid back down on her bed thoughts running a mile a minute. This wasn't working, she concluded. But what was the alternative?