I clicked on my Facebook page, and the first post on my timeline was from Bronagh, who tagged Aideen, and checked them in at the hospital. I stared at my phone and made a noise of displeasure.
“Is everythin’ okay?”
“Yeah,” I said, scrolling through Bronagh’s pictures. “Me friend just had another pregnancy appointment today. She told me I could go to ’er next scan, but she went with our friend instead.”
“Is your friend a mother?”
“Uh-uh.”
“That’s probably why.”
I looked up at Morgan and raised my brows.
“What?”
“You’re the only one of your friends who either doesn’t have a kid or isn’t expectin’ one.” Morgan shrugged. “She probably felt like the other friend could relate to ’er more.”
Is that why she didn’t ask me to go with her?
“I mean, I guess that makes sense.”
Morgan turned back to the computer and began typing away again.
“Are you doin’ anythin’ fun today?”
“No,” I answered. “I’ll probably go around to my parents’ house or one of me friends.”
Morgan chuckled. “I don’t know how you do it.”
“Do what?”
“Stay on the move constantly,” he answered. “From what I’ve gathered from you, you’re always around your ’friends’ gafs. You should host for a change, let them come to you.”
I blinked. “I guess I’ve never thought about it.”
“Would they not come around?” Morgan questioned. “You sound doubtful.”
“No, I’m not. It’s just … I’ve just always gone to them. They don’t come to me.”
“Oh.”
Hearing that outlaid made my friendships sound one-sided, but I knew they weren’t.
“Don’t two of your friends live upstairs, though?”
I hesitated. “Yeah.”
“They come by, right?”
“No, not really.”
“Oh.”
That was twice he’d said “oh” in the space of thirty seconds, and I found that this conversation was beginning to hurt my head.
“It’s weird about your lad’s brothers, though. I thought they’d drop around to check on you every so often.”
My frowned deepened. “What d’ye mean?”
“Well,” he began, “from what you’ve told me about them … they’re great lads and always are very involved with family.”
“Yeah, they are.”
“Then why don’t they call you or drop by to see you?”
At the moment, my tongue felt like it tripled in size.
“They have jobs and babies and—”
“And no time for you?”
I stared at Morgan for a long moment before I looked down at my sketchpad that sat on my lap. I didn’t know what to say to him. A huge part of me wanted to enforce that it was no big deal, but another part of me felt saddened that my friends really seemed that they didn’t have time for me. Whenever I saw them, I was the one who had to go around and see them; they never came to see me. I wasn’t sure why I never saw this before, and I wasn’t sure why my mind suddenly stressed over it so much.
“All that happened to me,” Morgan continued with a shrug. “Me friend had a baby with his bird, and it took about a year, but eventually, I realised he had cut me out of his life slowly but surely.”
I shook my head instantly.
“You don’t know me friends,” I said with confidence. “They wouldn’t do that to me.”
“I thought that too,” he mumbled, clearly thinking of his friend and their once friendship.
“I’m sure they’ll phone me and drop by when they get the chance,” I pressed. “Me friends don’t really know boundaries. Bronagh can show up at any time, and it’d be normal.”
“I hope so,” Morgan said. “It’d suck for you to lose friends that seem like family.”
I wasn’t sure why, but Morgan’s words made me feel sick. Logically, I was confident that I didn’t have anything to worry about, but a nagging voice in the back of my mind agreed with Morgan. Any one of my friends could have called or sent me a text message to see how I was or if I was okay because it wasn’t normal for me to go a day without speaking to them, especially Bronagh.
With that on my mind, I dialled her number.
“Hey,” I said when she answered. “What’s up?”
“Nothin’,” she answered. “Just chillin’ with the girls. What’re you doin’?”
I glanced at Morgan who was working away.
“I’m just takin’ a break from workin’ and figured I’d call you.”
“Are you comin’ by later?”
I hesitated. “Why don’t you come ’round to my apartment, I’ll make dinner.”
“I’m too tired,” Bronagh answered. “I went to me appointment today and all the waitin’ around in the hospital drained me. Georgie is actin’ the maggot too. Can’t you just come ’round to mine? You can help me with ’er.”
I frowned.
“You want me to come ’round to help with Georgie?”
“Of course.” Bronagh chuckled. “You’re super auntie Alannah.”
My frown deepened.
“Yeah,” I said. “Super auntie Alannah.”
Bronagh yawned, loudly.
“So let me ask you somethin’,” I said, shifting in my seat. “Do ye’know what Damien is doin’ with Kane?”
Silence.
“Bronagh?”
She cleared her throat. “What d’ye mean?”
I could hear the doubt in her voice, and it made me feel ill.