Sophia couldn't sleep. This happened a lot. Night after night she would lie awake for hours on end, exhausted and frustrated.

But tonight was different. Tonight she had something specific on her mind and she couldn't think of anything else

Sitting up, she lit a candle next to her bed. She watched the milky moonlight drift in through her open window, unwelcome thoughts swirling around her head.

She'll be fine. She knows what she's doing. Not every family is the same. She's safe.

Sophia kept repeating these words over and over. Trying to make herself believe them.

Four days ago, Eleanor had received a letter from her family. They said that they were going to travel into town to see her perform. Eleanor was so excited. She never thought they'd be able to come, but a farmer had offered to take them on his wagon.

Eleanor had actually shown the letter to Sophia, but the mixture of regional dialect and appalling grammar made it difficult to understand. When Sophia looked at the paper she saw it was written in large, childlike letters, with many words crossed out or misspelled. Eleanor smiled sadly and said that she was the only one in her family that could properly read and write.

They had been at the theatre, her family. They had been somewhere in the audience. Afterwards, Sophia had watched Eleanor rush out of the light of the theatre and into the darkness of the outside world.

And Sophia was scared. She knew what family was and she knew it was not safe. She kept imagining ghoulish scenes of Eleanor lying in some country ditch or crying in a locked cupboard. She couldn't stop the images coming.

She had no idea where Eleanor was. She had asked, but Eleanor had just shrugged. Sophia should have insisted. She should have got an address. Or at least a time that Eleanor would be back, so she could go and look for her if she was late.

Sophia was pacing now. Up and down her room. Wringing her hands. Pulling at the knots in her hair. Trying to distract her mind. She peered out of her window and strained her ears for the sound of a girl screaming. There was nothing, expect a man staggering along the street with a bottle of something in a brown bag.

There was a knock on the door. It was fast and harsh. Sophia didn't even think before she opened it, in just her nightgown.

It took her a moment to realise that Eleanor was real and not just a figment of her imagination.

Her hair, which was normally so immaculate, had been messily pulled back. Her skin looked even paler than normal, although her nose and eyes were red.

She was crying, Sophia realised. Oh dear lord, what have they done to her?

Grabbing Eleanor's sleeve, she pulled her into her room. "What's wrong Eleanor? What happened?"

She made no answer, other than a fresh round of sobs.

"Are you hurt? Did they hurt you?"

Eleanor shook her head but kept sobbing.

Sophia was never the best in these situations. She never knew what to say to make people feel better. If it was her, she would want to be left alone, but she had learnt through experience that other people did not always feel the same way.

"ummm, why don't you sit down? I'll get you some water and then you can tell me why you're upset."

Walking down the hall, Sophia tried to rack her brain as to what could have happened. Maybe Eleanor's family had said something negative about her acting. It was the sort of thing she could get very sensitive about. Or could it possibly be nothing to do with her family at all? Something one of the men downstairs said, perhaps. Sophia had to remember that Eleanor was a lot more inexperienced in things like that than she had ever been.

She filled up a mug from the sink at the end of the hall and walked back to her room to hand it to Eleanor. She found her sitting on the edge of her bed, staring blankly at the wall. When she passed her the mug, she thanked her quietly and looked into it with a strange intensity.

Realising what state the mug was in made the heat rise in Sophia's cheeks. It an old chipped thing that she would occasionally use for tea. It was rarely washed because, well, Sophia never really washed anything, and so was coloured with brown tea stains.

Stupid, Sophia thought. Normally she never cared what people thought about her,. But there was something about Eleanor that made her heart beat faster and her mind run nervously.

But looking up from the mug, all Eleanor said was, "I'm sorry for intruding so late."

"Don't worry yourself. I couldn't sleep anyway."

Eleanor just nodded. After taking a sip from the mug, she placed it down on the bed stand.

A minute passed, maybe two. Sophia was just thinking that she couldn't bear the silence anymore when Eleanor spoke.

"My brother is dead," she said simply.

The words hit Sophia like a blow to the chest. "Dead?" She echoed, emptily.

Eleanor nodded again. "Scarlet Fever. They would have written to me but there wasn't time. I..." She paused and took a deep breath, tears swimming in her eyes, "I should have been there. I never should have left him."

Just like that, she broke down again. This time, Sophia didn't stop to think. She wrapped her arms around Eleanor, squeezed her to her chest, and stroked her hair.

"You couldn't have known Eleanor. You never could have known. You are so kind and caring and loving. You must never blame yourself."

Eleanor pulled back so that they were just holding hands and stared at Sophia, with an intensity that scared her.

"Do you really think that?"

Sophia was confused.

"What?"

"That I'm kind"

"Well, of course," Sophia couldn't help but go on, her voice hushed, "I think you're wonderful Eleanor."

Their eyes locked, properly, for the first time that evening. Sophia couldn't help but notice how beautiful Eleanor's eyes were. They were a startling shade of grey, which instantly made her imagine lightning flashing over a silver sea. She was mesmerized.

She noticed how close their faces were. Maybe five, six inches. She noticed how her heart was beating faster. She noticed how Eleanor was looking at her as though she was the only other person in the world. She noticed how she was looking the exact same way.

But she only truly noticed what was happening about a second before it happened.

Eleanor closed her eyes, leaned in, and pressed her mouth against Sophia's. Her lips were soft, gentle, warm. Sophia could hardly help but respond.

But after a moment or two, Sophia opened her eyes and truly understood what was happening. She pulled back and stopped the kiss almost as suddenly as it had begun.

There was an awkward pause, where the pair stared at each other, their breath slightly heavier than before.

Sophia was the first to speak, "We can't...umm...you.."

She winced at herself and took a deep breath.

"You're upset, about your brother, and I don't think it's wise to..." she pulled her hands away from Eleanor's and pushed them through her own hair as she tried to find the right words, "you'll regret it in the morning, Eleanor, trust me."

Eleanor's eyes were cast downwards, as she muttered, "I wouldn't"

Although this statement surprised Sophia, she wasn't going to give up.

"You would. I've seen enough girls do things like this to try and make themselves feel better, but it doesn't work. It never works."

Sophia realised that she was being patronising, but her voice was firm.

When Eleanor looked up, she looked upset, but also somehow, fierce.

"I love you, Sophia."

Sophia blinked, taken aback.

"What?"

Eleanor looked a little embarrassed, but stayed resolute, "I said I love you."

"But you're not..."

Eleanor just smiled a little. She looked so perfect, her hair caught the flickering light of the candle so that it shone around her head like a golden halo.

Without thinking, Sophia grabbed her hand and held it to her heart. Then she held it upwards and softly pressed her lips against her palm.

"Sophia," Eleanor whispered.

She looked like she wanted to say more, but instead, Sophia placed her hands on her shoulders and leaned close until their noses were touching. Everything looks blurred and indistinct when you're that close to something, and that's sort of how Sophia felt. Like nothing was clear, and yet, like everything would be alright, as long she stayed here, with this girl.

"I think I love you too"

And when they kissed, it felt almost like they were flying, and nothing, ever, could bring them back down.

*****
A/N
Hey guys! Me again. This is the first time in forever that I've actually stuck to a weekly chapter release, hopefully I'll be able to keep it up.
I actually wrote this chapter a while ago, and I worked really hard on it, so I'd really love to know what you thought. Do you think it fits with the style of the others?
As always, if you're enjoying my story, let me know by giving it a vote x