Chapter Text
The knock on the door felt uncertain. It was strange. Every other knock Kate had heard today had been frantic, coming from people who were in a hurry to see her. This one was different, like the person responsible for it wasn’t even sure they actually wanted to make it. Eventually, the door clicked open, and entered someone Kate had not expected to see.
“Hum. H-hi, Kate.”
“What are you doing here, Courtney?”
“I… I needed to see you.”
“Why? You’re not done? Came here to finish the job?”
Kate never spoke with such vitriol. It wasn’t like her to hold onto anger. But right now, seeing that face, it was all she could feel.
“No! I… I didn’t… I should go.”
This wasn’t right. It wasn’t her.
“Wait.”
Seconds seemed like hours as Kate thought about her next words.
“… come sit down.”
Gingerly, Courtney walked over to the chair near the bed, taking place in it. She couldn’t look Kate in the eyes. After a few more minutes of tense silence, she spoke up.
“Kate, I know that I… that we… I mean… god, I’m s-so sorry…”
Unable to say what she wanted to, Courtney collapsed into the chair, hugging herself and sobbing uncontrollably. Kate, silent, looked at her. This girl had treated her awfully. Made her feel like garbage. Made her want to… suffice to say, she had every reason under the sun to hate her. But seeing her like this, so fragile, it was… strange. Like she was seeing her, truly seeing her, for the first time. A person with thoughts and feelings, not just a bully. What an odd feeling.
After a few minutes, Courtney regained some of her composure. Her eyes were red and puffy, her breaths were shallow, but she had stopped crying. Only to start laughing.
“Look at me. I came here to say sorry and I can barely get over myself. Kate, I… I know that I can’t undo what we… what I… did to you. No matter how much I want to.”
She was fiddling with her hands, still unable to look Kate in the eyes.
“All I can say is… I’m sorry. I can’t tell you how much.”
Kate sat in her bed, pensive. She didn’t know if what she was about to do was the sensible thing, but to her it was the right one.
“Courtney, I… I want to forgive you. I do. But…”
“But you can’t. Yeah. I get it. I should…”
“Courtney.”
“...Yeah?”
“What I’m saying is… I can’t do that overnight. What you did, all of you, it was… awful. But I… I want to believe that there’s good in you. I want to believe that people can change. And I’m willing to give you a chance. But you’re gonna have to work for it.”
Courtney was on the verge of tears again.
“Kate… I… really?”
“Yes. Really.”
“Thank you. I… I don’t deserve this.”
A faint, hopeful smile forms on Kate’s lips.
“Just show me you do.”
——————————————————
Days flew by. Kate had been feeling better, although the knowledge of what she almost did weighed heavy sometimes. But she'd had a lot of visitors. Max and Chloe, obviously. Warren, Alyssa, even Brooke. But the most surprising ones, without a doubt, were the trio. Well, calling them that wouldn't be true anymore. Not that it ever really was. That was simply how Kate saw them before, the three girls making her life miserable. But they weren't a unit. They were three different girls, whom she had started to see in a new light. Courtney kept her promise, visiting frequently. Once, she’d even brought Kate a paper pad as a gift, which Kate had accepted while telling her it wasn't necessary. Taylor had been the second to come. She and Kate had a talk, and soon enough, she had become a regular too. Victoria was the last to visit. In large part because, as Kate would come to learn, she had made her own attempt when she was younger. Realizing she had brought Kate to a point that she herself knew all too well, it was really difficult for her. Not to mention that the whole ordeal made her realize just how awful she had become. But when she came, Courtney and Taylor by her side, it was perhaps the most vulnerable conversation Kate had ever had. Just as with the two before, Kate offered not forgiveness, but a path towards it. Victoria had readily agreed, and then all three of them started visiting. Small acts of kindness that would change Kate's life forever.