Original picture at http://www.unc.edu/~ritchie/folio/crying.jpg
"Allie! Calm down! Breath!"
I think I heard her huff slightly? No, she's right. I take a deep breath, exhale somewhat slowly. "Okay. I'm okay. Sorry."
"It's okay Allie. Now, what happened?! Are you alright? Talk to me!"
Right, now that I'm calm it's her turn to freak out. "Liz, I'm okay. I can't hardly believe it, but I am. Okay?"
"Okay."
"Okay," I echo. There's a moment of silence.
"Sooooo...?" she prompts.
"Okay, yeah. So, I was out in Massachusetts helping contain and clean up an oil spill, and I get call from Vic, a summons to another incident. I decided to finish up where I was first. Then, oh forget it. The important part is that I swear Liz, I was so dead to rights."
"What!?"
"I was standing there, had FINALLY got the friggin' gun to work, not that I had ANY clue if I had got it working RIGHT. And, well, the guy had me totally dead to rights. I knew it. He knew it too, I could see it in his eyes. He was going to get his shot off before I could complete mine. We had each other." I exhale a slight shudder. "I should have died...."
"Allie..." Liz whispers. "Oh Allie," she says with a touch of regret. That's how she always sounds when she wishes she could be where I am and give me a hug.
"If it weren't for Krypton.... I mean... I know the point of being a team, but sometimes even in a team you're an individual. I'm... just me."
She breathes strongly, and her tone changes when she says, "Listen to me Allie, we've been through this before. You're different now. Special. You can do So much more, So much good. In this case it means you can also *survive* so much more-"
"No, Liz," I inform her sternly. "I'm still mortal. And one day... I am going to die." I purse my lips, trying to keep back the tears that are starting to form. "I think," I swallow, "I think I won't be one of ones to make it to retirement."
"Allie-"
I cut her off again. "I was thinking about it. I looked back through the files here. I asked Donna. I asked Vic. And, it's amazing. It's amazing how few Super Heros survive this life style."
"Allie. Allie, that doesn't mean it's going to happen to you too. I mean, look at your linage. Wonder Woman ascended to Olympus. Wonder Girl is now Wonder Woman. You-"
"Liz," I try hard not to whine. Inhale before my confession, wishing she was here. "I'm scared."
"Alright Allie," her voice is stern now. "Stop it."
"Wa- huh?"
"Just stop it, Allie, Stop it. I refuse to listen to any more of this. You're fine. You're going to stay fine. I won't hear you say you're going to quit-"
I'm in tears now. When did those start? "No," I manage to choke out. I inhale to deeply so I can speak. "No... I'm not going to quit. It's just... it's just..."
"It's okay," Liz's voice is weak now, she's crying too. "It's okay to be scared. It's okay to miss your family and your friends. It's okay to-"
"I love you, Liz. Never forget, okay?" It's hard to speak between the tears and trying to keep breathing. "We... had... a night... here... last week. We-" I laugh a little between the tears as I think about what I'm saying, "-played... Truth or Dare." I take a deep breath as I'm starting to be able to breath somewhat normally again. "One of, the questions, was if you only had five minutes left to live and couldn't do anything but write letters, who would you write and what would you say?"
There's silence on the other end of the line, other than the muffled sounds of a tissue.
"I need you to know, Liz, that *I* know that I wouldn't here if it wasn't for you. You're the best friend ever. You didn't turn your back on me when I started acting weird. You coached me through the scary things I could do but didn't know how to control. You helped me listen to Donna instead of trying to get rid of her. You keep one of the biggest secrets there could ever be, for me. I wouldn't have made it to where the others who have helped me were if it weren't for you. I love so much. You're the sister I never had." I pause a moment. We're both quiet. My tears are silent now, but still flowing like streams. "That's what one of letters says."
"I won't forget," Liz finally says.