She had to go. She couldn’t do this anymore. She got up quickly and Bette’s head immediately shot up when she saw that she was the only one left sat on the pavement. She waited for Shane to speak as she towered over her. She looked down at her. Too much pain to offer her solace of any kind. She was done. She wanted to say something to Bette, to tell her to find Tina and tell her that she still loved her if she did. To not keep making these mistakes. To not let her go. But she couldn’t say any of it because none of it had worked for her. Shane had begun to doubt that even the love between Bette and Tina was enough anymore.

‘I don’t know what I’m doing!’ Bette called out to her. ‘I need your help Shane. Please.’ Shane stopped. She heard the despair in the words. She needed her help and was willing to ask for it. Bette didn’t know what to do. She was confused and all her friends had left her. No wonder she was making all the wrong decisions. In that moment Shane put aside everything she was feeling and reduced it down to the basics. Her friend was asking for help. She couldn’t refuse.

She slowly turned around and started back towards Bette who was still sat on the ground. She crouched down next to her. She could see that she was close to tears, exhausted by her indecision. Bette’s head fell heavily onto her knees. She brought her hands up and pushed down onto the back of her head. ‘I don’t know what I’m doing Shane,’ her muffled words not masking her desperation.

Shane reached out trying to offer Bette comfort, she had never seen her so vulnerable. She placed her hand onto Bette’s and smiled when she felt something beneath her hand. She took Bette’s left hand from off her hand and looked at it. When she did not let go Bette lifted her head and looked at Shane who for the first time that morning was smiling back at her. Bette raised her eyebrows, confused at what Shane had found to smile about. Shane turned Bette’s hand so that Bette was looking at the back of it. She saw what had made Shane smile. Still on her ring finger was her wedding ring.

With a raised eyebrow Shane’s kind eyes met Bette’s, ‘I think at least part of you knows exactly what you’re doing.’ Bette’s eyes pleaded with Shane for more than an answer, but even Yoda didn’t have one yet. Shane took Bette’s other hand and helped her up from off the floor. Her hands still in Shane’s Bette stood opposite a still smiling Shane, ‘Come on. I need coffee.’ 

Her arms automatically reached round and hugged Shane in a much needed embrace that was returned completely by Shane. Now the tears started to fall as Bette buried her head in Shane’s shoulder as she held her up. She heard a little laugh from Shane and sniffed back the last few tears and broke the embrace. She used the palms of her hands to wipe away the remainder of her tears as Shane put her arm around her shoulders and started to walk with her down the street, ‘I think you need one too.’