After Zaleekhah moved out to go to university, something shifted. Not a sudden falling-out but a gradual estrangement so subtle and slow as to be almost imperceptible. They still spoke regularly on the phone, and grabbed a coffee every so often, but it was never the same. And when Helen got married and had three children in quick succession, the differences in their lives became too great to ignore. The mutual affection was still there, but there was just never enough time together. Zaleekhah still feels the loss of that sisterhood like a missing limb.
