Restoration

Been working on some flash fiction. Would love some input
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The remark insinuated itself like cat's claws,
oozing saccharin sweetness.
Brie leaned in with a hint of glee in her eyes and whispered,
"See dear, I think he's ready to play again."
One, perfectly lacquered nail uncoiled and pointed across the room. Shelly's gaze acquiesced. It landed on Aaron standing in the corner, deep in conversation with one of the new grad student.
The room began to sway. Dammit! Banshee tornado strikes again! Shelly turned back to her tormentor.
"You know Brie, if you spent less time paying attention to other people's lives and more time on your own maybe you'd be published by now."
Strike! Her missile hit it's mark. The mischievous glee drained from Brie's face and gravity, almost imperceptibly, tugged at the corners of her mouth. Brie sniffed and retreated. She turned back towards the bar and finished pouring her martini. She took a sip.
"Ohhh, that's good. Can I make you one? Oh, whoops! I'm sorry! How could I forget?!"
Brie's eyes dropped to the basketball sized bulge where Shelly's belly used to be.
"Well, try and enjoy yourself anyway."
And with that, Brie drifted off, snaking her way through the gathering of faculty and grad students.
Shelly watched as she was swallowed up whole by the crowd. And suddenly, it seemed to her she herself might be swallowed up in this sea of bright, shiny people.
The witty, sarcastic banter had been in full swing for some time now. It had reached a caustic pitch that had become about as tedious as cutting toenails, and in her condition that was really saying something.
Shelly took refuge in a settee behind the baby grand and surveyed the scene. The room was filled with some of the sharpest young minds in New York, many of them well on their way to a solid career in the political arena. But the air was thick with something sinister. The knowing of it had begun to infiltrate her mind many months ago. Uncertain at first if her hormones were wreaking emotional havoc upon her, she pushed it away initially. But it refused to dissipate, and tonight there was no denying the acrid strains that drifted through the room and hung, heavy, like wet wool. These people, many of them her friends, were not nice folk. She could see that now. Amazing what several months of sobriety will uncover. And as the butterfly flutters grew stronger inside her, her tolerance for these people grew weak. These clever people. They nursed a caustic disdain for others that was beginning to sicken Shelly's soul.
And tonight, their corrosive sarcasm was grating at her like sandpaper on raw skin.
Shelly trained her attention upon Aaron. He was regaling his rapt young student with his witty musings about politics, and life in general. All delivered with his signature sardonic flair. The fresh young face, flushed with excitement, wore an expression of deep concentration and gently bobbed up and down to indicate her desire for him to continue. She stood, leaning in towards him so as not to miss one word from the esteemed Professor. Shelly felt caught up and drawn to the girl's infatuation. It seemed to reach out at her across the room and strike a forgotten cord. She felt a sympathetic resonance stir the dusty corners of her mind. As she watched the pair, it occurred to her that she had seen this movie countless times before. What the hell was she doing still playing a crappy bit part?
Suddenly, Shelly felt claustrophobic. The air in the room became thin and danced over her lungs ineffectively. She had an overwhelming urge to grab and shake the young girl and scream at her,
"What's wrong with you?! Get out! Get away!"
And that's when her phone's ring tone, like a life line pulled her back to herself.
"Hello. Stacie! Oh wow! How are you? What? Oh, don't worry I'm fine. I'm just catching my breath from walking. How is Mom and Dad? Oh, that's good."
Shelly sat clutching the phone to her ear for several minutes, then she inhaled deeply.
"Stacie, you have no idea how happy I am to hear your voice, but listen, can I call you back? I have something I need to do."
Shelly hung up, and sat quietly for several minutes. Then she calmly walked over to Aaron.
"Honey, I'm through here. I'm gonna leave now, but you should stay."
She kissed him on the cheek, placed a hand on the young girl's shoulder and squeezed it warmly. She leaned in to whisper in her ear,
"Remember yourself my dear."

When Shelly stepped into the cool evening, she felt the air rushing back into her lungs. She took big, heaving gulps of it and almost sobbed at how delicious it felt. Shelly turned to look back at the hulking brownstone she'd emerged from and as she moved away down the street, stepping out of its shadow, she felt free once more.