Hidden Falls (7 page)

“You can do this.  Just be
the ball-busting sweetheart that we all know and love.”

I threw my phone into my
purse and left my room.  I knew I wouldn’t run into my mom at this time of day,
but I had to be careful.  The afternoons were her worst time of day, and the
most common time for me to find her passed out somewhere random.  As I made my
way downstairs, I smelled something cooking.  What in the hell could she be
cooking?  I rushed to the kitchen and there she was.  Clothed in her ratty
bathrobe, her hair piled in a heap on top of her head, she stood there in front
of the stove. 

“Mom, what are you doing?”
I scrambled to her side and pulled her back from the open flame.  Gas stoves
and drunken mothers were never a good mix.  “If you were hungry you could have
asked me to make you something.”

I walked her over to the
kitchen table and sat her down.  She let out a grunt, but was otherwise quiet. 
I looked down at her, my hands on my hips.  At that moment I wanted nothing
more than to just walk away.  Let her play with the stove.  But then I
remembered the last time...when she tried to burn the house down.  A shudder
ran through my body and I mentally kicked myself for even thinking about it.

“Okay Mom, what do you
want to eat?  I’ll make you something.”  I looked at her glassy eyes and
noticed deep, purple bruising under her eyes.  She wasn’t sleeping again. 
Great.  “Mom?  You in there?”

She didn’t move.  Her
catatonic state worried me.  Was there even enough liquor in the house to get
her that drunk?  There had only been one bottle in the house yesterday, which
meant that she probably went out this morning before I got up.  Shit. 

“Okay, we need to get up
to your room.  Can you walk?”  I grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet.  I
could smell the vodka seeping out of her pores at this distance.  The smell
alone made me want to gag, but mixed with her body odor...it was too much.  She
obviously hadn’t bathed in days and that scared me even more.

I struggled to get her up
the stairs.  She wasn’t helping herself, which meant I had to push and pull her
the entire way.  By the time I got her to her room, I was pouring sweat.  I
tucked her into bed and grabbed the empty bottles that littered her
nightstand.  The smell in her room wasn’t much better than her body, but at
least some air freshener would help that issue.  I looked back at her once I crossed
to the door.  She was already sleeping soundly and let out the breath I was
holding.

I made my way back to the
kitchen and threw the bottles away.  In that moment, I knew that I had to do
something drastic.  My dad had let this go on too long, never confronting her
about her problem.  Well, not anymore.  Something had to be done or she would
end up killing herself, or someone else for that matter.

I ran back upstairs to my
room and booted up my computer.  When the internet was finally ready I typed in
the name I was looking for.  The information was quick to come up.  I had heard
about this center in Columbia before and they were my last hope.  After dialing
the number on the kitchen phone, I waited.  The seemingly endless ringing
finally stopped and I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank you for calling New
Beginnings Recovery Center.  How may I help you?”

Chapter Twelve

Brian

I knew my goals for the
day when I woke up this morning.  I needed to get Jenn over here so I could
talk to her, and then I planned on heading over to Katy’s house.  I had to
apologize for how much of a dip-shit I was the night before.  We had gotten so
close over the past week, but all of that was destroyed in less than an hour. 

I called Jenn first thing
and she seemed reluctant to come over, but I practically begged.  I have never
begged a woman to meet with me before.  It was a surreal experience.  When she
finally acquiesced, I felt a weight lifting off of my shoulders.  I was finally
going to be able to let go of my security blanket and make the move towards the
woman who had held my heart for so long.  Damn.  I was beginning to sound like
a girl.

A quick shower, a bowl of
cereal, and I was ready to face the day.  I sat at the kitchen table and stared
down at my hands.  I had never been the patient type.  The kind of person who
sat idly by, watching the world pass by.  I kept glancing at the clock on the
wall, watching the seconds tick slowly by.  The ticks became louder with each
passing second.  The sound was beginning to grate on my nerves, but luckily I
was saved by the ding of the doorbell.  At least it was a different kind of
noise.

I rose from the table and
made my way to the front door.  I checked my reflection in the mirror in the
hall as I passed.  I looked like hell from a lack of sleep and continuous
stress.  Maybe once this conversation was over I could get back to life. 
Whether or not it was the life I wanted mattered very little.  Life wouldn’t be
over if Katy never wanted to see me again, but it would be a new kind of
torture if I had to watch her hook up with someone else.

I grabbed the door handle
and braced myself, mentally and physically.  I pulled it open to find Jenn
standing there, looking beautiful as always.  Her looks had been what attracted
me to her at first, but our shared experiences in life is what kept her in my
life.  She didn’t share her past with many people, so to be in that inner
circle meant more to me than most would ever know.  I knew one day she would
find someone who was perfect for her.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t me.

She walked through the
door without a word, her hips swinging as she made her way into the living
room.  I shook my head and let out a small laugh.  I closed the door and
followed behind her, my eyes never wavering from the back of her head.  I
wanted to watch her ass move in those jeans, but the brain in my head was
mentally slapping me every time the thought crossed my mind.  I had to be
unattached in every way if this was going to work.

She sat down on the worn
out couch and tucked her legs underneath her.  I walked to the loveseat across
from her and sat down.  I leaned forward and put my elbows on my knees.  I had
yet to make eye contact with her, but I knew her well enough to know that she
was staring me down.

“Okay Brian.  Let’s have
it.  I haven’t got all day.”  I finally looked up, her face a mask of calm. 

“Never one to beat around
the bush, are you?” I gave her a sardonic smile and sat back on the couch. 
“Here’s the deal.  This,” I pointed between us, “has to end.  I know we agreed
that we were casual-“

Her sudden laugh cut me
off.  “This? There is no this, Bri.  We’re friends with benefits.  Nothing
else.  If that’s what you wanted me to come here for, fine.  But let’s not
pretend that we’re anything other than that.”  She stood up and smoothed her
shirt down, her hands running up and down her torso. 

“Jenn, please.  Don’t do
this.  Don’t try to brush this off like it’s nothing.  I know you,” I shot her
an intense glare, “and I know what we are.  I’m not doing this to hurt you. 
I’m doing this because...I’ve met someone.”

Her eyebrows shot up into
her hairline, but she quickly concealed her surprise.  “I’m happy for you.  I
really am.  Who is it?”

I didn’t want to tell
her.  She would laugh at me for falling for Katy and her wholesome ways.  “I’d
rather not say...”

“Ah.  Ashamed?”

“No.  Just don’t want to
say who it is.”

“You can tell me.  No
judgment. Promise,” she said as she smiled at me.  That sweet smile was so
disarming.  In that moment, I wanted to tell her everything.  I wanted to pour
my heart out, but I knew that she wouldn’t understand. 

“Just a girl I met.”

“You’re breaking our
arrangement for ‘some girl’?” The panic on my face must have tipped her off. 
She sneered at me, her lip curled up in disgust.  “It’s Katy, isn’t it?”

“Does it matter?” Of
course it did.  I knew that.

“Wait.  You’re ditching me
for...
her?
” She let out a growl, the sound echoing off of the bare walls
surrounding us.  “For
fuck’s
sake Brian.  You could have at least picked
someone better looking than me.  I mean, shit.  You’re going for a serious
downgrade.”

My blood was boiling as I
rose from my seat.  We were less than a foot away from each other, our eyes
locked in a heated battle.  “Watch it.  I won’t put up with that shit in my
house.  Katy is...she’s...dammit.  I care about her.”  I caught the look of
disappointment flicker across her face, but it was gone so quickly that I
probably imagined it.  “I care about you too, but this is different.  She’s
different.”

She shook her head; her
eyes glassing over as her emotions overtook her.  “You know she’ll never
understand you like I do.  You’ll never be good enough for Ms. Priss.  You know
that, right?” she whispered.  Her voice was haunting, as if it was being drug
from the bottom of her body.

I lifted my hands to her
face, cradling her while rubbing my thumb over her cheeks.  “I know.  She
deserves better than me.  But I hope to one day be worthy.  And I hope that you
can understand that.  Maybe not right now, but one day.”

She took a quick step
back, her movements jerky and stiff.  She rubbed her hands over her face,
wiping away the look of pain that clouded her features.  “Don’t count on it. 
But if you want to delude yourself, go right ahead.  But I won’t be here to
pick up the pieces when she proves me right.”  She turned quickly and left the
room, the sound of the front door slamming moments later.

The chirping of my cell
phone was a welcome distraction from the shit storm that had just walked out of
my house.  I looked down and found Katy’s smiling face staring back at me.  I
answered quickly, tucking the phone between my ear and shoulder.

“Hey, I was just-“

“I need your help.” Her
voice was shaking and her breath was coming in spurts.

“Where are you?” I grabbed
my keys off the coffee table and stormed out of the house.

“I’m at home. 
Mom’s...she’s...shit.  She’s drunk out of her mind, again.  I found her in the
kitchen, playing with the damn stove.  Can you come?  I mean, I understand if
you’re-“

“I’m on my way.  Keep an
eye on her.  And
don’t
leave the house.”

I hung up as I opened the
door to my truck.  I climbed in and cranked the engine, quickly throwing the gear-shift
in reverse.  The panic in her voice was enough to light a fire under my ass.  The
beater hadn’t been pushed this hard in a long time, but for Katy, I was willing
to push it to the brink.  This was my chance.  If I blew it...who knew where I
would end up.

Chapter Thirteen

Katy

Why had I called him? 
Suddenly he was the first, and only, person I wanted to call.  I wanted to
question it more.  Dissect it under a microscope.  But that would have to
wait.  I had bigger shit to deal with at that moment.  Like the phone call I
made before I called Brian.  Could I really send my mother to rehab?  Would I? 

As I sat on our faded
couch, I surveyed the room.  It had been a long time since I had taken a close
look at our home.  When had things started to fall apart?  When I was a child,
the house had always sparkled.  There had been no dirt on the floor, no stains
on the stairs, no dents in the walls.  But now?  The house was falling down
around us and I hadn’t even bothered to notice.  It was depressing.

It was a sign.

Our downhill spiral had
started slowly, eventually picking up its pace and slamming us down.  Here we
found ourselves.  Our house no longer a home, only a shell.  I wondered if Dad
had even noticed.  I doubted it.  He had been around even less lately, almost
never coming home after work.  I had a feeling that he was only sticking around
for me, which made me question whether or not he would be here once I left. 
Who would take care of Mom?  A chill ran through my body as I thought about
what could have happened if I hadn’t been there earlier.  It was frightening,
but also eye-opening.

I heard the crunch of the
gravel before I heard the roar of his engine.  Brian.  It hadn’t taken him long
to get here, which brought a small smile to my face.  Roxie was right.  He did
care about me.  Would he feel the same way once he saw the life that I led? 
The constant bullshit I had to deal with on a daily basis?  He had called me
Ms. Perfect, but he had no clue just how screwed up my home life was.  We were
two peas in a pod.

There was no knock, only
the sound of the front door opening and slamming shut.  My body jumped at the
sound as it disturbed the quiet that had settled around the house.  He stormed
in, his hair tousled and his eyes wild.  When he saw me on the couch, he ran
over and scooped me up in his arms, squeezing my body to his.  I nestled my
face in his neck, breathing in his scent.  It was a smell that would be forever
seared into my brain.  Always reminding me of the comfort and security he
offered.

He pulled back, keeping
his arms around me, and looked down at my face.  “Are you okay?”