Learning To Trust Again

Driving to Todd’s place Rebecca was beside herself, she knew already her brother wouldn’t have gone to the hospital himself and if he had started drinking again, and knowing him, he probably had, he could be lying somewhere in a comma or worse. With that last thought her foot went down harder on the accelerator. She still couldn’t believe Jake didn’t take him to the hospital last night. What the hell was he thinking? He had enough medical knowledge from his police training to know how dangerous head injuries were. As she drove she said to herself, Todd had better be okay or… but not wanting to contemplate either the event or the consequences she didn’t let her mind go any further. She couldn’t even think about Jake at the moment, it hurt too much. Plus she couldn’t afford to be distracted. She needed to concentrate on Todd. His life may depend on her holding it together, so with ruthless determination, she shut Jake out of her thoughts. She would deal with him later.

 Pulling up outside her brother’s unit a few minutes later Rebecca got out and hurried up the path. Stumbling up the last step in her haste, she almost fell against the door. Straightening she raised her hand and pounded on the timber. But there was no response and she couldn’t hear any movement from inside the apartment. Impatient, she hit the door several more times, hurting her hand in the process. She didn’t care but still no one came. Unable to stand still, she started to pace in between hitting the door. She was desperate to see her brother, to know he was okay and after what seemed like an eternity the door finally swung open, but to Rebecca’s dismay it wasn’t Todd standing on the other side. Looking at a bleary eyed, very hung over Cameron, Todd’s best mate from back at home, Rebecca asked ‘Cam is Todd here?’

Yawning as he leant on the door jam, using it to hold himself upright, Cameron said ‘Becs, can you not yell please?’

‘Cameron’ Rebecca said with diminishing patience and without lowering the volume of her voice the slightest bit, ‘is Todd here?’

‘Chill Becs’ Cameron said, putting a hand up to his head, ‘yeah he’s here somewhere or at least he was when I went to bed.’

Feeling a little relief now, Rebecca pushed past him and went in search of her wayward little brother.

Cameron, staggering and struggling to keep on his feet after the shove Rebecca gave him, watched her disappear into the apartment through eyes narrowed to blood shot slits, the strong morning light too much now for his strained retinas. ‘You’re welcome Bec’s’ he called out good naturedly after her as he reached out and put a hand on the wall to help retain his balance. But his raised voice started his head pounding again and he moved his free hand to hold it once more, certain it was about to split in two. Then shutting the front door with as little noise as possible he staggered back to bed.