Chapter 8

Elly shoves me away from the bed, her eyes bugging. What the hell? What's going on?

"Elly! Chill, I'll just wait outside. He doesn't know anything so why are you freaking out?" Elly's shoulders sag, I know immediately that means that she told him.

"I called him earlier, he made me tell him! I'm sorry," she says while covering her eyes.

"Does he know who I am? Will he just hit me when I walk out there?" I pace by her by her bed. I've only been in fights with my father, except he did all the hitting. So, it's safe to say I don't know how to fight.

"No, all he knows is that I cheated on him, but if you stay he will figure it out soon enough. You have to go, Declan. I promise I'll come see you as soon as I can." Elly gives me a half-hearted smile.

I storm out of her room, keeping my head down. I don't want him to see me, my face would give me away instantly. I make it to the hospital lobby and release the breath I had been holding. I'm glad I avoided that, I don't like fights. They're pointless because at the end of the day, you both are still going to hate each other no matter who gets their ass beat. I'm not sure what to do now, Andrew just dropped me off. I'm not going to bother him again.

I walk outside and wander over to the sidewalk. Walking would probably take three hours and I am not up for that. There's a bench nearby so I decide to sit there for a little while, at least until I figure out a ride.

I shouldn't have to be out here, why does she even want to see him? Is she going to stay with him? My eyes betray me and start tearing up. She better not tell me that last night was a mistake, she better not take back everything. If she does that I'll be ruined. You can't do all those things with someone and then take it back. I know there's something there; she must feel something for me.

I need to calm down. Elly hasn't taken back anything yet. I'm just jumping to wild conclusions, but why else would she let Darren come see her? I think about what she said to me in the hospital room. She said she felt wrong after what we did. That doesn't mean that she regretted it. She seemed so happy during, she kept saying she loved me. It was so cute, the way she'd stop, caress the side of my face and say she loved me. Ugh, I just want to go back. Back in time or even back in that room and hold her.

"Hey Declan!" I hear a woman shout. I look around, not seeing anyone. Then a notice a car stopped on one of the roads leading out to the main road. It's Elly's mom in her car. I jog over to the open window.

"Yeah?" I feel strange, mostly because I'm so pissed at her for being a shit mother.

"Elly asked me to see if you needed a ride. I'm going back home to pick up some things for her so it's not a problem." Perfect. I'd love for it to be anyone else to avoid an awkward ride, but I'm not in a position to be picky.

"Sure, thank you," I say, climbing in the passenger seat.

The drive is silent for the first ten minutes, which makes me hopeful. I am not in the mood to converse with Elly's mom. I stare out the window and watch the world pass by in a blur. My hopes of a silent ride are shattered when I hear Elly's mom clear her throat.

"I'm sorry, Declan," she croaks. A tear falls down her cheek, making me feel very uncomfortable. "I know that I can't change what I did and everything that I have done. I know that I played a big part in what Elly did."

She grips the steering wheel so hard that her knuckles turn white. I feel bad for her; I know almost losing a child would be hard for any parent. Finding out you're the reason you almost lost said child must be devastating.

Elly's mom keeps speaking. "I have an addiction, multiple addictions actually. I'm going to get help. I'm going to change. I want to be a better mother. It's going to be very hard for me and I just wanted to ask if you would keep her happy, Declan."

"Of course, I love your daughter. You don't even have to ask. I'm glad you're going to get help." Elly's mom smiles and wipes her face.

"I don't like Darren; he doesn't treat Elly right. I didn't say anything because Elly wants me to stay out of her personal life, but the way he was acting in there was not right." My blood boils, maybe I should change my mind about the whole not-fighting mentality.

"He isn't good for her," I agree. "Do you know when they are releasing her?"

"They are going to keep her overnight for a psych evaluation. Hospital policy, I guess," she answers. "She should be out tomorrow afternoon."

That's not too long, I'm anxious to talk to her again. There's still so much weighing on my mind. Hopefully she will want to come over when she gets out.

"So, where am I dropping you off?"

I didn't even realize we were close yet. "I can walk from your place." I just want out of this awkward situation. Making small talk with Elly's mom is kind of weird. We pull into her driveway.

"Declan," Elly's mom stops me before I get out. "I'm actually leaving for rehab when Elly gets out, her aunt will stop by every week with groceries and I've had my monthly checks changed to be directly deposited into a bank account for Elly so she can pay the bills."

"You're leaving her all alone?" She just tried to kill herself. Why would she even think that is a good idea?

"It's only for three months, I should be home before she goes to college. She's eighteen now, so it's legal. I want to be sober for her and I can't do it on my own. I'm telling you this because I want you to be here for her." She gestures to her house.

"You don't have to be here every day if you don't want to. Just visit her a few times a week, check on her and keep her company. I don't want her to be alone. I know it seems like I don't notice her, but when you started coming around she became happier, more outgoing."

"I'll be here as much as she lets me. I'll keep her safe," I tell her. I can't predict the future; I can't say that we'll always be friends or whatever we are. As long as I can, I will keep that Elly safe and happy.

"Thank you, Declan. I'm so glad she has you." Elly's mom reaches over and hugs me. I pat her back weirdly. After, I get out of the car and wave goodbye. I start walking down the street with no real destination in mind.

I'm concerned about Elly living there for three months by herself. And if she stays with Darren, I'm not even sure he will let her hang out with me anymore. Thinking about that scares me; it's not like he will be there for her all of the time and not being able to hang out with her anymore would be awful. Ugh, I need to know what she's going to do or at least how she feels. If I keep thinking about this, it's going to drive me insane.

Maybe I should see what Rob's up to. See if we can find some green; if he doesn't already have some. I need to get rid of this anxiety that's eating away at me. I pull out my phone and send him a text asking if he's free. He writes back that he's at the local burger joint in town, Dan's, and to meet him there if I want to chill. From where I am now it should only take five more minutes. As I'm walking along, my phone vibrates in my pocket. Who could that be?

Hey! I have my phone now. It's a text from Elly.

That's awesome, how are you? How did things go with Darren? I'm dying to know, but instead of a text back my phone rings. Elly is calling me.

"Hello?" I answer.

"Hey, I didn't feel like texting the whole story so I called you."

"That's fine. So, what happened?" I pause at the end of street, waiting for the cars to thin out so I can cross.

"Well, he wasn't too happy and it turns out he had cheated on me a few times." A Driver slows so I can cross, I wave thanks as I run to the other side.

"What? Wow, that's messed up Elly. You dumped him, right?" I really hope she did.

"He claimed that it was in the beginning of our relationship when we weren't that serious. He's furious with me though, but he was begging for us to stay together and work things out." I can't believe that she thinks that is okay. He cheated on her first and he isn't even taking responsibility for it. And he has the nerve to be mad at her?

"That's crazy, Elly. So, what? Are you guys still together?"

"Yes, we are."

"That's bullshit Elly!" Elly sighs on the other end.

"You don't understand, Declan. We had an amazing relationship at one point, I want to give it one more try." Everything she says sounds ridiculous to me, he's done nothing but lie and treat her like trash. He makes her believe she's trash.

"What about me Elly?" I've reached the burger place and I'm waiting for Rob on a bench outside. I'm beyond upset right now.

"Declan, everything I said to you I meant, but we can't do that again." So, she does still love me. That only makes me feel slightly better; how can she love me and be with him. It doesn't make sense.

"I'm not sure how I feel about Darren anymore, I just want to give it one last try. He's going to be staying at my house with me for a week and if it doesn't work then we are going our separate ways." I know it isn't going to work out; she's just going to have to find that out herself.

"When can I see you again?" Another question that's been weighing on my mind.

"Tomorrow, in school. We can't hang out outside of that, at least for now. Not while Darren is here. He might lose his temper if he saw us together and I don't want you guys to fight." She sounds so sad, why is she even doing this? I have a feeling he guilted her into it.

"Are you sure about this Elly?" Rob's sitting next to me now, waiting.

"No, but I'm doing it anyway. Maybe I'm just crazy." I wish she would understand how shitty he is.

"Okay, Elly. Just be careful and remember, you don't owe him a damn thing."

"I will, and Declan?"

"I do love you. I'm just a mess right now." She is a mess and it's making me crazy.

"I know and I do too, bye Elly."

"Bye Declan." The sadness in her voice crushes me. I want to make it all go away, but she won't let me. I don't know why guys think it's okay to treat someone they love or care about their nothing. Why would they even have the urge to do it if they love them so much?

"You ready to go dude?" Rob stands patiently in front of me.

"Yeah, thanks for waiting, girl problems." I walk with him over to his car.

"I know how that is, my girl is always nagging me." Hmm, I wonder why. Couldn't be that you cheat on her and ignore her all the time. It isn't my business what he does to his girlfriend and I shouldn't judge because he's a good friend to me, but it really gets on my nerves. I can't even get one girl and I treat her perfectly.

"I need to calm down, do you got anything?" Rob smiles an opens the glove compartment.

"We still have plenty left from that bag." Rob closes it back up. "You're gonna be real calm tonight."

Next thing we know we're in Rob's room and hours have gone by of us being high as hell. Right now, we're lounging on the couch, eating cheese balls and watching some sci-fi movie.

"Yooo, what the hell is that?" Rob laughs at a slimy creature on the screen devouring a girl.

"Dude, it kind of looks you." I look Rob in the eyes.

Rob stares back, eyes wide. "It does." We both break into a fit of laughter. Both of us are wrecked. My phone rings, I see it vibrating on the floor. I must have dropped it on the floor at some point. I lean back and grab the phone with my feet. Don't judge, I'm lazy right now. I try to toss it into my hands, but it hits me in the face instead.

"Owww!" We both are consumed with laughter again. When I stop laughing and check my phone, I see that I have a missed call from Elly. Shit.

Rob stands up from the couch. "I'm calling it a night; I can barely keep my eyes open."

"That's alright, I gotta call Elly back anyway."

"Ight," Rob mumbles and stumbles over to his bed. I hit call back on my phone and wait for Elly to answer. She answers on the fourth ring.

"Hey Declan, sorry I called you so late."

"Don't be sorry, I enjoy talking to you," I say and smile. "Is everything okay?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm just alone...and depressed." It figures Darren wouldn't stay overnight with her.

"I'm sorry, I'd be right there by your side if I could be."

"I know, so, why are you up so late anyway?" I lay back on the couch.

"I spent the day smoking with Rob, trying to alleviate this stress." It helped too, I feel way better than I did when I left the hospital. "How was your day," I ask curiously.

"Well, once Darren left and my mom, all I had were the nurses. They kept trying to crack bad jokes while taking my vitals. I liked that better than my mom's sad stares and Darren's guilt trips."

"I can only imagine, anything good on that hospital tv?"

Elly giggles. "I've been watching this horrible science fiction movie."

"Really? That's what we've been watching too! Doesn't the alien look like Rob?" I'm glad we both watch dumb movies mindlessly.

"Oh my god! It does, eww," Elly squeals into the phone. "That is so gross."

"It's great, Rob even agrees."

"Yeah that's funny, fits his personality too." Elly gets quiet, I know what she's thinking about.

"Hey, don't think about bad stuff. Think about good stuff. Like that time I farted and it smelled so bad you had to wait outside of your room." I laugh. Elly kept on yelling at me for it.

Elly erupts into giggles. "It was so bad! I missed very important parts of the movie we were watching. It smelled like a dead, festering body!"

"I know, it was bad. I had the school tacos that day." I love taco Tuesday at school.

"Yuck, I knew staying away from those was a good idea." We're both silent for a moment.

Elly speaks up again. "I miss you, I'm glad I called."

"I'm glad you called too. Talking to you is a good way to end my night." Her voice instantly makes me happier, no matter the situation.

"Declaaaan, I'm getting sleepy." She sounds so cute and I can tell she's tired.

"Then go to sleep, beautiful." I close my eyes, I'm tired now too.

"I wanna talk to you still," Elly whines.

"Go to sleep Elly, you can call back or text me as soon as you wake up. I'm always here for you, I promise." Sleep starts to pull at me.

"Okay, goodnight." Elly slurs.

"Goodnight," I whisper, falling asleep.