Disclaimer: I do not own National Treasure or any of its characters.
Summary: A tragedy strikes Riley's life, and he reflects on his past.
I'm Fine
Riley got the call Thursday. He was in his apartment, watching some boring soap opera because there was nothing else on. When he answered the phone, his mother spoke back to him with a voice that shook with every word. She only uttered three words: "Your brother's dead." Then she hung up. The phone slipped from Riley's hand and fell with a clatter to the kitchen floor. The first thought that entered his mind was, "This can't be true. There must be some kind of mistake." The second thought was, "How did she get my number?" He picked up the phone and dialed the number on the caller ID. When she answered he asked quickly, "What do you mean David's dead? And don't you dare hang up on me! What happened?" There was silence for a moment, then she crisply answered, "Cancer is what
happened." Riley stood there in shock. "What? How long has he had cancer?" He paused for a second, then said, "How did you even find him?"
"That's my secret. And to answer your first question, he's had cancer about a year. We thought he was getting better, but then he slipped into a coma and now he's dead."
"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked angrily.
"Well you proved that you don't care about this family after what you did to your father-"
"He deserved what he got!" he yelled at her. There was silence once more, then his mother said coldly, "You're lucky I even called at all. The funeral's Saturday at 1:00 in Winchester Cemetery, though why you would bother to show up I've no idea." And she hung up.
The next day, Riley went over to Ben and Abigail's house to tell them what had happened. He did not tell them the part about his father. "We are so sorry, Riley." Ben said sincerely.
"Honey, if there is anything you need, just ask us." Abigail said. "And don't worry, we're coming to the funeral with you."
"Riley, why didn't you ever tell us you had a brother?" Ben asked.
"Just never got around to it, I guess." The truth is, he never told them about David because he didn't want to have to explain about his family. Growing up, his father was an extremely mean drunk. He always seemed to find something to blame Riley on. Every night, he would go up to Riley's room and beat him until Riley couldn't feel the pain anymore. His mother knew about it, of course. She never hurt him, but she never did anything about it. She wasn't afraid of his father, because she loved him. She just didn't care about Riley. He never hurt David, though, because to them, David was perfect. To them, Riley was a burden. Not to David, though. He always tried t stop their father, but he always said, "Someday David, you'll understand why I'm doing this." Riley never understood what he did to make his parents hate him so much. But after Riley was beaten, David would comfort and take care him. He was the only person who cared about him. The perfect older brother. "Are you alright?" he would ask. "I'm fine." Riley would always answer. And somehow, with David there, he was always able to convince himself that he was. One day, Riley finally became brave enough to tell the police what was happening, something David was afraid of doing for fear of Riley getting more hurt. His father was arrested, and even though his mother wasn't, she wasn't allowed to keep her children. Riley and David were sent to separate foster homes. For years Riley searched for his brother, but was never able to find him. Apparently, his mother was.
Now Riley watches as they lower the casket into the ground. Ben and Abigail stand on either side of him. He saw his mother, but she never once looked in his direction. He doesn't care. "Are you alright?" Abigail asks. He takes a moment to think about this. He feels sad, angry, scared, and strangely alone. His protector, his brother, his friend, was gone, and he never got to say good bye or thank him for all that he's done. And because of this, he feel immensely guilty. But he doesn't say any of this. Instead he forces a smile, looks at Ben and Abigail, and says, "I'm fine." He's almost able to convince himself that he is. Almost.