Thanks for the reviews on the first chapter. I'm glad so many of you are looking forward to this sequel. Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter too, thanks, Kayxxx :)
I'll always be a Knight – Chapter two
It had been a week since Ethan and Cal's father turned up at work. Cal seemed to have brushed his visit to the back of his mind whereas Ethan had been in constant contact with him and had planned to meet up with him today; little to Cal's knowledge. Ethan had dragged Cal out to help him pick paint for the flat as it was the only excuse he could think of that Cal would be needed.
"I'm thinking blue what do you think?" Cal asked as Ethan drove staring blankly ahead deep in thought, "Ethan!" Cal snapped him from his thoughts.
"Hm?" Ethan replied.
"Blue" Cal told him.
"What's blue?" Ethan asked oblivious as he looked around out the window for something blue.
"No, blue paint for the flat" Cal huffed, "what do you think?" He asked.
"Isn't it already blue?" Ethan asked confused.
"No it's white, why do you want to change the colour if you don't even know what colour is already there?" Cal scoffed.
"No no it's white you're right, yeah blue sounds good" Ethan replied just to shut him up more than anything; it didn't really matter what colour Cal wanted it wasn't as if they were actually going to get paint today...As they pulled into their destination Ethan's eyes shot over to a cafe, "I'm hungry" Ethan announced as Cal was about to get out of the car.
"Hi hungry, I'm starving" Cal replied. Ethan rolled his eyes at his brother's pathetic attempt at a joke. "No seriously though you rushed us out the flat without breakfast of course we're going to be hungry" Cal rolled his eyes this time and got out of the car.
"Well..." Ethan started as he too got out, "why don't we go to that cafe over there?" He suggested.
"Yeah okay, why don't I pay for my breakfast when I could have had it for free in the comfort of my own home?" Cal replied sarcastically.
"You're only moaning because you can't sit and eat it with no pants on" Ethan scoffed and made his way across to the cafe.
"Yeah and that's just one of the pleasures of eating breakfast at home" Cal announced as he followed Ethan to the cafe that was attached to the shop they were going for their paint.
"Or any meal to you" Ethan replied sarcastically as he stopped outside the door to check his watch.
"What are you doing? I'm starving!" Cal whined impatiently.
"Yeah okay" Ethan snapped and opened the door. Ethan scanned the room instantly for their father in a panic, he saw him stand up at a table in the corner of the room so they could see him. He shot a smile over at Ethan which he returned.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Cal shouted as he too spotted their father.
"Cal he just wants to talk to us" Ethan told him.
"Yeah well I don't want to hear it Ethan" Cal replied sternly and turned for the door.
"Cal wait" Ethan stopped him, "he asked for both of us Cal, not just me" he told him.
Cal looked over at his father and then back to Ethan "I'll be in the car" he turned for the door once more.
"Please stay Cal I can't do this on my own" Ethan spat out in a panic.
"What? You're scared to talk to your own dad?" Cal asked in disbelief.
"No, he-he, m,m,makes me-" Cal cut Ethan's stuttering off.
"...okay alright, I'll come" Cal sighed. Seeing Ethan stutter at the thought of their father proved he had an effect on his childhood too.
"Don't cause any arguments, please Cal" Ethan asked.
"I'm not making any promises" Cal mumbled and made his way over.
Although he'd agreed to sit with Ethan and their father, Cal had no intention of listening to a word he said. Ethan sat up straight listening intently to his father whereas Cal slumped back looking around the room and jiggling his legs.
"So, how have you boys been?" Their father asked.
"Great, wonderful in fact" Ethan replied awkwardly.
"That's great...so how long have you been working at Holby for?" He asked.
"Just over two years now, I started the day mum died unfortunately" Ethan replied sadly.
"Talk about bad timing eh son?" He looked at him sympathetically, "Any romance on the cards?" Their father asked with a smirk.
"Only briefly for me, I, I had a short fling with a lovely girl called Honey, she worked at the hospital" Ethan told him smiling as he thought of her, "we were far too opposite though, it didn't really work out in the end" he held his head down.
"Ah well I'm sure you'll find the right gal soon son" his father told him causing Ethan to smile.
"What about you Caleb?" He asked but Cal was still content on not listening. His father placed his hand on Cal's knee to stop him jiggling, "Caleb, please" he warned.
Cal sighed and sat up, "look, enough small talk I can get that off a patient at work, why are we here?" He asked knowing Ethan was far too nervous to ask this but both of them wanted to know.
"I've got to tell you something" their father replied.
"Yeah so you keep saying, just get on with it will you" Cal snapped impatiently.
"I haven't seen you for years Caleb I want to know how you've been" he pushed.
Cal sighed loudly, "I've been working at the hospital a week less than Ethan has. Relationships? Of course I've had many, one actually made me consider popping the question but I'd much rather block that right out of my mind and as for how I've been? Absolutely fine until you showed up. Now you, why are you here, what do you want?" Cal demanded.
"Popping the question? I never thought you'd be one to settle down" he spoke impressed.
"We're talking about you now" Cal reminded him.
"And you've held down a job for over two years?" He continued.
"Oh for god sake just spit it out I haven't got all day!" Cal snapped.
"I'm dying" he finally spat out.
Both Ethan and Cal's faces dropped. Cal looked at Ethan sympathetically; he cared greatly for their father but Cal didn't, at the moment he felt sorrier for Ethan and he did his father. Ethan opened his mouth to talk but no words came out.
"Prostate cancer" their father answered the question Ethan couldn't bring himself to ask "I've just been told I haven't got long left to live..." He trailed off awkwardly awaiting his son's reactions.
"...and you're telling us this because?" Cal shrugged.
"Caleb!" Ethan warned.
"No seriously, what do you want? Sympathy? Well you're looking in the wrong place, I'm afraid you aren't getting any sympathy from me" Cal stood up to leave.
"Caleb please just hear me out there's more to this" his father asked.
Ethan gave him daggers. Cal sighed and slumped back down in his chair.
"As you are both doctors you probably know if a close family member has prostate cancer it increases your risk of getting it. Now it was too late for me but I want you two to get checked out now, before it could be too late for you too" their father explained carefully.
"Thank you dad, we'll get right on it" Ethan replied sincerely.
"What a hero, Doctor Hardy swoops in to save the day once again" Cal spoke sarcastically.
Ethan shook his head, "Ignore him dad, I'm so sorry to hear about your cancer, listen, if there's anything at all we can do-" Cal cut Ethan off.
"Woah count me right out of that one" Cal held his hands up as he stood up; he'd had enough "listen I'm sick listening to all this, to be honest it wouldn't surprise me if it was all lies, I'll be in the car" He told Ethan who looked up at him in disappointment, "I won't be in touch" he forced out a smile at his father and stormed out of the cafe.
Ethan watched him leave and then turned back to his father, "I'm so sorry about him, I doubt he actually means anything he says. It'll hit home to him soon I promise you, he was like this when mum got diagnosed he took up a job abroad, he doesn't really handle things well when it's his family who are patients...look you've got my number, keep in touch with me okay? We'll meet up again soon; we're not going to lose contact again alright? I'm here for you; keep me updated on your condition please. Right I'm going to have to go before he leaves without me" Ethan stood up; his father stood up at the same time as him but winced due to his condition.
Ethan looked out the window to find Cal had started up the car.
"There's still so much I need to tell you, and so much I want to hear about you" his father told him.
"We'll get a coffee" Ethan smiled and hurried out the door, "Caleb!" He shouted as his brother drove toward the exit of the car park, he then swiftly turned and pulled up right at Ethan's feet. He took a seat in the passenger's seat and sighed. He waved at his dad as they drove away, Cal didn't give him a second glance.
"Cal the way you spoke to him then was so disrespectful, are you forgetting that's our father?" Ethan snapped.
"Ethan I couldn't care less about that man" Cal replied easily.
"Yeah and you made that clear as day back there" Ethan spoke sternly, "He must be so scared Cal, he must want some closure from us, it must be horrible going through cancer alone-" Cal cut him off there.
"The only reason he wants to talk to us now is because he feels guilty for our crappy childhood, he thinks he can make up for that now? Pfft I lost nine years of my life because of that man, nine years I'm never getting back. And he won't be going through this alone, he's probably still with that nurse he cheated on mum with. Look, I doubt any of this is as bad as he's making out, he doesn't even look like he's been through any chemo? He's still young for a prostate cancer patient so that would be a way of treatment...He's like the grim reaper himself it wouldn't surprise me if he'll live forever to make more people's lives a misery" Cal huffed.
"Don't be so horrible about him Caleb, without him you wouldn't be alive you at least have that to thank him for" Ethan tried to reason.
"He's a selfish person Ethan, he cares about nobody but himself" Cal replied confidently.
"Reminds me of someone else I know" Ethan muttered under his breath as he looked out of the window.
Suddenly the car swerved to the side of the road and skid to a stop, Ethan looked over at Cal who rested his head against the stirring wheel which his hands gripped onto so tightly his nails were probably making an indent on it. Ethan's heart was beating hard in his chest from the Cal suddenly slamming on the breaks, "What the hell did you do that for?! You could've killed us!" Ethan shouted.
"Don't you ever compare me to him!" Cal roared at him. As he did so Ethan noticed tears in his brother's eyes, he didn't know whether they were tears of rage or something else but he was taken aback by it. "I can still see them you know, sure they're faded now, no one else can make them out but I can, because I know they're there, they'll always be there...they'll always be a reminder of how I felt when I was on that medication, they'll always be a reminder of how he made me feel" Cal mumbled as had his head held down.
Ethan looked at him confused, "What are you talking about Caleb?" He asked; he was talking total nonsense.
Cal slowly lifted his head up and looked at Ethan; his tears had now escaped his eyes, "...my scars Ethan" he whimpered.
Suddenly realisation shattered over Ethan, his mind shot back instantly to Cal being 16 years old and depressed and self harming because of the way his medication his father wrongly put him on affected his mind. Ethan had completely forgotten about that if he were to be completely honest, it was a good 16 years ago and he thought Cal would've put it to the back of his mind as much as he had, however, only now did he realise that must've been a hell of a lot harder for him. The difference in his brother now to back then is incredible you never would put imagine them being the same person, maybe that's why it hit home so much when he heard Cal bring up his scars. Only now he understood why his brother didn't like seeing their father.
"You don't have to see him again Cal, I'm sorry for bringing you here today I didn't think" Ethan told him sincerely.
Cal nodded and ran his hand over his face to wipe away his tears in embarrassment, "We didn't even get the paint for the flat" he joked causing Ethan to laugh slightly.
