Helping Hand
Chapter 2
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Emily paced around the living room of the apartment. There was plenty of room to pace since the furniture had been pushed out of the way so that her mother could maneuver her wheelchair. She glanced at the clock again, noticing that it had only moved two minutes since the last time she'd looked at it at 2:30 a.m. Charlie still wasn't home. She'd lied to Faith when she told her that Charlie was at a friend's house working on a school project. When Faith had gone to bed exhausted after her physical therapy and her father had gone to work his overtime shift to help defray the costs of raising their family without Faith's overtime money, Emily had assured her mother that she'd wait up for Charlie. Truth was - she didn't know where Charlie was. "An all to common occurrence lately," she thought to herself. He'd been saying that he was staying after school a lot - that he was involved in a bunch of school activities. But, she'd heard through the grapevine of friends that he was in some trouble.
According to one of her friends, Emily had found out that Charlie had started hanging with a bad crowd. This started shortly after Faith had been shot - while she was still in the hospital actually. He'd been coming home later and later at night and more than once she'd thought she'd smelled beer on his breath. She hadn't wanted to say anything to her mother and father - they had enough to deal with and she thought she could take care of it. Despite all of her efforts, though, Charlie had become more difficult to deal with. Now, she was trying to figure out what to do.
She was brought from her thoughts by the sound of keys fumbling in the lock. She walked over and pulled open the door to come face to face with her brother. He merely gave her a dirty look and brushed past her.
"Charlie! Where have you been?" Emily demanded. Ignoring her question, Charlie threw his jacket on the floor in the corner under the coat hook and strolled into the living room and flipped on ESPN.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Emily persisted in a hushed tone.
"Leave me alone," Charlie responded meanly. "Nobody appointed you my keeper."
"What's going on with you, Charlie? I'm worried," she said, sitting down next to him and smelling the alcohol on his breath.
"Don't worry about it. I'm fine. Just worry about yourself," he snapped. He stood up abruptly and walked down the hallway, closing the door behind him.
Watching him walk away, the sinking feeling in the pit of Emily's stomach intensified. She definitely had to get help. "Please call me back Bosco," she willed him to herself. Reaching over to the remote, she clicked off the television and locked up and went to bed herself.
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"Good. Now go away." Faith's words rang in his head and the pain that the words inflicted were felt again in his chest. She'd dismissed him. She was through with him - he'd really screwed up this time. He barely remembered ending up at the bar where his mother worked - already well on his way to being trashed. She sat him down, gave him another drink like he'd ordered and then started watering the next drink down. She tried to get him to tell her what was wrong. She'd seen him come in upset before, but there was something different these last few times - something desperate in the look of his eyes.
"Maurice. I can't help you if you don't tell me about it. Please," Rose pushed.
"Ma, no one can help me. I don't want to hurt anyone else," Bosco slurred as he downed the drink and made a face at the watered-down taste. "You won't be in business much longer if you keep serving drinks like this," he sniped, reaching for the bottle next to his mother - missing the first time, but getting hold of it the second. Rose didn't stop him from pouring another drink. She could tell by looking at him that he'd pass out before he finished it. She glanced over at Bosco's brother, Mikey, who was sitting over in the corner watching his brother's misery. He knew that if he went over to try to help that Bosco'd just start ragging on him about how he'd screwed up by getting involved in drugs - even if he had been clean for over a year and holding down a respectable job since his brother had arrested him.
She looked back at Bosco and saw him sound asleep - his head lying on the bar.
"Mikey, help me get your brother upstairs," Rose called to Mikey. As Mikey walked over, Rose asked him, "You know what this is about?"
Mikey shook his head, but said, "Has to be work. That's all he does," Mikey replied as he took most of his brother's weight and Rose helped him get him upstairs.
They half-carried, half-dragged Bosco into the spare room and laid him on the bed. He mumbled a few things, but they couldn't make out what he was saying. "You want me to stay with him?" Mikey asked.
"No. Go downstairs and ask Paula to close up tonight," she said, taking Bosco's shoes off. Mikey turned to go back downstairs, but Rose stopped him, "So, you have no idea what this might be about?" Mikey explained what he'd heard about the events of the last couple of weeks as he watched Rose expertly remove Bosco's jacket and pulled down the covers on the bed from under him.
"You're pretty good at doing that," Mikey noted to his mother as Bosco never stirred during the whole process.
Rose finished and threw a blanket over Bosco. She bent down and put a hand on his head. "Goodnight, Maurice. Sleep well."
Straightening up, she looked at Mikey and said, "I got lots of practice with your father. Besides, he's so tired I don't think an explosion would wake him up now. He looks like crap - has for the last two weeks," Rose said, looking back at Bosco. So, how bad was Faith Yokas hurt? He wouldn't tell me," she asked her other son. He shrugged that he didn't know.
Mikey preceded Rose out of the bedroom and she turned to turn off the light. Before she turned the switch off, she looked at her son and noticed a frown. "Okay, as bad as it was, that was a couple of weeks ago. I wonder what happened tonight to set him off again?" she thought to herself as she flipped the switch and walked up the hallway.
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Early the next morning, the phone in Bosco's apartment rang, unanswered. The machine picked up and she left a message.
"Bosco, it's me. I really need to talk to you. I missed you at work. You can't call me. I'll just keep trying," said the caller, hanging up the phone. The light on the answering machine blinking was the only color in the darkened, disheveled apartment, empty beer bottles and dirty dishes lying about.
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TBC...
Chapter 2
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Emily paced around the living room of the apartment. There was plenty of room to pace since the furniture had been pushed out of the way so that her mother could maneuver her wheelchair. She glanced at the clock again, noticing that it had only moved two minutes since the last time she'd looked at it at 2:30 a.m. Charlie still wasn't home. She'd lied to Faith when she told her that Charlie was at a friend's house working on a school project. When Faith had gone to bed exhausted after her physical therapy and her father had gone to work his overtime shift to help defray the costs of raising their family without Faith's overtime money, Emily had assured her mother that she'd wait up for Charlie. Truth was - she didn't know where Charlie was. "An all to common occurrence lately," she thought to herself. He'd been saying that he was staying after school a lot - that he was involved in a bunch of school activities. But, she'd heard through the grapevine of friends that he was in some trouble.
According to one of her friends, Emily had found out that Charlie had started hanging with a bad crowd. This started shortly after Faith had been shot - while she was still in the hospital actually. He'd been coming home later and later at night and more than once she'd thought she'd smelled beer on his breath. She hadn't wanted to say anything to her mother and father - they had enough to deal with and she thought she could take care of it. Despite all of her efforts, though, Charlie had become more difficult to deal with. Now, she was trying to figure out what to do.
She was brought from her thoughts by the sound of keys fumbling in the lock. She walked over and pulled open the door to come face to face with her brother. He merely gave her a dirty look and brushed past her.
"Charlie! Where have you been?" Emily demanded. Ignoring her question, Charlie threw his jacket on the floor in the corner under the coat hook and strolled into the living room and flipped on ESPN.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Emily persisted in a hushed tone.
"Leave me alone," Charlie responded meanly. "Nobody appointed you my keeper."
"What's going on with you, Charlie? I'm worried," she said, sitting down next to him and smelling the alcohol on his breath.
"Don't worry about it. I'm fine. Just worry about yourself," he snapped. He stood up abruptly and walked down the hallway, closing the door behind him.
Watching him walk away, the sinking feeling in the pit of Emily's stomach intensified. She definitely had to get help. "Please call me back Bosco," she willed him to herself. Reaching over to the remote, she clicked off the television and locked up and went to bed herself.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^**
"Good. Now go away." Faith's words rang in his head and the pain that the words inflicted were felt again in his chest. She'd dismissed him. She was through with him - he'd really screwed up this time. He barely remembered ending up at the bar where his mother worked - already well on his way to being trashed. She sat him down, gave him another drink like he'd ordered and then started watering the next drink down. She tried to get him to tell her what was wrong. She'd seen him come in upset before, but there was something different these last few times - something desperate in the look of his eyes.
"Maurice. I can't help you if you don't tell me about it. Please," Rose pushed.
"Ma, no one can help me. I don't want to hurt anyone else," Bosco slurred as he downed the drink and made a face at the watered-down taste. "You won't be in business much longer if you keep serving drinks like this," he sniped, reaching for the bottle next to his mother - missing the first time, but getting hold of it the second. Rose didn't stop him from pouring another drink. She could tell by looking at him that he'd pass out before he finished it. She glanced over at Bosco's brother, Mikey, who was sitting over in the corner watching his brother's misery. He knew that if he went over to try to help that Bosco'd just start ragging on him about how he'd screwed up by getting involved in drugs - even if he had been clean for over a year and holding down a respectable job since his brother had arrested him.
She looked back at Bosco and saw him sound asleep - his head lying on the bar.
"Mikey, help me get your brother upstairs," Rose called to Mikey. As Mikey walked over, Rose asked him, "You know what this is about?"
Mikey shook his head, but said, "Has to be work. That's all he does," Mikey replied as he took most of his brother's weight and Rose helped him get him upstairs.
They half-carried, half-dragged Bosco into the spare room and laid him on the bed. He mumbled a few things, but they couldn't make out what he was saying. "You want me to stay with him?" Mikey asked.
"No. Go downstairs and ask Paula to close up tonight," she said, taking Bosco's shoes off. Mikey turned to go back downstairs, but Rose stopped him, "So, you have no idea what this might be about?" Mikey explained what he'd heard about the events of the last couple of weeks as he watched Rose expertly remove Bosco's jacket and pulled down the covers on the bed from under him.
"You're pretty good at doing that," Mikey noted to his mother as Bosco never stirred during the whole process.
Rose finished and threw a blanket over Bosco. She bent down and put a hand on his head. "Goodnight, Maurice. Sleep well."
Straightening up, she looked at Mikey and said, "I got lots of practice with your father. Besides, he's so tired I don't think an explosion would wake him up now. He looks like crap - has for the last two weeks," Rose said, looking back at Bosco. So, how bad was Faith Yokas hurt? He wouldn't tell me," she asked her other son. He shrugged that he didn't know.
Mikey preceded Rose out of the bedroom and she turned to turn off the light. Before she turned the switch off, she looked at her son and noticed a frown. "Okay, as bad as it was, that was a couple of weeks ago. I wonder what happened tonight to set him off again?" she thought to herself as she flipped the switch and walked up the hallway.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Early the next morning, the phone in Bosco's apartment rang, unanswered. The machine picked up and she left a message.
"Bosco, it's me. I really need to talk to you. I missed you at work. You can't call me. I'll just keep trying," said the caller, hanging up the phone. The light on the answering machine blinking was the only color in the darkened, disheveled apartment, empty beer bottles and dirty dishes lying about.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TBC...
