A/n: Hi guys! I really liked that guest who made that insulin comment for the previous chapter. Made me laugh out loud. Like seriously! I still chuckle when I read it. Thanks for all the support, guys. Now for this chapter I decided to write about a little heartache and difficult time that Bo went thru many years ago. Oh and I changed the age that Bo took over Trick's business in chapter 2 because I overlooked it. Sorry. Math is not my strong suit although it should be considering I'm half Asian. Joking. Joking. Stereotyping aside, I hope you like this chapter. There will be a song in it. I know.. *Groans* Another one? Yes. I'm all about the music. Hehe. Anyway, this chapter was written with Grampeep Jabes in mind. I did kinda promise to use her song choice here. The song is You Make It Real For Me by James Morrison. Gotta love the Brits.
Now, please enjoy. :)
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
.
.
.
The kids and grandkids were lounging in the living room. Chatting away happily. I decided to help Lauren clear the dishes. Charlie and Ethan had offered to do it but Lauren and I were adamant about doing it ourselves; them being guests and all in our home. Plus we were stubborn as hell and wanted to prove our worth even though we knew we didn't have to. We wanted to show that we were more than just skin and bones so to speak. What was that saying? The older you get the more stubborn you get? *chuckles*
Kenzi was telling a joke by the way that the laughter erupted from the living room. I wonder which one it was. She always could entertain the hell out of you. I smiled as I watch my best friend excitedly make gestures with her hands as she was telling another joke to her audience.
As I was handing the cutlery and plates to Lauren in the kitchen, I noticed the mug that was tucked away in the corner of the shelf. It was one of those coffee mugs that had words written on it. This one had "Best granddaughter in the world" written across it. It was a gift from Trick from one of his many work trips that he had to take while running The Dahl Corp. I took it from the shelf and ran my thumb across the wordings. A single tear slipped down my cheek.
"Bo, honey. What's wrong?" Lauren asked me as she turned to look at me when she noticed that I had stopped handing her the dishes. She then stopped loading the dishwasher halfway. You'd think they'd invented something else by now like self-cleaning plates or whatever with all the technology around these days.
"It's nothing, babe," I shrugged. "I just miss him you know. And well it looks like I'll be meeting him soon. I mean I'm old old. Like ancient old; and I'm not exactly as healthy as I used to be. I don't know how much longer I'll live," I said to her in all honesty.
"Ysabeau! Don't you dare say that! And not on our anniversary. I can't imagine living without you..." she grabbed my shoulders and looked at me straight in the eyes. Her own starting to tear up.
I placed the mug on the marble countertop and sighed with my head down.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way. It'll be his anniversary in two weeks' time. And I just saw this mug there and it reminded me of him."
I looked up at her and gently placed a kiss on her lips.
"You will live to 100, you hear me? I'm not gonna have you die and leave me all alone if I can help it. With all the technological advances they've made in medicine-"
I stopped her, "Babe, I don't want any artificial organs in me. I want to be a hundred percent human when the time comes for me to go. I was born into this world as one and I intend to leave this world as one."
She sighed and ran her hand through her hair. "I know, babe. But I just wish you'd consider it. Trick would've probably done it had he had the chance to back then. From the way he talked to me during our short time that we knew one another, he sounded like a very forward thinking man."
"It's okay, babe. I'm sorry to have ruined tonight's mood. Really I am," I say as I take one of her hands and kiss the back of it while smiling ever so sweetly to her trying to return to the joyous mood we were in before.
"Well, you better be. I will not hear another word of it tonight or any other night, you hear me? No amount of foot rubs will help you get out of the doghouse if I do again. Just so we're clear," she looks at me with this intense stare and my heart broke. I would not leave her if I ever had the choice.
"Yes, baby. I understand. But if I threw in some back rubs, would that help?" I joked.
She swatted my arm and laughed.
"Oh, Bo. You know I love you, right?"
"Yes I do, Lauren. But not as much as I love you!" I wiggled my eyebrows and quickly pecked her nose.
She smiled and pulled me into a tight embrace, staring deep into my eyes.
"I love you..." she pauses for something else to say I think. "Times infinity!" she slaps my ass and laughs. And just like that we were back to our blissful mood from earlier. Well at least that's what she's had me believe. I hope I didn't just make her pretend to spare my feelings. *Sighs* I put on a smile for her.
"Now go and sit with the family. I'm almost done in here," she orders me as I rub my ass and scowl at her playfully.
"Okay. Okay. But you WILL pay for that later," I smirk as I look at her and then make my way out to the living room.
.
.
.
.
-June 2014-
.
.
.
Trick was in and out of the hospital for months now. He was getting weaker by the day. He had stage 4 lung cancer. Numerous tumours in his brain, lungs and kidneys. The doctors say he's lucky if he lasts a year.
There's so much craziness surrounding me
There's so much going on, it gets hard to breathe
When all my faith has gone, you bring it back to me
You make it real for me
I was sitting on the wooden bench outside the hospital with my hands on my head. Kenzi was inside with Lauren in Trick's room. He had just come out of surgery to remove the tumours from the brain. The lungs and kidneys had to wait. The doctor said they couldn't risk doing it all at once because of his weakened state and age.
When I'm not sure of my priorities
When I've lost sight of where I'm meant to be
Like holy water washing over me
You make it real for me
Kenzi and I had just about started to get the hang of things with the company when he started getting sick. At first, it was just a cough. But it wouldn't go away. Then coughing became wheezing and soon he had difficulty in breathing. It got so bad we had to rush him to the hospital.
And I'm running to you, baby
You are the only one who saves me
That's why I've been missing you lately
Cause you make it real for me
Mom stayed with him most of the time he was there. I had to force her to go back to the house to rest so I could take care of him with Kenzi.
When my head is strong but my heart is weak
I'm full of arrogance and uncertainty
When I can't find the words
You teach my heart to speak
You make it real for me, yeah
I was busy running back and forth from the hospital to the company to the house trying to handle things as best as I could.
And I'm running to you, baby
You are the only one who saves me
That's why I've been missing you lately
Cause you make it real for me
Today I just couldn't sit in there waiting for him to wake up. Seeing him in that weakened and frail state brought tears to my eyes. I never saw him sick growing up. He didn't smoke and he hardly ever drank. He always seemed as fit as a fiddle to me. Thinking back now, I think he was just good at hiding it from me; not wanting me to see the man of the house get sick and shatter that superhero image I had of him. Afterall, he was the only constant man in my life growing up. Deep down I know people just want to be that superhero in a child's life. To live up to that perfect persona, to not disappoint them.
Everybody's talking in words I don't understand
You got to be the only one who knows just who I am
You're shining in the distance, I hope I can make it through
'Cause the only place that I want to be
Is right back home with you
I feel a presence sit beside me on the bench. I smell her perfume and know it's Lauren. She leans in to my side and gently brings my head to rest on her shoulders.
I guess there's so much more I have to learn
But if you're here with me, I know which way to turn
You always give me somewhere, somewhere I can run
You make it real for me
"Doctors say they took out all of them. He just needs time to recover now. Then they can continue to remove the rest of the tumours," she says as she slowly caresses my hair.
"Thank you, Lauren. For being here with me. I don't know what I'd do without your support. I mean I have the company to deal with and the house to look after and Kenzi and this.. Sometimes, I just don't know if I can do any of it," I say through choked sobs.
And I'm running to you, baby
You are the only one who saves me
That's why I've been missing you lately
'Cause you make it real for me
Yes, you do, you make it real for me
"You've got me, Bo. I'll always be here for you. Always. We'll go through it together."
.
.
.
.
-January 2015-
.
.
.
.
Trick handed down the business to me since mom had no interest in it. I was just barely over a month in of leading the multi-million dollar company.
He passed away in November of last year. He fought with all his might, the doctors had said. Today was his birthday. I was at his grave, a single tulip in my hand. It was his favourite. Kenzi was waiting in the car with Lauren. They had both said what they wanted to say earlier.
I kneeled down on the wet grass. It rained last night. The soil was muddy but I didn't care. I placed the tulip at the bottom of the headstone and took a deep breath.
"Hey, gramps," I said. "I brought you your favourite flower today. I didn't want to bring a whole bunch of them. I know how you like them in singular form. What was it you used to say? A single flower given with a sincere heart means more than a thousand flowers given with a fake smile?" I started to tear up.
"I miss you, gramps. You were the father I never had. Heck you were even more of a mother to me than my real mom ever was. Still is.." I rubbed my eyes.
I took in a deep breath then exhaled trying to calm myself. I hear the crack of thunder and I look up towards the sky. There was another storm coming on.
A few minutes pass by and I feel the first few raindrops fall on my head and body. I chuckled to no one in particular. Great. Rain when I needed sunshine in more ways than one.
"Today's been a busy day at work, Trick. Well, busy month to be honest. The stock price has increased which is awesome news but more work for Kenz, her mum and I," I slumped my shoulders. The rain started to pour heavily now. I was getting soaked to the bone.
I hear squishy footsteps approaching me from behind and then I feel a hand on my shoulder. The rain stopped pouring on my head and I look up and see an umbrella held in place by Lauren.
"Bo, sweetie. It's pouring. We better head on back before you catch a cold. Are you almost finished?"
"Yeah. I'm almost done here. Just need to say one last thing for today," I say as I look up to her and ran my fingers through my wet hair.
I place two fingers on my lips and then the headstone, "Happy birthday, Trick. I miss you."
.
.
.
.
-End of chapter 8-
.
.
.
.
A/n2: So there you have it. Hope it was okay. Even though Math isn't really my strong suit, I do know that two halves make a whole. Just like Bo + Lauren = true love. Awwww... Oh, and reviews are so very welcomed. Lets me know that my work was read by a human and not a robot or a machine. Lol! Joking. Joking. I like to joke. But yes, please do leave a review so I know how I'm doing so far. If it sucked or not, you get it, right? Thanks! Till next time, cheers!
