Disclaimer: The 7th Heaven characters aren't mine. I'm just borrowing them to tell a story. Please don't sue. All non 7th Heaven characters belong to me. Please remember this is a work of fiction. All similarities to persons or events is purely coincidental. That said, it's time to begin.
Author's Request: Please read and review. Constructive criticism welcome. Please don't flame.
The Road Home
By Dark Inzanity (c) 2002
Chapter 2
The Weight Of The World On His Shoulders
(Robbie)
I hung up the phone, in slow motion, because I could hardly force myself to move at all.. I felt like...I don't know what. Like the whole world had stopped turning for one split second and no one, nothing, would ever be the same again.
Why had I told Kevin I would call Mary? Because...because it was an excuse to call her. Because she could come to me, or I could go to her, for comfort, and we could be together within fifteen minutes. And I wanted her to want me to comfort her. I almost needed that.
Reverend and Mrs. Camden had taken me in, despite some pretty awful things I had done, and they made me feel like I was part of their family. They kept me off the streets, out of trouble, out of jail. Sometimes I wondered if they had saved my life, because I know I couldn't have gone on like I was for long. I probably would have ended up face down in an alley somewhere, and no one would have cared. They cared, and they made me care.
I picked up the phone again and dialed her number. And I hung it up before the first ring. I couldn't tell her this news, this horrible, life altering news, over the phone. Not when we were so close, and I could just drive over to her apartment and tell her face to face. She needed to hear this news in person.
"Mom," I yelled from the bottom of the stairs. "I'm going out for a while." I didn't wait to hear her answer.
I've made the drive to Mary's apartment many times. I've only gone to her door once. She told me she didn't want to see me, and I told her I would respect that, even if it broke my heart. I had hoped we could make a new start and try again, but she wasn't interested.
She would probably try to turn me away when I told her about the accident and her parents. She might even think I was making it up, but that would be pretty sick. I would never lie about something like that. She only had to call her parent's house and hear Lucy's voice to know it was real.
She wasn't home when I got there. Damn it. I never considered that possibility. Oh well, I would just have to wait for her. And hope she wasn't on an over night flight.
I sat down on the floor outside her door, and tried to keep my mind focused on other things so I wouldn't think of Reverend and Mrs. Camden. They were like parents to me, and much better at it than my own mom and dad had ever been. I felt like one of their children, and I think most of the Camden children accepted me like an adopted brother. All of them, except Mary, and I didn't want Mary to think of me like a brother anyway.
Maybe it was inappropriate to think it, but I hoped Mary would lean on me now, and maybe, just maybe, this would be the start of a new chance for us.
I don't think I was asleep, but I was in that foggy almost-asleep state, when I heard someone laughing a little in the distance. I shook my head to clear it, and when I looked up, Mary was coming down the hallway with her arm around some guy. She stopped short seeing me and pulled away from the guy, telling him 'Wait here.'
"What are you doing here?" she demanded of me.
I stood up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Seeing her, beautiful as always, made me think of her parents. I pressed my fingers against my eyes to block the thoughts and images. "Mary..."
"Get out, Robbie. I told you-" She started, her voice rising slightly with each word.
I put my hand up to signal her to stop. "Mary, it's your parents."
"My parents? What about them? They sent you here? I don't want to hear anything they have to say."
"Mary, they're dead."
She stared at me, her mouth falling open without a sound. Her eyes shifted back and forth, searching my face, hoping I was lying. She had to know I wasn't lying, I wouldn't lie about something so serious. Once upon a time ago I might have made something this horrible up, but not now. Not since Reverend and Mrs. Camden helped me get my life back on track.
"What?" She finally whispered.
"I talked to Lucy a little while ago, Mary. They were in a car accident last night."
Mary shook her head, and her mouth twisted with the pain she felt. I hesitated a moment before reaching out to her. She didn't protest, and I pulled her to my shoulder, my hands in her hair, hoping to give her some comfort.
"I want to talk to Lucy."
I nodded. "Where are your keys?" She handed them to me, and I turned a little, keeping my arm around her, and opened the door.
I guided her to the sofa and eased her onto it.
I had forgotten all about the guy she brought home until I went to close the door and he was standing there.
"Is she all right?" he asked.
I glanced at her over my shoulder. Mary had her hands over her face, struggling to get her tears under control. She looked very much like a small child and I wanted to go back over there and take her in my arms and hold her until the tears stopped. I wondered if the tears would ever stop after something like this. "No. I think you should go," I said to the guy, who didn't look like Mary's type at all. "Maybe she'll call you tomorrow."
"If its all the same to you, pal, I'd like to stay."
"It's not all the same to me, and I'm not your pal. I've known Mary a long time, and..."
"It's okay, Robbie. Greg, I'm fine. But I have something I need tot ake care of. I'll explain it all later. Right now, I need to be alone. With Robbie. He's the guy I was telling you about, he lived with my family for a long time. He's practically my brother."
"I bet," Greg sighed. "Don't bother to call, Mary. I know when I'm being dumped."
"Greg, no. It's not like that..." Mary protested, but Greg just turned and walked away with a 'don't bother' wave of his hand.
I shut the door and went back to Mary's side. "I'm sorry." I put my hand on her head, my fingers in her hair.
She shook her head, but looked at me and tried to smile. "It's okay. I just...I can't...my parents..."
"I know. It's hard to believe."
"I need to talk to Lucy."
"She's having a hard time with it." Duh. What a stupid thing to say. Of course she's having a hard time with it. She's there, in Glen Oak, with Simon and Ruthie and the twins, and the house, living it. "She couldn't even talk to me. Kevin had to tell me."
"Did she call you?"
I shook my head. "I called the house. I just wanted to check in and see how everyone was doing."
Mary looked down, and her hair fell like a curtain around her face. Her body shook with a silent sob. I put my arms around her and she fell into my lap crying and moaning. I held her and tried to whisper little words of encouragement, things like 'It'll be all right' and 'We'll get through this' even though the words felt hollow to me. How could anything ever be all right again? How could we get through something like this?
(Mary)
I felt a flash of anger when I saw him there, sitting on the floor outside my apartment. How dare he, I thought. How dare he come here and expect me to...to what? I didn't even know what he wanted, and something about the way he got to his feet...he looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders.
Still, I had to be angry, had to make him think I didn't want to see him.
His words careened through my mind at full speed, creating crazy, disjointed images I didn't want to face. My parents...dead? But I had so much to say to them, so many things I wanted to say to them. Especially Dad. I had so many things I needed to say to Dad. They couldn't be gone. It's not fair!
I gave Robbie my keys and he took me inside. I think I would have fallen flat on my face if he had let go of me. How do you keep your head up when it feels like your whole world has crumbled at your feet? Not even at my feet, because my whole world was really back home, in California, with my family.
Certainly not here, in Ft. Lauderdale with Craig. I mean Greg. I guess I owed Robbie a thank you for sending Greg away. I didn't really even like the guy. I'm just glad we came back to my place instead of his.
*.~.*
Author's Request: Please read and review. Constructive criticism welcome. Please don't flame.
The Road Home
By Dark Inzanity (c) 2002
Chapter 2
The Weight Of The World On His Shoulders
(Robbie)
I hung up the phone, in slow motion, because I could hardly force myself to move at all.. I felt like...I don't know what. Like the whole world had stopped turning for one split second and no one, nothing, would ever be the same again.
Why had I told Kevin I would call Mary? Because...because it was an excuse to call her. Because she could come to me, or I could go to her, for comfort, and we could be together within fifteen minutes. And I wanted her to want me to comfort her. I almost needed that.
Reverend and Mrs. Camden had taken me in, despite some pretty awful things I had done, and they made me feel like I was part of their family. They kept me off the streets, out of trouble, out of jail. Sometimes I wondered if they had saved my life, because I know I couldn't have gone on like I was for long. I probably would have ended up face down in an alley somewhere, and no one would have cared. They cared, and they made me care.
I picked up the phone again and dialed her number. And I hung it up before the first ring. I couldn't tell her this news, this horrible, life altering news, over the phone. Not when we were so close, and I could just drive over to her apartment and tell her face to face. She needed to hear this news in person.
"Mom," I yelled from the bottom of the stairs. "I'm going out for a while." I didn't wait to hear her answer.
I've made the drive to Mary's apartment many times. I've only gone to her door once. She told me she didn't want to see me, and I told her I would respect that, even if it broke my heart. I had hoped we could make a new start and try again, but she wasn't interested.
She would probably try to turn me away when I told her about the accident and her parents. She might even think I was making it up, but that would be pretty sick. I would never lie about something like that. She only had to call her parent's house and hear Lucy's voice to know it was real.
She wasn't home when I got there. Damn it. I never considered that possibility. Oh well, I would just have to wait for her. And hope she wasn't on an over night flight.
I sat down on the floor outside her door, and tried to keep my mind focused on other things so I wouldn't think of Reverend and Mrs. Camden. They were like parents to me, and much better at it than my own mom and dad had ever been. I felt like one of their children, and I think most of the Camden children accepted me like an adopted brother. All of them, except Mary, and I didn't want Mary to think of me like a brother anyway.
Maybe it was inappropriate to think it, but I hoped Mary would lean on me now, and maybe, just maybe, this would be the start of a new chance for us.
I don't think I was asleep, but I was in that foggy almost-asleep state, when I heard someone laughing a little in the distance. I shook my head to clear it, and when I looked up, Mary was coming down the hallway with her arm around some guy. She stopped short seeing me and pulled away from the guy, telling him 'Wait here.'
"What are you doing here?" she demanded of me.
I stood up and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Seeing her, beautiful as always, made me think of her parents. I pressed my fingers against my eyes to block the thoughts and images. "Mary..."
"Get out, Robbie. I told you-" She started, her voice rising slightly with each word.
I put my hand up to signal her to stop. "Mary, it's your parents."
"My parents? What about them? They sent you here? I don't want to hear anything they have to say."
"Mary, they're dead."
She stared at me, her mouth falling open without a sound. Her eyes shifted back and forth, searching my face, hoping I was lying. She had to know I wasn't lying, I wouldn't lie about something so serious. Once upon a time ago I might have made something this horrible up, but not now. Not since Reverend and Mrs. Camden helped me get my life back on track.
"What?" She finally whispered.
"I talked to Lucy a little while ago, Mary. They were in a car accident last night."
Mary shook her head, and her mouth twisted with the pain she felt. I hesitated a moment before reaching out to her. She didn't protest, and I pulled her to my shoulder, my hands in her hair, hoping to give her some comfort.
"I want to talk to Lucy."
I nodded. "Where are your keys?" She handed them to me, and I turned a little, keeping my arm around her, and opened the door.
I guided her to the sofa and eased her onto it.
I had forgotten all about the guy she brought home until I went to close the door and he was standing there.
"Is she all right?" he asked.
I glanced at her over my shoulder. Mary had her hands over her face, struggling to get her tears under control. She looked very much like a small child and I wanted to go back over there and take her in my arms and hold her until the tears stopped. I wondered if the tears would ever stop after something like this. "No. I think you should go," I said to the guy, who didn't look like Mary's type at all. "Maybe she'll call you tomorrow."
"If its all the same to you, pal, I'd like to stay."
"It's not all the same to me, and I'm not your pal. I've known Mary a long time, and..."
"It's okay, Robbie. Greg, I'm fine. But I have something I need tot ake care of. I'll explain it all later. Right now, I need to be alone. With Robbie. He's the guy I was telling you about, he lived with my family for a long time. He's practically my brother."
"I bet," Greg sighed. "Don't bother to call, Mary. I know when I'm being dumped."
"Greg, no. It's not like that..." Mary protested, but Greg just turned and walked away with a 'don't bother' wave of his hand.
I shut the door and went back to Mary's side. "I'm sorry." I put my hand on her head, my fingers in her hair.
She shook her head, but looked at me and tried to smile. "It's okay. I just...I can't...my parents..."
"I know. It's hard to believe."
"I need to talk to Lucy."
"She's having a hard time with it." Duh. What a stupid thing to say. Of course she's having a hard time with it. She's there, in Glen Oak, with Simon and Ruthie and the twins, and the house, living it. "She couldn't even talk to me. Kevin had to tell me."
"Did she call you?"
I shook my head. "I called the house. I just wanted to check in and see how everyone was doing."
Mary looked down, and her hair fell like a curtain around her face. Her body shook with a silent sob. I put my arms around her and she fell into my lap crying and moaning. I held her and tried to whisper little words of encouragement, things like 'It'll be all right' and 'We'll get through this' even though the words felt hollow to me. How could anything ever be all right again? How could we get through something like this?
(Mary)
I felt a flash of anger when I saw him there, sitting on the floor outside my apartment. How dare he, I thought. How dare he come here and expect me to...to what? I didn't even know what he wanted, and something about the way he got to his feet...he looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders.
Still, I had to be angry, had to make him think I didn't want to see him.
His words careened through my mind at full speed, creating crazy, disjointed images I didn't want to face. My parents...dead? But I had so much to say to them, so many things I wanted to say to them. Especially Dad. I had so many things I needed to say to Dad. They couldn't be gone. It's not fair!
I gave Robbie my keys and he took me inside. I think I would have fallen flat on my face if he had let go of me. How do you keep your head up when it feels like your whole world has crumbled at your feet? Not even at my feet, because my whole world was really back home, in California, with my family.
Certainly not here, in Ft. Lauderdale with Craig. I mean Greg. I guess I owed Robbie a thank you for sending Greg away. I didn't really even like the guy. I'm just glad we came back to my place instead of his.
*.~.*