Chapter 7: A Little Help From Friends

Once Professor Oak had gone into the kitchen to get some aspirin for Tracey, he also put his plan into action to help him. He was just hoping that he didn't find out about it. He pulled the aspirin bottle out of the cupboard and shook two pills out of it. Then he reached for another bottle that was sitting behind it and carefully shook one pill out of it. As he turned to go back to the dining room, he thought to himself that he was doing the best thing for Tracey.

Back in the dining room, Carla was sitting at the table with Delia and was surprised when Tracey poked his head in the door. She had thought that he was still lying down upstairs.

"Hey. I thought you were upstairs in the bedroom lying down. Are you okay?" Carla asked with concern.

"Yeah. I was wondering what was taking so long. I got a little worried, that's all."

"I was on my way back up shortly. I was actually waiting for Professor Oak to get some aspirin for you because I don't know where it is."

"Here we go. I thought you were lying down, Tracey." Professor Oak said as he placed the three pills into Tracey's hand.

"I just wondered when Carla was taking so long. Thanks for the aspirin, Professor. I'm sure it'll help me feel better." Tracey said as he popped the three pills into his mouth and took a drink of water.

"I hope those will help you feel a lot better."

"Hey, since you're back downstairs why don't we go and sit in the living room and watch television for a little while." Carla suggested.

"I like that idea. It seems like a while since I've the chance to sit down and relax and do something leisurely like watching television."

"Well, it's getting late so we're going to go to bed." Professor Oak said.

"He's right. Goodnight Tracey and Carla. We'll see you in the morning." Delia smiled.

"Goodnight."

Tracey and Carla then went into the living room and sank down on the couch and turned on a late night variety show that they both liked. Carla soon realized that this was a very good idea because Tracey was smiling and laughing like she hadn't seen him do in days.

About halfway through the television show, Tracey began to feel very sleepy. He tried to concentrate more on the television to try to keep his mind off of it but soon it became extremely difficult for him to keep his eyes open.

"Hey, Carla. I'm completely exhausted and I'm getting really sleepy so why don't we head upstairs and go to bed. If we don't I think I may end up falling asleep right here." Tracey said tiredly.

"Okay. I'm getting a little tired of watching this anyway." Carla agreed as she and Tracey headed upstairs.

As they were walking up to go to bed, Tracey was so tired that Carla was having to support him just so he could stay on his feet. She thought this a little strange but she was glad that he was going to be able to get some sleep. It was slow going but eventually the couple made it to their bedroom. Carla hurriedly unmade the bed because she was worried that if she didn't move quickly then Tracey would completely collapse where he was.

"I don't understand why I'm suddenly so sleepy. I guess the sleepless nights are catching up to me. I don't know when that bed looked so inviting as it does right now." Tracey thought as Carla pulled the sheets back.

As soon as everything was ready, Tracey and Carla climbed into bed. Once he got settled in, Tracey stretched out and let himself relax. It was getting increasingly more difficult for him to stay awake.

"This bed is more comfortable now than ever. I don't think I realized what I was doing to myself. I feel like I could sleep for weeks."

"I knew that you were going to exhaust yourself. But don't talk anymore right now. Just close your eyes and get some sleep." Carla said though her words were useless. Tracey had spiraled into a deep sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. Carla just smiled when she saw this and adjusted the blankets over them as she lay down next to him.

"Sleep well. You need some rest." Carla whispered as she snuggled next to him and fell asleep as well.

* * * * *

Tracey awoke about five hours later and felt a lot better. He sat there for a while in the dark trying to get his thoughts together. Then he climbed out of bed and walked over to the desk and switched on a lamp on the dimmest setting because he wanted to keep from waking Carla.

"I need to get these things off my mind. Maybe if I write it out it'll help me a little." Tracey thought as he carefully pulled some paper and a pencil out of the desk drawer.

Tracey sat there for a long moment trying to think of what to write. Finally something came to him and he put his pencil to the paper and began writing. When he was finished this is what he had written.

Ghosts

I know some people say,

That there are no such things as ghosts.

But ghosts sometimes do exist,

In a few inconspicuous ways.

Sometimes they can be,

Tragedies we've overcome.

The ones that usually haunt us,

When we close our eyes at sleep at night.

Other times they can be,

Opportunities that we have missed.

The ghosts that love to chase us,

No matter how we try to leave them behind.

Worst of all these ghosts can be,

Memories of ways we were hurt or betrayed.

Ghostly thoughts that linger all the more,

The more we try to lose them.

If you're one of the lucky ones,

These words will bounce right off.

But, unfortunately, if they have found you,

It's almost impossible to shake the ghosts.

When Tracey was finished, he sat there looking over what he had written. A few moments later, he heard a shuffling from behind him. He turned around just in time to see Carla sit up and look at him.

"What's the matter? Are you okay?" Carla asked.

"Not really. I woke up with a lot still on my mind so I sat down and decided to try and write something down. It turned out a lot better than I ever expected." Tracey sighed as he walked over and sat down on the bed.

"Honey, you have got to stop this. I know you're hurting. Please just let me help you and comfort you." Carla whispered as she pulled Tracey into her arms.

Tracey couldn't hold his composure for another moment and he allowed Carla to hold him as he began to cry. He released all of the pain and heartache that he'd been keeping bottled up for the past three days.

"It's okay, sweetheart. Let it out. It'll make you feel better. It's not good to keep it all inside."

"I still can't believe that my mother is really gone. That I can never hear her voice again or see her caring face." Tracey choked out as he continued to sob in Carla's arms.

For several minutes, Carla held Tracey close and comforted him as he cried his heart out. She wished that there was something she could say to ease his pain but then she remembered what Delia had told her the day before and knew that she was doing a lot for Tracey by just being there to hold him. Suddenly, Carla felt Tracey's body go limp and she looked down on him startled. Then she smiled a little at what she saw. His bottled up emotions had taken an extreme toll on him and he had cried himself to sleep. Tracey was sleeping so heavily, in fact, that he didn't even stir as Carla lay him down on the bed and placed a blanket over him.

"Hopefully he'll feel better now. He really needed to cry it out. I hope that I was able to help him a little. At least he'll sleep for a while. He seems like he has some peace." Carla thought as she looked down at Tracey's sleeping form on the bed. Then she lay down next to him and fell asleep again with her arm around him. Her last thought was hoping that her love would be enough to help Tracey through this.

A/N: In case anyone is wondering, the poem in this chapter is an actual poem called Ghosts that I wrote myself. I put it in and lent it to Tracey because I thought it would fit perfectly in this chapter. Please R&R. I appreciate the feedback.