Kaitlin had taken the news better than expected. Once arriving inside the room, she sat next to her drunken mother on the bed, holding her cold hand.
"What is it mom?"
The words echoed in Julie's head. How could I have forgotten to tell Kait? She and Marissa were close, she should have been the first person I told!
The words left Julie's lips, and she expected Kaitlin to cry. But she didn't. She just sat there holding her mother's hand.
"Kait?"
"Yeah mom?"
"Are you okay?"
Kaitlin sighed heavily, her bottom lip trembling. "Mom, Doctor Roberts told me what happened a few days ago."
Julie shook her head disbelievingly. "No. Why would he do that?"
"Because you were so wrapped up in yourself that you couldn't even be bothered to call me!" Kaitlin angrily retorted. She ran out of the room, slamming the bedroom door behind her as she exited.
Julie was fuming. Neil had told Kaitlin about Marissa's death; Why hadn't he simply waited for her to tell her? Probably because he knew it'd be days before you realized you hadn't informed her yet, A voice in Julie's mind said. She climbed out of the bed and stumbled to the door, her brown hair bobbing in the loose ponytail with each unsteady step she took.
Neil was walking down the hallway toward her when she finally made it out of the room. He looked worried and for some reason, that pissed her off even more.
"Why!"
"Julie, calm down…"
"Do not tell me what to do." Her breathing is ragged and he knows she's pissed and drunk. Not exactly the best combination.
"Julie." His voice is calm, soothing. She stares at him for a moment, then swallows. The look in his eyes is pure regret. "She asked me what was going on. I couldn't lie to her."
Julie bit her lip so hard she almost drew blood. She knew what he said was true, and she couldn't be mad at him. With a nod she muttered an apology before returning to her room. When she heard Neil's soft footsteps behind her, she spun around.
"Where are you going?" She inquired. Her speech slurred slightly and Neil realized she had been drinking.
"I was going to keep you company."
Julie looked up at him, her green eyes near tears. She began walking again and this time didn't object to Neil following. Laying down on the bed, Julie almost immediately fell asleep. Neil wrapped his arms around her to offer some comfort.
She knew things would be better. As time went on the death of Marissa wouldn't be quite so hard to live with. Yes, it'd be sad, but not so devastating. Julie sighed; glad Neil was there with her to help her through everything. Even though she knew everything would be okay at some point, she felt as though at that particular moment she was forever falling.