One month later
Caitlin woke up to glass shattering. She looked at the alarm clock. It was 6 am. She rolled out of bed as she could. Being six months pregnant with the twins was definitely making it harder and harder. She walked into the living room. Due to the narrow hallway, Alvin's wheelchair couldn't reach the bedroom and he had resigned and taken place in the sofa. Being home, Caitlin had thought that he would have improved his humor but it was the complete opposite. Alvin wasn't in the sofa and she couldn't see the wheelchair anywhere. She heard rummaging from behind the kitchen island and walked over. He was on the floor amidst shattered pieces of a broken glass. She knelt down beside him.
"Are you Ok"?
He looked at her pissed off and she couldn't tell towards who or what his anger was directed to. "Can't even get myself a drink".
She placed the wheelchair that had shifted in alignment with him. "Here let me help you", she said as she gently took hold of his arm.
He brushed her off. "I can do this on my own. I don't need your help".
She took a step back and watched as he put his two hands on the wheelchair and lifted himself up in it. She picked up the broken glass pieces and dumped them into the garbage.
"What can I serve you? A glass of water or some juice maybe"? she said as she headed for the fridge with a new glass in hand.
"I've got it", he said as he rolled himself towards the liquor bar. He grabbed a bottle of scotch.
"Al, it's 6 o'clock in the morning".
"And somewhere in the world, it's time for a scotch".
She shook her head and put the glass back in the cupboard.
"What are you doing"? he asked.
"What? You really think I'm going to give you a glass so that you can have a Scotch at this time of the day"?
He looked at her indifferently. "Suit yourself. I don't need a glass". He opened the bottle and took a gulp out of it.
She bit her lip as she watched. "So, that's it. That's what it's going to be. You drowning yourself in alcohol. What about going to therapy? You haven't gone in a week".
"It's useless, there's no change and I can't feel a damn thing Cat"! he said pounding down on his leg.
"No one said it would be easy and that it would magically come back".
"I'll never walk again. Can you get that into your head"?
"No, I can't and I won't. You're the only one who thinks that you'll never walk again. And at the rate this is going, you probably never will. You've given up. If that's the way you want to live the rest of your life, fine but I refuse to watch you".
"Then don't", he said angrily.
"You have got so much to motivate you, to get your sorry ass out of that wheelchair. We're getting married, the babies are two and half months away from being here and you love your job. What the hell, is holding you back"?
"I wear diapers, I need the assistance of male nurse to wash me, I can't even sleep in our bedroom, let alone make love to you. Is that really the kind of life you want"?
"No. That's not what I want, which is why I want you to fight back. Because I know that we can beat this, together. But if you fight back and there is still no change, I'll live this life with you, because I love you and love is stronger than any obstacle or curve ball that life will throw at us. But if you don't try, I'm not going to".
"Ok then, at least it's settled", he said as he took another gulp of the Scotch.
"What's that supposed to mean"?
"I'm letting you off the hook and not letting you waste valuable time. You're free to go", he said as he pointed towards the door.
Her entire body shook as she realized what he was telling her. "Al, tell me you're not serious"?
"I am. This is not the life you or I want. I can no longer give you the life you deserve. I won't be able to help you and the babies. You're better off without me. Now get out".
"I live here".
"This is my house. Get out"!
She was startled by the anger and tone of his voice. She remained paralyzed herself for a few seconds before slowly heading back towards the bedroom to get dressed. She packed a few things in a bag and headed back towards the living room. He couldn't look at her. She sadly walked over to the door and let herself out.
When Hank arrived home at 7 am after a night of handling a terrible case, he found Meredith sitting at the kitchen table, cup of coffee in hand and a tormented look on her face. He kissed her than looked at her.
"Everything alright"?
"No".
He sat down and took her hand in his. "What's wrong"?
She looked up at the ceiling. "Caitlin's upstairs".
He was happy to know she had stopped by, not knowing the true reason behind her visit. "What's she doing upstairs"?
"She's resting. Alvin told her to leave".
Hank stood immediately. "What"?!
"She didn't go into much detail. All I know is that he hasn't gone to physical therapy in a week and he's started drinking again".
Hank clenched his fists.
"He's hurting Hank. Maybe he needs more time and support".
"Support? You're joking right? We've been there for him and Cat has been there for him more than any of us. He's getting the support, he's just being a complete fool and idiot about it".
He started to walk out of the kitchen.
"Where are you going"?
"I'm going to check up on Caitlin. Then Al and I are going to have a talk".
"Don't get involved Hank", she said firmly.
"You don't want me to get involved? Upstairs is a young woman who I love like my own daughter, she's pregnant with twins, she's unhappy and you don't want me to get involved? Let me tell you something, I would get involved if it was any other guy therefore, I'm most certainly not going to let Alvin off the hook that easily".
When he arrived upstairs, Caitlin was laying down on her old bed. She was looking at and caressing her bump.
He walked in and settled down next to her.
"I never thought I'd be back in this room", she said.
"Me either. At least not under these circumstances".
"I'm lost Hank. I don't know what to do anymore. He won't let me in, he doesn't want to fight. He's just given up. It's not the Alvin I know".
Hank looked at her.
"I'm not trying to make up excuses for him, but I thought we'd get over this together".
"Seems to me", said Hank "that he's lost track of what's important. He doesn't have his priorities straight".
"I just don't get it, all the reasons he gave to push me away, are the things I thought he'd use to get rid of".
"Look, I know that you love him and that you'd do anything for him, but right now you need to take care of yourself and these babies, with or without Alvin, no matter how hard that's going to be. You can stay here as long as you need to and we'll be here to help you and by we, I don't just mean Meredith and I, but also the others. We're family and I'm not going to make the same mistake I made and push you away when you need me the most".
She nodded. "Don't be too harsh on him OK"?
He looked at her puzzled.
"I know you. You're going to try and make him see he's wrong. And on top of that, you and Camille always thought we never heard what you said when you were in the kitchen, but we always did".
"I can't promise you anything. Right now, maybe he needs to be rattled".
When he had left her side, he had grabbed his keys and jumped into the car to see Alvin. He found himself between a rock and a hard place. Alvin was his best friend and they had always been there for each other and he hated nothing more than to tell Alvin what he truly thought of him at that precise moment.
He let himself in the apartment, he had taken Cat's key without her knowing it. He had been pretty sure that Alvin wouldn't have opened the door if he had known it was Hank. When he entered the living room, Alvin was either passed out or asleep on the couch. The bottle of Scotch was sitting on the floor, half empty. He walked over to the sink, grabbed a glass and filled it with cold water. He walked over to Alvin and thrust the water in his face.
Alvin's eyes sprung wide open. He looked at Hank as drops of water dripped from his face.
"Good", said Hank. "Now that you're awake, we're going to have a man to man talk".
"Don't waste your time", said Al as he wiped his face.
"Oh I'm not wasting my time, apparently that's your specialty right now".
"Yeah well, I've got time to kill".
"Then use it to really think about what I'm going to tell you. You are a selfish bastard, you know that? All this time, you've only thought about yourself. Have you ever thought about what Caitlin was going through"?
"Why do you think I told her to leave? Because I don't want her to have to go through this. She deserves better than this".
"You're right. The Alvin I know deserves her but this one doesn't even come close".
Al said nothing.
"I get that this is hard, but up until now you've been one of the luckiest men on Earth and you're throwing it all away because you're a coward. I know you love her, I know she means the world to you. That night, you saved her life and I know you don't regret it in anyway, but by giving up like you are, by not fighting, it's the impression you are giving. Do you want her to feel guilty for the rest of her life"?
"I don't regret for one second having saved her life and those of my future children"!
"Then show it god dammit! You fought hard when you wanted to convince me that you were the right one for her, now live up to that gnarl and the promise you made her to always be by her side"!
"I don't want her to see me like this", he said sadly.
"Then don't. You've got two months Al to get yourself together and I'll help you. I'll talk to her, I'll take you to physical therapy, I'll do everything I can to help you work through this, because I want you to be in her life, to be the last and only man in her life. Don't let her down"!