Popcorn

Kate POV

Ana and I follow behind Rhi as she maneuvers her way through the corridors of the hospital, our footsteps resounding on the tiled floors, echoing off the walls around us. It's a sharp contrast from when we were following her outside just minutes ago. Just like before though, Ana and I had no idea what to say so we were quiet. I mean, what do you say when you hear your best friend say her mother hates her? That in itself is shocking, but to hear the reason why is unfathomable. I chance a glance at Ana, who is already looking at me, and we both raise our eyebrows simultaneously and I shrug my shoulders. I have absolutely no clue what to say so I turn and continue to follow Rhi.

As we approach her dad's room, Ana and I slow our pace coming to a stop. In my thoughts, she needs time alone with her dad and I don't think they need an audience. Ana seems to be in sync with me and mirrors my actions. Rhi keeps walking, her pace never faltering, and as she disappears through the doorway we hear voices but can't make out the words.

After a few minutes we hear the Captain's deep voice, "Girls, please come in. There's no need to stay in the hallway."

I look at Ana again and silently we walk in, unsure what to expect. Strange, after all the years we've known each other, this is the first time there's a slight feeling of awkwardness. As we enter the room, Rhi is sitting on the edge of her dad's bed, holding his hand. Rhi is looking at us, her face hard to read, but her eyes have a hint of apprehension in them. I can't imagine what's going through her mind. I have no idea what to say and the air is heavy with silence.

Stretching out his other hand, he waves us closer and pats the other side of his bed. "Girls, you're family. Please don't feel like you're not welcome." He gives us a warm smile.

As we are walking toward the bedside, Ana speaks and breaks the silence. "How are you feeling, Captain?" She smiles and continues, "You look as handsome as ever."

The Captain laughs, his eyes lighting up at the compliment. "Thank you Ana, I try." He blows air on his closed fist then rubs in on his chest, mimicking polishing up and apple to make it shine. We all laugh as we sit on the bed with the two of them.

Nurse Kelli is by the sink, finishing cleaning up all the medical supplies.

"Hello, ladies. I'll be out of your way in just a moment." She says, with a smile.

We watch as she packs everything up and leaves the room.

After a few moments, Rhi finally speaks. "I'm sorry you had to find everything out that way. I don't usually keep secrets from you but this was something that I had to keep to myself, knowing at some point it would be needed. I needed to keep it to myself until the time was right to deliver the final blow to that evil bitch. I couldn't risk anyone finding out what I knew. Dad is the only one aware of the knowledge I held. He's the only one who knew what was going to happen."

Realization hit me like a baseball bat but I needed to confirm my suspicions. "Captain, is that what you meant when you said she would enjoy this a little too much?"

He nodded in confirmation, "Yes Kate, that's exactly what I meant. I knew what was going to happen, to a point. No one, other than me, was aware that Rhi knew everything. I wasn't able to be there to support her, physically, but I knew that you two could. You both have the capability to calm her and keep her composed. Sort of." He chuckles as Rhi slaps his hand and glares at him.

She rolls her eyes, "I can keep my composure better than anyone. I don't need any help." But then continues, "Ok, maybe not ALL the time, but most of the time."

This causes her dad to roll his eyes and laugh out, "Sure you can."

Rhi, Ana and I join in his laughter and it feels good. It's definitely better than the awkward feeling we were experiencing a few moments earlier.

As we're all laughing, Rhi turns to us with a sad smile, "Thank you for being there with me. Even though neither of you had a clue of what was going to happen. Just your presence helped calm me, which I really needed because I could've seriously gone off the deep end."

I smile at her and respond, "You're welcome. What are friends for?"

Ana smiles and her response makes me laugh, "Hey, someone has to be the lifeguard. You never know when a lifesaver is going to be needed."

Rhi breaks up the laughter when she says, in an accusatory tone, "Which reminds me, DAD, it really wasn't necessary to have the muscle present. I wouldn't have touched her."

Captain laughs and, with a snort like Rhi does, responds, "Yeah, right. I've seen the control you have when she's around. Besides, sometimes the muscle is needed to protect YOU from HER. I don't trust her as far as I can throw her and I can't risk your safety. If she touched you I'd kill her, or I'd have someone else do it. I've got my connections."

He says this with so much conviction that I'm not sure if he's joking or not. I wouldn't put it past him to have those kinds of connections, though. I swear the man knows more people than my father, which is saying a lot considering the millions of people he meets for business. The Captain's connections vary but he knows all the right people in the right places; And that's not just limited to the military, OR the United States. I make a mental note and tuck that away in my mind in case that information is needed in the future. God I hope not.

A few minutes later Joe walks in followed by three other men. I can't remember their names but I know they work with Captain and Joe. They're around all the time, helping take care of Rhi when he's away for work. Surrogate fathers, in a sense, though I use that term loosely. Sometimes I think they're more like bodyguards.

Ana and I quietly watch as they enter further into the room, which suddenly feels smaller with all the large men standing around.

Rhi's dad greets them, "Gentlemen. Come on in. Make yourselves comfortable." He raises his arms indicating to the chairs scattered around the room.

I swear there weren't this many chairs in here when we first arrived here. Interesting.

Rhi is silent, watching as the men take their places in their seats. I notice Captain is looking between Rhi and the other men. It's almost as if he's waiting to see who speaks first. My bet is that Rhi won't say anything until the opportunity presents itself. Especially since it sounded like she said all she needed to say outside. I think, with the few words she spoke, she laid things out pretty well and made her point.

There's a palpable tension permeating the room and it's only a matter of time before someone speaks. Though at this rate, with everyone just looking at each other like we're in a museum, we'll be here until we fossilize and we can be placed in one.

I know that Rhi has rubbed off on Ana a lot more than I realized when Ana breaks the silence, again.

In a sarcastic to that almost rivals Rhi's, she looks at the men who just entered and says, "Oh, that's ok. We're not in a hurry. Please take your time." Ana replies with a sweet smile. I snicker while Rhi snorts and we laugh a little.

Captain chuckles a little and pretends to be shocked. "Ana I'm shocked! I would've expected something like that from Rhi but you? Never."

He laughs and Rhi and I join in.

"Captain, she's not lying. I'm sure you and Rhi want to talk about what happened outside. I'm sure you're curious as to what transpired. I know I would be if the tables were turned and I was stuck in here while something life-altering was happening and I couldn't be there. Even if it wasn't happening to me. It would have driven me crazy not being present to what just took place outside." I had to say it because it's true. "Something like this would've made me wish I'd seen it with my own eyes."

There's a laugh that comes from a chair across from Captain. The laugh is followed by a few chuckles that come from around the room. Our heads turn to follow the sound and see Joe sitting in his seat with a smile on his face. He looks at each of us and his eyes stop when they meet mine.

Finally, with a smile on his face, Joe speaks and says, "I recorded the whole interaction for 2 reasons. First, to cover any legal issues that will arise. I'm sure Veronica will try to say that Rhi physically hurt her and the video is proof that Rhi never came into contact with her. The video will shut that accusation down before it even materializes. Second, I REALLY want to watch it again to see her reaction. It's different when you're witnessing something like that in person, you miss a lot of tiny details. Having a video to go back to reveals so much more." He smiles like the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland.

I hear Captain's voice to my right, "As soon as I'm released we'll go back to the house and watch it again. It was so satisfying watching her reaction when everything was revealed. We need to make sure my parents and her parents are able to watch it too. Especially hers, considering everything they've been through. I'll call them and we can figure out how and when."

Rhi looks at her dad, confused. "What do you mean 'watch it again?' How could you have seen it when you've been in this room the whole time?"

Captain smiles and laughs. "Johnathan here set it up to facetime the whole thing with me. I was able to watch the whole thing, from beginning to end, as it happened."

After a few moments of silence, Rhi looks at him. "You saw and heard everything?" She asks, quietly. "I'm sorry daddy. I didn't mean to hurt you. It just came out."

Her dad holds up his hand to stop her. "Stop. Rhi, stop. We've been through this numerous times. It's ok. We're ok. Brad is a nice man and I'm glad you two are in contact with each other. I'm glad you have formed the bond that you have. I'm not mad or upset. I'm happy that you have another person to add to your collection of people who care about you and are able to protect you from your mother. He's aware of everything and I trust him. Besides, Brad and I get along well and we can go out and do 'man' things." He laughs heartily.

It's hard seeing this, after hearing everything she revealed in the confrontation. Even though she said her dad knew everything I think she is still afraid of hurting him. I don't blame her either. I can't imagine how it feels to go through everything she's been through.

Nurse Kelli soon returns with some paperwork and tells him he's free to leave. As we pack up and head out, Captain asks, "So, who's ready to watch a movie? I hear there's an awesome re-run streaming." We all laugh as Rhi leads her dad out of the hospital, heading for home.

It looks like I'll be able to watch that again with my big tub of buttered popcorn after all.