The Things You Do For Family

The entire drive over to Zach’s house I kept hoping that Josh would call and tell me that I needed to come back right away. I know it was crazy but I sat there with the phone on my lap trying to will it to ring but of course that didn’t work. Finally I gave up and tossed my phone into the center console and shut the lid, unfortunately, I still kept looking at the console, wishing my phone would ring. It was no surprised that I still didn’t have a call by the time I had reached Zach’s and I was kicking myself for being so stupid to think that Jess really didn’t mean what he said.

Grabbing the phone, I opened my car door and realized that Chad’s van wasn’t parked in its normal spot. With a confused look on my face, I closed my door and looked around but I still didn’t see his van. I know he said he’d be leaving by 11. I wasn’t dreaming…was I? A quick glance at my watch told me that it was only 9:30, maybe he had to run to town for gas or something, I tried to convince myself as I walked up the front steps of Zach’s house.

The front door swung opened before I got to it. I smiled as I saw Chad standing there with a grin on his face. “Oh,” his smile disappeared and his shoulders slumped, “It’s just you.” He turned away from the door and disappeared down the hall towards the kitchen.

Frowning, I went inside and closed the door. “It’s great to see you too!” I yelled after him as I removed my boots. When I turned back from hanging up my jacket, I saw Zach coming out of the kitchen. “What’s his problem?”

Zach grabbed me roughly by the arm and pulled me into the living room, “Where the hell have you been?” He hissed at me as he peeked around the corner towards the kitchen.

“Not that it’s any of your business but I was at Josh’s.” I glared at him as I rubbed my arm where he grabbed me. “What’s gotten into you guys today?”

Zach spun around and looked at me. “What the hell were you doing that you couldn’t answer your damn cell phone?” He was whisper yelling at me. I started to say something but he held up his hand, “No, I don’t want to know what you two were doing. Forget I asked.”

I gasped, “How dare you assume that? You have no idea what I was doing and I can’t very well answer a phone that doesn’t ring!” I pulled out my phone and threw it at him, “See? There are no missed calls! There are no messages!”

Zach stared at the phone in his hand; he turned it over and then looked at the front again. When he looked up at me there was a smile on his face. “Maybe because this isn’t your phone,” he said as he tossed it back at me.

“What?” I turned the phone over in my hand. “Oh my god!” I slapped my palm against my forehead. “I must’ve grabbed his phone without looking.” I shook my head and chuckled, “Make no wonder it didn’t ring.”

Zach rolled his eyes at me, “How the hell could you take his phone by mistake?”

“Why are you mad at me? I didn’t do anything wrong, I just came over to see Chad before he left.”

“Well, that isn’t going to happen.” Zach said as he sunk down onto the couch.

“Stop messing around, I saw him already, I know he’s not gone yet.” Zach rubbed his hands over his face and it was only then that I realized that he looked like crap, like he didn’t get any sleep. “Zach what’s wrong?”

He looked up at me through the spaces between his fingers and sighed, “Chad and Susan got into a hugh fight last night. Susan stormed off with both the kids and we don’t know where they are. Chad’s been flipping back and forth between being worried and angry all night, and on top of all that, he’s been drowning his anger in alcohol.”

I stared at Zach, waiting for him to tell me he was kidding. Susan and Chad? Fighting? I shook my head, they very seldom fought and when they did, it never was anything major. They always made up before the night was out. I sat down next to Zach, completely shocked, I couldn’t even think of what to say to that.

“I called the guys and asked them to keep an eye out for the van but so far no one has seen it anywhere.”

I stared at Zach in disbelief, “She left him?” I could barely ask that question without my voice breaking.

“No!” Chad exclaimed from the entrance to the living room. “She didn’t leave me, she’s just mad.” He staggered over to us, slurring his words. “She’ll be back,” he sunk to his knees on the carpet in front of me. When he looked up into my eyes, I could see that they were bloodshot and I could smell the booze on his breath. I tried not too but the smell was so overpowering that I screwed up my nose and put my hand over my mouth. “Oh God!” He cried out and dropped his head in my lap. “She has to come back sis, I’m nothing without her!”

I glanced at Zach; he shrugged his shoulders and gave me a sympathetic smile. Hesitantly, I lifted my hand to Chad’s head and patted it. “Of course she’ll come back,” I said, wishing that I could say more.

Chad made this horrible sob like noise and shook his head, “No she won’t. I screwed up sis, I acted without thinking and she’s gone.” His shoulders shook as he made that sobbing noise again.

Turning to Zach, I gave him a ‘help me’ look and he shrugged again. ‘Talk’ he mouthed to me. I sighed and looked down at the back of Chad’s head. “Umm Chad?” At the sound of his name he made a wailing sound that sounded like ‘Susan’. I closed my eyes and couldn’t help but think and they say women are emotional? “Chad.” I said his name more forceful and he lifted his head of my lap and stared at me like it was waiting for me to make it all better. I glanced at Zach, why do I have to do this? I asked, even though I knew he couldn’t hear me.

Taking a deep breath, I turned back to Chad. “What happened?”

Chad gave me this weird look, “Susan left.”

Groaning, I put my hands on his shoulders and shook him. “I know she left! I’m not that stupid! Why did she leave? What did you two fight about?”

“Anna stop!” Zach grabbed hold of my wrists and pulled me back from Chad. “That’s not helping at all.”

Chad groaned, “I feel sick,” he barely managed to utter those words before he turned completely white and threw up all over my lap.