Trouble in Tiltown

Loss

Once I wash my hands in the bathroom sink, I make my way down the hallway towards the coffee station. As I pour the warm coffee into my cup, I feel the warmth through the glass causing me to close my eyes with delight. I take a long sip, the scent of coffee beans hitting my nose intensely. I stand by the station and drink my coffee as I watch people walk back and forth and gossip in one coworkers ear to the other. I wonder what kind of gossip they have to tell one another. Was it normal gossip? Or was it Tiltown gossip?
"You people watching?" A woman's voice speaks up next to me. I shoot my head to the right of me and Kat stood there, Watching the two coworkers I was once watching.
"Kat? Why are you not with your dad?" I asked her as I took another long sip of my coffee.
"He started arguing with me so I had to get some time alone. Jerrick went home." She explained to me as she looks up at me with eyes that have had no sleep. I tap on the coffee station with my finger and she nods simply.
"Why did he go home?" I asked as I poured her a cup of coffee. I hand it to her and she takes it with a weak smile, joyfully taking long sips of it.
"I broke up with him," She sighs after she finishes her sip before continuing, "I don't want to have a boyfriend right now with everything going on. Besides, I don't think Jerrick and I are meant for each other."
"Oh, I'm sorry. Well, it'll all work out in the end." I forced a smile for her. However, her expression told me she didn't believe in it. Or me.
"So, are you?" She questions. My eyes looked off to the side as if I were trying to find the answer there.
"Am I what?"
"People watching." She says. My eyes take in the people in the hallways and at the desk to the people who sat in chairs.
"Uhm, I don't-
"It's okay," She pauses before her eyes look up at me, "I know you. You're an observer. Not a talker." She states as she looks around at the same people. My eyes pause on a man in a chair who attempt to hide his face by keeping his head low. The more I focused in on him, The more I realized who it was.
"Is that James?" I whispered to her. She follows my gaze and sees him as well.
"No, no. I have to go be with my dad." She rushes off into her room which held her dad. As I walked up to the man, he stood up and began speeding down the hallways.
"Hey!" I yelled to the man but despite my efforts, he ignored me completely. Before I could catch up with the mysterious man, A loud alarm sounds off in the hospital. Rushing back to the main area, I see nurses and doctors rushing into the room with Kat's dad. She then rushes out with tears racing down her reddened cheeks. Once she spots me out of the crowd, She hugs me tight with her head buried into my chest.

Kat's head weighs down on my shoulder as I feel drool run down my shirt, but I didn't mind it. I know she needed sleep more than anything right now. Suddenly, Elouise grunts as she rolls over to her side facing Kat and I before opening her eyes. Before speaking, She takes in the view. No confusion, no nothing. Just a blank stare from Elouise. Assuming she was too tired to show expression still.
"Why is Kat in here?" Her morning voice squeaked softly.
"She needs somewhere to stay now." I whisper back to her.
"Her dad died." Abraham blurted into the conversation.
I glare at Abraham, "What's wrong with you?"
"Rule number one, Don't sugarcoat. Rule number two, just get straight to the point." He explains as he gets up and walks out of the room. I sighed with annoyance, How could anyone be so without emotions?
"I'm sorry Laurence." Elouise apologizes to me as her voice trembles.
"For what?" I asked her.
"You've been a parent to all of us," She pauses as Abraham comes back in with a cup of coffee. "Even to those of us that are full grown adults." She spat as she stared down Abraham.
He takes a sip of his coffee before throwing his hands up in defense, "What'd I do?" I roll my eyes at him.
"I don't mind looking after my friends." I simply say with a small grin, this time, It was genuine and she saw it.
"Laurence, the kid who takes care of everyone. But who takes care of you in the end?" He questions me while he slurped on his coffee.
"I'm not going to be a kid in a day anymore so you can stop calling me that." I corrected Abraham.
"Oh, It's your eighteenth birthday tomorrow, Is it?" He asked with amusement. Before I could argue with Abraham any further, An older woman came into the room with a nurse, Awakening Kat.
"Grandma? What're you doing here?" Kat inquired the older woman.
"She's going to be your legal guardian from now on." The nurse informs Kat as she rushes up to embrace her grandma tightly.

As we said our goodbyes to Kat and her grandma, I place myself back into my original chair, sighing as I do so.
"I can't believe that he's gone. It's so weird." I whisper aloud.
"You weren't related to him or close to him, so why does it matter?" Abraham questions me. Instead of replying to his ignorant statement, I continued thinking out loud.
"I don't think his death was from injuries." I admitted.
Abraham leaned inwards, "How do you mean?" It seemed to me that he was now intrigued by the incident.
"You think I can trust you?" I scoffed.
"No, I don't at all. But then again, you trust my twin brother. So why not me? We're basically the same." He smirked as if he was amused by himself. West suddenly sits up as if he just got disturbed from a deep sleep, however, he wasn't in one because the whole time I saw him fluttering his eyes. He was pretending to be sleeping.
"West, are you okay?" I asked him. He glanced at me then to Abraham.
"Uhm, yeah. Laurence, could you walk with me to get some coffee?" West asks me.
"Uh yeah, sure." I say as I open the door for him.
Abraham raises his cup up, "You don't wanna share mine? I don't have cooties." But West ignores him as he leaves the room. Abraham pouts as he puts his cup back down.

I stand by the coffee station as he pours himself a cup.
"West, you're kinda freaking me out." I admit to him.
He stares into the room as he takes a sip, "I don't trust him. Don't tell him too much of the situation. There's something off about him." As I glance back at Abraham in the room, He glares back at us before turning around.