The Seventh Step

6

Leo drives us home in silence. When we arrive we just sit there.
"Why don't you move out?" I ask.
Leo looks at me, eyes narrowed.
"Well" I continue "your seventeen right?" I ask and he nods "so your old enough to move out , find an apartment or something, near to your collage but far away from your dad."
"Jess, you don't know how much I would love to do that but I don't have the money"
I sigh and take his hand. We sit for a few more minuets before I have a wonderful brain wave.
"Leo come with me" I sing and I jump out of the car and run to the door. Leo follows apprehensively.
I stare at him sadly "Leo, last night, I heard you and Grandma talking. I know she is going to die and I know there's nothing I can do about it." My eyes get hotter and hotter as I speak. Leo stares at me wide eyed. "No, Jess she's ok, she's ok,"
I shake my head and hold a hand out, but before I can continue talking, I burst into a fit of uncontrollable tears. Leo sits me down on the door step and I quickly soak his cotton shirt. He hugs me tightly. "I'm sorry Jess, I'm so sorry. You will be ok, she won't go for a long time"
I nod.
"She's the only one I can trust" I moan.
"No," says Leo "you can trust me"
"No" I say quietly "how do I know your not going to find a prettier girl who has not got a messed up life? How do I know you won't start making her love you?"
"Because" Leo says "your my beautiful messed up princess"
I smile and wrap my arm around him.
"Do want to hear the rest of my plan?" I ask and I feel his head nodding. "Ok, well, I heard her talking about the money she has saved for Grandad. Well, I was thinking, and your going to reject it straight away and it's the most stupid idea ever. I was thinking that, well why not get grandad a nice house near my aunt so she can look after him and make this house into flats and well that's it"
Leo chuckles "yes, it was the most stupid idea ever and yes I reject it"
I close my eyes and murmur "I knew you would"

I wake on the sofa, my head resting on Leo's legs. He is stroking my hair and watching TV.
I hear the door creak open and a voice whisper "Leo, dear, is she awake?"
My eyes flick shut quickly and I hear Leo say "no, still fast asleep bless her"
"Ok" the other voice, who I can tell is my grandmothers, whispers
"Mrs Song, she heard us talking last night. She knows your ill and going to die"
My grandmother sits on the other sofa "she would need to find out eventually, it's just a shame it had to be this soon. Leo, you know that by the time her father gets out of rehab, I will be gone"
Leo obviously nods and my grandmother carries on
"Leo, you have to be there for her as I will not and her grandfather is old and his heart is not well, it's very weak. He will be gone no longer than a year after me. But Leo you don't know my son and thank goodness that you don't. He is likely to, as soon as he comes out of rehab, to go straight to pound land and grab himself a bottle of vodka. I need you to be like a rock for Jess. But I want you to be a soft rock. One she can fall on if she needs to. I find that to often your supposed rock will be the one to hurt you in the end. Be more like a pillow."
The pair laugh little
''Now Leo, I know how you have problems of your own, I mean your family is as bad as ours and I will tell Jess the same thing I told you. She will be there for you. Leo, she's different with you. She's happier with you. "
"Mrs Song, Jess was talking to me about a plan she has and one aspect of this plan is, I think, very clever." He pauses
"Go on"
"Well I wondered, and please don't get mad as I feel guilty asking you anyway but could we use a small amount of the money you have saved up to get help for my parents?"
There was a long silence before "Leo, my dear, my husband and myself have over two hundred grand saved up. We have got that money from over sixty years of hard work."
"Yes Mrs Song. I understand. It's your money and you worked for it. It is not my place to intervene, i mean, I've only just met you. I've known you for two days for gods sake and I am very sorry"
"No my dear. I am simply saying that we will have to get to know you better and then I suppose it wouldn't hurt but you need to remember it's not certain"
I hear a gasp from Leo "wow Mrs Song thank you wow thanks!"
My grandmother laughs quietly then I hear the door open then click shut.