My Sister's Keeper

Fifteen.

His mother was in disbelief. He could see it on the woman's features as he watched her bring a hand up to her mouth while listening to Dr. Klein. It had been five minutes since his session had ended and they were still in the building. He was told to sit in the waiting area so that Dr. Klein could speak to her in private, and it told him everything he already knew.

"I don't like him, Damie bear," Denise said, a small scowl on her lips as she sat beside her brother. "He's trying to split us apart. He's telling Momma all these lies about you. There's nothing wrong with you. There's nothing wrong with you at all."

"He's seen me go crazy twice, Nise. And we just met two weeks ago," Damien said. "What do you expect him to think? Maybe I am going crazy."

"No," Denise said, a seriousness in her tone as she shook her head. " Don't say that. You're not going crazy. You're grieving. It's different."

"So how come I'm the only one who has to come here then?" Damien asked.

She didn't answer. Not because she didn't know how to, but because their mother and his therapist had turned their heads to where he sat. He looked away from them and to the floor as his mother nodded, saying her goodbyes before walking over to her son.

"Damien, honey? You ready to go?"

Damien sighed through his nose and nodded as he stood up. "Yeah, I'm ready," he said.

Regina smiled sadly and put her arm around his shoulder as they walked out of the building.

"You know what?" she said. "I was gonna wait until we were on the road to say this, but I think you should hear it now."

Damien frowned as she stopped walking, which made him do the same as he turned to face her.

"What is it, Ma?" he asked. "What's up?"

"I...," Regina sighed softly, "I'm proud of you, Damie."

Damien swallowed the lump that formed in his throat at hearing the nickname. Since Denise had made it clear to everyone that only she had been allowed to call her brother "Damie Bear," their mother had taken to throwing off the extra word. She didn't use it often, not finding it sticky enough to stay around, but whenever she did, it never failed to light up his heart.

Even at times he felt like nothing would.

"Proud of me for what?" Damien asked.

Regina smiled and gestured her head to the building behind them. "For continuing to go to these sessions even though I know you don't want to," she said. "You may not think so, and you may even think I'm being a bit dramatic when I say this, but I can already see a little change in you since starting. It's only going to get better from here."

"Ma," Damien mumbled while looking away.

"No, baby, listen," Regina said, walking forward to grab Damien's hands.

He softened his features as he focused his gaze on them.

"This has been such a...terrible time for everyone," Regina softly said. "But you, baby, have been hurting the most, and it's so important to me and your father that you get the proper help that you need to deal with this. There's a lot more that Dr. Klein can help you with than we can right now. So I just wanted you to know how proud I am that you've been sticking it out."

"Thanks, Ma," Damien mumbled and looked at his mother. "I miss her."

Tearfully, Regina nodded and said, "I know you do, sweetie. I do too, come here."