Swept Away

18 - Colby

*Huge TW for this chapter*

"Why are they leaving? What did she mean by that? Danny what did I miss? What happened?" I ask as Danny pushes me into the passenger side of my Jeep.

Danny opens his door and hops in, "What is the most recent thing you remember?"

I think back to all the events from before I fell asleep, "I remember going to work and I remember leaving early. And you and Paige came with me. We left Eleanor alone," why did we leave Elle? "Then we went to somebody's house. I don't remember who's though. And I got really drunk. And then Jules showed up," what am I forgetting? "oh and Mr. Doc never showed up during today's shift."

Danny shifts his gaze towards me for a second before returning to the road, "So you don't remember why Mr. Doc didn't show up during our shift?"

I think back, trying to rack my brain for what I might be missing. Then it hits me.

Mr. Doc didn't show up because Mr. Doc died.

Mr. Doc is dead.

"He's gone," I say to Danny.

"Yeah, yeah he is," Danny says as he pulls up to a stop sign, "Listen I know it's gonna be hard. And you don't have to talk to me about it. You don't have to talk to Jules about it. Shit, you don't even have to talk to your parents about it, but dude, you have to talk to someone. I don't want history to repeat itself." We both feel the heaviness of his words. Last time wasn't fun, and if it goes down the same path this time won't either.

I shake my head, looking no down at my feet, "it won't happen."

Danny doesn't say anything for a minute. The silence between us weighing the words I had just said, then, "How do you know?"

"Because it won't happen again. It can't happen again. I did everything the doctors said. I'm taking my meds, surrounding myself with good people, and using healthy outlets to express my emotions." I repeat what my doctors told me word for word.

Danny pulls the car into his driveway. He looks at me like he's choosing his next words carefully, "Are you still seeing your therapist?"

I sigh, "What do you think?"

Danny shakes his head as he gets out of the car, "Dude."

"Dude?" I don't want to have this conversation right now. It's not helpful, and it doesn't change the fact that Mr. Doc is still dead. "You can't lecture me about this. I'll go back I swear."

He pokes me in the shoulder, "I know your mom thinks you're going. So where are you going when you tell her you're at your appointments?"

I shrug, "I usually just drive around for awhile or...I don't know. It's not important. I'll start going, dude, I swear, but you have to get off my back." 

"I'm not on your back," Danny takes a step away from me, "I'm simply stating facts." He looks me dead in the eyes, "You are supposed to be going to see a therapist, so that you don't try to kill yourself or harm yourself in any manner, but instead you are going who knows where doing who knows what with who knows who because I know for goddamn sure that it isn't fucking me!" 

I stare at him, flabbergasted. "I don't know what to say."

"It hurts dude." Danny starts walking away from the car, under his house to the showers on the stilt level. 

I follow after him, "What hurts?"

"Everything," he snaps around to me, "It hurts to see you hurt. It hurts to see you not try to fix it. It hurts to see you throw everything away for some girl. It hurts to know that you don't talk to me about what's bothering you. It hurts to know that you love her. It hurts to know that you lie to my face all the fucking time-"