Beyond the Family Ties

Part 30

Two weeks passed by in a blur. Freen spent it at Angel 's apartment, curled up on the sofa as she ate her way through as much junk food as she could stomach in between bouts of crying. It was strange though because she wasn't even sure why she was crying. In some ways, she felt relieved, amidst all of the confusion and the aching in her chest. But there was an overwhelming amount of guilt too. So much guilt for leaving Mike there stranded, although it had been a mutual decision, in the end, the two of them standing in that hallway, dressed up in their wedding dress and tuxedo, with Freen tearfully trying to explain why she was crying and why Becky had just left in such a hurry. Mike wasn't stupid; he knew there was more to it than Becky being unwell, and he'd said as much to Freen. It had been wrong all along, and they both knew it at that moment.

Freen was just guilty about the fact that she had embarrassed Mike in front of all of his guests, leaving him to go back into the hall and tell everyone that the wedding was off. And she'd been too ashamed to go back to his apartment and pack up all of her belongings, hiding out at Angel 's apartment while she left her sister and Winn go there and pack it all up for her. And most importantly, she'd been too upset to see Becky. Two weeks hadn't dampened that pain, despite the endless drinks to try and numb it. She should've been in Hawaii, sitting on the beach, drinking margaritas and working on her tan. Instead, she was curled up on her sister's sofa, with no job, no home, no relationship and no best friend.

Eventually, she had to get up though. She had to shower and change out of her pyjamas, pull herself together and sort her life out. Firstly, she rescinded her notice of resignation, and her boss pitifully gave her her job back, although she was told to use the rest of her vacation time anyway, and then she faced a phone call with Mike, apologising to him as she cried over the phone, feeling awful for the way things had escalated and ended between them, although he was as gracious as one could be under those circumstances. He didn't even shout or get angry, and Freen almost wished he would, because at least then she wouldn't feel so bad. Lastly, she made the decision to see Becky. It was a hard decision to make, still angry with her, but still in love with her, but ultimately, Freen knew they had to talk, face to face. So much had gone wrong between them because of miscommunication, and although she wasn't going to Becky with any intentions, she needed to go there and talk to her.

Monday morning, a little over three weeks after the day of her should be wedding, she got dressed and asked Angel to drive her across the city. A wave of homesickness hit her as she let herself into the lobby with the keys she'd never returned, and she felt the beginnings of her anger boil up. So much had gone wrong, and she was partly to blame for letting the farce of a relationship go on with Mike, but it was Becky's fault too, for lying, for putting so much distance between them, for not telling Freen how she really felt. She should've been here, at the place that had been her home for years, reading bedtime stories to her goddaughter and coming home from a long day at work to Becky waiting up, waiting to hear all about the patients she'd saved that day. It made Freen's eyes prickle with the threat of tears, and she stamped her feelings down as she stepped into the elevator with her sister behind her.

A quick trip up to Becky's floor and she found herself retracing the familiar path down the hallway and coming to a stop outside of her door, feeling like an outsider as she stood outside, knowing that she had no right to let herself in unannounced. Instead, she knocked on the door and waited, listening to the sounds of footsteps growing closer, and swallowed thickly, her palms sweaty and her heart hammering in her chest. Anger burned slowly inside her - at herself, at Becky, at this entire situation - and she curled her hands into fists as she stonily stared at the door, waiting for it to be pulled open. There was a slight pause as the footsteps stopped on the other side of the door, before the chain was drawn back, the deadbolt unlocked, revealing the sight of her best friend.