5 More Days

chapter 2

"So, what happened to Samuel?" Duke asks after we order our coffees and sit down.

I sigh and look down at the table.
"I walked in on him doing drugs" I say quietly, running my hands through my short hair.

Duke shakes his head and frowns.

"And then random girls started coming to the apartment late at night, he started drinking a lot and doing heavy drugs. The apartment always smells like weed" I say quietly.

He nods and puts his hand on top of mine. "He just freaks out at random times for no reason now, like he will be watching TV and all of a sudden just stand up and shout at me for nothing".

The waitress brings our drinks and we drink in silence for a few minutes before Duke speaks, "Has he ever hit you?" He asks sadly.

I nod and he balls his fists, making his knuckles turn white. He starts to stand up but I grab his arm.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

"I'm going to talk to him" he says darkly and I shake my head.

"No don't, you just got back" I plead and his face softens. He sits back down and I give him a small smile.

We finish our coffees and go to my car. Duke doesn't speak the whole way home and when we pull up in the parking lot I put my hand on his shoulder.

"You don't have to "talk" to him, OK?" I tell him and he nods, smiling at me.

We walk up the stairs to the apartment and I unlock it. The apartment is empty and Samuels keys are gone from the bench.

I sigh and shake my head sadly, Duke puts an arm around my shoulder and squeezes. I smile at him and walk to the couch, plopping down on it and switching the TV on.

Duke sits beside me and pulls me onto his lap. I get through about half an episode of the Simpsons before I drift to sleep.
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When I'm woken by a door slamming, the sun is just beginning to set. I open my eyes and see Duke staring at the front door with an angry expression.

I wiggle off his lap and he looks at me, shaking his head with a worried look on his face. I narrow my eyes at him and look at the front door, where Samuel sits, his back against it, passed out.

At first I don't even recognise him, his naturally brown hair dyed a light shade of purple and a black eyebrow piercing.

I stand up from my spot on the couch and angrily walk over to him. I kick him lightly in the stomach and he opens his eyes and looks at me like I'm some kind of monster.

"Get away from me!" He yells,pushing his back against the door.

I screw my face up in disgust when the smell hits me. Its like a mix of alcohol, sweat, hair dye and something I can't even identify.

I feel Dukes presence next to me and look at him. He has the same look of disgust as I do.

Samuel groans from his spot on the floor. His eyes drift closed and I kick him again causing him to curse at me.

"I feel like crap" he mumbles, giggling at his own words. He puts one of his hands in front of his face and wiggles his fingers.

I sigh and walk to the kitchen, filling up a cup with cold water. Duke follows and looks at me weirdly.

"Its the only way to snap him out of it" I tell him.

"OK" he says and we walk over to my twin brother, who is snoring loudly.

I tip the water over his head and step back, waiting for a reaction, but he just continues snoring.

I sigh and look at Duke.

"Can you help me put him in the shower?" I ask him and he nods. We each grab one of Samuels arms and hoist him up easily. I haven't seen him eat for weeks, which explains why he's so light.

We carry him to the bathroom and sit him on the floor of the shower, I shake my head sadly and turn the cold water on.

The water pours from the shower head, soaking Samuels clothes. He let's out a loud yell and says a string of swear words.
"Samuel" I speak once he's calmed down. He looks up at me and for a moment I see the old Samuel, the caring twin brother who would do anything for me. Behind the drugs, alcohol and mood swings, I know he's still there.

"Samara" Duke speaks from next to me, putting his hand on my shoulder. I look at him and back at Samuel.

Samuels head is in between his knees. Small, short breaths leave his lips and his wet t shirt sticks to him, clearly showing the outline of his ribs and hipbones.

"I'll take you to bed" I say and look at Duke. He nods and puts his arm around Samuels waist and lifts him up onto his feet.

Samuel groans and clutches his stomach, leaning over and vomiting on the floor and all over Dukes bare feet. Dukes eyes widen and his face turns green.

"I'll take him" I say and take Samuels weight off Duke. We walk down the hallway to Samuels room and when I open the door I gag. First the smell hits me, the stench of at least ten different people and the strong smell of stale beer.

I lead half unconscious Samuel to his bed and drop him on it, pulling the filthy blankets from underneath him.

He lays backwards and stares at the ceiling. I put the blanket on top of him and tuck the sides in, not looking at him the whole time.

"Samuel" I break the silence, looking down at him.

He looks at me sadly and I sigh, putting my hands in my jeans pockets.

"What is going on with you?" I ask sadly and he looks down, refusing to look me in the eye.

"Answer me Samuel" I say loudly, causing him to flinch. He looks up at me and frowns.

"Why don't you call be Sammy anymore?......" He asks, trailing off at the end of the sentence.

I blink and cross my arms over my chest, staring at him.

"Sammy is my loving, caring, sober, twin brother. You are not that person anymore" I answer sternly.

He nods sadly and rolls onto his side, stopping the conversation. I sigh sadly and walk out of the room, back to the bathroom.

Poor Duke sits on the side of the bathtub scrubbing the vomit off his feet.

I apologize to him and gives me a small smile. He finishes up, drains the tub and dries his feet. We walk to the kitchen and I start to cook dinner for the two of us.