The Babysitter ✯ Kellic

Chapter Twenty-Four

tbh I feel like in the end, every single character in this story is going to have been addicted to something cause there's something wrong with me
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While I waited for Vic to come back home with Oli, I decided to go check on Copeland. She was awake, sitting up in her crib. I smile and kneel down slightly so that we're face to face. "Good morning, sunshine," I say. She latches onto a strand of my hair and I chuckle, managing to get her hand off. "You're probably hungry."

I pick her up and carefully walk downstairs with her in my arms. I've read stories about people tripping down stairs and crushing their babies and the thought of it really terrifies me. I'm honestly a pretty clumsy person and I don't want to drop Copeland, or shake her, or something. I try so hard to be careful, but I'm always anxious when it comes to taking care of her.

I put her in her high chair and find one of her empty baby bottles, pouring it halfway full with milk. I place that on her tray before swiftly moving towards the fridge looking for some kind of fruit. I find a rotten banana in there and drop it in the trash, noticing something unusual in the trash can. Disgustingly enough, I sift through the trash, my fingers wrapping around what I saw before I dropped the banana in there.

An empty pill bottle. I can tell it's prescription by the name of the store on the label. I turn the bottle around to see who it's prescribed to. I mean, Vic or Mike could take medication; or maybe both of them do. Except, it isn't prescribed for either of them, it's prescribed for Antonio Perry.

Maybe it's just my anxiety making me worry about this. I mean, Mike said Tony used to be at the house almost every day all summer, so maybe he was taking his medication then. But that was months ago, before I even met Vic, so why would the bottle just now make its way to the trash? Maybe one of them threw it out just now because they forgot it was even here and they found it. Why is it in the kitchen trash, though, instead of the bathroom?

I look at the label and realize that these were some if those heavy pills. I feel panic rising in my chest and I just throw the bottle away again, not wanting to think about it. I wash my hands and blend up strawberries, putting the applesauce-like substance on Copeland's tray. After I do that, I find myself wandering into the bathroom next to Mike's room and searching through the medicine cabinet. There's more than just one bottle of those pills, and these bottles are "prescribed" for Tony, too.

My eyes widen as I sift through all the different bottles. There's different kinds of pills in here, too, and I'm no expert investigator or anything, but I have a feeling they've been opened recently. My heart sinks when this all settles in. If I'm right about this, Mike may (or may not) be taking pills "prescribed" to his old best friend, who apparently did something horrible to Mike. I close the cabinet and look at myself in the reflection on the mirror.

My hair is a mess, my clothes are wrinkled, but my eyes aren't bloodshot, they haven't been in a long time. They were bloodshot every time I shot up, which I haven't done in a long time. But it started so simple, it started with the prescription shit, until I got my hands on something stronger. What if Mike is heading down that road? That would absolutely crush Vic...

What am I supposed to do? If I throw away the bottles, Mike might do something to Vic. If I tell Vic, he might overreact and do something rash, without thinking about Mike whatsoever. If I don't do anything, Mike could possibly continue doing what I think he is. I take a shaky breath and look at my reflection, despite my vision beginning to become obscured by the tears forming in my eyes. I can't let any of that happen.

I turn quickly when I hear the front door open, then I sprint to the kitchen. I'm still on edge, but I don't care, I can't be too suspicious by hanging out in Mike's bathroom. I hear Vic laugh as the front door closes and I stand next to Copeland awkwardly as Oli and him walk in. "Hey, Kellin," Oli says, his accent making him difficult to understand. I wave slightly to return the greeting. Vic drops his keys on the table and walks over to me, kissing my cheek.

I blush and try not to look at him, not wanting him to see the tears in my eyes. "Are you okay?" he asks. "Have you been crying?" he asks more urgently this time. I nod, forming an excuse in my mind.

"I stubbed my toe," I lie quietly. He hugs me with one arm before walking over to the fridge and grabbing a can of soda. He tosses one to Oli and offers me one, but I turn it down. After all the stuff I've been thinking about, I don't think I can hold anything down in my stomach. The thought of even trying grosses me out.

"Where's your brother?" Oli asks Vic, sitting down at the table with his soda. I walk out of the room, not even caring that Oli initially wanted to come over to hang out with me. I don't feel like I can be in the same room as Vic with that weight on my shoulders. I just feel like I can't take keeping a secret from him. I've told him almost everything about me, but the second I find out something about his brother I'm too scared to tell him? I sit down on the couch, staring at the wall next to the TV.

I lose track of time, but eventually Oli comes and sits next to me on the couch. "I know something is wrong," he says. I bite my tongue and avoid his eyes. "I don't know what it is, but I'm hoping you tell me." I don't say anything, just stare at the wall. "Come on, Kellin," he urges.

"Can Vic hear us?" I ask. Oli shakes his head and I take a deep breath. I tell him about everything this morning, down to almost every thought I had. Oli gives me a sympathetic look before shaking his head. "I don't know what to do, Oli," I say, exhausted. "I'm so stuck between a bunch of different ideas, and I hate it."

"I think you should talk to Mike. Do it in a friendly way, and don't get mad at him. Other than that, there's not much else you can do," he says. I thank him as he gets up and walks out of the living room. I guess the only thing to do now is figure out how I'm going to talk to Mike...