Conversations In the Storm

Chapter Ten - Do I Need A Reason To Visit My Sister

Nick had stared after her numbly as she ran, while he could hear his daughter pounding frantically on the car window.

He met Phoebe's eyes through the glass and slowly he shook his head, tears running down his cheeks. It was no use. He had tried, but nothing he could say would do any good now. He had ruined her trust in him, and eventually she would succeed at convincing herself she no longer wanted him.

Something within him cracked, and all he wanted to do was collapse to the floor until this pain drifted away. With his daughter looking on, it wasn't really a feasible option. Sighing, he swallowed down the emotion as much as he could and began to walk back around to the driver's door.

But then he saw the man standing near his car.

"Adrian? What are you doing here?"

Adrian looked at him for a few seconds before responding.

"Do I need a reason to visit my own sister?"

Nick almost expected a mocking tone, but instead he seemed weary. He had dark circles under his eyes, his clothes were rumpled. In the recesses of Nick's mind, he realised that it had been a long time since he had seen Adrian look so tired. Not too long ago, he would have given him the benefit of the doubt. But he had only recently realised that he had been doing that for too long now. All he did was make allowances for Adrian's apparent selfishness, and now it had cost him too much.

"You know what, I think you do need a reason. After all, I don't think you've ever visited her before. So I don't know why you would just show up now."

Adrian narrowed his eyes at him.

"Don't you dare judge my relationship with my sister."

"What relationship?"

This time it was Nick's tone which was mocking, and Adrian stepped forward.

"You are hardly perfect, Nick. You dated her when I asked you not to. And then you dumped her anyway."

"I dumped her because stupidly I valued you more. I let you poison my mind, and I made the biggest mistake of my life. I will never forgive myself, and apparently she will not forgive me. But I didn't abandon a seven year old girl, Adrian. I didn't let that girl grow up thinking that she was less than what she is, I didn't make her feel like she lost her entire family instead of just one sister."

Adrian turned away and began walking in the direction that Caroline had disappeared to.

Nick stared after him.

Something he hadn't mentioned to Caroline last night was how their friendship had disintegrated following that party. After Caroline had left, Nick had brought out the cake for him. But he knew, they all knew that Caroline had made it herself, and it was wrong that she wasn't here. They had all witnessed the ugly fight, and were trying to ignore that fact. Nick had barely spoken for the rest of the night, instead he had sat apart from the others, downing drink after drink. Someone had turned the music up until it was uncomfortably loud, but Nick hadn't even asked them to turn it down on account of his sleeping children upstairs.

Adrian had not called over to his place since, and Nick hadn't invited him. The only interaction they'd had was when their running group got together the usual twice weekly times, but they had remained in silence. This had been the first proper interaction which had touched on any meaningful subject, and it was clear they were not going to return to their close friendship any time soon. Both of them had a lot to atone for, or else they wouldn't be able to move forward.

Nick slowly made his way back over to the drivers seat.

Phoebe immediately began chattering frantically, but he couldn't answer any of her anxious queries. His heart was breaking, splintering, and he felt a great sense of hopelessness and despair. He had made so many errors of judgment, and now he was paying the price. His children were paying the price. She was right. She had a right to her anger and her agony. She had a right to hold him to his declaration that their relationship was over. Even if it was tearing him apart, if his children never forgave him, he couldn't force her into accepting them back.