Baby Fat

fifty-five

When Corrie walked into Jennifer's office, he didn't expect to see his father sitting on the couch he usually lays across.

"What the fuck?" He sighs and sits down on the couch next to his father across from Jennifer's chair. Jennifer smiles at him.

"Corrie, hi."

"Why the fuck is he here?" Corrie rolls his eyes so hard he think they might fall right out of his head. He was in such a good mood when he walked in.

"Good to see you too, son," Mr. Hughes says in a monotone voice.

"Would've been nice to see you when Mom decided to pop back into my life and then disappear when she didn't get her way." Corrie wants his voice to come out lethal, but it really just comes out as tremble.

Mr. Hughes doesn't respond. A thick tension falls over the three of them.

"Well," Jennifer says after a moment. "Corrie, you're probably wondering why your father is here today-"

"Damn right I am." Corrie crosses his arms over his chest and leans back into the couch.

Jennifer laughs, which was not what Corrie expected. Usually she chides him and continues. "Corrie, your doctors and I have come to a conclusion. We've decided on your release date!"

"W-what?" Corrie looks at her with his mouth hanging open.

"Yup!" Jennifer grins at him. But, Corrie doesn't smile back. He doesn't know how to feel. "It's been decided that four weeks from today, you'll be going home!"

"Oh." Corrie grimaces, which was not what Jennifer expected.

"Corrie," Mr. Hughes says with a long sigh. "Can't you just be happy? You're going home."

But what's there to even go home to, Corrie can't help but wonder. At least here, you get three meals a day and someone who listens to you, payed or not.

"I am happy," Corrie says back. "That's great. I'm...I'm glad."

"Okay, well," Jennifer says with a small frown. "We'll talk about specifics later down the road. But, I just wanted to tell you the good news."

"Thanks, really, thank you." Corrie looks at his father, but his father is busy looking at his phone. He sighs heavily, ready to leave the suffocating room.

"Corrie, you've progressed so much. I know that rehab has not been easy. Especially after your relapse. But, you've held on. You just kept going even after you believe you couldn't. You don't give yourself enough credit. When you first came into this room for your first session with me, you were vomiting and cursing me out. Truly, Corrie, I'm so proud of you."

Corrie feels a blush creep onto his face. "Thank you. Thanks for not giving up on me. Even on the days I cursed at you and told you I hated you."

A few moments pass before Mr. Hughes and Jennifer exchange their formalities. Corrie says bye and leaves as well.

He feels lost. Just so lost.

He fought against this rehab center so hard. Every step of the way, he kicked and thrashed. The time he gave up on fighting, shit started to change for him. Because fighting it only made it harder on himself. He put so much of his energy into trying to convince them that he shouldn't have been there when he could've put all that energy into recovery.

But, now. Now that he knows he's getting well enough to go home, he's terrified. Out there, alone. Nobody watching over him like a hawk. Nobody reminding him to take his pills.

It'd be so, so easy for him to slip back to hold habits.

And so instead of walking back to his room, he walks to the phones. He knows he shouldn't. God, he shouldn't.