Someone's Someone

Someone's Someone - Chapter Thirty Eight

Danny....

With deep regret in the soles of my feet, I heavily stroll back into the living room. Nathan is stood waiting for me, wearing a pleased smile. "I can't tell you how good it is to see you, Danny." He eagerly says.

Smiling his way, I just can't shake the heaviness of knowing that I've really hurt Henna from off my back. "You said Keith rang you?"

Nathan nods, sliding both his hands into the pocket of his jeans. "Yeah, yesterday."

Pacing slowly, I am torn between my brother and Henna. Half of me wants to go and talk to Henna upstairs, the other half wants to stay downstairs to discover why my brother is here. Nathan soon senses this. "I'm happy to wait if you want to go and check on Henna? You were pretty hard on her earlier, weren't you?"

Taking a deep, guilt-ridden breath in, I nod as I look at Nathan. "As usual, I was a dick."

"You and Henna...are you involved?"

I want to shout that I love her. I want to shout that she means the world to me. But now, I don't even feel like I own that right to love her.

I blamed Henna.

I doubted Henna.

I have hurt Henna.

How can I stand here now and lay claim to loving her?

"She's the reason why I am still here, Nathan. She and her father took me in after I was attacked on the streets, and are now helping me to get my life back on track." That's when we both hear the front door slam, Henna has unfortunately now left us alone in the house. I wanted her to remain upstairs, because I wanted the chance to go and speak to her again. But sadly, that chance has now gone.

Nathan is now smiling, agreeably pursing his lips. "About that life, you can indeed have it back."

"What do you mean?" I look at my brother, intrigued yet totally confused.

His smile grows wider. His brown eyes widen. "There was never no baby, Danny."

My brows pull in tightly together. "What do you mean there was never no baby?"

"Louisa lied. She was never pregnant. It was all a ploy to get you to be with her."

Numb, I softly shake my head as I try to understand all that my brother is telling me. "She was never pregnant?"

Nathan blinks, moving his head from side to side and still smiling at me. "Nope! Never!"

Reeling, I find myself still trying to understand. "And when did you find all this out?"

"About two months after you left." Nathan is now nearer to me, his smile still very much all over his face. "You know her friend that I was seeing?" I nod that I do. "Well, guilt got the better of her. She eventually admitted to me that Louisa had lied about being pregnant, lied about you forcing her to have an abortion. She even managed to find your mobile phone for me. I then confronted Louisa when she was with dad, I showed him all the texts that she had sent to you. Dad finally came to his senses and finally got rid of Louisa." 

Needing to sit down, I let all that my brother has just told me to start sinking in. I honestly have no words. I'm just stunned.

Confused. Relieved. Angry.

How could Louisa lie about being pregnant?

What kind of a person even does that?

"There's something else you should know." Nathan sits down beside me. "Dad recently had a minor stroke. He's okay, but he's not the same man anymore, Danny."

I won't lie, to hear that, has me reeling even more. "When did it happen?" I ask, my face twisted with concern.

Nathan breathes in heavily, like he's having a hard time to remember. "Four months ago. I think the stress of Louisa and you, pushed him over the edge."

My mouth opens, yet no words come out. Although what Nathan has just said wasn't said to hurt me, it still does. "But he's okay?" I eventually hear myself quietly asking.

My brother faintly smiles, turning his head to look at me. "He's weak down his left side, but with his ongoing therapy, he's now doing really well."

With a slow, relieved smile, I lean forward in my seat on the sofa. "That's good to hear." My eyes look heavenward, compulsively nodding. "That's really good to hear." Then, I run out of things to say to my brother. Regardless of the stroke, it doesn't change all that's happened. It doesn't change that I slept with my father's girlfriend, and it doesn't change that my father took his girlfriend's word over mine. Bowing my head, I nervously rub my palms together. "How have you been?" I don't look at Nathan, but I sense him looking at me.

"It's not been great. When I wasn't worrying sick about you, I was trying to sort out the mess you and Louisa made. Then when dad had his stroke, I had both the London and Hemel Hempstead companies to look after, as well as dad when he came out of hospital."

Giving Nathan a sidelong glance, I instantly apologise. "I'm sorry." My bent knees bounce with nerves as my hands tightly clasp together. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there."

Nathan sucks in a long and satisfied breath, leaning forward in his seat just like me. "Danny, we want you to come home. We want you back where you belong. The business needs you. I need you...and dad needs you."

My body angles away from my brother, suddenly feeling overwhelmed with all he is now asking of me. "Nothing has changed, bruv. I slept with Louisa and dad took everything away from me. In many ways, I understand why he took everything away from me. I betrayed him. I was selfish and spoilt. But I don't understand how he could have believed all of Louisa's lies, I'll never understand that." My head hangs low, low with regret and agitation.

Nathan's voice is steady when he replies. "You believed there was a baby, Danny? You believed Louisa about that?"

Rolling my head upon my very stressed shoulders, I sigh loudly. "You're right, I did." Remembering how it felt to be told by Louisa that I had got her pregnant, is a feeling I will never forget for the rest of my life. I remember thinking that my huge mistake, had forever scarred me. Dad left me with absolutely nothing, so I had to make the decision to go where no one would ever find me. I purposely didn't claim any benefits from the government, because I didn't want to be found by my brother, my dad or even the unhinged Louisa. Who I used to be, the mistakes I had shamefully made; all had to remain back in Coulsdon.

"I can't come back, Nathan. I can't go back to the memories of what I did. To the memories of constantly feeling resentful towards dad. To the not being allowed to remember mum and the mother she used to lovingly be. I can't go back to being treated just like one of dad's employee's. I can't go back to him being in control of every aspect of my life. At least when I was living on the streets, it was down to me whether I had food and drink, whether I had somewhere safe to sleep, or whether I wanted to be there. It was my choice. My life. It took having to be homeless, to realise just how much control dad used to have over my entire life. I want to start standing on my own two feet. I want to be in control of my own life. Both Henna and her father have given me the confidence to want that for myself. They have given me the strength to start getting that for myself. Which is why I can't give that all up. I just can't."

Nathan rests his hand on my shoulder, sitting back in his seat as he does. "Like I said, dad isn't the same man, Danny. He's sorry for a lot of things. He's been talking a lot about mum. Talking about where he's gone wrong in his life. This stroke, has made him reevaluate a lot about himself. Made him reevaluate a lot about us. Since he's known the truth about Louisa and all of her lies, he's been desperate to find you." Squeezing his brotherly fingers on my shoulders, Nathan urges me to look at him. When I reluctantly do, he then says. "Dad really is sorry and he really wants you home, Danny."

My lips press flat, unconvinced. "If he really wanted me home that much, where is he now?"

To which, Nathan simply smiles. "He's in the car."