Opposites Attract

Chapter 10

"Wait, so let me get this straight," Sara began pacing around the room as she watched her mother sitting helplessly beside her father's bed. "You're leaving? Bailing out? Leaving the already sinking - sunk, might I add, ship?"

"No Sara, it's not like that. I'm not leaving you!"

"Call it what you want Mum," Sara flung her hands in the air, her body tense and hot from all the anger she was feeling. She needed fresh air, she needed to cool down or she felt as though her head was going to explode.

"Sara?" her mum called out to her as she stood facing the door, her back to her mother.

"Whatever, I'm going outside."

"Sara, wait!" he mother exclaimed, following her daughter to the door. "We need to talk about this!"

Turning around as fast as she could, Sara edged closer to her mum. "There's nothing to talk about - what's there to talk about? Sounds like you've already made up your frickin' mind!"

Sara slammed the door behind her as she stomped rapidly down the corridor. She needed to get away from the hospital; the smell was nauseating and her head felt light and dizzy from all the shouting. The pain never seemed to leave, she felt a constant burden following her around all the time. She had no escape.

Feeling a hand grip her shoulder, she stopped in her tracks and turned around to see Tyler, his face wearing a worried look. “Dude,” he began as she brushed his hand away. “Are you okay?”

“Do I look okay?”

“Honestly,” he rubbed his head with the back of his head. “You kinda’ look like sh*t.”

“Oh f*ck you!” Sara shoved him off and made her way to the entrance. She hadn’t lost Tyler though, as she saw him following her outside. “What the hell do you want Macey?” she asked, pointing an angry finger at him.

“Nothing.”

“Then get lost!”

“Maybe...” he began, his voice sounding gentle and relaxed. “You should stop being so uptight all the time. Maybe,” another pause. “Maybe then, everything will be okay.”

“Really?” she spat. “Really? Will everything be okay? If I just relaxed, do you think all my problems will just...disappear? If I relax, will it make my mum stay? Is it just gonna’ take the flick of a little switch for my dad to wake up? ‘Cos really Tyler,” she looked up at him. “I don’t see anything getting better! Nothing!” her arms flew up in desperation as she walked over to a bench by the water’s edge and took a seat. “So don’t give me that bullsh*t about everything being rosy – ‘cos it’s f*cking not!”

Silence eluded them as they both sat on the bench, staring out at the water in front of them.

“Y’know when I was kid, I always thought everyone lived happily ever after.”

“Doesn’t everyone?” Sara piped up, her voice a meagre whisper.

Ignoring her, Tyler continued. “Then my dad started acting up; he drank a lot, got p*ssed drunk most nights – he used to hurt my mum sometimes.”

Sara whipped her head around to face Tyler, her eyes opened wide in fear and worry.

“Not like that – he never really hurt her. He wouldn’t, he loves her. But he’d just swear and shout all the time. At one point I thought I’d go deaf. So, to get me used to all the cr*p, he signed me up for the football team.” He could feel Sara breaking out into a little smile so he continued.

“I was sh*t at first, I couldn’t kick a damn ball around to save my life. And I was slow. Way, way, way slow.” He dragged the word “way” as he spoke, then got up off the bench and brushed his trousers down. Even though it was dark, Sara could still make out the outline of his body, his toned muscles tensing up when he did.