The Neighbors

Chapter 26

I sucked in a loud gasp and wailed, "Oh, Harry, no!" I dragged him roughly by the arm to sit down with me on the couch. I gathered him into my arms and sobbed while he began to tremble. "Oh, my god, Harry, what happened?!"

He whispered shakily. "He...was..driving home from the pub...and he was drunk...and he veered off the roadway."

"Oh, Harry," I whispered, stroking his hair.

"H...his car tumbled down a steep embankment, and...h..he..."

"Harry, shhh, don't say anymore, shhh." I pulled him close so that his head was resting on my chest. He slid his arms around my waist while he cried.

He wept against my chest for the longest time, until I thought he couldn't possibly have any tears left. Once he had quieted, he stayed still against me. All I could do was to try to soothe him. I couldn't make this better for him. It felt awful for me, and I'd only known Harold a short while.

Finally he sat up and looked at me, his eyes completely red and swollen. I used both of my hands to brush back the strings of hair clinging to his face and to wipe the remaining bit of moisture from his cheeks. Then I finally cupped his face with my hands and made him look at me.

"Harry, I can't tell you how sorry I am."

He just nodded wearily.

"Where's Charlie?" I asked quietly.

"He's at the house; his girlfriend is there."

I dialed my phone. Charlie picked up and I could barely hear his voice. "Charlie, please come over," I requested. "I can't leave the girls alone or I would come over there."

Charlie and his girlfriend appeared at my door in less than two minutes.

I pulled Charlie into my grip and he broke down. I soothed him the way I had with Harry. "I'm so sorry Charlie. You have no idea how sorry I am."

When he finally stopped crying, he pulled away. "Lise, you remember my girlfriend, Courtney."

"Of course I do," I said, pulling Courtney into a hug. Then I told her, "I'm so sorry about Harold. I'm glad you're here with Charlie." I could tell she'd been crying with him.

"Me, too," she said.

I put some water in the tea kettle and put it on the stove to boil.

I sat down and asked, "Have you made flight arrangements yet?"

"No," Charlie said. "We just found out a few hours ago."

"Who called you?" I asked.

"My aunt Bev," Harry told us. "She was a wreck. And my grandma..." he stopped to catch his breath. "She said my grandma wasn't taking it well at all."

"Of course not," I agreed. "But they have each other right now, and you and Charlie have each other. And you have to get home," I insisted as I got up to pour the tea.

"Will you please come with me?" Harry asked me. I widened my eyes in surprise. I suddenly knew I had to go. I wanted desperately to be there for Harry, but how could I get away on such short notice?

I dialed my parents' number, and hoped I didn't scare them too much by calling in the middle of the night.

"Mmm, hello?" My mom's sleepy voice answered.

"Hi, Mom, it's Lise."

"Lise!" She cried. "Is everything okay?"

"The girls are fine, Mom, but..." I began to get choked up. Harry put his arm around me. "Harold was killed in a car accident," I said through a teary voice.