Him & I

- CHAPTER 3 -

- A D V I C E -
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Olivia
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"Talk."

By the tone of that voice, I knew Hamish wasn't joking. It's actually really useful when it's obvious that people are being serious, isn't it? I mean, if I couldn't tell that he was being serious, I probably would have started talking about something really random like, I don't know, Koalas.

"Did you know that the fingerprint of a koala is so similar to that of a human's that they have sometimes been mistaken at crime scenes?"

Oops.

"Olivia" Hamish said in a warning tone.

"Sorry, but it's a good thing you're not an Australian policeman."

I couldn't help myself - I had to.

"Very funny, Sweetpea. But I think you know what I meant." Hamish said, smirking.

Huh, maybe he wasn't THAT serious.

"Soooo, is Ollie going to say anything?" Hamish said after a few moments of silence on my part.

"Er, there was a new boy at school an-"

"What did he do?! Where does he live?! I'll make sure he doesn't ever upset you ag-"

"No, no, no!" I cut back to stop him from going in completely the wrong direction.

"I wasn't very nice to him when he sat next to me in science...and then I sort of just watched him get bullied at lunch" I mumbled quietly, not wanting to see Hamish look at me in disappointment.

"Oh, Ollie" Hamish breathed out. He didn't sound too disappointed, more sympathetic to be honest.

"How about we talk about this at home, yeah?" Hamish said, most likely not wanting get into something while he was focused on driving.

"Okay." I said, nodding. At least he wasn't angry.

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Hamish sat down on the sofa in the sitting room and patted the spot next to him.

"So, why do you feel upset about it?" Hamish asked me carefully, analysing my eyes.

"Um, well, I should have been nicer to him. And I also didn't do anything about it when Patrick was being mean to him at lunch. I just watched" I said, looking down, ashamed.

"I can see where you're coming from, Olivia. But do you want my advice?" Hamish asked.

I nodded.

"Well, when I was at school I was very badly bullied. No one talked to me. No one wanted anything to do with me. I sat alone all day every day. It didn't help at home, because you know Mummy and Daddy weren't very nice to me, don't you?" Hamish began.

I could see the pain in his eyes. I didn't like it one bit, but I continued to listen because I wanted to be there for my big brother. He looks after me, but who's there to look after him? Me.

"And so I'd have a horrible time at school, but it would be just as bad or worse at home. It was a very difficult time in my childhood, however one day that all changed. I came home from school to Mum and Dad waiting for me, but they weren't angry; they had huge smiles spread right across their faces. It was scary. They never smiled, but you may not remember, Sweetpea."

I definitely remember. Mummy and Daddy never smiled. They did a lot of things; smiling wasn't one of them.

Hamish moved his hand and wrapped it around mine, squeezing. I squeezed back, urging him to continue.

"That was the day I found out I was going to have a younger sibling. That was you!" Hamish said, smiling brightly.

"And then what happened?!" I asked excitedly.

"The bullying didn't get any better, but it did mean that I had something to look forward to. After you were born I started going to school so that I could come home to you at the end of the day. All I needed was just one person to make all the bad stuff worth it, and that was you, Sweetpea."

Hamish had tears in his eyes.

"I love you, Ollie." He said smiling, which made the tears spill over the edge and down his cheeks.

Seeing this, I leapt into his arms and buried my face into his neck, loud sobs escaping from both of us. Hamish very rarely cries, but when he does, it always somehow brings us closer together.

"I love you too, Bubba."

After the waterworks had calmed down, I lifted my head from his neck and looked up at Hamish. He was looking back down at me, his eyes red, but smiling. He bent down to kiss the top of my head and then relaxed into the sofa, holding me on his lap.

"Do you know why I told you that story, Ollie?" Hamish asked me.

I shook my head.

"What I was trying to say is that, maybe you should talk to this boy tomorrow - what's his name?"

"Robert, but, Bobby." I replied.

"Alright, well, talk to Bobby tomorrow. Maybe apologise, yeah? And see if he wants to be your friend?" Hamish advised.

"The way I see it is that if he has a really good friend, like you, the bullying might get easier to deal with...If he doesn't have to deal with it alone."

"You want me to go through the bullying with him?" I asked, shocked.

"No, of course not! But if he's with you, maybe Patrick won't target him." He said.

I thought deep and hard. I guess I could do something. I could see how much school had affected Hamish, and I wouldn't want anyone to go through that. So I agreed.

"Okay. I'll do it." I said, sighing deeply.

"That's my girl." Hamish said, kissing my nose.

"I also think this could help you, Sweetpea - I know you don't have any proper friends." Hamish said, looking at me with concern.

I looked down at my hands, intertwined with his.

"How do you know?" I sniffled.

"Please don't cry, Sweetpea." Hamish said, pulling me closer and wrapping his big arms around my small body.

"I know because I'm your big brother and I know you better than anyone else on this planet. You also never talk about anyone, nor has anybody ever come over to do something with you and vice versa. So I guessed easily enough. Maybe Bobby can be a good friend...after I've approved of course." He said chuckling.

I buried my head in his chest, avoiding his mockery.

"So are we happy with that?" He asked me.

"Yep."

"Great. What do you want for supper?"

"Pasta pesto, please."

"Oooh, yummy! To the kitchen!" Hamish announced, standing up with me in his arms and then charging into the kitchen, laughing.

▸ ◂  END OF CHAPTER 3 ▸ ◂

Sorry that was short and nothing really happened. But it was important so....yeah.
- 🐝