In This Life (Sequel to 'In Another Life')

15 Colby's POV

She squeezed her eyes shut and let out a breath in between gritted teeth. "Yes. Most wrong. I'm fine." Damn it, I hated seeing her like this. I was so sure she could take one of those damn pills. I knew she wouldn't though. She wouldn't risk going back down that road again. I needed to give them to Denise. "I love you T. I'll text you later. Please let your friends help and care for you. Don't be your stubborn self, okay?" I replied. She opened her eyes and met mine, a little bit of humor reaching them from my words. "I'm not stubborn," she replied, pain still in her voice. I cracked a laugh here. "Sure you aren't. Just be good. I love you," I answered. I leaned down and kissed her on the lips quickly, before turning to leave. "Neece, can you see us out?" I asked. She looked confused at me, but I tried to give her a look to let her know that I needed to talk to her alone. She nodded. "Yeah, sure. I'll be right back T." T nodded, but looked confused. Denise followed Brennen and I out the door, into the hallway. "What's up? You know the way out like that?" I pulled the bottle of pills out of my pocket, and held them out to her. "T's doctor gave me these. Said that she was going to go through some serious pain and that she was going to need these eventually. Like, it's going to get REALLY bad. I know she doesn't want to take them but the doc said that these are mild and will only make her sleep through the pain mostly. I don't know what to do, and it's not my place really. Figured you could handle it. " She slowly took the pills from my outstretched hand. "I'm not sure what to do with these," she replied, staring down at the bottle. "Just put them up somewhere. Don't tell her about them. If and when it gets really bad, you've got three options." I held up my hand, counting them off. "One, flush them and let her deal. Two, hide them and offer her one if the pain gets really bad. Three, slip her one if and when it gets really bad." I shrugged. "It's up to you. I figured you would know what to do better than I would." She looked back up at me, her hands shaking slightly. "But I don't Colby. I don't have a clue. She wasn't herself when she was on drugs. I don't want to risk that and I know she would never forgive me if I tried to slip one on her. " She shook her head, her eyes filling with tears. "But I HATE seeing her in so much pain. Knowing that I have something that could help ease it, even if just a little bit, and NOT help her. I don't know what to do here." I took her hand that was holding the bottle of pills in mine and waited until she met my eyes. "You know her better than anyone. You'll figure it out. Just whatever feels right, okay?" She nodded, and I watched a single tear spill over her bottom lid and roll down her cheek. "Okay," she replied, taking her hand back and wiping her face. "I'm going to flush them. I wouldn't even want the temptation around, no matter what, and I know that. That's what I'll do." I nodded. "Okay. Sounds like a good idea. I'll call later to check on her. Let me know if you need me, okay?" She nodded again, then walked us to the door. "I'll see you guys later. Tell everyone hi from us, and remind Corey that he and Dev are supposed to be here by 8 am in the morning. We all have work tomorrow." I nodded, and waved to her as Brennen and I walked out. This was hard on all of us, but even worse on T. She was stronger than she thought, and I aimed to try it on her. "See you later bro," Brennen said, climbing into his car. I waved, and got into my own. I set up my playlist, and started the drive home. While the music played, I don't think I heard one song being stuck in my own thoughts. My mind kept drifting back to T and why she broke up with Justin. I forgot to ask Brennen. I'd have to remember to call him later. By the time I made it home, the sun had set. I parked and climbed out of my car, locking the doors behind me before entering the house. I heard a loud laugh and some thuds coming from the living room. As I entered the room, I watched Jake fall over on top of Sam, who was sitting on the couch. Jake had been on the back of the couch behind his head, then basically fell over onto Sam, his leg catching Sam's head on the way down. "Ow, fuck Jake, what the hell ?!" Sam yelled, while Jake just landed on his back on the couch and laughed. Corey walked into the room, coming from the kitchen. "What the fuck are you guys doing?" he asked, his eyes as wide as the grin on his face. He caught my eye, so I pressed my finger to my lips telling him to keep quiet. He looked back at the guys. "Seriously Jake, why are you always jumping on Sam. Take it to your bedroom guys, this is a family room," he said, making sure to keep their attention away from me. Jake laughed, while Sam didn't say anything. I could imagine him glaring at Corey though, considering I couldn't see his face. I was almost right behind them, so I ducked down behind the couch. "I'd rather go to my room with you Corey," Sam replied, almost making me laugh. I swear we said the dumbest shit sometimes. So much so that people actually thought we were gay. "Well, I mean, if you really want too," Corey replied in a sweet voice. I could imagine him making that sweet little face that he always did, and looking down, then back up at Sam. I waited until I felt both Sam and Jake lean back against the couch, then I jumped up and grabbed them both by the shoulder, while I screamed as loud as I could.