Overcoming The Lie

Chapter 13

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Sixty days. Sixty days away from everything he knows and loves. Sixty days away from the comfort of his home. Sixty days away from his practice, his patients, his livelihood. And sixty days away from any form of alcohol. The last two months were the hardest Mark had ever endured. Without the escape of a liquor bottle, Mark had to come face to face with everything that had gone down over the last year. Daily therapy talking about Marli, her cancer, her lies, was hard enough for him. But having to talk about Addison was even worse. It nearly killed him to rehash their love, the betrayal, and what he said to Addison the night she took care of him. Rehab helped him come to terms with why he turned to alcohol for solace and his therapists helped him to overcome some of the anger he felt that drove him to drink in the first place.

Now, sixty days later, and it was time for Mark to return home and test everything he had learned. Part of him was still unsure if he could handle being back in Los Angeles, with Marli, and working in the same clinic as Addison. Above everything else, he was worried he wouldn't be able to handle it sober. But then he thought back to all the techniques he learned in rehab, took a deep breath, and called Adam. Adam had become Mark's closest friend through everything, visiting him in rehab, and believing in him when it felt like no one else did. And now, Adam promised to pick Mark up and take him home.

When Adam arrived, the anxiety Mark was feeling earlier started to return. He continued to take deep breaths to re-center himself and started to prepare himself for his return.

"Adam, thank you again for picking me up. And thank you for sticking by me through all of this."

"Mark, you are my wife's brother. And, honestly, you are also one of my best friends. You have made so much progress over the last two months, it's great. Now, what do you want to do first, once we get into LA?"

"Part of me really wants to just go home and hide away for a couple more days, but if Marli found out I was home and didn't see her, she might actually kick my ass."

"You are very right, she would. Especially since she knows I came up here to pick you up. She has really missed you."

"I've missed her too. So, I guess, let's go see Marli." With that, Adam and Mark took off for LA, getting to the clinic early that afternoon. Mark was nervous, but as they drew closer to the clinic, he became more excited to see his baby sister. The last time they spoke, she was very mad at him, with good reason, and he could not wait to see her and makes things right.

"Knock-knock. Marli, is it ok if we come in?"

"Come in...Mark is that you?!" Marli jumped out of bed and ran to Mark, hugging him tightly. "Mark, I missed you! I am so glad you are back."

"It's good to be back, I missed you too, so much. Can we talk for a minute?"

"Of course. Adam, Caydence is down in the daycare with the nurses. I was going to get her in a little bit, but I want to talk with Mark first."

"I understand. I will get our daughter and we can all meet in the garden when you two are ready."

"Thank you, hon. I love you." Adam gave Marli a quick kiss before leaving her and Mark alone. "So, how was Palm Springs?"

"It sucked at first. But it got better after a while, and I learned a lot. Marli, I want to apologize to you again. This last year has been terrible, and I am so sorry for all the pain I have caused you. I was so angry, for so long, and part of me forgot how not to be angry. Your lie hurt me, and I know you are sorry, and I do forgive you. But for months, I carried around that hurt and betrayal with me. It was eating me alive, until the only thing that gave me any sense of relief was alcohol. I am not saying this to hurt you or to make you feel bad, because you don't need to. My choice to turn to alcohol was my decision, and no one forced me to drink but myself. When I was in rehab, I had to face everything that happened, and then I had to learn how to get passed it all. I love you, Marli, and I understand now why you made the choices you did. And I am sorry that instead of talking about it with you, or with anyone really, I turned to alcohol and almost ruined our relationship. You mean the world to me, and I just want to apologize for not being the big brother you deserve. But I promise you, from now on I will be here, supporting you in every decision you make, and I will talk to you if something wrong. I know that it will take time for you to forgive me, but I hope that I can earn your forgiveness over time."