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“She just needs time,” Ryder mutters.
I know he understands. I remember all too well his dark days when Ricky was first diagnosed with cerebral palsy when we were teenagers. But that doesn’t help me all that much right now. And it certainly doesn’t help Kat.
“I just want to fix this shit.”
“You can’t, Styx.”
Swiping his bag from the floor, he stalks toward the back of the house to dump it in his room. “I’m gonna shower then we can order food, yeah?”
“Sure,” I call back. Although really, I’m not hungry. My stomach is too knotted up with concern for that.
I slump back on the couch, my eyes stinging from lack of sleep and my body aching. But I know I’m not going to find any peace.
I’m still staring up at the ceiling feeling like a useless piece of shit fifteen minutes later when a familiar bike rumble fills my ears.
I hop up faster than I thought I could move with exhaustion racking my body. In seconds I’ve got the door open and I’m watching as D pulls his helmet off and runs his fingers through his hair.
“What’s going on? What’s happened? Is Kat okay?” I ask in a rush, making him stare at me as if I’ve just sprouted an extra head.
He sighs. It’s heavy and full of frustration. “She’s… fuck. Shall we?” he asks, gesturing toward the house I just came running out of.
“S-sure.”
He follows me inside and sits on the couch while I stand awkwardly waiting for him to spill as my concern only grows.
“What’s going on, D? You’re freaking me out.”
“Any chance of a coffee?” he asks suddenly looking absolutely wrecked.
“Uh… yeah. But—”
“What, Styx?” he snaps, his exhaustion getting the better of him.
“Is she… how is she?”
“Bad. Make me that coffee and we’ll talk.”
Sounds ominous. But with the promise of finding out more about my kitty kat, I force myself into the kitchen to make us both a coffee. I leave a third in the machine for when Ryder reappears. Probably very soon because I’ve got no doubt that he’ll be straight here when he hears D’s voice.
“Go on then. I’m all ears,” I say, falling onto the couch opposite him.
“Shit,” he mutters, staring down into his coffee mug like it might hold all the answers to his problems. “She’s… she’s bad, Styx. I’ve…” He sighs. “I’ve never seen her like this. Well, I haven’t even seen her. She’s locked herself in her room and… fuck. I don’t know what to do.”
Finally, he looks up, and what I find staring back at me makes my breath catch.
He’s at his wits’ end, not having a clue where to turn or what to do to help his sister.
“She needs you, Styx.Weneed you.”
My entire body freezes, disbelief flooding me as I stare back at him.
Silence settles around us before footsteps get closer.
“He’ll do whatever you need him to do, D,” Ryder says, shattering the unbearable tension.
“Styx?” D mutters.
“Y-yeah. Anything. You name it and I’m there. I want to help her, both of you, all of you, through this in any way I can.”
