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He leads me to the pantry door and steps inside. I follow and he crouches in front of a cupboard. The bottle he brings out is three-quarters full. He gets to his feet and hands it to me.
“I should have told you when I found it. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
He was thinking he might need it.
“Oscar, when did you find this?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know. A week ago.”
“And when did you fill your flask?”
“A couple days ago. After I blacked out.”
Could this have triggered him?
He’s prone to addictions, and he’s sensitive. Finding this and hiding it from us… He kept it to himself because he knew he might break. I won’t let that happen.
I take it into the kitchen and set it down by the side of the sink. I open his flask first.
He groans lightly when I tip it down the drain.
My guts twist. I feel like I’m torturing him doing this.
I need to get rid of it. He can’t backslide if it’s not here.
I uncap the bottle and look back at him. He’s leaning against the wall next to the pantry door, his expression pained.
“Oscar, I have to…” I start, trailing off when he nods.
“I know. I just… I can’t…” He shakes his head and looks away.
I empty the bottle into the sink and set it down on the counter.
I pick up his flask and wash it out, filling it with fresh cold water when I’m done.
One problem down, and it wasn’t exactly painless.
I pick his blazer off the floor and set it down on the back of his chair at the kitchen table.
“I need you to come outside with me,” I tell him, holding my hand out.
He doesn’t take it straight away.
He’s shaken, and I’m afraid I’ve already done too much to hurt him.
Then he gives me a weak smile that doesn’t reach his eyes.
“Outside?” he asks, his voice shaky.
I nod, knowing it’s a lot to ask.
It doesn’t matter if it hurts.
This is what he needs.
He takes my hand.
Chapter Fourteen
