West's Physics final was coming up, and he was studying hard. He was an average student, so he had to work ten times harder to obtain an A. In all honesty, though, everything in the textbook was just a bunch of jargon to him. It seemed as if he was absent from his classes the entire year because he didn't remember being taught any of the things that lay in front of him on his study desk. He was about to throw the textbook across the room when Paul knocked on his door.
"Come in."
"Hey, have you seen my car keys? I seem to have misplaced them..." Paul asked from the doorway.
West narrowed his eyes. It was weird. Paul always knew where everything was.
"You never misplace anything."
"Yeah, well."
"I'll help you look."
Paul shook his head, "I'm going to be late for my meeting. Mind taking me? You look like you could use a distraction."
You read my mind, "Okay."
They climbed into West's Toyota and sped off. The Alcoholics Anonymous meeting was held in a neighboring town called Cambridge. It was a busy, but, beautiful city, more livelier than Easton. And the people were much more friendlier. Paul was grateful that they were far from their own town, if people from Easton knew he was attending such meetings, his name would be on everyone's lips for the next century. Gossip was in their DNA. He suddenly remembered what Linda said the day she came over to bitch about West.
"Linda once told me she heard some unsettling things about you. What was she talking about?"
"Oh. Nothing serious, just that I'm a drug addict who loses underground wrestling matches on a daily."
"What?"
"It's whatever." He shrugged.
"Do you know who started these rumors?"
West side eyed Paul. He was debating whether to tell him or not. "Uh, Dennis, I think."
"WHY ON EARTH WOULD HE DO THAT?"
"Don't... yell." West chided from the driver's side. He thought about the day he came into the police station to report Paul for child abuse. Dennis had immediately called him a lying, disrespectful child who 'Must be on crack because my brother would never do something like that'. The junkie rumors started soon after that, so West had put two and two together and concluded that Dennis must've said something to someone, which in turn, turned the whole town against him.
"It doesn't matter. I'm over it."
Paul stared at West in bewilderment, "What the hell do you mean it doesn't--"
"Dad, no." West snapped as he pulled up to the City Hall. "Just... forget about it. I have."
Paul suddenly winced. He brought his fingers to his temples and started rubbing in a circular motion. "Fucking migraines." He muttered.
"You've been getting a lot of those, lately."
Paul ignored West, "Would you like to join me, today?"
"I don't think I should."
"It'll be fun."
"I seriously doubt that." West disagreed as he reached for the door handle. He figured he'd give it a shot, anyway. It's not like he had anything better to do. Studying for his Physics final didn't count... that was a lost cause.
They entered the City Hall, only to find people already seated in a circle.
"Uh, sorry I'm late. This is my son, Weston. I asked him to join us today."
They grabbed two chairs and joined the circle.
"The more, the merrier!" A woman exclaimed in a cheery voice. "It's so nice to finally meet you. We've heard so much about you!"
"I, uh... thanks?"
The woman chuckled, and it was the warmest sound West had ever heard. "I'm Regina, everyone else, please introduce yourselves to Weston, here."
The group of fifteen or so people each stood up and introduced themselves. West didn't hear a word, though. He was entranced by Regina's alluring beauty. She had brown sunkissed skin with bright, brown eyes and voluminous, curly hair that she wore like a crown. Her smile was the most captivating thing about her, it seemed to melt everyone's hearts. She was a ray of sunshine. She was hypnotizing. That probably explained why West was drooling all over the wooden floor. It wasn't attraction that he was feeling. It was appreciation. He just thought that she was one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen in his 17 years of life. One look at his dad, and West could tell he was thinking the same thing, too.
"Today, we're going to be focusing on the issue of relapsing." Regina said.
Everyone in the room started shifting uncomfortably, some started fiddling with the loose strings on their clothing. It was obviously a sensitive issue.
"All of us have thought about it. I've thought about it. On days when everything just gets too much... when I'm feeling the pressures of life. The urge to give in, sets in, and the easiest reprieve, the safest reprieve, is the bottle. You want to quit, you want to say 'Fuck it' and succumb to your demons, if only for a drop of beer or tequila. You may feel good for a few hours, but what about when you become sober again? Withdrawals aren't fun. They're probably the worst thing in the world, right next to the taste of olives." She joked,
"We all know the feeling of being in constant war with your own body. That's why it's important to keep fighting. You will have bad days, but it gets easier as time goes by, and the bad days become fewer. Your problems won't just magically disappear, you won't be magically cured, either. Because let's face it, alcoholism is a lifelong disease. That's what makes it so hard to quit. But all of you here have taken a step in the right direction... towards recovery, and I couldn't be more prouder. This is a compulsion that can't be stopped alone. Which is why all of you are here, today. We are a family now and we WILL beat this addiction. Together."
The small group was at ease, now, they felt less alone, and more willing to fight. More eager to get their lives back.
The meeting went on for another hour, and then concluded with a short prayer. West had enjoyed the session, it was very informative, and he was sure he'd be accompanying his dad again. For moral support. He left with an abundance of hope, and an abundance of faith in his Dad. It was going to be a long, messy road. But he'd be there for Paul. He was not alone.
------
They piled into West's Toyota and drove off.
They arrived in Easton some thirty minutes later, then West pulled into the drive-thru of his dad's favorite Chinese restaurant.
"Welcome to Tommy Lee's. How may I take your order?" A woman asked through the voice box.
"Hi. I'll have the, uh, Two for One Tuesday special and..." He looked over at Paul, waiting for him to recite his order.
"Nah, I'm alright."
West furrowed his brows, but didn't say anything. "That's all, thanks."
"Thirteen dollars. Please pay at the next window."
After paying, they collected their food and drove in the direction of their house.
The car suddenly felt too small, Paul could tell that West was itching to say something.
He let out a heavy sigh, "What is it?"
"You're in withdrawal."
"I'm not."
"You are. All your symptoms line up. The nausea and vomiting, the foggy brain, migraines... and now loss of appetite. Why didn't you say anything?"
West suddenly felt horrible that he'd been ignoring his dad the past week. He felt bad that he was sulking, while his dad was going through intense withdrawal symptoms, all alone.
"It's my problem, okay?"
"It's my problem, too, Dad."
Paul gave a reluctant nod, then faced the window on his side, signaling the end of the conversation. West took the hint, and decided to change the topic. He made a mental note to grill his dad later on that night, though.
"So... Regina, huh?"
He tore his eyes from the window and beamed, "She's a good woman. She helped start that group, along with her brother who also struggled with addiction."
"That's... interesting. But that's not what I meant. I saw the way you were staring at her."
Paul gave a lopsided grin, "She's not my type."
"Please." He scoffed, "Regina is everyone's type. I'm not trying to be a creep or anything, but she's fucking beautiful."
"I'm as old as the hills, Weston. I've got no time for dating. Only working, and sleeping... and sometimes, fucking."
That wasn't true, though. The last woman Paul loved, died shortly after giving birth. He had been scarred ever since. He was terrified that he'd fall in love, only to lose that person all over again. That was also why he vowed to never have children of his own. Not at the expense of his potential wife/girlfriend.
"That's gross. And you're 34."
"Exactly. You, on the other hand, are still young. Tell me, has anyone caught your eye, recently?"
West's heart skipped a beat, the person did more than catch his eye, "Uh..."
"Well? My love life is as stale as last week's loaf of bread. I'd rather live vicariously through you."
West slowed down as they approached a stop light. He turned to face his dad and smiled, "I'd rather live vicariously through you, too. Talk to Regina."
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