# A Surprise Visit Chapter 7

7 - TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION
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"Ow! Fuck!" I'm startled from my sleep and into Trish swearing loudly, her face contorted in pain.
"You good?" I drearily ask.
"Sore. Everything's fucking sore. Holy fuck. Ow." I try stretching a limb and immediately realize just how sore I am as well, a jolt of pain shooting through me.
Yesterday was incredibly exhausting. We hadn't noticed the A/C click back on during the day, and we hadn't even noticed the sun going down that night. I lost count of how many times we had gone at it, trying a number of different positions and other interesting ideas throughout, only briefly stopping for food and drinks when we were on the verge of passing out completely.
"It was kinda worth it, though." Trish continues to groan and swear, not acknowledging my response.
The soreness eventually subsides to the point where we can get out of bed and get on with the day; showering, eating, and getting dressed. And laundry - definitely laundry. Trish’s phone goes off at some point and she answers it. It’s a fairly one-sided conversation, with Trish only offering the occasional ‘yup’ and ‘mmhmm’ as the other voice - almost certainly her mom - rants and raves about something I can’t understand from my position. Trish eventually answers a question with more than just an affirmative, an absolutely dastardly grin on her face.
“Yeah, I’m with him right now...yup...mmhmm...yeah, I spent all day yesterday getting my horns fucked off.” Oh. That’s what that conversation is about. Figures, honestly. The voice on the other end doubles in volume, although it’s no more understandable to me, and Trish looks like she’s about to explode into laughter.
She manages to barely keep her composure throughout the rest of the call, and when it ends she promptly busts a gut, howling with manic laughter. I get the sinking feeling that she’s just burnt a bridge she shouldn’t have as her cackling continues.
Her laughter eventually falls to a giggle as she catches her breath, and she looks at me with an incredibly goofy smile.
“That felt good,” she says briefly.
“Are you sure that was a good idea?”
“Pfft, whatever. I’m done with these fucking twiddlydick games, holding fuckin’ Swords of Dinocles over my goddamn head all the time. Either fuck off or let it drop, not worth the stress of shitting myself over it. Besides, I’d rather know where she stands now rather than a month or two.” That’s....reasonable. I think.
“Still, couldn’t you have...sugar-coated it a bit?”
“Nah, this way she gets it all out of her system. Might have to avoid the area for a bit though. Which means you're stuck with me for a while longer.”
“Right, pizza it is then.”
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Trish and I return to the apartment later in the afternoon, hands full of groceries, essentials, and two freshly baked pizzas. We get everything put away, and I move to open one of the pizza boxes, but Trish’s voice stops me.
“Hey, Anon...you wanna like, invite Reed?” I reflexively scowl at the memory of our last encounter. “Maybe he’ll be a bit more sympathetic, considering the situation,” Trish attempts to assure me. I roll the idea around for a bit. What could go wrong? A lot.
What could go right? Enough.
“Go ahead,” I sigh.
Looks like today’s gonna be out of the frying pan and into the fire. Trish pulls out her phone and dials Reed. Part of me hopes that he just says ‘no’ so I can continue putting this off, but that hope is quickly dashed when I hear Trish offering over my address, hanging up soon after.
“Hey, it’ll go better this time, okay?” Trish says. Is my nervousness that obvious?
“You know we can’t keep him in the dark about all this stuff forever, right?” I reply. Trish only nods in response, and I can tell she’s dreading what’s to come as much as I am. It needs to be done though, if only to find out where he stands.
Reed shows up surprisingly quickly. Was he in the area, or did he live close by? The second wouldn’t actually be all that surprising. We sit on the floor and eat in relative quiet for some time, errant bits of smalltalk failing to start any meaningful conversations. The mood is solemn, the air is tense, and all ears are on Reed to finally shatter the tentative peace of our meal.
Soon enough, he does, launching straight into the hardest questions that can only be answered with the most painful memories. Trish and I agree that, for all of our sakes, Reed deserves to know everything. He needs to. The next few hours are unequivocally brutal. Question after question and answer after answer eventually turned a grueling interrogation into a heartfelt confession circle. By the end of it Trish and I had cried our weights in tears, and even Reed couldn’t hold it back the entire time, although whether it was true sympathy or simply emotional contagion remained to be seen.
Reed goes quiet and looks at the floor, his face going through a number of conflicting emotions. He silently struggles to find the words he’s looking for, unearthing memories and truths that have yet to be spoken.
“Trish...I’m sorry for what I said a few days ago. I couldn’t have possibly imagined...any of this. I just...I saw Anon with you and was terrified of seeing it all happen again. I freaked out and told myself I couldn’t let it happen again. That I had to take control of things for once, rather than watching things happen. It’s what I’ve been telling myself for months. That I couldn’t just keep sitting by as a...a fucking spectator. Someone without any control, just watching from the sidelines as my friends live out their lives. I needed to do something. Anything. I said the first thing that came to my mind that I thought would snap you out of whatever I figured you had gotten into. I had thrown away the first chance I was given in months within minutes.” Reed shudders, out of breath and emotionally drained.
“And Anon...I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to completely move past everything that happened. But it was stupid of me to think that it didn’t change you. Like it changed all of us. Trish trusted you, and I should’ve trusted her. I don’t see her for months, and the first thing I do is lose control of myself. Again.”
His frown turns to a scowl as he collects his thoughts again.
“A few days after the funeral, I overdosed. Bad. I don’t know how long I was out or how long I was in the hospital. I sat in that damn bed for who knows how long, just wasting. Waiting to be back in control. I kept telling myself that I’d never lose control like that again. That I wouldn’t be known as ‘the stoner friend’ who just sits around, off his ass on whatever the fuck all day. That I’d actually get myself involved rather than waiting for others to involve me. But that’s just not how it works.” Reed sighs and hangs his head in shame. “I didn’t tell anyone about it. After all, who would trust a guy who can’t even control his own damn intake?” He falls silent, allowing his words to fully soak in.
“Damnit, Reed!” Reed flinches as Trish lunges across our circle and towards Reed, practically tackling him - thankfully with much less murderous intent than last time - knocking the wind out and wrapping him in a hug many months overdue.
“Oof...apology accepted, I guess?”
“Yes, you...fucking jackass…” Trish tries to play up her anger but the last few hours have taken their toll on her. On all of us. They right themselves after a moment and Trish grumbles.
“Why were we so...stupid?” A pretty good question, honestly. I wait for a follow up, but one never comes, Trish only expectantly looking at us for an answer. I decide to speak up.
“Well, if we all thought it was our own faults, why would we expect anyone to want to help us? We were just getting what we deserved.” They both nod, seeming to agree with this sentiment.
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Evening starts to roll in soon after the tail end of our conversation.
“Alright dudes, I think I’m gonna head out. I’ve...got a lot to think about now. But at least I’ve got friends again, right?” The two of us smile and nod. Things will never be the same again, but at least we still have each other.
“Wait, Reed,” Trish stops him. “I...might have...kind of pissed off my mom. Like, a lot. Any chance we could maybe crash at your place at some point?”
“Hmm. Yeah, I know a couple places you could hang out at if you need to take the heat off. But, uh...are you two like...a thing?” Reed glances between Trish and I.
“Nah,” Trish replies quickly. “We’re just hanging out and my mom hates that.”
“Ah, shoot, my bad. Don’t want to imply anything weird, I’ll just get going.”
“Reed, don’t believe her lies. Her mom is pissed off specifically because of how much of a thing we are,” I interject.
“Anon doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Trish rebuts.
“Should I repeat what you told your mom on the phone earlier?”
“Go ahead,” Trish dares, her signature smugness reignited. I hesitate. Reed doesn’t really need to hear it, but to back down now would be admitting defeat, and I couldn’t let that happen more than it already had. I clear my throat.
“I believe the phrasing you used was ‘getting your horns fucked off’, right?” Trish’s mouth stays curved into that smirk, but her eyes widen in surprise.
“Alright! I think I’ve officially overstayed my welcome, I’ll be going now, you two have a good night, good luck with the mom situation, bye!” We wave and yell goodbyes while Reed rushes himself out the door, closing it behind him.
“You are such a jackass, Anon.”
“You literally asked for it. I don’t want to hear any complaints, especially considering the amount of shit you would’ve given me for backing down.”
“Maybe I’ll give you even more shit for not backing down.”
“Impossible, it won’t be justified if you do, and I’ll be able to give that shit back.”
“Pfft, whatever. I’ve got other ways to make you back down, anyway.” An almost sadistic grin forms on her face.
Uh oh.