Celine awoke on cold floorboards. She observed her surroundings through her squinted eyes, but it was too dark for her so really see. She grabbed the nearest thing to help her back onto her feet. When she gripped onto the wooden bench, she pulled herself up and stood on her feet, finally looking around and realizing she was in the church outside of their house.
Groaning silently, she grabbed at her forehead when a sharp pain stabbed her brain. There was a reason she didn’t miss drinking. Now she was going through a painful hangover where she didn’t know how long she’d been out when she returned home.
The church was dark because of the boarded-up windows, so she couldn’t really tell what time of day it was.
Still holding her forehead, Celine walked over to the window and peered through the cracks. It was dark outside, so it could have been night, or it could have been early in the morning. Daniel would surely be very cross with her, she thought as she exited the church and headed towards the house.
As quiet as she could, Celine tried opening the door but realized it was locked. “Damnit,” she whispered to herself. When she tried searching in her pockets for her keys, she growled when she didn’t find them. With no choice whatsoever, she knocked on the front door.
“Graham, it’s Celine!” she cried out. She said her name because her voice was unrecognizable due to the phlegm in her throat. The moment the entrance hall lights were turned on, Celine noticed that the whole house had been dark before. How long had she been asleep in the church? Was Daniel already asleep? Would Graham be pissed at her?
Her last question was answered when Graham unlocked the door for her and opened it. A disappointed and angry look had fallen onto his face and Celine could feel her ears turning red. “Good evening,” she said, hoping it was still night.
“It’s actually morning,” Graham corrected her, the look of anger and disappointment still surfacing on his face, but mostly in his eyes. He was standing the doorway as if blocking Celine from coming inside.
“You were with Ronin, weren’t you?” he asked her. Celine tried to show him she hadn’t been drinking by standing perfectly still, but her messed up hair and eyes gave it all away. “Have you been drinking?”
“What? No, I have not been drinking,” Celine said, gently pushing Graham aside so she could walk inside. “Your eyes are pink,” Graham told her. “Obviously you’ve been drinking unicorn urine.”
“Wait, unicorn urine makes your eyes pink?” Celine asked, hurrying up the stairs so she could see for herself. She made her way into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Both her eyes had turned completely pink, even the white surroundings and her pupil.
“It’ll wash out,” said Graham as he walked down the hallway towards the bathroom. “It’ll wash out when you cry.” He came in the bathroom and leaned against the door. Celine sighed heavily and couldn’t take his look of disappointment anymore.
“I’m sorry for drinking, okay, and for staying out late.” she said, bent over on the sink. “A reunion with Ronin needed a drunk me, not a sober me.”
“Daniel’s been worried sick, you know?” said Graham. “So have I. He’s been repeatedly asking where his mother was and when she’d be back. The lies I’ve had to tell him was so unbearable, considering his mother had lied to me and given the Silver Wand to her husband who will most likely sell it to the highest bidder.”
“He’s going to keep it safe for me,” said Celine as she closed her eyes and tried to cry. “Splash some water into your eyes,” Graham suggested. “Or let me poke my finger in your socket.”
“Very funny,” Celine sarcastically said. The turned on the tap and began splashing her face with water, her eyes wide open. The water burned her eyes and she could feel the tears stinging her. When she looked into the mirror, she saw as her tears rolled down her cheeks. At first her tears were colourless, but then the pinkness in her eyes mixed in with her tears, and pretty soon she was crying pink.
“This isn’t gross at all,” she said. Graham sighed heavily and walked inside the bathroom. He grabbed hold of the toilet-paper and handed it to Celine so she could wipe away her pink tears.
As she cried some more and the pinkness was erased, she splashed her face with water again and then dried it off with the towel. Graham was still looking at her to the point that Celine got irritated with him. “Can you please not judge me tonight?” she asked him. “So yeah, I lied and gave the Silver Wand to Ronin. You trust me, so trust me trusting him, okay Graham?”
“Okay, Celine, I trust you,” said Graham, folding his arms as he looked at her turning around to face him. “Maybe next time tell Daniel you’re meeting up with his father, especially if you come this late.”
“You know what, just go home Graham,” said Celine. She walked towards him and shoved him out of the way as she walked out into the hallway. “I need to sleep.” “So you’re not going to work tomorrow?” he asked her, slowly starting to get concerned of her. “Graham, my head is aching and I am still tired,” Celine told him. “I am releasing you from your duty as babysitter, for now, so you can go home and rest.”
Celine walked into her bedroom and was about to fall down onto her bed when she noticed Daniel wasn’t lying there.
“Where is my son?” she asked Graham, quickly turning around to face him. “I put him in his bedroom,” said Graham, confused why Celine would ask him that even after he told her he put Daniel to bed.
“Daniel doesn’t have a –” Celine stopped when she remembered the spare room. She once again walked past Graham and stepped inside the spare room. There was one bed and a cupboard inside with a small closet across from the bed. When Celine bought the house, it was already furnished so she didn’t bother get rid of the extra bed and cupboard, but she did clean it every now and again.
Daniel was fast asleep on the bed and didn’t even notice he was sleeping in a different bed. “He fell asleep on the couch waiting for you,” Graham told her as he walked up behind her. “I picked him up and brought him here.”
As a short moment of silence fell over them, Graham heard Celine begin to sob. He silently walked and stood beside her in the doorway. She was looking at Daniel and slowly began to cry. “He’s always slept with me,” said Celine, gently wiping away her tears. “It’s just so hard to see him sleeping on his own.”
“He’s not a kid anymore,” said Graham, placing a hand on Celine’s shoulder. “One way or the other, Daniel’s going to grow up. Not to be a bummer, but he’s gonna have to learn how to do things for himself now, Celine. Seeing as you won’t allow his father into his life, who will be there to protect him when something happens to you?”
Celine swallowed heavily and stared back at her son. He was tucked underneath the blankets and slepy peacefully, not even caring if she was there beside him or not. Daniel was indeed growing up, and Celine was too scared to admit it.
“I think it’s time you went home,” she repeated, quickly wiping her eyes dry. “I’d like to be alone now.”
Graham gave her a look of pity and backed out of the doorway. He didn’t want to start an argument, so he obeyed her wishes.
Celine turned and left the spare room so she could take Graham out of the house. They made it down the stairs and Celine watched Graham take his coat off the coat-hanger and then open the front door. He stopped mid-way and gave Celine another look of pity.
“You’ll never be alone, Celine,” he whispered at her. “No matter how much you hide from him, Daniel will always love you. So will I.” Graham turned and left, not expecting her to say anything in return. Celine stood there all alone, biting her tongue so she wouldn’t burst out in tears.
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