“I’m sure you’re anxious to go back to school,” Mrs. Collins said. “You’ve been out for nearly two weeks. I’m sure all your friends miss you.”
Cole avoided eye contact, concentrating on the half eaten piece of fried dough on the plate in front of him. “I don’t have any friends,” he mumbled.
Mrs. Collin’s eyebrows went up as she leaned a little closer. “I’m sorry Cole, what was that?” She said. “You don’t have friends? Perhaps that’s something you need to work on. You could try being a bit friendlier.”
Drew stiffened. His jaw clenched and he was about to say something when Ashley got up.
“Cole is very friendly,” Ashley countered. “It’s not easy being the new kid in school, especially when you’ve got a classroom with a bunch of bullies in it.”
Mrs. Collins stood straight, her smile still in place and looking more sinister by the moment. “Dear, I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ve never observed any bullying in my classroom.”
Ashley folded her arms, arched an eyebrow and matched Mrs. Collins insincere smile with one of her own. “I think maybe you need to keep a better eye on your class then.”
For the briefest of moments, Mrs. Collin’s smile faded, only to be replaced a moment later with one even more disingenuous. “I’m sure you don’t mean to say I don’t know how to do my job, sweetheart, just as I’m sure you didn’t mean to allow Cole to use recent unfortunate events as an excuse to stay home.” She reached forward and put a hand on Cole’s shoulder, making him flinch. “I know he must have been very sad, but life goes on.”
Cole tried to shrug away from her touch as Ashley’s fist clenched. She looked ready to come around the table and put her hands on Mrs. Collins when Drew stood up.
“Please don’t touch my nephew,” Drew said. His voice was cool, but his eyes were narrow slits.
Mrs. Collins froze, her hand still pressed on Cole’s neck. “I’m sorry? Why shouldn’t I touch Cole? I’m not hurting him.”
“Because,” Drew responded, “in case you hadn’t noticed, he doesn’t like to be touched.”
Slowly and warily, as if she were dealing with a growling dog with its hackles raised, Mrs. Collins withdrew her hand and let it drop uselessly to her side. She looked at Drew with an expression that was probably reserved for her most petulant students. “Perhaps part of the problem is Cole needs to understand we don’t always get what we like, such as staying out of school for long periods of time because we’re feeling a little down. Once he’s back in school, he and I can have a conversation about that.”
Now it was Drew’s turn to smile. “Cole will be returning to school next Monday. I’ll be bringing him in myself, early in the morning. We’ll discuss things then, with the principal.”
Mrs. Collins started to play with her glasses. “It’s not your place to speak with the principal. That’s a parent’s job. Principal Harris is a very busy woman and doesn’t have time to—”
“Have her make time,” Lilly said, speaking up for the first time as she stood as well. “Cole’s mother made her wishes very clear and the three of us,” She quickly indicated herself, Ashley and Drew, “are now Cole’s legal guardians. And we’re telling you that Cole isn’t going back to class until after we have a meeting with you and the principal. So do whatever you have to do to set it up. Meanwhile, we’d appreciate it if you’ll let us get back to family time.”
There was an authoritative note of finality in Lilly’s words Drew had to admire. For such a short girl who never raised her voice, it was awfully hard to argue with her.
Mrs. Collins must have begrudgingly felt the same way, because with one last, obnoxious smirk, she wandered away from their table, pulling out her cell phone as she sent Drew one last look full of contempt.
Cole looked over his shoulder, stealing a glance at his teacher before turning back to the others who were all sitting back down together. “You guys aren’t really all going into school on Monday, are you?”
He was answered with a round of nods, ‘yeses’ and ‘you bets.’
He looked skeptically at his aunt and uncle. “You two are going in there?”
Both Drew and Ashley shared a quick glance. Drew smirked and Ashley rolled her eyes at him before turning to address her nephew. “Cole, your uncle and I may fight like cats and dogs, but we’ll both always fight for you.”
“That’s right,” Lilly added as she picked up her bottle of water. “And so will I. I’ll go to make sure that these two don’t go in there like a pair of bulls in a china shop.”
Cole’s eyebrows drew together as he frowned. “A what in a where?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Drew said. “Point is, your mom knew what she was doing with the three of us. We’ve all got your back.”
Cole didn’t know what to make of that and was grateful when Ollie returned with several plates of fried foods; everything from fried Oreo cookies, fried Twinkies, fried watermelon and fried pickles.
“I wanted to try everything,” Ollie said as he placed the plates in the middle of the table just as Sam returned with her Nana. “I figured we could all share.”
Ashley picked up a fried pickle, which was breaded and sliced thin. “You mean share a ride to the ER together?”
Drew laughed, pulled a fried Twinkie in two, and held it up. “What the hell. We’re all in this together.” He took a bite, nodded in approval and washed it down with some water. “Bring on the heart attack.”
“How’s your stomach,” Ashley asked Cole, sitting next to him in the backseat.
Cole moaned softly while rubbing his belly. He was in the backseat of Ollie’s car, Ashley stroking his hair. “I’m okay,” he said, although he didn’t really feel it. He’d tried all the fried treats Ollie brought, found himself enjoying the fried Oreos most of all and scarfed down nearly a dozen, with a few fried Twinkies and even a little fried watermelon, although he refused to even look at the fried pickles. He’d washed it down with his cherry slushie.
Enjoying himself immensely, Cole hadn’t bothered to tell anyone when he first felt his stomach churn. He was convinced it would pass. He just needed to get his mind off that twisty feeling as if someone was flushing his innards down a dirty toilet.
When they passed a ride called the Roundup, a part of Cole knew it was a bad idea, yet with the dwindling line and the idea of being on it with both Uncle Drew and Aunt Ash was just too tempting to pass up.
There was no seats on the Roundup. Instead you were strapped into place while standing as the contraption spun you clockwise, going faster and faster until you were plastered to the back wall of your particular compartment. Cole managed to catch his uncle’s eyes and laughed as they both listened to Ashley scream.
He was convinced this was the best thing until the arm started to rise and their speed increased with each inch they rose off the ground. While they spun clockwise, Cole’s stomach seemed to spiral counter-clockwise in protest. Uncle Drew started to say something, but Cole couldn’t hear the words over the roar of the crowd, his aunt’s screams, and the rumble in his belly.
Eventually, the ride stopped spinning and came to a stop. Cole’s stomach however continued to churn and something tried to escape from his throat.
Hearing his uncle yell, ‘Whoa,’ Cole was whisked off the ride at breakneck speed and rushed to a nearby porta-potty wherein the contents of his stomach exploded out.
A cold stab of fear rushed through Cole as his uncle placed a hand on his back, but he was too busy throwing up to protest. When he was done, Ashley cleaned him up while yelling at Ollie for bringing ‘so much fried junk and putting it front of him.’ Lilly quickly arrived with a few cold bottles of water. The cold liquid from the first bottle helped wash away the awful taste of the formally tasty food from his mouth and the second felt heavenly on his forehead.
That’s when the adults started to talk about packing it in for the night, which would mean missing the fireworks, something Cole wasn’t willi
ng to give up without a fight.
Insisting he was fine, Cole begged them to find a spot on the lawn and he’d lie still and wait like a good boy for the show to start. After all, what was he going to do once he got home? He’d lie down and relax. He could do that here and still see the fireworks.
Cole believed he’d made a good case and he would have convinced everyone to stay if he hadn’t thrown up a second time, this time in a bush and nearly on his uncle’s feet.
Next thing he knew, he was being shuffled off to the parking lot. He no longer protested. He couldn’t enjoy the fireworks in the sky when there were bigger ones happing inside his gut at that very moment.
Now they were almost home, the storm in Cole’s stomach downgraded itself to more of a rainy day. It wasn’t bad to deal with, but one wrong turn and someone was going to get wet.
Ollie drove, taking it slow and easy in deference to Cole’s upset belly. Ashley insisted on sitting in the back of the car with him and holding his hand and letting Cole lean on her while she stroked his hair, something normally Cole would have protested over, but it was okay for tonight. Lilly spent the entire ride spun around in her seat, displaying her smile and reassuring him that he’d feel better in no time and there would be other fairs and more fireworks in the future.
“We’ll get you cleaned up and you’ll rest and feel better in the morning,” Ashley assured him. “All you need is a good night’s sleep.”
Cole groaned. “I won’t be able to sleep. My belly’s still all yucky feeling.”
Ashley placed her hand on Cole’s stomach and gently rubbed in small circles. A sharp stab of panic hit Cole as a dark image pushed against his mind, nearly making him retch again. His breathe quickened and his skin grew clammy. Instinct had Cole pulling away from his aunt.
“I’m really sorry, bud,” Ollie said from the front seat. He wasn’t able to see Cole jump at the sound of his voice or the sweat forming on his forehead. “I shouldn’t have gotten so much junk.”
Cole closed his eyes, not wanting to see the pain in his aunt’s eyes.
“Ash,” Lilly said. “He’s sweating. Does he have a fever?”
Cole opened his eyes just as Ashley reached for his head. He couldn’t stop the gasp from escaping as he shifted his head, but his aunt wouldn’t be deterred. She felt his forehead with her fingers, then flipped her hand and placed her entire palm flat against his skin.
“He’s cool as a cucumber,” Ashley said. She tried to smile, but she was clearly worried.
Cole tried to force himself to relax, not liking the fact he wanted to jump out of the moving car and run down the street screaming his head off. Wetness stuck in his shirt as the panic continued to build.
“Cole, what’s the matter?” Ashley said.
She leaned closer. So much closer. Why did she have to be so close?
“What’s up?” Ollie said as he slowed down. “Should I pull over?”
Ashley looked towards Ollie, their eyes meeting in the rearview mirror. “Cole’s sweating and shaking, but he definitely doesn’t have a fever.”
“I’m fine,” Cole yelled. His tone was sharp and scared, but he didn’t want to stop. He didn’t want Ollie to get out from behind the driver’s seat and come to check on him.
Lilly sent Ashley a concerned look, giving her a subtle gesture to move away from Cole, then smiled at him. “Of course you are. And we’re all going to take care of you.” Her voice was gentle. “We could watch a movie tonight. Would you like that? Y’know what my mother used to give me when my stomach was upset? Ginger tea. It’s pretty good. Some of that and a few crackers to nibble on might be good. Would you like Ollie to go to the store after he drops us off and get that stuff? Would that be okay?”
Cole forced himself to nod.
Ollie started to slow the car, pull over to the side and Cole’s hand gripped the door frame.
“It’s okay Ollie,” Ashley said quickly, worried Cole might jump from the vehicle into moving traffic. “Let’s get Cole home so he can relax.”
Ollie glanced back, saw Ashley’s eyes and nodded. “Yes ma’am.” He moved the car a little faster. “Hey Cole, would you like to listen to some music? That makes me feel better.”
He waited until he saw the small child nod before he flipped on the CD player. Skipping around a little, Ollie settled on a fun country song where the singer crooned about how the love of his life had given him an ultimatum: her or fishing. Ollie sang along at the top of his lungs and more than slightly off key, swaying with the rhythm as he drove, making it clear the fish had won. Ashley complained and pressed her hands to her ears and Lilly laughed, joining in a key completely off from either the singer or Ollie.
Cole didn’t hear as Ollie engaged the parent control on the door locks, and by the time the last notes of the steel pedal guitars reverberated through the car, Cole stopped sweating and even managed a small smile.
“Did you see the look in his eyes?” Ashley said to Lilly as Cole ran upstairs to get washed and into pajamas. “He was terrified.”
Ashley stood at the bottom of the stairs, leaning against the wall and gazing up to where Cole disappeared. Lilly stood next to her with her arms folded. In the window behind Ashley the lights from Ollie’s truck moved as he backed out of the driveway. He was making a run to the local store to get some ginger tea, saltine crackers, and a few other items for snacking on while they found a movie to entertain Cole until he felt better.
“Yeah,” Lilly said, keeping her voice low enough so it wouldn’t carry upstairs. “I haven’t seen him that bad in a while.”
Ashley scowled. “You mean since Drew showed up. I know Cole gets nervous around him too, but not like that. I thought we were making progress.”
Lilly reached out to touch Ashley’s arm, ready to say something soothing when Cole sneezed from upstairs three times in succession.
“Great,” Ashley said with a roll of her eyes. “He’s getting sick for sure.”
Lilly sighed. “He’ll be okay. Kids get sick. You handled it well. Both you and Drew.”
Pulling away from Lilly, she stepped up on the landing of the stairs, trying her best not to run upstairs as Cole sneezed again.
“No we didn’t,” Ashley said. “Sure, we dealt with the puke, but dammit we should have watched what he was eating. I’ve just gotten so used to Cole not eating anything or just picking at his food that I’m thrilled when he actually eats. But all that fried garbage…” Another sneeze had Ashley starting to climb the stairs. “Damn it. I should be able to go up there right now without worrying about scaring the kid half to death.”
Lilly placed her hand on Ashley’s. “That wasn’t you in there. I was watching him. He was okay to lean against you, but it was when you touched his belly. His skin went white as a sheet.”
Ashley frowned as she recalled the moment Cole tensed. “I thought he was going to jump out of the car.”
Lilly nodded. “I know. Something triggered a memory. Maybe we need to talk to Cole about seeing someone the way Kelli was.”
The fact was they had all taken turns at suggesting it to Cole when he’d first arrived, but he’d been completely against the idea. Ashley started to wonder if it had been a mistake to make it optional, but she hated the idea of forcing Cole. She herself resisted the idea and got angry whenever someone suggested it. Cole may be a kid, but certainly if he didn’t want to spill his guts to some shrink, he shouldn’t have to. If it worked for others, fine, but it was ludicrous to think you could force someone to open up their feelings. Unless Cole was ready to talk, he wouldn’t get anything from it.
“He’s not going to budge on that,” Ashley said as she listened to Cole sneeze nearly half a dozen times. “It’s not going to do any good if he doesn’t want to go and he’s made it very clear, he doesn’t. We’ve all talked to him about it. You. Me. Even Kelli before she was killed. Even Ollie and Sam gave it a shot once.”
Lilly winced as Cole sneezed again. “Maybe we should ask Drew to t
alk to him?”
Ashley glared at Lilly as she snatched her hand away. She nearly started to scream before she remembered Cole’s panicky face earlier. “Sure, why don’t we have big brother do it? Because none of us are able to deal with the kid without him. I would have been fine raising Cole on my own. I love him.”
With the same patience one would expect from a teacher dealing with a petulant child, Lilly kept her face friendly and her voice calm. “Of course you do. We all love Cole. But Drew seems to have managed to connect with Cole and I know that you want—”
Another sneeze from upstairs, this one so loud it sounded like it hurt. Lilly winced while Ashley reached into her pocket for her phone.
“Son of a bitch,” she said as she poked at the phone to bring up her contacts list. She stalked to the far corner of the room so she’d be able to raise her voice at least a little bit. “We told him he had to stop smoking.”
With the speaker function activated, Lilly could hear it ring two times as she moved to stand near Ashley. Midway through the third ring, Drew answered. “Hey Ashley, I’m just getting to Sam’s house to drop her off. Do we need anything?”
“Yeah,” Ashley snapped, ignoring Lilly’s urging to calm down. “We need for you to grow a brain and put your nephew first.”
There was a moment of silence and Ashley wondered if she’d lost the connection. or if her idiot brother had been stupid enough to hang up on her. “What did I do now?”
Ashley winced as Cole sneezed again from upstairs. “You know damn well what you did, you stupid, selfish son of a bitch! I told you Cole is allergic to the smell of cigarettes!”
“I know that,” Drew snapped back. Any trace of patience was gone from his voice. “Maybe he got too close to someone at the fair who was smoking. Or maybe he’s just getting sick. I haven’t smoked since before I stepped into Lilly’s house. I quit cold turkey because I won’t let anything stand between me and Cole. And you need to accept that. If he started to sneeze on the drive home—”
Torn Away (The Torn Series Book 1) Page 28