Helios Renewed

by Tawa M. Witko

  “How is Connor doing?” Andrew asked, bouncing Ellie on his knees.

  “He’s good, antsy,” Jayden replied.

  “I think he’s just bored,” Callie added.

  “I bet he is. Hey, did you guys check out that one place. Do you think it will work for the new shop?” Andrew inquired.

  “We did look at it but I don’t like the location.”

  Andrew looked over at him. “Really?”

  “Where we’re at right now is good. The neighborhood is good. There are no break-ins or problems. That other area is questionable.”

  “Okay, well, I trust you guys.”

  “What are your thoughts on just gutting the lot and starting from scratch? Design our own shop,” Jayden asked.

  “Umm, yeah, sure, I guess, but will that be a problem for you and Connor?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You know, PTSD or something like that.” Jayden laughed, which caused Andrew to grin. “Hey look, man, I got therapy coming at me left and right. I had to ask.”

  Jayden shook his head. “Nah, were good, Andrew. Plus, if we do our own thing, it will be totally different, so no bad memories.”

  Andrew nodded. “Well, then it sounds good to me.”

  “Cool, we can start looking at blueprints once you get home.”

  They heard screaming behind them so Jayden and Callie turned around while Andrew and Madison looked over their friend’s shoulders to see what was going on. They saw Sam and his girlfriend sitting on top of one of the benches. She was holding a 16x20 canvas art board to her chest. You could tell she was crying. They all looked to Andrew.

  “Did you do that?” Madison asked.

  Andrew smiled and nodded as he watched her hug Sam. Sam looked in Andrew’s direction with the biggest smile on his face.

  “Sam asked me if I could do a portrait of his girlfriend.”

  “You’re such a sweetheart, Helios,” Madison said nudging his shoulder.

  “I do try,” he grinned.

  “So we have good news,” Jayden said seriously.

  “What? You finally asked her to marry you?” Andrew asked cheekily.

  “How the hell did you know that?” Jayden asked surprised. “We didn’t even tell Madison because we thought she’d spill the beans to you before we could.”

  “Wait, you really did?”

  “He did,” Callie stated excitedly and pulled out her ring. Jayden smiled and took the ring, slipping it back on her finger.

  “Callie, oh my god, I’m so happy for you,” Madison said, getting up and hugging her best friend.

  “Congratulations,” Andrew said, shifting Ellie again so he could hug both Callie and Jayden.

  “When did this happen?” Madison asked.

  “A couple of days ago and it was very sweet.” Callie smiled at Jayden. “He took me on a trip down memory lane.”

  Madison scrunched her brows in confusion and then looked at Andrew, who had the same expression on his face as she had on hers.

  “You know, he took me to the school and we reminisced about his first day there. Then we went to Frosty Cone, where we had our first date.” She stopped when Andrew chuckled.

  “Hey, I was twelve, cut me some slack,” Jayden said with a laugh.

  “Then we went to the park where he said he loved me for the first time,” Callie smiled as she remembered everything.

  Callie went on to tell them in detail every step of Jayden’s proposal. He had basically mimicked every significant event in their life. Their first dance, the first time they made love, the day they found out they were pregnant, the birth of Ellie, even being in the hospital. Callie turned to Jayden, looking at him with both longing and love.

  “Then we ended up at the house. He had decorated it with balloons and streamers and flowers everywhere. He told me that being hurt and having me take care of him made him realize what a fool he had been for so long.”

  Jayden took both of her hands in his. “I told her that through the years we have already shown that we will love each other in sickness and in health and for richer or poorer.” He grinned at her beaming smile. “So I said let’s get married and do the, 'til death do us part thing as well.”

  “He got on his knee and took out the most beautiful ring and placed it on my finger.”

  “I told her, 'I’ve loved you from the time I was eleven years old and will love you past a hundred and eleven, be my wife Callie Marie Mitchell.”

  “And I said yes,” Callie said as she kissed him softly.

  “Callie, that’s so sweet,” Madison said wiping her eyes.

  “That’s perfect, Jayden,” Andrew said with a nod. He was extremely happy for his friends. “So when’s the big day?”

  Jayden and Callie turned to their friends. “That’s actually something we wanted to talk to you guys about.”

  “Hey, we’ll take Ellie for sure. Don’t even worry about that,” Madison offered.

  “That’s not what we wanted to talk about,” Callie laughed.

  “No,” Jayden interjected. “We were thinking that maybe we could kind of kill two birds with one stone.”

  Madison and Andrew looked at them strangely. They had no idea what they were talking about.

  “We were thinking about a, you know,” Callie glanced at Jayden.

  “How about doing a double wedding?” Jayden finished.

  “A double wedding?” Andrew asked, clearly confused by this concept.

  “Yeah, the four of us get married at the same time. I mean, if you guys want to. If not, it’s alright. It was just a thought.”

  Madison chewed on her lip. She and Andrew had not once talked about an actual wedding date. He had proposed and then all hell had broken loose in their lives. First Grayson had died and then she had to go to court, then Jayden was hurt and then Andrew. And now Andrew was in treatment. So, the topic of a wedding date had never come up.

  “Madison, is that something you would like?” Andrew asked, seeing her get a faraway look on her face.

  She turned to him and smiled. “I would if you would.”

  He leaned over and kissed her lightly. “Well, I would if you would,” he said with a sly smirk.

  “Good,” she replied with another tender kiss.

  Andrew then turned to Callie. “So I take it that Jay and I don’t have to do anything but show up, correct?”

  “Yes, Andrew, that would be correct,” Callie replied before standing up.

  Callie motioned impatiently for him to move. Andrew rose from his seat but was a tad confused. He glanced at Madison who was already giggling and chewing on her lip, not in the worrisome way she had been the past few months, but in her giddy way. He heard laughter and turned to see Jayden patting the seat next to him.

  “Have a seat, my man, we have been ousted for wedding talk.”

  “Ahhh, now I get it.”

  Andrew took a seat beside his best friend while Ellie reached for her daddy. The boys began talking about what they wanted to do with the new shop while the girls talked excitedly about what Andrew gathered were wedding themes. As he watched Madison smile and laugh, he could see that she was truly happy and carefree. It made his heart beat a little faster. Her happiness meant the world to him. They had already been through so much together. It made him think about what he had said a few days ago. He smiled. She was definitely his center and he knew without a doubt that he was hers as well.

  Three Weeks Later…

  “Hey, Jeff. You coming?” Andrew asked from the doorway, surprised that Jeff wasn’t actually out of the room yet. “What’s up, man?”

  “I know it’s different for you because you have Madison and stuff but,” he rolled over on the bed and faced the doorway. “But most of us don’t have anyone. We will be going right back into the same messed up environment we left, so excuse me if I’m not the happiest person in the world right now.”

  Andrew sighed and walked back inside the room. He took a seat on his bed, right across from Je
ff. Jeff watched him curiously but didn’t say anything. In spite of what Jeff had just said, Andrew did understand that he had it a lot easier than most of the guys in TRC. He had friends and family and loved ones that wanted him to succeed, his life was surrounded by people who didn’t use, who didn’t tempt him or remind him of his addiction. The people in his life always saw the best in him and inspired him to greatness.

  “I know it’s hard out there, but I have faith in you. Of all the guys in here, you’re the one that always 'got it'. And I mean always,” Andrew paused for a moment. “You understand your addiction better than anyone. And I know that you‘ve got meetings lined up, resources available, everything. You just need to use it.”

  Jeff laid back on the bed and looked at the ceiling.

  “I have something for you,” Andrew said, bringing Jeff out of his head. “I was gonna give it to you tomorrow but I think I want to give it to you today,” Andrew finished.

  Jeff sat up and cocked his head to the side. “What is it?”

  Andrew smirked and got up again, walking to his dresser. He pulled out the top drawer and dug inside until he found a small box. As he opened it and pulled out the chain, he briefly wondered if it was a good idea but then smiled. He let the dog tags dangle in his hand for a second and then wrapped his fist around them, breathing in deeply. Jeff sat up on the edge of the bed and watched him curiously as he walked back and sat across from him again. Andrew reached his fist out and Jeff reached out to take whatever was in his hand. Andrew dropped the chain in his palm.

  “I was talking to Madison about wanting to do something for you. I mean, I did draw you something, but I know you were...” Andrew ran his hand through his hair nervously. “I know you were anxious about leaving, so she suggested maybe giving you something you could carry in your pocket or something.”

  Jeff was staring at the chain that had two dog tags on it. One dog tag had a picture of a phoenix and on the other side it said 'rising above the flames of addiction' and the other dog tag had the symbol for narcotics anonymous on the front and on the back it said, 'Help is only a phone call away' along with a phone number.

  “Is this your number?” Jeff asked, his face strained as he tried to hold back tears.

  “Yes, it is,” Andrew whispered.

  Jeff nodded and immediately slipped the chain over his neck. He breathed in deeply, gripping the two dog tags tightly in his hand. No one ever gave him things and he certainly didn’t expect this or the feelings it would evoke in him. Tears slipped from his eyes as his free hand wiped his errant tears away. Andrew rose from the bed and placed his hand on Jeff’s shoulder, squeezing it as Jeff tried to control his breathing.

  “Come on, let’s go before Spencer starts without us. And you don’t want that because it would mess up the perfect attendance thing you got going on.”

  Jeff snorted out a loud laugh. “Forget you, man.”

  Andrew chuckled and started walking toward the door, then heard movement next to him. Jeff passed him and laughed as he hit the stairs before Andrew could. Andrew tried to catch up to him but Jeff was taking the stairs two at time. Andrew jumped the last four and landed right next to him, laughing as he pushed him out of the way.

  “That’s not fair.”

  “Life ain’t fair!” Andrew grinned as he plopped down on the couch.

  Jeff literally squeezed in next to him. Martin, a newer resident of only two weeks, glared at him and pushed him off the couch. Andrew shot him a lethal glare as Jeff jumped up, unfazed by Martin’s reaction. Andrew understood Martin’s animosity, but he didn’t like it. Martin was not in treatment for himself. He had been busted by his employer and had to go to treatment in order to keep his job. He didn’t feel he had a problem and had pretty much alienated himself from everyone. Andrew felt that Martin was actually worse than Carl, who eventually began to mellow out by the time he left last week. Martin, on the other hand, was a complete jerk. Andrew wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but there was something about him that reminded him of Nolan, which enflamed his anger toward him even more.

  “Calm down and make some damn room,” Andrew seethed.

  Martin stared at him, trying to assess his next move. With hesitation, Martin finally scooted over, leaving a small spot available. Jeff, being ambivalent to his surroundings, dropped down again and turned to Martin with a cheery smile.

  “Thanks, man!”

  “Whatever,” Martin said, glancing at Andrew, who was still watching him.

  30Homecoming

  The next three and half weeks at TRC came and went while Andrew saw everyone leave that he had started with. At the time, he hadn’t thought much about what it would be like to see them leave, figuring it wouldn’t be a big deal. After all, many people had come in and out of his life over the years. But as was true of most situations, he underestimated the impact people had on him and he realized that seeing people leave was a lot harder than he imagined it would be, especially when he had to say goodbye to Jeff. That had been difficult.

  “Andrew,” Spencer said at the door.

  “Yeah.”

  “Madison called and said she is running late. There’s an accident on the freeway.”

  “Oh, okay,” Andrew replied trying to hide his disappointment.

  Andrew looked around the room, which was already packed up. In truth, he packed last night. He was thankful for his time at TRC, but he was ready to go home. He had learned a lot, especially about his addiction, something Aaron had tried to help him with through the years, but now he understood it better. He had also learned the value of letting others into his life. That it wasn’t a sign of weakness to care about people, but a sign of strength. He found he could open his heart to more than the small group of people he currently had around him and invite others in as well. He had invited in Jeff, Sam, Spencer, Carol, and many others he met in his 90 days in treatment. And although saying bye to everyone had been extremely difficult, it had also been necessary. He felt confident that it would not be the last time he would speak to any of them. In fact, both Jeff and Sam had come by last week to say hello. Of course, they were still fighting about the Lakers and Clippers. Andrew had loved every minute of it. He sighed as he glanced at Spencer in the doorway.

  “She’s probably upset about it,” Andrew finally said.

  “Yes, she sounded a little frazzled.”

  Andrew smiled slightly. He could see that. Madison always got a little stressed when things didn’t go exactly as she had planned. He wished he could see her, hear her voice. It was always a long week for him as they didn’t talk until the weekend. Craig had recommended that he use the week to truly concentrate on his treatment. Andrew didn’t like it at first but understood what Craig was saying. When Madison was around or when they spoke, it was more difficult for him to focus on what he needed to do. He worried about everything and missed home too much that it became a distraction. He grinned as he realized that he would be seeing her soon and, luck willing, would never have to leave again. He breathed in deeply before reaching inside his duffle bag and pulling out his sketch book.

  “I think I’ll just stay up here and do some sketching while I wait.”

  “Alright.”

  Spencer left the room and Andrew opened his sketch book to the last page he had been working on. He smiled at the picture of Madison. He was drawing her in the gazebo, her hair flowing as she leaned against the railing, her hand outstretched to him. He pulled out his pencil and let it hover over her hair, she was so beautiful and often took his breath away, but that’s not what drew him to this picture. It was more the way she always seemed to be reaching for him. He breathed in deeply as the lead touched the paper.

  “Andrew,” Spencer said from the doorway.

  Andrew looked over at him, dazed. It felt as if he had just started sketching. He didn’t have the chance to process that train of thought any further as his eyes saw passed Spencer to ... Madison. He dropped the sketchbook and before he could get across the room she
was in his arms. Her mouth found his immediately, needing him. It had been a long ninety days, and although she had seen him on the weekends, she hated the fact that he didn’t go home with her. She despised falling asleep every night without him. Today would be different, though. Today he would finally be leaving with her.

  “I’m sorry I’m late,” she mumbled against his lips.

  “You’re here now,” he replied as he kissed her once more.

  “Is everything ready?” she asked a few moments later.

  He nodded and smiled at her sense of urgency. He understood completely as he wanted to leave and get home as well. Bakersfield was an hour away, so they needed to leave now to miss heavy traffic. He pecked her forehead lightly and stepped away from her so that he could grab his duffle bag. Madison walked to his large painting of the phoenix and started crying. She cried every time she saw it.

  “What’s wrong?” Andrew asked concerned.

  “I’m so happy right now.” She glanced at him over her shoulder. “And so proud of you.”

  He set his bags down and walked over to her, pulling her into his arms. “Then why are you crying?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just emotional right now. I must be due for my shot.” She sniffled.

  Andrew chuckled lightly and kissed the top of her head. Every time Madison’s Depo shot came due she was an emotional mess. It was as if three months of PMS came at once. Andrew was lucky, though, as Madison never got angry with him like other women might. She would either be crying at the drop of a hat or she wanted to have sex constantly. He preferred the latter. He smiled as he calculated that he had approximately two weeks before the week of her not wanting to be touched ensued.

  “Come on, baby, let’s get home.”

  Madison nodded. “We might need a couple of trips to get all your paintings. I brought some blankets that we can lay between them so they don’t get scratched.”

  He kissed her temple and then picked up his painting and juggled it slightly until it fit securely under his arm. Madison carefully grabbed two of his other paintings. Just then, a couple of guys, John, Jesse and Chris, walked in. They each gave a head nod to Andrew before picking up the rest of Andrew’s paintings. All in all, Andrew had completed ten paintings and numerous sketches for the men staying with him. For Andrew, it was probably the closest he would ever come to being a true artist.