The Undisputed Series

by Teague, A. S.

  Nodding in agreement, Sidney responds, “You’re right. You are absolutely right. But maybe she was out on assignment?” Her defense only makes me angrier.

  “How can you defend her? I don’t understand your relationship with her at all! You’ve told me how frustrated you are with her constantly being gone. And then Connor almost fucking dies and she’s nowhere to be found and you’re okay with it?”

  I’ve tried not to pry when it comes to Abby, but Sidney herself has confided that, at times, she’s resentful of Abby’s jet-setting lifestyle. It doesn’t make sense to me because she’s tough as nails when it comes to everyone except her sister. It’s like she automatically loses her spine with anything having to do with Abby.

  Her voice is calm when she replies, “First of all, Connor didn’t almost die. And, secondly, of course I’m not all right with not being able to reach Abby. But what am I going to do about it?”

  I snap my head in her direction and exclaim, “Say something to her! Stand up to her. Tell her that it’s bullshit that she’s constantly leaving you here to take care of her kid! If you won’t, I will!”

  Her eyes wide, she shakes her head at me. “Don’t you dare!”

  I nod back at her. “Yes, I dare. This is bullshit, Sidney. Connor is her son, and she can’t be reached for hours.”

  Sidney puts her finger to her mouth to shush me. The waiting room is empty though.

  Throwing my arms out to my sides, I ask loudly “Why the hell should I be quiet? There’s no one else in here!”

  A moment later, a nurse appears, “Is everything okay in here?” she asks curtly.

  “We’re fine!” I bark at her.

  Looking to Sidney, she purses her lips. Once Sidney reassures her that everything is okay, she asks us to keep it down before turning on her heel and leaving us alone.

  I need a minute to cool off. So I stalk toward the exit.

  “Breccan, where are you going?” Sidney asks behind me.

  There’s a note of fear in her voice, and I immediately regret my outburst.

  Gruffly, I tell her, “I’ll be right back,” before continuing outside.

  I take a deep breath through my nose, the cold air helps clear my head.

  I pace back and forth in front of the hospital, causing the automatic doors to continuously open and shut. Every time they open, I catch a whiff of the astringent hospital smell. My stomach turns at the memory of what led us here. I’m replaying the scene in my head, trying to think of what I could have done differently, when I hear my name being shouted across the parking lot. Turning in the direction it came from, I see Abby running toward me in heels.

  Her clothes are wrinkled, her hair’s disheveled, and her face is free of any makeup. There are dark circles under her puffy eyes, and she looks worse than I’ve ever seen her.

  She slams in to me, wrapping her arms around my waist before sticking her face in my chest and sobbing. I don’t return her embrace, refusing to give her the sympathy she’s looking for. While I know she loves her son, I’m unable to forgive the fact that she’s practically abandoned him.

  Still sniffling, she looks up at me and says, “Thank God you were there, Breccan. What would Sidney have done without you?”

  Untangling myself from her grasp, I tell her, “Sidney did everything. Like she always does. Where were you, Abby?”

  Wringing her hands together, she blinks at me several times. “I was on assignment. I—”

  I cut her off, no longer wanting to hear her explanation. “Never mind. Sidney’s inside waiting for you.” I point towards the door before turning away.

  After a beat, I hear her heels clicking on the sidewalk.

  I probably shouldn’t have been such a jerk, but she doesn’t get to rush in with tears in her eyes and all is forgiven. I resume my pacing, and after a few more minutes, I decide I’m calm enough to be around people again. After walking back into the lobby, I peek around the corner, into the waiting room. Abby is seated next to Sidney, her arms wrapped around her shoulders, while Sid stares at the wall, unblinking. I walk down the hall in search of a drink to give them a few minutes.

  I’m almost back to the waiting room with three cups of terrible coffee when I hear shouting.

  “I said I’m sorry. What else do you want from me?” Abby’s voice is shrill.

  “I want an explanation!” Sidney’s tone matches Abby’s.

  I consider intervening, but I let it play out. I have no idea who started the conversation, but I’m proud of Sidney for finally speaking up.

  Abby’s exasperated when she responds, “I’ve already told you that I’d been on assignment all day and was exhausted. I never heard my phone ringing!”

  “No, that’s not what I mean,” Sidney hisses at her. “I want to know why you are constantly leaving Connor. Ever since his diagnosis, your unplanned assignments have doubled. You’re always gone. Why?”

  I peek through the doorway. Abby jumps to her feet. Her eyes are wide as she shoves a hand through her hair.

  Turning towards Sidney, she says, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sidney. I’ve always had to travel. That’s the whole reason you moved in in the first place.”

  Sidney rises and squares her shoulders. She narrows her eyes, “Bullshit. You’ve never been gone this much before.”

  It’s silent for a full minute. Abby turns toward the door, and her eyes are brimming with tears. Finally, she stammers, “I…I can’t handle it, Sidney. I can’t watch him get sicker and sicker. I can’t sit around…watching him die.”

  Sidney wraps her arms around her. “Jesus, Abby. Why didn’t you say something?”

  A strangled laugh erupts. “Say what? ‘Hey, sis. I can’t take care of my own kid, so sorry, but tag, you’re it’?”

  Sidney leans back and looks her sister in the eye. “God, no. But, all this time, I’ve been so fucking mad at you. I just thought you cared more about your career.”

  Sighing, Abby averts her eyes. “I knew you were mad, but I couldn’t tell you. Hell, I couldn’t admit it to myself. What kind of mother am I? My kid’s in the hospital and I’m across the country, sound asleep.”

  Sidney rubs her back and murmurs, “Don’t beat yourself up over it. You’re here now. Yeah, I was pissed that I couldn’t reach you, but I knew you were probably exhausted.” She kisses the side of Abby’s head.

  I’m not sure I would have let Abby off the hook as easily as Sidney, but I’m at least relieved they’ve come to some kind of conclusion. I was all for them talking this out—but I didn’t necessarily mean tonight.

  As they both fall silent, I round the corner and hold out the now-cold coffee to them. Smiling at me, Abby takes a cup. She gives me a nod, letting me know that all is forgiven between us. Wiping the moisture from her face, she clears her throat.

  “I’m going to go see if I can talk to a doctor. I’ll be back soon.” She squeezes my forearm before turning back and smiling at Sidney. “I love you so much, sis.”

  As she walks away, I settle into her empty chair and put an arm around Sidney’s shoulders. “I’m sorry.”

  She looks up at me. “For what?”

  “For being so hard on her earlier. I owe her an apology. And you.” I shrug one shoulder. “I don’t have siblings, so I don’t know how those relationships work, either. I should’ve known that you’d have your reasons for never saying anything to her.”

  Shaking her head, she says, “No, you were right. I needed to say something. It wasn’t doing me any good, keeping it bottled up. I’m just glad I know what’s going on with her now. I mean, it doesn’t really excuse it. She should never have been that hard to get ahold of. But I didn’t realize how badly she was handling the whole situation.”

  I drain the last bit of my coffee before dropping the cup on the floor and stifling a yawn. The last twelve hours are finally starting to catch up to me.

  After pulling my phone out, I find several messages from Tripp and Rebecca. I type a quick response to
let them know I’ll explain everything later, and then I shove it back in my pocket.

  “You should go home, Breccan. You must be exhausted, and there’s nothing to do here but wait.”

  I shake my head. I wouldn’t be able to get any sleep if I went home anyway. “Nah. I’m fine. I’m not gonna leave you here alone. Plus, I want to be here when Connor wakes up.” I put an arm around her shoulder and pull her small body against mine.

  She nestles into my side and doesn’t even bother stifling her yawn. “Okay. I won’t argue with you.”

  Snuggling in a little deeper, we sit in silence. It isn’t long before her breathing evens out and I peek down and see that she’s sound asleep.

  I try to focus on the muted TV in the corner. It’s an old episode of Friends. My eyes are heavy, and hard as I try, I can’t concentrate on the show. Promising myself that I’ll just rest for a few minutes, I let my eyes drift shut.

  * * *

  My eyes pop open when someone shakes my shoulders.

  "Abby?" I say before yawning. I blink a few times and glance around.

  There are two other people in the corner of the waiting room, both staring blankly at the TV, which still playing reruns of Friends. I wasn’t asleep long. Ross is still yelling, “Pivot!”

  Sidney’s remains asleep on me, only now her mouth is hanging open and she’s snoring softly. Chuckling, I remind myself to give her a hard time about it later.

  “Everything okay?” I ask, focusing by attention back on Abby.

  “Connor’s awake. He’s asking for you.”

  Relief washes over me. “Listen… About earlier. I’m sorry I was so short with you.”

  She waves me off. “No, it’s okay. I get it. If I were you, I’d be pissed too. I’m actually glad you care about Sidney. And Connor. Really, don’t worry about it.”

  Satisfied that things are cool between us, I shift in the chair and give Sidney a gentle nudge. Her eyes fly open, and she scrambles away from me.

  Her voice is thick with sleep as she asks, “Is everything okay? What time is it?”

  Abby checks her watch. “It’s almost two in the afternoon. Everything’s fine. Connor’s awake. But he’s asking for you.”

  Sidney jumps to her feet and then reaches down to grab her purse from under the chair. She stumbles as she follows her sister down the hall, so I grab her waist to steady her.

  Knocking lightly on the door, Abby peeks her head in. Sidney shoves past us both and makes a beeline for Connor’s side.

  “Hey, buddy,” she says quietly. “You scared the shit out of me. Don’t do that again!” she scolds before leaning over and kissing his forehead.

  For a moment, I feel like an intruder. Mother and aunt visiting the child they have raised together. And here I am, the what? Uncle-boyfriend? Fuck me.

  I take a step backward, intent on leaving them alone. Sidney turns and wrinkles her eyebrows at me. I gesture that I’m just going to wait outside, but Connor stops me.

  “Breccan?” he croaks. “Where ya going?”

  I stop my retreat and take a couple of steps toward his bed. “Ah, nowhere, big man.”

  Even though he’s awake, he’s still pale and his smile is weak. Seeing him like this causes my stomach to knot, and I rack my brain for something that will lighten the mood.

  However, Connor gets there first.

  “What were you doing in Aunt Sid’s room in the middle of the night?” he asks with a smirk on his face.

  Freezing in place, I look to Sidney for an answer. Her eyes are wide, and her mouth gapes. Abby’s hand is covering her mouth, but the smile is evident in her eyes.

  Clueless as to what to tell him, I sputter, “I was… Uh, well… You know…sometimes…” I search for the correct answer until Abby saves me.

  “Connor, that’s none of your business. Sidney can have whomever she likes in her room. Isn’t that right, Sid?” Abby elbows Sidney in the ribs.

  When Sid nods enthusiastically, I can’t help but laugh.

  I wade in in an effort to change the conversation. “How are ya feeling, kid?”

  He grimaces before answering, “Like shit.”

  I chuckle when Abby and Sidney both groan at his language.

  “Yeah, I bet, dude. You look like shit too,” I tell him, grinning. “You gave us a good scare. Me especially. I’m glad you’re doing better, but I gonna have to ask you to never pull that shit again.” I walk over to the recliner in the corner and settle in to it. “Mind if I hang here for a little while longer?”

  “Man, I wish I had my Xbox. It’s about time I kick your butt again.” Connor grins.

  “Yeah, right, dude. That was a fluke. You won’t be beating me again any time soon.”

  Connor shakes his head before closing his eyes and settling back on the pillow.

  I look over to where Sidney is hovering over Connor’s bed and beckon her over. “Sid, come sit with me.” I pat my lap.

  She bends down and gives Connor one more loud kiss on his cheek. Even with his eyes closed, he wipes it off.

  Laughing, she plops in to my lap. Abby takes the chair beside Connor’s bed, and we lapse in to a comfortable silence.

  A couple of hours later, the doctor comes in and lets us know that Connor’s vitals have improved enough that he will be allowed to go home after a few of days of antibiotics. He stresses that, while the infection shouldn’t be taken lightly, it’s also not anything to be terribly concerned about.

  After he leaves, Abby encourages Sidney and me to go home and get some sleep. The thought of climbing into my bed causes me to moan out loud.

  With a wave at Connor, I take Sidney’s hand and lead her to my car. Not even bothering to ask, I drive straight to my apartment.

  Chapter Twenty

  Sidney

  Exhausted from the events of the last twenty-four hours, I didn’t even notice when Breccan bypassed the exit for my house. It wasn’t until he pulled into the underground parking garage that I realized he had taken me home.

  His home.

  After putting the car in park, he hops out, rounds the hood, then pulls my door open before I even have time to unbuckle my seat belt.

  “Come on, beautiful. We have a date with my pillows.”

  Too exhausted to do much more than nod, I allow him to loop his arm through mine and guide me to the door.

  When we walk in, the same bellman as before does a double take when he sees us arm in arm. Smirking, I wink at him as we pass.

  We ride in silence to the top floor. It’s nearly dinnertime, and with the exception of some vending-machine M&M’s I had to share with Abby, I haven’t eaten all day. I do a quick mental inventory of what I remembered was in Breccan’s fridge to see if there was anything I could cook.

  We walk into the foyer, and Breccan drops his keys on the hall table before flicking the lights on and making a beeline towards the kitchen.

  “Want a glass of wine?” he asked over his shoulder.

  I stop in my tracks.

  In front of me is the beautiful kitchen I lusted over the night before—destroyed. There were broken plates all over the floor and food smeared on the walls.

  “Oh my god, Breccan! Someone destroyed your house!” I shout. “You should call the police.”

  He doesn’t reply as he stands in front of the fridge, staring inside, completely unfazed by the disarray surrounding him.

  Pulling out a bottle of beer and the wine he bought me before our fight, he sheepishly replies, “Nah. No one broke in. I do need to call someone to clean it up though.” After stepping over the mess, he pulls another plastic cup out of the cabinet and pours some wine. Then he holds it in my direction.

  Taking the cup from him, I shake my head. “I don’t understand. What happened in here?”

  The steak I cooked is lying in the floor, and there are green beans strewn across the counter tops. Realization finally dawns on me when Breccan refuses to make eye contact.

  “You? You did this?”

&
nbsp; Nodding, he takes a sip of beer. “I may have been a little upset after you left last night.”

  Clamping my mouth shut, I simply nod. “Want me to help clean it up?”

  “No. I’ve got someone who comes in and cleans for me a couple of times a week. I meant to call her this morning, but you know. Other things came up—” He’s interrupted by the ringing of his phone. Checking the ID, he groans. “Dammit.” Glancing back up at me, he mutters, “Let me get this.” Putting the phone to his ear, he barks out a curt, “What,” in lieu of a greeting and walks down the hall.

  Having left last night without getting a grand tour, I’m curious as to what the rest of his apartment looks like.

  The living room doesn’t have any framed pictures like the ones that cover every available surface of our home. The room has a large sectional, a coffee table and the biggest television I’ve ever seen, but aside from that it’s devoid of any personality. After wandering down the hall, I stop short when I hear him cursing.

  “Fuck, Dad. No, I haven’t had time.”

  I follow the sound of his voice into a large room with an incredible king-sized bed in the center. There’s a large portrait of Breccan hanging above the bed, and I walk forward until I’m directly in front of it. He’s standing inside the cage, his arms outstretched and the widest smile I’ve ever seen on his face. One eye is swollen nearly shut, and there’s a cut on his nose. A large championship belt is fastened around his waist.

  Breccan speaks into the phone again, which tears my attention away from the portrait, and I glance over to where he’s standing. He’s facing away from me, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.

  After walking up behind him, I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my forehead between his shoulders. He sags before expelling a deep breath. The person on the other end of the line—his dad, apparently—seems to be yelling, but Breccan remains silent.

  When there’s finally a break in the one-sided conversation, he says quietly, “Dad. I’ve had a rough night. No, I wasn’t out at a bar. I was with Sidney. No, you haven’t met her. Look, it’s really not a good time. No, I don’t know when I’ll get to it. I have a fight coming up. Yes, I’m still doing that fighting thing. Okay, I gotta go.”