Down the line

41 - Wine

"Let's just be civil." I suggest to the woman who cheated on me. Lee was stood beside her awkwardly. It's mom's fault I'm over here.

"Okay, I can do that. I'm sorry." She admits. Lee rubs her shoulder and lifts his head up at me. Perhaps even he was apologising once more.

"Well okay then" I nod with a fake smile. Inside I was screaming, but I couldn't show that.

Lee grabs me be the shoulder and gestures for us to go and talk off to the side. He stops me by the wall and just stares at me.

"Yes?" I question, wanting to know what the hell he was doing.

"I know I've already said sorry multiple times, but I have to keep saying it." He admits rubbing the back of his neck.

"I know, you don't have to keep saying it now."

"I do, cause I know you'll never forget what I did. Part of me becoming a better man would be to spend some more time with my little brother. I need that." He gives me a look.

"I'll never forget Lee. I probably can't forgive either so instead, I'll attempt to ignore everything. You were right, about me. About how everything was about me, now I look back, it kind of was. I'm sorry for that." I tell him. We may as well get it out of our systems considering this was the first family and friend gathering that we'd had that didn't involve someone getting punched.

"It wasn't your fault." He looks down at the floor.

"Anyway, how the arm?" I smile, threatening to slap his injury. Getting away from the depressing subjects quickly.

"Fuck off, it's fine. Just a bit painful. Some of the junior doctors did it. Brittany taught them well." He smiles back. It was strange to see him smile. He was always so grumpy. "Come outside with me." Lee says.

I follow him out of the back door. He leans against the wall and I follow his lead. He flicks open a packet of cigarettes and picks one out with his teeth.

"Mom won't let me smoke in the house. You want one?" He offers the packet to me. I shake my head.

"I heard they're addictive" I say with my knowledge out of a book. As he lights the cigarette he chuckles lightly.

"It's a good addiction" He smiles passing me the cigarette.

"Do I have to?" I grown looking at the cigarette.

"You won't get addicted. Trust me." He tries to reassure me.

I place the stick between my lips and breathe in letting the toxic fumes into my lungs. I keel over and cough a few times, Lee takes the cigarette and pats me on the back.

"It's a bit like that for everyone. Don't worry" Lee chuckles softly.

"I don't think that's for me" I cough once again. I'd never smoked before, after that experience I don't think I'd ever want to.

I lean back against the wall and place my hands in my pockets. It was getting late out, nearly dark.

"Have something to wash it down." Lee suggests as he holds out a random hip flask.

"You just carry that around?" I ask my brother who opens up the small flask, the cigarette perched between his lips.

"Well, it makes situations easier. Plus, we're celebrating life today. We should all have a drink." He urges the flask on me even more.

"What is it?" I take a smell. It was strong.

"Whiskey"

I smell it once more and tip my head back, guzzling down nearly half of it before Lee stopped me. I already felt light headed from the aged wine but the whiskey must have gone straight to my head.

"Woah! Slow down there, you're going to make yourself sick." He grabs the flask from my hand and I push my hair back. I blinked a few times and looked around. I felt a little dizzy, but I was okay.

Lee takes a swig of the burning drink.

"We should turn this into a real party." I suggest to him with a large grin plastered across my face. That statement wasn't like me at all.

"How so?"

"Lets just get everyone pissed." I shrug looking through the back door into the living room. I could see everyone. Lee throws his arm around me.

"See, when you have some alcohol in you, you think like me. Now that's a good thing...sometimes." He guides me towards the door. I wasn't out of it, but the straight whiskey did go to my head.

I walk inside and stand in the middle of the room. It was strange being taller than everyone else, I could actually see over everyone's heads to find people.

"Do you think I did a good job of setting up?" Mom asks me as she stands beside me. I look down at her.

"It's... Good. Everyone's together, having fun." I spill out a little too happily. Mom just looks back and gives me a funny stare.

"I'm proud of you for speaking to Kelly, you know. It took a lot of guts. Speaking to Lee as well for that matter. He's never going to change, just perhaps a blanket of kindness will be thrown over him. Occasionally he'll behave. I mean, blah-blah-blah-blah blah." She explains before patting my arm.

I had zoned out long ago. Focused on the girl across the room. Most obviously Ali. I had no idea what she was saying.

"Yeah" I just slur to try and tell my mom I was listening. I wasn't really. All her words had been blocked out.

"Are you even listening to me?" Mom scowls, snapping me quickly out of my daze.

"Huh?"

"Just go and enjoy yourself for a little while longer. This won't continue until after midnight. Hopefully people will start flooding out by then." She explains. I rub my forehead and stare back across the room. There was the wine.

"Alright. Bye." I say quite rudely as I hurry off to the table with the beverages. A brand new wine glass sat before me.

I grabbed it and poured some in. It wasn't that I needed it. It was the fact of feeling free. I drink the glass quite quickly making my stomach churn slightly. Instead, I pick up the bottle in an attempt to find Ali. What's the harm in living like Lee's party days for just one night? I'd never gotten drunk at a party before.

When I do find her amongst the mass of people I smile.

"Lewis, I haven't seen you since we got here. Are you okay?" She asks. I stare at her for a few seconds before letting off a little smirk and holding up the bottle in my hand.

"Wine?"

********

I'm writing quite a lot at the moment. I really want to round the story off, which means this could continue to about chapter 60? Who knows? Maybe...

My exams start in two weeks, I wanted to give everyone a chapter everyday still in that period of time that way it would be like I never even left. You won't even notice I haven't been writing for a few weeks cause you would still get the same amount of chapters :)