Rugged Lace

Chapter Seventeen

*It's like everyone has lost their head, sometimes it's like they're better off dead*

His eyes, rimmed with red, flicker over the scene before him. A bedroom, clothes scattered about, cups placed randomly with some even knocked over, plates of old food...but there's something that isn't there. He knows that it's not anything he should be bothered by, but something is missing. Something important.

Where is she?

She can't have gone missing again already. Doesn't she know that this'll ruin my business? Damn that girl! Selfish little prick. I need her for my business. Don shakes his head, brushing back his greasy hair from his face as he tries to remember what day it is. His hands fumble about the room around him, trying to grab his phone. Instead, he gets a face-full of floor. "Shit!" Slamming his hands down to push himself up, Don wipes at his lips.

His phone sits on the table, three feet away, and he stumbles over to it. The light in the room burns his sensitive eyes, and when he turns on his phone the light from that blinds him as well. "Fuck this, just work already."

After a half-minute of waiting it finally opens up to what he wants, his home screen. Thursday: 6-4-15. "Shit...she's still gone?" Don sighs, biting his tongue hard to keep from shouting.

His phone buzzes. Incoming Call From: Dad

"Hello?"

"Don! Finally, I tried getting a hold of your sister but she hasn't been answering, and when I called you before it only went to voice mail. That's not important though."

"Then what is?" He asks, hating how his father tends to state the obvious.

"Your Mom, Don. She's in the immediate care room, and they don't think she's going to make it this time. The cancer spread instead of going away. I...It's unclear what's going to happen. You and Tyler need to get up here as soon as possible, okay? The room number is 3-1-7 B, East Wing. Got that?"

"Uh, yeah..." Don scribbles it down onto a sheet of paper. "Damn. That's a load of-"

His father coughs, "Language, Don."

"There's no need to say that. You know it's true."

"I know..." he sighs, "But that doesn't mean I can't try and pretend. You're going to have to accept that using that kind of language isn't going to help anything."

Don decides to change the topic. "So, Tyler hasn't been answering? What's up with that?"

"I thought you'd know, you're the one looking after her."

"Well," Don grins as he talks, beginning to pace the floors, "she's been gone. At first she went over to Alise, but I was hanging out over there the other day and Alise said she hadn't even been there for a day. Something about her running around and going to parties before she's got to, and I quote, "Hunker down and face the real world". I didn't believe it, so I started to call around. I don't even know where she's at, but I sent Suzy out to look for her. That's why I haven't been to my phone recently, everything's been a little too hectic. I'm hopin' that girl will show up soon..."

It takes a moment for him to respond to that, "Really? That doesn't sound like Tyler." He sighs, and Don can hear people talking in the background. "Thank you for looking after her. You've been really responsible lately, and I'm very proud of you. Make sure she doesn't do anything she regrets, and the second I'm back home I'll deal with her."

"Will do, Dad." Don throws a piece of trash towards a bucket. It crashes against the side of it instead of going in though, and he uses that to his advantage. "Oh, sorry Dad! Someone's knockin'. I'll call you back later, okay?"