Continued...
----------------------

"Rob?"
His friend was leaning against the doorframe, mumbling incoherently.  He
looked up at Skid's face.
"Skid!  Skid, I'm in shit, I'm so fucked.  You know...you...where did you
go?  You were at home, and now you're here.  You hit me.  Why did you hit
me?  You're the only friend I got..." He was getting mad.  Sensing an
impending scene, Skid reached behind him and pulled the door closed, pushing
Rob back further on the porch.
"What are you doing here, Rob?"
"I came...to find you.  Stop changing subject, I said you hit me.  You're
not meant to hit me.  You're meant to be my friend.  Ohhhh, Skid."
"What?"  Despite his pity for his friend, Skid was angry.  Really angry.
His drunk, stupid, fucked-up friend had just turned up on the doorstep of
this family home, this protected little world.  He had no right to be there.
"Uhhh.  My report card came through, Skid.  I am soooo fucked.  I can't...I
got, like, D's, an' F's and shit and I'not gonna go to college..."
"Look man, what did you expect?" Skid tried to move Rob further back, away
from the windows through which Rob's language could be heard loud and clear.
As he put an arm out to move him, Rob swung his arm in a loose attack for
this trespass on his personal space and smacked Skid around the head.
Loosing all control, Skid grabbed Rob by the collar of his soaked jacket and
wrestled with him, dodging thw wildly swinging punches that kept coming his
way.  They fell to the ground in a tussle and dropped off the edge of the
porch onto the wet grass, the rain still falling in massive droplets onto
their adrenaline-fuelled bodies.  Getting himself up off the ground, Skid
gave an almighty heave and pulled Rob up too, bring him face to face before
he felt a heavy punch land in his stomach, winding him. He bent over
slightly, grabbing Rob around teh waist to prevent him doing any more damage
until he recovered and they went round in a circle of flailing limbs, the
rain pouring from the heavens as they did.  As Skid moved and grabbed the
back of Rob's neck, bending him over to land a punch, he felt his grip on
his prey loosen and slip away as a force between their two bodies split them
apart.  Straightening up with some difficulty and breathing hard, he saw
Doug standing in the rain, looking wildly back and forth between him and
Rob.  Rob was staggering a little opposite Skid, also breathing hard and
clutching one side.
"I don't know what this is about guys but if you're going to fight, don't do
it here."
Skid dropped his head, bending over and resting his hands on his knees out
of both embarrassment and the need for air.  Rob swayed a little more,
giving Skid a straight look before bending down shakily and sitting on the
wet grass.
"You okay now?"  Doug asked, more in reference to whether he could leave
them than to whether they were feeling good.
"Yeah.  Sorry Doug."
"That's okay."
He went back inside.  The two of them stayed in their positions for what
felt like an eternity, until Rob's head dropped and he mumbled something.
Skid didn't say anything but kept his view fixed on the blade of grass below
him that dripped regularly once every three seconds.  It wasn't until he
could feel Rob's eyes looking at him that he looked up too.
"What am I doing here, Skid?"  The fighting and adrenaline seemed to have
worn away the effects of the alcohol on Rob and his eyes, although slightly
glazed, were bright and piercing but showed a strange despair that Skid
wasn't sure he'd ever seen before.
"I don't know, Rob."
"I got my report card.  I hid it, it's in my room in an old shoe box so my
parents won't find it.  No college in their right mind is going to accept
me."
"Sorry."
"Not your fault.  It's just..." he picked up a pebble and threw it down
again, repeating this several times before picking it up and lobbing it down
the lawn as far as he could, at the same time as saying "...I don't give a
fuck any more."
"Why not?  I don't understand you.  You have so much to play for and you're
throwing it all away."
Rob stayed silent, but the light of the moon reflected off his jawline and
it was clenched hard.  He had found a bgger pebble and was picking it up,
holding it, then throwing it into the ground harder and harder.
"You know what, Skid?  You just don't get it at all.  You think that just
because I never read her books, or took her to the zoo, or built her a
crappy treehouse," he looked towards the wooden structure on his left,
clearly visable in the dim light, "you think that because I didn't show it,
I didn't love her and that I didn't care.  But you're wrong, you are SO
wrong.  You're the one that's fucked, buddy.  You couldn't be more wrong and
you don't even KNOW IT."  Taking the stone, he threw it even further down
the lawn this time, his long arm flicking the pebble out of his hand and
through the air at the speed of a pro pitcher.
Skid sat, confused, but not wanting to make Rob anymore irate.
"You think I didn't know you loved your sister?"  He said it quietly.
The stony silence from opposite him only confirmed what he said.  The
silence broke as Rob stared downwards, semi-consciously ripping up
grassblades by the handful next to him.
"I DID love her.  And I didn't want her to die.  I'm crap at showing what I
feel and now...I don't know that she ever thought I loved her."
Those few words almost made an audible click in Skid's head as he finally
understood what had been the cause of his friend's behaviour for the past
few months.  Rob thought that Becka believed he didn't love her.  And now
she was gone, he could never tell her or show her.
What he looked up at Rob, whose face still pointed down.  But he was certain
that what he had just seen fall from his best friend's face was not just
rainwater.

Skid stood up slowly, ignoring the protests from his ribcage and shoulder.
Looking towards the house, he turned back to Rob.
"C'mon."  He tipped his head in the direction of the house and started
walking back.  A few seconds later, he heard Rob get up behind and follow
him.  They walked into the house, dripping on the laminated hall floor until
Carol passed them the rugs that hung from the back of the couch.  In
silence, she went out of the room, before returning a few moments later with
some dressings.  She put one against Rob's right cheekbone, where a bright
gash had seperated the skin, and the other to Skid's jaw where Rob had
clipped him with a ring.  They took the dressings and held them in place,
still silent.  Carol left again, busying herself in the kitchen, unsure what
else to do in such a situation.  Some minutes later, she heard Doug come
down the stairs and join the two boys in the lounge.  Sticking her head
around the doorframe to see what was going on, she heard Doug's voice
talking quietly and saw him check the dressings.
"You can stay here for the night - Skid you got a pull-out mattress under
you bed, if you can share a room."
"We can.  Thanks Doug."
Doug nodded, not wanting to pry in whatever had just happened.
All three of them stood up and Skid and Rob went up the stairs, Doug heading
towards the kitchen to talk to Carol.
"What happened?"
"I don't know.  But I don't they're going to fight again tonight."

The next morning, having sacrificed his bed to Rob and slept on the pull-out
mattress himself, Skid awoke slightly earlier than normal and went down for
breakfast in a t-shirt and boxers.  In a more sobre mood than normal, he
poured some fruit loops into a  bowl and sat down at the table.  Doug
watched, and sat down opposite him, shooing Kate away gently when she
pleaded for the tenth time to put the TV on.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
"And Rob?"
"He's still asleep."
Doug nodded and pointed to the fruit loops.  "They're gonna get soggy if you
don't eat them."
"Yeah..." Skid swirled his spoon around in the bowl, not particularly
hungry.
"So you gonna tell me what all that was about last night?"
Skid stayed silent. Did he really want to tell Doug all that stuff?  He felt
bad talking about his friend while he was in the same house, but even worse
he was still humiliated that his friend had turned up drunk.  It wasn't the
way to go about making a good impression.
"C'mon.  You don't strike me as the sort of guy who just flies of the handle
at anything."
Skid sighed.  He decided to let it fly. "I went to move him off the porch,
and he took it the wrong way and flew at me.  I was angry that he showed up
so I hit him back...after you came out and stopped us, we talked a bit and I
think...well, Rob's afraid that his sister didn't know he loved her."
Doug's eyebrows raised.  Before he could say anything, they heard the sound
of footsteps on the landing and Rob came down the stairs.  Looking around a
little wildly to figure out where he was and holding his head with one hand,
he saw Skid and Doug and went to join them.
"Morning."
"Mornin'"
"Want an asprin?  I'm Doug, by the way."
"An asprin would be great, thanks.  I'm Rob.  I guess I've got to apologise
for pitching up here last night like that, sorry."
"Okay.  Here."  Doug passed him a glass of water with two asprin.   Rob put
them in his mouth and washed them down with the water.  He turned back to
Doug, a more earnest expression on his face now the sleep had been wiped
away.
"Really, I'm sorry.  I didn't mean to upset you or anything.  You were great
to let me stay here last night, I'm going home today - you can just pretend
it never happened."
Skid played with his cereal some more, it was started to decompose in the
milk now.  Doug, standing by the worktop, dropped his head to one side.
"Actually, it looks like you guys have to sort some things out between
yourselves.  If you don't mind the sleeping arrangements, you're welcome to
stay longer."  Skid looked at Doug, questioningly.  Doug replied before he
could even say anything. "I talked to Carol this morning, and she agrees as
long as there are no repeats of last night, okay?  Skid could probably do
with some company of his own age anyway, suprised he's lasted this long with
those two..."  He looked over his shoulder at the twins, who seemed to be
arguing about who got to sit on the beanbag.
"You know I don't mind them.  But it would be cool if you could stay, Rob."
"Yeah.  It's real nice up here.  I'm not sure my parents are going to be
delighted to see me right now anyway."
"Do they know where you are?"
"Not exactly...no."
"I think you should call them.  Just let them know you're okay.  I'm not
going to pretend I know the situation, but I'm pretty sure they'll be
worried about you."
Rob shrugged.
"Go on, Rob.  You know your mom, she'll be out of her mind now.  They won't
be mad if you just call - how long have you been gone anyway?"
"I don't know...I went out the day the report card came in...did some
drinking...I guess you knew that.  That was maybe three, four days ago?"
"Here."  Doug handed him the telephone.  Gesturing to Skid, he beckoned him
away from Rob so he could have a little privacy and went with his son to the
den where Tess and Kate were sharing the beanbag noisily and playing some
sort of game with three dolls and a giant stuffed giraffe.
"Girls?  Skid's got a friend over today, so you two are going to have to go
to nursery for the afternoo..."
"No, Doug.  Don't put them in the nursery, we can look after them fine.
Please?"
Skid's words were echoed by the twins, who wanted to stay at home.
"Alright, alright.  But you have to behave youselves," he was interrupted
with "Yay!" and "We ALWAYS behave ourselves!", before continuing, "and if
Skid and Rob want some time to themselves, you have to let them." He turned
to Skid, "Just make sure they're in your sight, especially if you're
outside, okay? Okay."
Skid nodded, and picked Kate up, who was about to scale his leg if he
didn't.
"Can we go to the playground today?"
"Yeah, I don't see why not..."
"How about we go now, kiddo?  All five of us!"
"Four, Daddy, Mommy's at work."
"Yeah, but we can get Rob to come.  That makes five - you, me, Tess, Skid
and Rob.  See?"
"Oh yeah.  Okay!  Can I go on my bike?"
"I wanna go on my bike too!"
"Yes, you can go on your bikes.  I'll go and get them out..."
"I'll go get dressed.  I think Rob's gone into the shower, but I'll go tell
him we're leaving soon."
"Okay."

Half an hour later, the troop left the house and headed towards the small
playground at the end of the road.  There weren't a great amount of
facilities, but it was enough to keep Tess and Kate happy - all they needed
was a couple of swings and a jungle gym.  There was a roundabout too, but
apparently Tess had thrown up once after being on it, and now they both kept
away.  They had raced away on their stabilised bikes as son as they had left
the driveway, with Doug behind them at a safe distance.  Skid and Rob walked
behind him silently.
"Your dad's a pretty cool guy."
"You think?"
"Yeah.  He didn't throw me out last night, did he? And he didn't tell me to
get lost when I showed up.  That's what my dad would have done."
"I guess.  He understands a lot of stuff, y'know?  That's cool."
"Yeah.  Cute sisters you got too.  What are their names again?"
"Kate, and Tess.  Kate's the louder one, in the red cap.  Tess is quieter,
she's wearing the blue sneakers."
"They always dress differently?"
"Dunno.  They have done while I've been here, Carol says it's so I can tell
them apart, and so she can too sometimes!"
"'k.  You had a good time here then?"
"Yeah.  I have."
"When you going home?"
"Sunday morning.  You know, you might as well stay till then and we can
travel back together."
"Can't do that, I got my car too."
"Travel in convoy then.  Bet I can beat you down the Interstate, your car
has jackshit injection."
"Yeah, right, check out your great big heavy truck!  My injection's shot but
my maximum speed must be way above yours."
"Don't bet on that, buster."
They had reached the playground and Rob helped Doug pick up the discarded
bikes and prop them up against the fence that protected the park from
unwanted intruders.  In the meantime, Skid obligingly went to push Tess on
the swings, while Kate seemingly ran right up the jungle gym and hung upside
down from the monkey bars.  From her position, she still managed to notice
that Tess was on the swings having a great time and after calling to Doug to
help her get down, she made a beeline to where Skid and Tess were.
"Me too, push me too, Skid!"
"I can't push you both at once.  Wait a moment..."
But Kate had had a better idea. "No, here, you sit down on the swing and
I'll push you!"
"I'm not sure that'll work, Kate..."
"Yes it will!  Please?"
Grudgingly he sat down on the swing, his legs alomost folded double.  "Okay
Kate, give it your best shot!"
He felt small hands on his back, and he lifted his feet as far off the
ground as possible so that he might move.  Indeed, he did move.  But only
about five centimeters.  Tess saw what was going on and joined Kate,
giggling as they tried to push their brother, who was at least double the
height of them, high into the air.  From his place about a meter abpve the
ground, Skid called to Rob.
"Hey!  Get over here!  You gotta join in too, 'cause I don't want you going
home and telling everyone!"
For the first time in four months, Rob smiled his old smile and got up
slowly from his seat on a bench.  Doug watched him go from the jungle gym
that he was leaning against.  What a stroke of luck he happened to have
Skid's camera in his pocket.  As both of the boys reached a maximum height
on the swings, with Tess and Kate behind them, Doug pulled out the camera,
shouting "Say cheese!" and took a snapshot.  The howls of horror were
probably heard for miles around.

After Doug left for work that afternoon, the two boys and two girls decided
they would make a meal for Carol when she arrived home.  Surprisingly, it
was Rob's idea initially.  Tess disappeared to another room and returned
with a heap of cookbooks when Rob suggested the idea, and while Skid tried
to talk Kate out of wanting to cook chicken nuggets, Rob had to break it to
tess that they couldn't make veal picatta with an asparagus sauce.
Eventually settling on lasagne as a good dish, they set about making it.
Fortunately there were two recipe books that listed lasagne and so while Rob
and Kate worked on making the white sauce and cooking the pasta, Skid helped
Tess create a rich bolognaise.  They managed to pile it all up in layers
into one giant dish just before they heard the key turn in the door lock,
and Skid shoved it into the oven as the girls made a dash for the door,
vying over who got to tell first.

The meal was a huge success.  Carol had been expecting to see the kitchen
covered with tomatoes, bits of minced meat, flour and broken pasta, but was
pleasantly surprised when all she encountered was a spilt tin of plum
tomatoes.  They had made enough for them all, plus an extra portion that
could be microwaved when Doug got home later.  Halfway through the meal,
Kate remembered she didn't like mushroom very much and spent a lot of time
picking them out, while Tess ate them from the side of her plate.  After
dinner, Carol took the twins to the bath while Rob and Skid watched 'The
Simpsons'.  As the girls came back down the stairs half an hour later, Doug
arrived home, and after some bargaining they agreed that Tess and Kate were
allowed to stay up twenty minutes later than normal so that they could all
play Candy Land together.  They were about halfway through the game, with
Doug winning but being chased by Tess, when Skid went to get the dice from
under Rob's knee and noticed his head was bowed.  Before he could figure out
what was wrong, or even ask if he was okay, Doug tapped Rob's elbow and
stood him up.
"C'mon, buddy."
They moved out of the room, and Skid looked at Carol, who seemed just about
as mystifaed as he felt.  He knew Rob was upset but nothing had happened.
He wasn't even losing the game - he was ahead of both Skid and Carol.
Fighting the desperate urge to go and find him, he rolled the dice as Kate
watched.
"What's wrong with Rob?"
"I don't know, Tess."
"Did he do something bad?"
"No, honey," Carol said, passing the dice on, "I think he's just sad."
"Why?"
Choosing not to answer this directly, Carol said, "Maybe he's just not
feeling very well.  Come on, it's your turn."

Bedtime came for the twins, and still there was no sign of Doug or Rob.
Carol took them to bed, promising to send Doug to see them when he came
back.  She went into the kitchen when she came downstairs again, calling out
to Skid,
"You want a beer?"
"I'd love one, thanks."
Coming back to the den with two bottles of Michelob, she passed one to him
and sat down.
"Where do you think they are?"
"I don't know, Skid."
"How come Doug took him out?"
"He'll talk to him, find out what's wrong.  Don't look so worried, that's
what Doug does.  It's part of his job, and he's very good at it.  Rob'll be
fine."
"I thought Doug was a doctor?"
"He is.  But patient care is a big part of being a doctor.  I think Doug's
aim is to be like a big brother to every patient he sees sometimes."
"Really?"
"Yeah.  Sometimes he cares too much.  But I'm glad he does."
"Me too.  He said he left Chicago because he cared about a patient too
much...I kinda thought, well, I thought maybe he'd had an affair with a
patient or something.  I know you're not meant to do that..."
Carol laughed.  "Nope.  He's a paediatrician.  It's complicated, but he was
resposible for a lethal dose of pain killer being given to a very sick
little boy that wanted to die.  He resigned before he could be fired."
"Wow.  Isn't that illegal, euthanasia?"
"Yeah, it is.  But because he didn't issue the dose himself and because he
wasn't fired, he was allowed to keep his license to practise medicine.  He
can't work in an emergency room again though."
"So he work's on a children's ward instead?"
"Yup.  It's a specialist children's hospital, and he works on a couple of
the wards there."
"But you work in a different place?"
"Yeah, at a state hospital in the Intensive Care Unit.  It's a lot like the
ER but the hours aren't so long, which means I can have more time with Tess
and Kate."
Skid nodded, and looked out of the window, trying to see if there was anyone
out there.  Instead, the front door opened behind them and Rob came in,
followed by Doug.
"You both okay?"  Carol got there before Skid.
"Yeah, we're okay." Doug said, looking at Rob, who nodded.
"I'm going to take a shower if that's okay."
"No problem, you know where it is right?  There's a clean towel on the
rail."
"Yeah, thanks."  He disappeared upstairs, and Doug ambled over and sat down
on the couch next to Skid.
"Is he really okay?  Where did you guys go?"
"He's not great but he's going to be fine.  We just went out for a walk for
a while.  You know, you weren't far off the mark with your guess."  He
rubbed the back of Skid's head, then turned to Carol.
"Got another beer left?"
"Yup, in the fridge."
He helped himself and returned, also with his plate of re-heated lasagne.
"What is this exactly?"
"It's lasagne, Tees, Kate me and Rob cooked it this afternoon."
"And the kitchen's still intact?!"
"Yup, wouldn't you know it!"
"Hey!"  Skid said, pretending to be hurt, but failing.

On Sunday morning, Skid stood at the front of the house and ordered Doug,
Carol, Kate and Tess to stand in a nice position by the treehouse.  Using up
his final exposure, he took a shot of the four of them, with the lake in the
background.  Rob sat in his own car, with the seat next to him filled with
snacks, crayoned pictures, and a spare T shirt.  Finished taking his photo,
Skid went to say goodbye properly.  He hugged each of the girls, promised
he'd come back and visit again soon, and told them to take care.  Carol
hugged him too and said he had been great and was welcome back any time.
Finally, he turned to Doug, hand outstretched for a handshake.  Clasping
hands, they grinned.
"Aw, what the hell, c'mere," Doug said and bear-hugged his son.  "Keep
writing, okay?  I know I'm not good at writing back very quickly, but I
always read them."
"I know you do.  Thanks Doug."
Waving, he walked to his truck and got in, nodding at Rob that they were
off.  As they drove down the road, with Rob in the lead, Skid saw his new
family waving until he turned the corner and they slipped out of his view.
As they drove further away, Skid was glad that Rob had his own car with him.
Right now he wanted to be by himself.

It was late the next evening when he finally pulled into his own driveway at
home.  His mom was waiting on the doorstep, holding a dishcloth in one hand
as if she'd been pretending to do something else other than waiting for him
to return home.   She came down the steps slowly when he pulled in, and
tentitvely walked to the truck.  Skid jumped out and walked to meet her
halfway.  They stopped, facing each other in the dusk.
"You had a good time?"
"Yeah."  He smiled back at her.
"The journey okay?"
"Yup."
"What was Seattle like?"
"Cool."
"And the twins?"
"Mom.  They're great.  They're all really nice and I love them all.   But
they're not you."  He smiled some more and Angel's face cracked into a grin
of her own as she stretched up and hugged her son to within an inch of his
life.
-----------------

"Sometimes I wait forever
To stand out in the rain
So no one sees me cryin'
Trying to wash away the pain"