“Did you see a ghost back there or something?” Kendrick asked.
“Or did Sarge find more drugs stashed away in your locker?” Ryan asked.
I glared at him, and he smiled sheepishly at me. “Too soon?”
“Too soon.” I nodded.
“What’s wrong, Phil?” Mel asked.
“I’m taking two days off—”
“Lucky bastard,” Kendrick interjected.
“To see my brother.”
“I thought your brother was in jail?” Mel asked.
“He is.” I nodded. “I’m going to New York to visit him.”
“Intense,” Ryan said. “Family reunion, huh?”
“You could say that,” I said. “Although I doubt it’s going to be roses and rainbows.”
“Roses and rainbows?” Kendrick said. “What does that mean?”
“Easy,” I sighed. “I doubt it’s going to be easy.”
“Is there anyone you can take for moral support?” Ryan asked.
“Anyone here volunteering?” I teased.
“Hey, I’d be in for a trip to New York, except that we’re working.”
“Don’t worry about me,” I said. “I can handle this on my own.”
But when I was back at home that night, alone in my empty apartment, I wasn’t quite so sure I even wanted to do this alone. Moral support sounded pretty nice, and there was only one person I was that comfortable with. I thought twice about calling Megan, but in the end, I caved and called her anyway. She answered almost immediately, and I could tell by her tone that she was glad I had called.
“Hey, you,” she said.
“Hi,” I said, unable to match her tone.
“Is everything all right?” she asked, and immediately her voice changed. It was almost like she was dreading what I might say next.
“Uh… I’m not sure,” I said honestly.
There was a second or two of silence on the other end. “Whatever it is, Phil, you can tell me. Don’t worry about anything; just tell me.”
I paused for a moment. “It’s about my brother,” I said.
“What?”
I could tell that she hadn’t expected that even a little bit. I’d taken her by surprise, but there was also relief in tone. I realized that she had probably thought I was calling to tell her that I wanted to make a clean break and just end things with her for good.
“My brother…Paul,” I said. “I’ve been thinking about him a lot since my arrest.”
This was obviously violating our unspoken rule, but I didn’t care. I wanted to talk to Megan. And that made me realize that she was more than just my girlfriend…she was my best friend, too.
“Of course,” Megan said, after a moment. “You haven’t seen him in a long time, have you?”