Don't Forget Me

Chapter Ten



"Woah, what's she gonna do?" Abby asked me, mouth wide open. Her, Kelly, Sydney and Sarah were all over at my house for afternoon tea. Emma was busy caring for Jon, and Patrick had insisted on taking Ryder and Aveyah to the park for the afternoon, allowing me to have some time with the girls.

"I have no idea; they don't have enough money to bail him out" I sighed heavily. Last night, i had received a phone call from my brother's wife. She told me about him getting caught selling illegal drugs, aka cocaine and weed. I knew Greg experimented a little back in college, but I never knew he was still into that.

"That's why she called you, isn't it" Sydney read my mind.

"How much is bail?" Sarah asked with concern.

"200,000" I bit my lower lip.

"For drug possession!?" Kelly exclaimed.

"There was a lot of drugs. He tried selling to an undercover cop. He showed them where he grows it, makes it, whatever" I rolled my eyes at the stupidity of my brother. "If you ask me, he deserves to be in prison until he learns" I added firmly.

"Did she outright ask you for the money?" Sydney asked sipping her tea. I thought back to our brief conversation on the phone the night before...



"He's been what!?" I shouted, my eyes widening.

"He got caught selling to an undercover cop" she wailed, the kids could be heard screeching in the back ground. "I don't know what I'm going to do Addie"

"Stay calm" I told her stupidly. "Can't you bail him out?" I suggested.

"We don't have that kind of money" she cried softly.

"What's the worst that's gonna happen, so he serves a few months in prison; probably few years, tops. He needs to know this behaviour isn't appropriate for a father, especially to three kids." I told her sternly.

"I can't sustain our house on just my income" she informed me. "I wouldn't have a baby sitter, I'd have to do everything around the house, cook, clean everywhere.. I think I'll go stir crazy" she laughed awkwardly.
"200,000 is the bail" she slipped that in.

"Holy shit" I mumbled in surprise.

"If only I knew someone who would help me out" she sighed. I suddenly realized why she was calling in the first place. Despite setting aside our differences with Jon, Greg and I barely spoke anymore. Last time i saw him, his wife was being a bitch. I knew she was in the wrong; hell, everyone did. She bitched me out about almost anything and everything. He ignored my texts, phone calls, whatever it may be. One day, fed up, I tried to get to the bottom of the mystery. I was surprised to know and learn what kind of person my brother had become after meeting my sister in law; his wife.

"I hope you can find someone" I offered, not taking the bait. There was no way I was willing to help her out. Greg would be the last person on earth to ever help me out; especially his wife. She was being unreal; why would she expect my help?

"Yeah..." She trailed off hopefully. "Well, I'll call you later, keep you updated" she commented after a few moments of silence.

"Ok" I replied awkwardly, disinterested in hearing anything further.





"So basically, yeah; that's why she called" Abby scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Seriously, and after she acts towards you she expects you to give her 200,000$ you'd never see again?" Sydney expressed shaking her head.

"I personally don't have enough money for that" I pointed out. "I don't make that much in the first place; plus now that I'm on leave..." I bit my lower lip. "Obviously I know Jon can, and that's completely his call to make. I'm not gonna be mad at him whatever he decides"

"Do you know if he is?" Kelly asked curiously. Sipping my tea, I finished the last bit of it, shaking my head; I had no idea what his choice was. I told him about our conversation, and about how she's been acting towards me since his accident. She was pessimistic, unsupportive and rude 99% of the time.

"He said he'd think about it" I added with a small shrug.

"What's he looking at for jail time?" Sarah asked, thinking about the second option.

"Depends on the trial I guess, but I think anywhere from 5-10 years" Kelly piped up.
"Honestly, I think he should go to prison; he deserves it for being an idiot" I rolled my eyes. "But those poor kids deserve better than this though" I sighed in defeat. They had three adorable children, completely innocent to the actions of their idiotic parents.

"Look whose walking with a cane!" I heard Emma call out. Jon came into the kitchen, proudly walking by himself. She walked slowly behind him, wearing a bright and proud smile. Jon took a slow, few steps, but he was walking without any help.

"Looking good Jon!" Kelly called, pulling out the empty seat beside her. He gladly accepted, looking a little tired and out of breath. Emma passed him a water bottle, and he graciously took a swig.

"Thanks" he replied, breathing heavily from drinking so fast. "It's really tiring though" he added with a frown.

"But you're coming along great!" Emma cut in happily. "He's making a lot of good progress, Addison" she added, taking his cane and setting it out of the way. He nodded, shrugging it off.

"Still a long way from my fantastic comeback to the hawks" he added with a signature smirk and wink. We all grinned, vowing to keep a positive outlook on the situation. We all knew the chances were slim, but we hoped for the best; the Blackhawks captain wasn't down and out just yet.

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves" Emma replied with a wink.

"I don't doubt you'll make your comeback before next season" Sarah grinned widely. "It's a miracle you're even alive, and in the shape you're in" she commented.

"When are you gonna make an appearance at a Blackhawks game? I'm sure the fans would love to see you there" Kelly asked. I knew the fans would be ecstatic to see him, even if he wasn't playing. He made a few statements to the media, but otherwise he kept to himself. Most of the media was nice and stayed out of my business, but every so often I'd get bugged by somebody.

"Tomorrow actually" he announced. I looked at him with surprise.

"Really?" I asked, confused. "I thought you wanted to wait?"

"I thought I did too" he admitted. "But they've bugged you long enough Addie; it's time I face up to them. The game tomorrow against the Canucks; they're gonna have a pre-game interview with me, and I'll be doing the commentary on the live feed on Hockey Night in Canada"

"No way, that's great!" I cheered. "I guess I'll be joining you guys for the game tomorrow!" I added to the girls. "And you'll come too Sarah?" I asked. She was the only one of us not to be dating a Hawks player.

"I'd love to" she smiled. "Aveyah and Ryder coming too?"

"Ryder will never let me live it down if he finds out his father is at the game" I replied with a smirk; That kid was way too smart for his own good sometimes.

"Of course he would" Emma laughed.

"And Emma, you're invited to come with us" I added. She looked at me, surprise written on her face. "You look like a deer in headlights" I smirked. She shook her head, gathering her thoughts.

"I- uh- wow- yeah, sure, I'll come" she fumbled over her words.

"Great!" I clapped, offering up some more tea.

"Where's Aveyah and Ryder?" Jon asked, finally noticing their absence.

"They're at the park with Patrick" I told him. "Actually, they should be back any minute..." I trailed off, noticing the time. The girls and I had been sitting at the table, talking about everything and anything for four hours. It was almost dinner time, signally the end of Emma's shift and Patrick returning with the kids at any moment.

"Oh" he answered softly, looking a little angry.

"Mommy!" I heard Ryder's little voice ring throughout the house. I could hear the distant potter patter of dog feet come galloping into the room. Before Brandon had the chance to notice everyone, I ushered him downstairs, not wanting him to get too excited.

"That's them" I smiled, getting up from my seat. Within seconds my little toddler was rerunning full speed towards me. I picked him up, engulfing him in a hug. "How was your day buddy?" I asked ruffling his hair.

"Good" he smiled. "Daddy!" He called, struggling to free himself from my grip before running over to his father. Jon smiled, picking him up and setting him on his lap.

"Guess what!" Jon asked Ryder. "We're going to the Hawks game tomorrow!" He shouted. I swear I have never seen a smile that big on his face as Jon spoke those words.

"Hey Addie" Patrick walked in with Aveyah asleep in his arms.

"Uncle Patrick!" Ryder called. "I'm gonna see your game tomorrow!" He spoke in his own language. How we managed to understand him was beyond me sometimes.

"Wow, that's great! I'll have to take you down to the dressing room after" Pat answered.

"You tuckered her out" I laughed softly.

"She had a busy afternoon" Pat answered. "I'll go out her in her crib" he added softly. "Nice seeing you ladies" he added as an afterthought.

"We better get going anyway" Sydney announced, agreeing nods seen around the table.

"Yeah, me too" Emma smirked lightly.

"Yeah, yeah" I rolled my eyes. "Thank you so much Emma. And thank you guys for the great afternoon; thanks to Pat" I added.

"We look forward to the game tomorrow!" Abby called. It was going to be an interesting game, and I couldn't wait. I was anxious to see what the media, fans, and supporters would say about Jon finally making an appearance for the first time since almost dying, what seemed like a whole lifetime ago.

Notes

ok so maybe I'm a little over excited and wanted to post this chapter too.. Hehe the next two tomorrow :)