TWENTY-THREE

ISAAC

Phones are funny things.

They can do so many things. Ring people. Hang up on people. Make up cereal helplines.

Fuck, I really want to ring Henry. I was talking to Beth about it today. Well, actually, I wasn't - she noticed I was looking a bit down and somehow got the truth out of me. Actually, it's kind of creepy how much she knows about my life; I'm pretty sure they told us it was bad for pupils to know about your love life during teacher training.

To be honest, I don't really care. At least, not right now. Right now the only thing I care about is Henry.

How could I be so fucking stupid? I knew what his Dad was like. Oh, shit, this is all my fault. Shit shit shit -

This basically sums up my life at the moment.

I am simultaneously trying not to get drunk and trying to ring Henry. The first is going pretty well, seeing as I'm too poor to buy much alcohol. The second? Not so much.

Don't ring henry, one part of my brain said.

, the other part said.

I sighed, snatched my phone up off the arm of my sofa and dialled the number of the helpline. I figured that way he wouldn't be able to shout at me in front of everyone.

Although, this was Henry we were talking about. He was pretty grumpy.

"Hello?" a voice said. It wasn't Henry's or Shania's, so I was kind of stumped.

"Um, is Henry there?" I asked, trying to stop my voice from being disgustingly over-enthusiastic and hopeful. I kind of failed.

"Oh, wow," the guy laughed. "You ring these things, huh?"

It was all eerily familiar.

"Eric?" a woman's voice said in the background. "Can i talk to him?" it was Shania. (Probably.)

"W-why?" Eric asked, sounding confused. Poor Eric.

There were a couple of suspicious noise and then, suddenly, Shania's voice was on the other end of the line. "Isaac?"

"Shania," I said. "How are you?" (Translation: Henry Henry where are you can I talk to you hi can I talk to Henry please)

"Good, good," she sighed, and then hesitated. "Uh, Isaac... we need to talk."

"What is it?" I said, immediately, my pulse rising infinitely. "Where's Henry?"

Shania dropped her voice to a whisper. "I'm worried about him, isaac. He drinks all day and won't stop watching Judge Judy. Oh, and he's been fired."

"Fired?"

"Fired," she repeated. "He needs you, Isaac. Please."

- - -

it's 9:30 at night i've been up for 14 and 1/2 hours i've eaten way too many chips and i sorely missed shania

thank u so much for the rankings and let's see if we can get this any higher than 68 ilu :)