gentle message. And finally Chloe did a solo with her acoustic guitar that went a little deeper. But not so much that it turned anyone off.
People in costume received a “treat” package that contained a free CD (that Redemption’s recording company donated), along with a coupon for a free coffee (for another date) and candy. I was in charge of putting these together and didn’t do a bad job if I do say so myself. Okay, I felt a little silly (at first) coming dressed like a black cat, but the idea was for me to stand at the door and give the packages away. After a while, I realized I was actually having fun.
People who weren’t in costume got a few tricks. Like a fake coffee drink that wouldn’t come out of the cup, or a can of those springy worms that was disguised as a to-go coffee cup. But people just laughed and had a good time.
I had hoped that Ben and Nat would come. She thought maybe he had the night off, but I didn’t see them. They missed youth group last week too. And I realize now as I’m updating my diary that I haven’t talked to Nat for more than a week. I hope everything’s okay. I’ll be sure to give her a call tomorrow.
Saturday, November 4
I called Nat today, and she did not sound like a happy camper. But, even so, she wouldn’t reveal what waswrong. The more I pestered her, the quieter she got. And then finally she just started crying.
“I’m coming over,” I tell her, not even waiting for her response. Then I hop in my Jeep and head downtown. And what I see when I get there is really unsettling. No, it’s worse than unsettling. It’s scary.
Nat does not look good when she opens the door. And it’s obvious that she’s been crying—a lot. The place is pretty much a mess, but worse than that, it stinks.
“What is that awful smell?” I ask her.
She points to the kitchen, where it looks like someone has been mopping the floor. “I was trying to clean it up, but it kept making me gag.”
“The smell is making me gag.” So I go over for a closer look and realize that someone has hurled all over their cruddy-looking linoleum floor. “Gross!” I say, almost stepping in it. “Are you having morning sickness again?”
She gets a funny look, as if considering this, but then just shakes her head. “Ben.”
“Is Ben sick?”
She shrugs. “Yeah, sort of.”
“Does he need to go to the doctor?”
She rolls her eyes. “Maybe to a shrink.”
“Huh?”
Now Natalie goes over to the futon and sits down, and putting her head between her hands, she starts crying again. Well, that smell is just about making me want to lose my breakfast, so I pick up the mop and pour some more disinfectant into the bucket, andholding my breath, I start cleaning up the mess myself. When I finish, I take the mop and bucket and set them outside their front door. I just want to get that smell totally out of here.
Then I go and sit next to Nat. “What’s going on?”
She looks up at me with red, swollen eyes, reminding me of the girl I put up with all last summer. “It’s Ben.”
I nod. “Yes. Ben threw up. But why?”
“He’s been drinking.”
“Drinking?” I actually blink at this news. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. He started drinking with some guys after work. He says it’s how he relaxes.”
“Seriously?” Now for some reason I have a hard time imagining Ben O’Conner drinking—let alone getting wasted, like it appears he must’ve done.
“Go look at him if you don’t believe me.”
So I decide to take her up on this and peek in the bedroom, where Ben is flopped across the bed, still dressed with shoes on, and looking pretty wiped out. I actually go over to see if he’s still breathing, and he seems to be. It smells disgusting in here too, so I just close the door.
“This isn’t good, Nat.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Does anyone know?”
“You mean besides his drinking buddies?”
“Yeah. I mean like Josh or Caitlin or his parents?”
She shakes her head. “No,
People in costume received a “treat” package that contained a free CD (that Redemption’s recording company donated), along with a coupon for a free coffee (for another date) and candy. I was in charge of putting these together and didn’t do a bad job if I do say so myself. Okay, I felt a little silly (at first) coming dressed like a black cat, but the idea was for me to stand at the door and give the packages away. After a while, I realized I was actually having fun.
People who weren’t in costume got a few tricks. Like a fake coffee drink that wouldn’t come out of the cup, or a can of those springy worms that was disguised as a to-go coffee cup. But people just laughed and had a good time.
I had hoped that Ben and Nat would come. She thought maybe he had the night off, but I didn’t see them. They missed youth group last week too. And I realize now as I’m updating my diary that I haven’t talked to Nat for more than a week. I hope everything’s okay. I’ll be sure to give her a call tomorrow.
Saturday, November 4
I called Nat today, and she did not sound like a happy camper. But, even so, she wouldn’t reveal what waswrong. The more I pestered her, the quieter she got. And then finally she just started crying.
“I’m coming over,” I tell her, not even waiting for her response. Then I hop in my Jeep and head downtown. And what I see when I get there is really unsettling. No, it’s worse than unsettling. It’s scary.
Nat does not look good when she opens the door. And it’s obvious that she’s been crying—a lot. The place is pretty much a mess, but worse than that, it stinks.
“What is that awful smell?” I ask her.
She points to the kitchen, where it looks like someone has been mopping the floor. “I was trying to clean it up, but it kept making me gag.”
“The smell is making me gag.” So I go over for a closer look and realize that someone has hurled all over their cruddy-looking linoleum floor. “Gross!” I say, almost stepping in it. “Are you having morning sickness again?”
She gets a funny look, as if considering this, but then just shakes her head. “Ben.”
“Is Ben sick?”
She shrugs. “Yeah, sort of.”
“Does he need to go to the doctor?”
She rolls her eyes. “Maybe to a shrink.”
“Huh?”
Now Natalie goes over to the futon and sits down, and putting her head between her hands, she starts crying again. Well, that smell is just about making me want to lose my breakfast, so I pick up the mop and pour some more disinfectant into the bucket, andholding my breath, I start cleaning up the mess myself. When I finish, I take the mop and bucket and set them outside their front door. I just want to get that smell totally out of here.
Then I go and sit next to Nat. “What’s going on?”
She looks up at me with red, swollen eyes, reminding me of the girl I put up with all last summer. “It’s Ben.”
I nod. “Yes. Ben threw up. But why?”
“He’s been drinking.”
“Drinking?” I actually blink at this news. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. He started drinking with some guys after work. He says it’s how he relaxes.”
“Seriously?” Now for some reason I have a hard time imagining Ben O’Conner drinking—let alone getting wasted, like it appears he must’ve done.
“Go look at him if you don’t believe me.”
So I decide to take her up on this and peek in the bedroom, where Ben is flopped across the bed, still dressed with shoes on, and looking pretty wiped out. I actually go over to see if he’s still breathing, and he seems to be. It smells disgusting in here too, so I just close the door.
“This isn’t good, Nat.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Does anyone know?”
“You mean besides his drinking buddies?”
“Yeah. I mean like Josh or Caitlin or his parents?”
She shakes her head. “No,
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