I'll Be Your Friend, I'll Help You Carry On

four

Chantal sighed for the hundredth time as Sidney’s arm twitched over her side. She had been trying to sleep for an hour and still hadn’t been able to close her eyes. The clock was blaring 1:29 in big, block, red lights.

Chantal slowly pushed Sidney’s arm off of her body and swung her legs over the side of the bed. Her feet touched the grey carpet that was placed under the bed, to protect their feet from the cold hardwood in the morning, and slipped on her black slippers. She quietly tip toed out of the room, pulling her tank top lower over her midriff and closed the bedroom door once she was in the hall.

Walking down the stairs, Chantal walked into the kitchen and over to the fridge, getting the jug of milk. She placed it on the counter and walked over to the light switch, flipping it on and squinting as the light burned her eyes.

She turned around and jumped as she saw a figure sitting at one of the bar stools in front of the counter. Chantal placed her hand over her heart as it thumped wildly and let out a ragged breath.

“You scared me,” she said quietly to Taylor.

Taylor stared at Chantal and shrugged, “Sorry.”

Chantal quietly got her milk cup out of the cupboard and poured a generous amount into it. She padded over to the microwave and placed it in, putting it on for a few seconds.

Warm milk always helped her sleep.

She looked over at Taylor as the microwave beeped twice. She was sitting at the counter with her head in her left hand, biting her lip. Chantal opened the microwave and pulled out the cup of milk.

She walked over to Taylor and pushed the cup over to her, giving her a small smile when she looked up.

“Uhm, warm milk always helps me sleep, I thought it might help you,” Chantal half-whispered.

Taylor nodded and pulled the milk closer, “Thanks.”

Chantal got up and got another cup for herself, filling it with milk and putting it in the microwave.

When it was finished, she brought it over to the counter and sat in the barstool next to Taylor. It was quiet for a few minutes as they both sipped on their milk.

“Can I ask you something?” Chantal asked, cautiously looking over at Taylor.

“Hmm?” Taylor asked.

Chantal licked her lips and cleared her throat, “Why do you hate me?”

Taylor scoffed and pushed the seat back, standing up and turning around, “Because you’re stealing my brother when you don’t even like him.”

Chantal stood up, “But, I’m not, I really do like him.”

Taylor waved her off, “Thanks for the milk.”

Chantal sat back down and put her head in her hands. Yeah, thanks for the milk.

---

“Sweetie? Oh you must be so uncomfortable,” a quiet voice said as a hand rubbed her back.

Chantal slowly lifted her head from the counter she was resting on. Her neck was aching and she had lost all of the feeling in her right arm.

“Oh honey, why don’t you go upstairs and sleep; Sidney’s still sleeping,” Trina said to her, placing her hand on her arm and helping her stand up from the bar stool.

“What time is it?” Chantal asked quietly.

Trina looked over at the clock above the stove, “It’s 7:30 sweetheart.”

Chantal nodded and slowly walked over to stairs, climbing them and opening the bedroom door. Sidney was lying on his side with his arm lying over the area that Chantal usually lied on.

Chantal carefully lifted Sidney’s arm and lied down underneath it, snuggling into Sidney’s side and falling asleep almost immediately.

---

“Hey mom,” Sidney said to his mother as he walked into the kitchen and gave her a quick hug.

“Hi honey. Is Chantal still sleeping?” Trina asked.

Sidney nodded, “Mhmm. Where’s dad?”

Trina pointed towards the living room, just a few feet away from the kitchen. Sidney walked over to the living room, going to sit beside his dad who was watching golf.

“Hey Sid. What did you have planned for today?” Troy asked, placing his arm on the back of the couch and turning to face his son.

Sidney shrugged, “Well, we were going to go to the mall; mom said she wanted to go. I don’t know if Taylor would be up to going though.”

Troy nodded and turned his attention back to the television as Taylor walked into the room fully dressed. She sat on the recliner to the right of the couch and crossed her arms.

“How did you sleep hon?” Troy asked.

Taylor simply shrugged.

“I know you were up for a while because you couldn’t sleep. When did you fall asleep?” Troy continued to ask questions.

Sidney looked over at his sister as she answered, “Around 2:00. You’re girlfriend was down here too.”

Sidney frowned. Chantal was downstairs in the middle of the night? For what?

“What was she doing?” Sidney asked.

Taylor groaned, “I don’t know she was getting warm milk to help her sleep.”

Sidney stared at her, “Did you talk to her?”

Taylor rolled her eyes and stood up, “Yeah, she’s still a bitch.”

She walked out of the living room and went to join Trina in kitchen, without looking back at her brother.

Sidney let out a frustrated sound, “Knowing Tal, she was being extremely polite and only trying to help. She probably even gave Taylor a glass of milk.”

Troy nodded, “Probably. But once your sister gets a thought in her mind, it doesn’t change. No matter what. She’s a lot like you in those ways.”

Sidney scoffed, “I don’t know about that.”

Troy shrugged and stood up, “It’s true. You’re both so much alike. You know you’d do the same thing to any boyfriend Taylor has in the future.”

“Yeah, but that’s different. She 14 years old and she’s my little sister,” Sidney replied.

Troy gave a chuckle and walked towards the kitchen, “And you’re 22 years old and her big brother. There’s no difference.”