REMUS BENNET
It took him a week to be rid of the pain in his head, and by then, he had a good enough understanding of where he was.
Though a part of him was still conflicted about who he was.
Many a day he would wake up in the night in distress, fearing that it had all been a dream.
But as the days passed, the memories began to clear up, and the people he had once seen in passing became real, much like himself.
He was Remus Bennet, or at least he had been before he became more.
He was the eldest son of Leslie and Robert Bennet and was a senior in East Highland.
He had two younger sisters, Rue and Gia, and his childhood had been no different than that of an ordinary boy.
That was until the death of his father.
His father’s illness and his death had upended his entire life.
His mother had tried to hold it all together herself, but it was not easy for her to raise three children in an unforgiving economy.
His father’s death had taken a great toll on him, but it had taken an even greater toll on his sister.
Gia had been too young to remember it all, but Rue remembered.
She remembered his pain, his suffering.
His death.
The experience, compounded by an ever-changing world, had taken a toll on her, and so she had sought refuge in numbness.
They had tried to help her.
Remus could remember quite a few fights between him and her over her issues.
He could remember fights with his own mother over her, but the most glaring memory was of her lying unconscious in her room, choking on her own vomit.
He remembered being afraid.
He remembered being angry before rushing her to the car and trying to take her to the Hospital.
He remembered it all.
“Rehab?” he questioned, and Leslie Bennet added, as she slowly ate her lunch while Remus himself slowly sipped his hospital-given porridge.
“Yes,” she answered, and there was guilt in her eyes as she looked towards him.
“I am sorry,” she apologized.
“If only I had listened to you and sent her to rehab earlier,” and he saw her eyes tear up as she glanced down at the cast over his leg.
“It’s ok,” he cut in, and despite her words, Leslie Bennet was a good mother.
Despite their circumstances, she had never burdened any of them with her troubles.
She had taken charge of their House after their father’s death and worked two jobs just to make ends meet.
But the debts from his passing were cruel, and he could only imagine the trouble they were in now because of Rue’s rehab and hospitalization.
“I don’t blame you,” and he could only hope that the rehab would do her good.
“Or Rue,” he added, because taking our and driving the car had been his choice.
“She used to be so sweet,” she added with a quivering voice, as she wiped away a tear from her eye.
“I just can’t imagine,” and he looked towards her.
“She will be fine,” he both assured and promised her.
“Rue is strong. She can beat this,” and she offered him a smile.
“Yes, she can.” It would not be easy, but few things ever were, and as her brother, he would do her best to save her from the path of self-destruction she was set on.
“Speaking of that, she called yesterday. She asked about you,” and the woman put down her bowl of pasta and began to rummage through her bag.
“She wanted to talk to you, but she mentioned your phone being off. That was when I remembered this,” and at that she took out a plastic zip-lock bag containing a shattered phone.
“I tried to take it to a repair shop, but the man said that it was unsalvageable,” and they were right.
The thing was totally shattered.
So, I went to the store and got you something, and she smiled and reached into her bag and took out a brand new phone, and it was a blue iPhone XR, and though it was not too expensive, he was well aware of their financial situation.
“You didn’t have to,” he insisted, and it was still sealed.
“I still have my old phone in my drawer. I can ask Gia to bring me that,” and the woman shook her head.
“I know how much you hated that thing,” and he did indeed, and it had been an old iPhone 5s, and he had run that thing into the ground before he had upgraded to a used 7plus.
“Thank you,” and that was all he could do, and she ruffled her rowdy hair and kissed his forehead.
“The doctors said that they are going to remove the cast tomorrow. After that, they expect to discharge you a week later,” and that was good news, for he was getting rather tired of sitting in this place.
He knew it was taking a toll on his mother as well, and so his being back at home would be good for her and Gia as well.
She glanced at the clock, and her expression shifted.
“I will have to leave soon. But Gia told me that some of your friends were asking about you,” and he nodded, and though he did not have a very vast friend circle, he had a small, close-knit group.
“You should probably talk to them a bit,” and he would indeed, but just as she began packing her things, there was a knock at the door.
“I am sorry to disturb, but there is a couple here to meet you,” and both he and his mother glanced at one another, as a rather middle-aged couple walked in holding a bouquet of flowers.
They seemed nervous, and he tried to remember who they were, but he simply could not place them anywhere.
He looked at his mother for help, and she seemed familiar with them.
“Hi,” the older woman stepped forward nervously.
“You must be, Remus Bennet,” the woman greeted him, and he nodded.
“Yes?” The question was obvious.
“We are the Hendersons. I am Gina, and that is my husband Bill,” she said, pointing towards the kind-looking man, and that did not help him at all.
“We are parents of the child in the stroller,” and suddenly it all clicked together, and suddenly he remembered the woman’s scream.
“I heard you scream,” he added, and the woman nodded as her lip began to quiver.
“Yes,” she added hastily.
“I was just taking out her bag from the trunk, but the stroller simply began to roll down the driveway. I screamed, and tried to run after it, but I stumbled…,” and she realized that she was rambling, as her husband came and gave her shoulders a small squeeze.
“Thank you,” the older man began.
“If it weren’t for you, we would have lost our daughter,” and he did not know what to say to that.
“Is she fine?” he asked, somewhat obliviously, and he had no idea what he was supposed to say.
He had nearly lost his life because of them, but they were not entirely at fault either.
“Yes,” the man answered.
“All thanks to you,” the woman added, and he nodded.
“You are welcome,” he said, and now his mother finally joined in.
“You should sit,” she said, and she seemed conflicted.
“No. It’s fine. We won’t take up much of your time,” the man said, turning towards his mother.
“We were told that the Police are not interested in pursuing this matter, given its complicated nature. But, we still feel responsible for the accident in many ways,” and he reached out into his jacket and took out a folded cheque.
He seemed hesitant, but he finally gathered the courage to speak up.
“We don’t have much, but we believe that you should have this,” and he offered the cheque to his mother, who shook her head.
“There is no need for this,” she spoke kindly, but the man shook his head.
“No. There is. You lost your car, and your son nearly died because of our mistake,” and his voice shook as well, as the woman began to sob quietly.
“This is the least we can do,” he said, and the woman, seeing his mother’s hesitation, stepped forward and grabbed her hands.
“Please,” and in the end, she finally took the cheque and thanked the two people.
“Thank you,” she said, and the two women hugged each other as the man named Bill stepped forward, his eyes filled with tears.
“That little girl is our entire life. You have no idea what you did for us,” and he reached into his pocket and took out a card.
“If you ever need anything from me, don’t hesitate to call,” and he grabbed the card and looked at the name and frowned at its familiarity.
“Thank you for coming,” he said, and they shook hands.
The Hendersons stayed for a bit, as they asked a bit about their family.
He learned that Bill was an accountant for a law firm in Seattle, and that the two of them had just moved here a few months ago.
They were considering moving back, already given the city’s situation, and he did not blame them.
Still, they left some ten minutes later, leaving him alone with his mother, who handed him the cheque.
“This is yours,” and he shook his head.
“No. You should have it,” and he did not deserve it.
“You are the one who saved their kid, Remus,” and may be.
“But I was driving your car,” and he unfolded the paper and saw the number.
It was a cheque for thirty thousand dollars, and that was not a small sum at all.
“This is your money,” and he shook his head.
“I have no need of it,” he countered.
“But you will one day. You can use it to pay for college, or get yourself something nice,” but he had a better use for it.
“No. I think you should use it to get yourself a new car,” and their car was gone now, and living in California without a car was both impossible and expensive.
“Something simple and reliable,” and she was moved by his offer, and he knew just how much it would lighten the burdens weighing down on her.
“If you don’t do it yourself, then I will just do it for you the second I get out of this bed,” he insisted, and so she reluctantly took the cheque.
“You are just like your father,” she added, and the reminder of the pain brought up old memories in his head, and he glanced towards the clock.
“You are going to be late,” and her eyes widened as she glanced at the clock.
“Shit. I have to run,” and she hurriedly packed her bag and left him alone with a kiss to the forehead.
“Gia might come to visit you later. Make sure she does her homework,” and he nodded.
“I will,” he answered before he used the remote to lower the incline slightly, as he was left alone to his own devices.
The thirty thousand dollars were a welcome surprise, given what he knew of their finances.
With the totaled car and Rue’s rehab, it was not much, but he was certain that it would be a great help.
He looked at the phone she had gotten him and pushed to open the wrap.
He powered it on and began setting it up, and as soon as it was done backing up, the phone began to buzz uncontrollably as he found himself bombarded with messages.
He saw a dozen texts from Lexie, and though she was junior to him, they were good friends.
He saw a text from Ethan and Dylan, two of his classmates, along with a few rather angry texts from some people.
There were not many similarities between Remus and the person he was before.
Except for one, both of them wanted to be singers.
Yet tragedy had robbed them both of their dreams.
It was the one dream that tied them together.
One great longing that both of them were forced to give up on separately.
But perhaps it did not need to be so.
Just as he was thinking about that, he found himself staring at a text from one of his best friends.
Elliot Shithead: ‘Heard about your accident man.
Text me.’
‘?’
‘Don’t tell me you still mad about that thing.’
‘I was just speakin out of my mind’
‘Sorry.’
‘?’
‘Fuck!
Say something.’
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