Save Me From Myself [Chris]

[Reese Mackenzie]

The day before Reese had fainted at school after dance practise. Luckily Aidan had been around and he had found her, had taken care of her. It was obvious she had asked too much from herself but she hadn’t been having much choice. She needed the money from giving dance class and she needed to work as hard in school as she could. Graham and Aidan had been worried, Tony had been pissed and the only one she expected to barge in sooner or later was Christian. Him, she expected to be angry and/or worried. You never knew how he would react to something.

She had been forced to see the doctor this morning and he had said she needed to rest for the rest of the week. No work, no school. Which sucked but she knew she had too. So right now Reese was laying on the couch with a blanket draped over her. Watching some tv as she sipped from her tea.

[Christian Tait]

There were two reasons why Christian was currently infuriated with his best friend. For one, Reese had knowingly pushed herself until the point of collapsing, and two, he had to hear about it from a couple of gossiping little wenches in the cafeteria. Was he not good enough for a fcuking phone call? He stepped into Reese's apartment and slammed the door behind him without so much as a knock. "What the hell Mackenzie?" He snapped.

[ugh, sorry. Went totally museless there for a second]

[Reese Mackenzie]

Reese almost fell from the couch to land flat on her face if it wasn’t for her being able to grab the arm rest of the furniture after Christian slammed the door behind him. With widened eyes she sat up, her heart beating like crazy and her hands shaking from being surprised with his arrival. She winched, hearing his voice practically yelling at him. “The baby is fine. I messed up. I’m sorry.” she muttered, her eyes drifting over to her angry best friend.

[Christian Tait]

"Stop with the apologies Reese" Christian spat angrily. He wouldn't accept them, not now at least while he was still in his mood. "Were you honestly trying to kill the baby? You know better than that! God damn it, are you trying to fcuking worry me to death? Do I not deserve a fcuking phone call? You could have been dead and I'd be the last to know!!" He paced back and forth, his hands in his hair in attempts to pull it out in frustration.

[Reese Mackenzie]

Reese let her head hang while he lectured her. He wasn’t the first one doing it but she hoped he would be the last one. Tears sprung to her eyes, she couldn’t help it. Everyone was mad at her, upset with her or at least generally not happy with what had happened. “I thought I could handle it…” she said quietly, a silent tear running down her cheek. “…guess I can’t.” So now what?

“I was going to call you when school would be over.” She knew how he was, he would come rushing over even if he had needed to go to class. Which had not been necessary cause she was just fine. Reese bit her lip to keep back the sobs that struggled to get free, her eyes focused on her hands which were gripping the blanket.

[Christian Tait]

"No, I should have been called yesterday after it happened. But instead I had to overhear it from some whore in the lunchroom! Reese god damn it I love you, you have to tell me these things. If you need money just fcuking ask for it..you don't have to keep pushing yourself to work. Ask me Reese! I want to take care you..please!" He stopped his pacing, digging in his pockets to pull out a hand full of cash which he dropped in front of her on the coffee table. "I'm ordering you to stop dancing Mack..for now..please listen to me"

[Reese Mackenzie]

It was then that she couldn’t hold back the tears any longer and started to cry. Bringing her hands up to her face she started sobbing. “Chris I’m so sorry.” she was, for bringing the baby in danger, for scaring others, for being this stubborn, for everything. Reese knew all he wanted to do was help but it wasn’t in her nature to ask him for money. She just couldn’t. “I thought I could do this but I can’t and I don’t know what to do. And I’m so scared of messing up.” she looked up at him, tears stinging her eyes. “And I’m a bad mother!” which caused another flood of tears to leave her eyes.

[Christian Tait]

Christian sat down on the couch next to her, wrapping his arms around her waist to hug her close to his chest. She had to know that the only reason he had gotten so angry with her was that he cared. He didn't know what he would do if he ever lost her, she was his best friend. One of the few that he really had at all. "You aren't a bad mother..you are just taking on far too much. I want to take care you..please? You are my girl..I'll help. You can stay with me and Brooke for awhile if you can't keep this place on your own..I have room.."

[Reese Mackenzie]

Reese buried her face in his shirt, her arms wrapping themselves around his arm to hold on to him. Her tears were practically soaking his shoulder and lord knew where her mascara would end up on her face. “ You don’t understand…” she cried, her tiny body shaking. “If I don’t work I can’t send my mom money. Chris she’s blind, she can’t work and if I don’t get her money Graham might do something stupid.” Something like dealing drugs to get money. She needed to protect her little brother.

That her stepmother was blind was something Reese and Graham had never told anyone. They came from a family where they needed to support their mom instead of one where a mother supported her children. She was a really great woman, they would never claim that she wasn't. But Reese never told anyone about her stepmom cause she didn't want them to feel sorry for her. It just was the way it was.

After a minute or so the sobs faded away but the tears still ran down her cheeks. “Maybe I can do something else at the dance school than giving dance classes.” It was sweet of him to offer her to come live with him and Brooke but she couldn’t do that. “I need a place of my own, you have Brooke and Aidan. It’s okay…” she softly said, not wanting to come between the boys again like had happened last time at the cafeteria. They needed to work on their relationship first.

[Christian Tait]

Christian didn't know how to react when she told him about her mother. He was never really good at helping people with their problems without offering them money. He had been raised to think that money fixed everything, that's what his parents gave him whenever he was in bind so as to not actually deal with the problem. He dug into his pocket for his wallet, pulling out a few more bills to add to the fairly large pile he had already stacked on her coffee table. "Screw Aidan, we broke up. I think. You come first Reese..I'd love to have you come stay with me..or I could come help you keep this one..pay the rent for you? You could look after Brooke for me to earn money..at least until you have the baby?" He suggested, wiping away her tears with the pad of his thumb. His face almost emotionless to hide the pain he felt about his first ever breakup. He didn't want people to see how much it really bothered him.

[Reese Mackenzie]

Reese thought he had just wanted to make a statement by dropping all those bills on her coffee table. Now, that he was even adding more made her realize that he was really serious about this. She couldn’t let him do this right? “Chris you need that money for yourself, for Brooke…” she muttered, watching the pile of money grow bigger. That really was more than she could make in an entire month if she would work every single day. She nodded slowly when he suggested she could baby sit Brooke although she wasn’t entirely comfortable with him paying her rent. Even though the offer came from the heart.

But her protests disappeared when he told her he and Aidan might be broken up. “You…wait..what? Why?” They broke up? But…why? Crawling on his lap she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close to her. “Honey I’m so sorry.” That his face was emotionless told her so much that she didn’t need to ask if he was okay. Obviously he wasn’t and since her own tears had dried some already, it was now her turn to try and comfort him.

[Christian Tait]

Christian was dead serious on paying her rent. If anything he would use the money he would be giving her for babysitting towards it. He knew he wouldn't get by for long with just handing her the cash, she'd want to work for it or give him something in return. "No I don't. I have plenty to take care of the two of us. You'll be keeping it..I won't take it back. Burn it for all I care.."

He shoved his wallet back in the front pocket of his jeans, just in time to catch his friend as she slid in his lap to try and comfort him. He didn't want her sympathy, it only made him feel weak and even less of a man. "Why?" He repeated quietly. Wasn't it obvious? Reese knew that he was somewhat of a manwhore. Why else? "He asked me how many people I've been with. I told him. He threw up. If he can't handle my past then how could he possibly handle my future?"

[Reese Mackenzie]

Whenever one of the two would not be feeling great they would hug and cuddle to show the other they cared. That they wanted to make the pain go away and help. So that is exactly what Reese did but usually she would get an arm wrapped around her waist. This time…not really. Yet, that didn’t make her back away…he would have to push her off to get that to happen.

Reese knew about Christian’s past but she had never judged him on that. Hell if she would have she would have been judging herself as well. Yet, Reese never judged anyone on things like that. So Chris had slept with a lot of people…that didn’t make him less of an amazing guy. It didn’t make him not be her best friend. “He really did that?” she asked softly, not expecting Aidan to react in such a way. That must have been awful.

“You can’t change your past but you can change your future. If he truly likes you than he will deal with it and make a future with you. I think he just needs some time to give it a place but I don’t believe he would not want to be with you anymore.” Something she truly hoped for Chris, and Aidan.

[Christian Tait]

Christian nodded. Aidan had done just that, and he felt horrible for allowing it to happen. Even worse since he had literally thrown his boyfriend out of his room. He wouldn't tell Reese that, no use in having the only person who understood him look down upon him. He gently pushed her away from him to give himself some room to breathe, the closeness was making him feel vulnerable. "He doesn't want a future with me. I'm no good for him.." He shrugged, avoiding any and all eye contact.

[Reese Mackenzie]

Reese bit her lip when he pushed her away, feeling tears water her eyes up again. Yet she kept quiet and backed away from him like he obviously wanted her to. Pressing her back against the armrest of the couch she pulled her knees up, wrapping her arms around her legs. “Don’t say that, it’s not true. He should be lucky he gets to have you.” Chris was amazing, why couldn’t he see that himself?