Page 6 of Krash & Bern

“Give me another one,” Krash demanded.

“You’re really confident.” I tittered. “I’m going to trust your words because I can’t think of any more of my favorite restaurants.”

“Here are your drinks. Your food will be out shortly.” Kelly appeared from behind me. She set the two glasses of juice on the table and walked away.

“I think it’s cool you have your own car and can go wherever you want,” I commented as I looked out at the busy street.

“It’s cool. It’s really the only thing I have left of my granny. Before she passed, she was the only person who cared about me. Now I have no one.”

My heart ached at his words. I clasped my hands and shook my head. “I know we haven’t talked about it a lot, but I want to know more about your family. What’s the story there, if you don’t mind me asking?”

His eyes were hazy as he bit down on his bottom lip. “I trust you, so I guess I can let you in.”

We were silent for a long moment. He took a sip of his water and proceeded.

“My mother left me when I was only a few months old. My father said she got postpartum depression really bad, and for both of our safety, she left. It was me and my dad for thirteen years. She came back into my life the summer after eighth grade. She wanted to make up for all the time she lost, so I was with her a lot, and my father could finally get some time away from me.”

“That’s great,” I added.

“It was… until she overdosed on Propofol. She was an ER nurse and got ahold of the syringes. She shot up, and they found her in the storage closet.”

My jaw practically hit the table as I gasped. “Keyshawn, I’m so sorry for your loss.”

“Was it really a loss, though? She gave me a couple months out of thirteen years of living. Then, my grandma passed a few weeks later. My dad took it the hardest. He lost his baby mama and his mother in the same year. He’s struggling, and he takes it out on me.”

The confession made me pause. Keyshawn was in an abusive household. His father took his grief and frustrations out on him. The revelation made me feel bad because Keyshawn was always a light in my life, and I had no idea what he dealt with at home.

“I’m sorry, Keyshawn. I’m so sorry.”

“You didn’t do anything to apologize for. I’m good. I’m always good.”

I couldn’t imagine the pain he felt or the pressure to always hold it together. “No matter what, I’ll never leave your side. You’re my best friend forever, and I’ll always have your back through everything.”

He smiled. “Thanks, Bern.”

Kelly came out and placed our plates on the table. “I’ll come back with warm syrup.”

“Thanks,” I replied to her retreating form.

Krash and I ate in a comfortable silence. Only the buzzing of chatter around us and the scrapes and taps of our silverware onto plates filled the air. My mind raced with the information Krash shared with me. The right thing would have been to tell an adult about his situation, but I didn’t want him to feel as if I’d betrayed his trust. I’d keep his secret and keep an eye on him and his body to see if things were getting worse.

I prayed things didn’t get worse for my friend.

After iHop, Krash took me home. He walked me to the front door and turned me to look at him.

“Thanks for letting me share a part of myself with you tonight,” he said in a gentle tone. He rubbed his hands against the back of his neck.

I smiled. “You protect me, and I’ll do my best to comfort you through this. We have one more school year. Then, you can move away from your dad and never look back. I’ll be by your side every step of the way.”

He smiled. “I know you will, Bern.”

He kissed my cheek as the front door opened.

“Ahem.” Daddy cleared his throat.

“Good night, Keyshawn.” I stepped away from him and offered him a smile.

“Good night,” he replied.

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