Unfortunately, after the shag he’d been kicked out of the ‘flat’ and told to go wash clothes at Gabby’s. Things were getting to a point where their clothes were so saturated with sweat that holes were starting to form. Being that he was the youngest and also the most awake George was sent to do it.
Hadn’t he just been here yesterday?
He couldn’t remember, things were starting to ruin together after the exhaustion set in. Thank god for uppers.
George knocked again and Astrid opened the door.
She looked tired as she beckoned him in. Not her usual cheery self, George supposed she hadn’t slept all night staying up with Stu. Oh yeah. Stu was in a bad way with head aches. That was why he’d been sent back to the Kaiserkeller so early yesterday by Gab.
She was on the phone. Sitting on the counter in the leather mini skirt and a black tee shirt. She waved at him but didn’t look happy. Maybe George could swindle her into helping him do laundry.
She waved him over.
George tossed the bag of dirty clothes on the kitchen table and looked at Astrid “The lads are making me do laundry” he said stiffly
Astrid rolled her eyes. “Ja. Go ahead”
He nodded “Ta” and hoped up on the counter next to Gabrielle.
“I’ve been sitting here for hours. NO ones picking up though”
“Not Hours” said Astrid, she crossed her arms and shook her head in bemusement “I’m going to go check on Stu”
“Who’re you calling?” George asked,
She looked at him and let the phone drop onto her shoulder “Ah, me parents again”
“Again?”
“Again” she nodded “I’m going home soon”
George pulled a face “But you can’t leave me yet” he pouted
Gabrielle grinned “And I don’t want to Georgie, but I had a chat with Stu.”
“Oh fuck,” George groaned “He gave you hell about getting yer shit together, didn’t he”
She laughed “How do you know?”
“Gave it to us as well”
“Oh” Gabrielle nodded and pulled the phone back to ear, sighing “Well, he’s right. I’ve got to look into Universities, I’ve been here a month, and it’s been great.” She clicked her tongue “Maybe if I’m lucky I’ll get to start school at second term”
“So you’re really going?” he sounded sad.
She laughed “Yes Georgie, I’m really going. You’ll be able to do with out me for a few months until you come back. It’s only London.”
He nodded “Yeah. That’s closer I guess. I don’t think we’re good enough to play don there yet” he paused “What will you do after that”
She shrugged “Dunno. Starving artist or something. Maybe I’ll get a job for a magazine or sommat”
He shot her a look out of the corner of his eye “You don’t need a job, do you” It was a statement rather then a question.
“What’ d’you mean?”
“You’re auntie. She could probably pay for things”
Gabrielle looked adamant “But she won’t. I won’t have it. I’m not taking charity”
George shook his head “Oh Gabrielle, you naïve little girl, you”
“You’re only six months older then me Harrison, I know how it can -” she trailed off as someone answered the phone.
“Hello, this is the Gallagher house” it was a tired voice. A very tired voice that hadn’t slept well and had been crying.
“Mrs. Harrison” Gabrielle asked, concern flooding into her voice, she looked up at George whose eyes went wide. “Is everything all right?”
“Oh, Gabrielle” there was a pause and she heard her take a shaky breath “Dear, you…” she trailed off and sobbed for a bit.
“Mrs. Harrison?” Gabrielle said again “Louise? What’s going on. Are you all right”
On the other end of the line George mother sighed in a teary way “Oh, Harold, it’s Gabrielle”
Murmuring ensued and then Mr. Harrison picked the receiver “Gabby?”
“Yes, it’s me. What’s going on” her mind was racing, a clear thought wasn’t coming through “What is going on there?”
He sighed “Gabby, Eleanor, yer mother, she passed away last night”
Frozen. That would be the word. She was frozen. Nothing seemed to be working. She couldn’t tare the phone away from here ear and she couldn’t form words. She was aware of George prodding her in the back as to what was going on. But she couldn’t move.
Gone. Never again would she see her mother. There wouldn’t be any arguments over whether or not the gravy needs stirring on Christmas. Or jokes about the old man who ate out of their garbage cans. She wouldn’t force Gabrielle to turn down the record player or jokingly dance about with her to the one Elvis song she liked. She wouldn’t see her laugh or smile or anything. She was gone and she wasn’t coming back.
“Gabrielle!” it was Harold, trying to get her attention with no avail. George was prying the phone out of her hands.
“Give it to me” he was murmuring although he was hurting her fingers as each one was lifted off the phone. He was yelling at his father. Asking what was going on and then staring at Gabrielle. He handed the phone to Astrid and continued to stare at her.
She caught his gaze and remembered to breathe. His eyes pulled her back into reality as if cotton had been pulled out of her ears and suddenly everything made sense.
George tentivly reached out to touch her on the arm. “Gab” he whispered,
Sob. She took a deep breath and snapped her self out of it. Sobbing helped, and George hugged her and rocked her back and forth on the counter. He didn’t’ say anything and just let her cry.
Astrid busied herself with talking to George’s dad. They must have arranged something because she started writing things down on a notepad next to the phone. Ferry times. Train schedules. That sort of thing. Gabby was going home.
Astrid motioned for George to take Gabrielle upstairs. She had a feeling there would be crying and grieving for sometime. Frankly, Astrid assumed that Gabrielle was one of those people who bottle things up when they were hurt. In fact, Gabrielle had told her that herself.
She looked over at George and Gabrielle as she set the phone back in it’s cradle. Gabrielle was clinging to George for dear life, she had two handfuls of the back of his shirt in her hands and was sobbing and such into his chest while he ran his hand up her back comfortingly. Astrid had a feeling that nothing could possibly separate the two of them right now.
“George” she hissed. He looked up at her blearily and nodded before swinging Gabriele up in his arms and heading for the staircase.
Gabrielle stopped crying for a minute. And blinked and choked in confusion for a moment before she resumed her crying. She had a plan. Cry until it was all gone. Or until she passed out. One of the two, because she didn’t like feeling like this. Like there was something heavy sitting on top of her heart.
George sighed and kicked the bedroom door open. Her sobbing dissolved into whimpers and then quiet as he sat down on the bed and placed her next to him.
“All right?” he asked
She nodded vaguely and closed her eyes, hugging him too her.
George pulled back “Are you really all right?” he asked
She stared at him and the released a long sigh “Dunno” she murmured, her voice cracking as she said it
“ I haven’t see you cry” George paused “In years, since you found out you had to go to that fucking boarding school.”
She managed to crack a small smile.
George patted her on the head “D’you want to talk then?”
“Well,” she looked down at her hands “What happened?”
“Oh. Yeah.” he took a deep breath “Me Dad said it turned out the bronchitis turned into pneumonia” he glanced at her, she was fiddling with her fingers, as he talked “Died in her sleep”
Tears leaked out of the corners of her eyes again as she thought about it again. Well. She would just have to not think about it.
Gabrielle sniffed loudly and wiped at her eyes “Oh” she murmured. Oh don’t cry again. She pressed her thumbs back into her eyes to make the pressure there go away.
George pulled her hands away “I don’t give a fuck if you cry Gabrielle” he said, and held her hand down at her side.
She cracked a small smile “Oh, you said my whole name”
“Sorry” he mumbled and hugged her again. They slid down against the pillows. “Maybe you should sleep”
“Okay” her voice came out high pitched, trying to hold something back.
He looked down at her face “Or maybe you should scream and hit something.”
She giggled despite her self and shook her head “No thanks” she leaned against his chest and sighed heavily
“Whatever” he mumbled “But don’t not think about it. That’ll just drive you mad.” he hesitated “You should talk to John and Paul about this. They’ve both lost their mums.” she started crying again, he could feel the tears leaking into his shirt and her tiny frame started to shudder. He decided to keep talking “Remember when Mrs. Lennon died. And John was inconsolable for weeks, and didn’t come out of Mimi’s house.” She nodded against his chest “Because he just got to know his mum about six months earlier and she was teaching him about music. Then she was gone and he didn’t know what to do with himself. Me mum made me go say hello and give my respects, and of course, I didn’t know what to do then. Paul only just lost his mum before that. I didn’t know what to do then either. Anyway, at least you’re not being violent, like John. Or an emotional wall like Paul.”
“Paul’s an emotional wall” she sniffed
“You weren’t there” George sighed “He acted like nothing had happened, they both do. And they joke about it”
“Maybe that’s the best way to go about it”
George shook his head and reached up to stroke her hair “I don’t think so. It can’t be healthy. One day, it’ll all come spilling out. And they’ll completely loose it. I can tell” He looked down at her. “Please don’t drive yourself mad over this. Then I’ll only have frick and frack to talk to and that’s never any fun”
She wiped her eyes on the collar of George’s shirt “Are you kidding, the three of you have this, like, bubble, when ever you’re together. No one can get in”
He blinked, looking surprised “Really”
She nodded
“Gab”
“What”
“I think you’re part of our bubble too”
She smiled, satisfied with that, and put her head back into his chest and her arms around his waist.
Emotional wall.
She liked the sound of that.