Some days went by and everything seemed calm on both Rafaela and James's days, although separated by a continent and an ocean. He'd call whenever he got the chance and they'd talk for as long as they could. James was missing home tremendously, and Rafaela was missing him the same amount, but they were alright, and Metallica's tour was being a success.
One morning, while Rafaela was busy with her baby, the doorbell rang, and she saw Kelly at the gate.
"Kelly?" She spoke at the phone outside.
"Can you open the door?" Kelly asked her.
"Are you alone?" Rafaela asked unsure and a bit afraid, but her friend just started sobbing. "Kelly?" Rafaela asked watching her by the camera.
Kelly nodded and then took a deep breath. "I am alone. Let me in." She asked again. Not saying anything else, Rafaela pressed the button that would open the gate outside and then went to the porch waiting for her friend, or ex friend, or whatever they were that moment.
"I want help." Kelly blurted the second she stepped in front of Rafaela. "I also need to hear you. I can't let go unless I hear you Rafi."
Rafaela nodded and opened the door motioning her head so Kelly could go in. Liam was in the stroller staring at some stuffed animals he had hanged in there.
"He looks so much like you." Kelly said first thing approaching the baby. Though with some fear, Rafaela let Kelly feel at ease, even if her heart was racing franticly. She was not sure if she should trust her or not.
"Yeah... I think he does." Rafaela sat on the couch pulling the stroller near her in case she had to defend her child. "What help do you need?"
"I want to enter this center, you know rehab. I want out Rafi, but I don't have money to do so and my parents deny me that help so I have no one else. I need your help." Kelly explained sitting by her side.
"I won't give you money Kelly, you know that." Rafaela explained.
"You don't have to give me the money, you take me there and I check in. You can pay the bills, but I do want out. I am sure of that." Kelly began to cry again. "My life is a mess Rafi. I have no one, no one cares about me. I left college, I lost the apartment, I don't have any money..."
"If you really want to enter a center and you let me manage the money you need, then I want to help you. I said so since the beginning. I offered my help and it was genuine." Rafaela said.
"I know...that's why I came here. I miss you... I miss our friendship but what you did..." Kelly shook her head.
"You want to talk about that now?" Rafaela asked her a little incredulous.
"I need you to apologize." Kelly confessed. "I need to understand why you did it. Why him Rafi? You could have anyone you wanted, why him? He was my boyfriend and I was in love with him, you knew that. That was such a back stab, on me? Me? Your best friend?"
"I fought hard not to feel the way I did Kelly. I really did..." Rafaela told her. "But we fell in love with each other and it's hard to fight when there are strong feelings involved. I know that doesn't explain everything. He was your boyfriend so I should have stayed away, but we were always around each other. It came to a point where it was impossible to ignore it and not feel it. We tried hard not to let feelings grow or to get involved but we did and once we did it was just this snowball growing and growing. It was because of love Kelly, see? We are still together today. We have a baby, well it was an accident it's true, but we decided to have him. I am sorry. I am a million times sorry, I really am, but I love him. James is my life Kelly, we bond."
Kelly nodded. "I should have seen that coming. When you two met, he was always looking for you. Deep inside, I knew he was in love with you. He never looked at me the way he looked at you almost since day 1, he spent hours talking to me about you. I decided to ignore it, blinded by the love I felt for him. I should have let him go. Free him, maybe it wouldn't be so hard for me as it was. I felt betrayed, double betrayed."
Rafaela grabbed her hands and tears fell down her face. "None of this is your fault. It is ours and just ours. We were the ones harming you, we know that, but we were trying to find a way to tell you. The night you caught us, James was pushing me to talk to you, but I was so afraid to tell you and didn't know how to tell you. I knew I'd lose you, you know. I was afraid of your reaction, that's all. I never meant it to be that way."
"I missed you so much this whole time, but I couldn't deal with the pain I felt. I couldn't be your friend and see you with him, those few times I did it hurt so much. Drugs were the way I found to forget it all. I am not blaming you for that, no..." Kelly shook her head. "...that is entirely my fault. You son is beautiful." She smiled in the end.
Rafaela jumped front and held Kelly tight. "I know I was a bitch, but I missed you too and I understood all the time your hatred towards me. I never blamed you for anything, not even when you called my father and he stayed a year without talking to me. I am sorry Kelly; I will never find enough ways to apologize."
"I want you back." Kelly said straying. "I want to get clean and I want you back."
"I will help you." Rafaela affirmed. "Have you chosen the center?"
"I even have been there but since I didn't have any money they didn't let me check in, so I came here as my last resource. I want to go in there and rebuilt my life. Cocaine is going to kill me sooner or later and no wants to have a drug addict as a friend, I feel lonely. I want my friends and my family back, so I need to go there."
"We'll go there after lunch, is that ok?"
"Really?" Kelly cried and Rafaela nodded. "Thank you." She said holding Rafaela close.
"Are you hungry?" She asked then.
"I haven't eaten anything today yet." Kelly said.
Rafaela got up and took Kelly to the kitchen.
"Do you want to have a shower while I prepare something?"
Kelly nodded. "Don't you mind? It's been a few days since I last shower."
"My jeans won't fit you because you're taller, but I'll find some underwear and a clean shirt for you to wear." She said.
Rafaela searched for it all and then guided Kelly to the bathroom, leaving her there and returning to the kitchen where she began to cook their lunch. Meanwhile the phone rang.
"Hello." Rafaela answered the call.
"Hi baby." She heard on the other end.
"James!" She exclaimed. "It must be really late there.
"Yeah...we finished a gig and we're having a few beers, but I missed you, so I came to call you. How's everything?"
"We're fine. Kelly is here." She dropped the news.
"What?" James almost yelled. "In our house? Did you leave her alone with our son?"
"No, Liam is here with me, she's taking a shower."
"What the fuck does she want?" He asked a bit annoyed.
"She needs my help. She wants to enter this rehab center and doesn't have any money. I am taking her there after lunch." She explained.
"And who's going to pay for that?" James asked visibly irritated.
"I am." She said low fearing his reaction.
"You have got to be kidding me!" He yelled on the other side. "These places are expensive; we don't have money for that! Why are you doing this?" He inquired her.
"Because she's my friend and she came to ask me for help. I have to help her James..." Rafaela claimed.
"Because you feel guilty for what we've done right?" He pointed out.
"Also because of that." Rafaela clarified.
"Rafi..." James breathed.
"Look baby, I know we can't pay for her treatment. I'll pay just her entrance and then I'll go to her parents and talk to them, but if she wants to go it's a good step. I won't deny her this. Even if the situation wasn't the one we know, and this happened I would not look back to give her a helping hand. Please...try to understand..."
She heard him taking a deep breath. "Don't leave Liam alone with her not even for a second while she's there, you hear me? I don't trust her. And talk to her parents because we can't afford for her treatment, I refuse to pay for her treatment Rafi! One thing is to help her, it's ok if you want to do that, but it is not our responsibility to pay for it all." James put it very clear. Metallica's Master of Puppets was doing great, better than their other previous albums, but they still depended on her parents greatly.
"In fact, it is. She's in this situation because of us." Rafaela claimed.
"I don't care!" He yelled again. "Rafi... we are not going to pay for it all. There's no way I'll agree with this." He almost ordered in the end. He was pissed off, she could tell.
"Don't worry. I'll talk to her parents."
"How's the baby?" He asked changing the subject.
"He's fine. Playing with the stuffed animals you hanged on his stroller." James giggled.
"I don't want him to forget about me. I miss him so much."
"He won't. Remember that video tape where you're calling him and talking to him?" She asked him.
"Yeah..."
"Well, I have been playing that to him every day at night, so he listens to your voice. He stays really quiet when he hears you calling him." Rafaela told him.
"Aw...God, I just want to go home." James said sadly with tears in his eyes.
Then Kelly appeared in the kitchen. "I have to go now." Rafaela told him.
"Is she there?" James asked feeling how her tone changed.
"Yes."
"You heard me Rafi. I have a say in this. I love you." James said in the end.
"Dido." Rafaela answered.
"Dido...because she's there you're not even able to tell me you love me." He complained annoyed.
"We'll talk later, ok?" She tried to calm things down and then hung up.
"Lunch is almost ready." Rafaela talked to Kelly.
"Were you talking to James?" Kelly asked sitting at the table.
"Yes." Rafaela confirmed and then turned around to the stove not taking Kelly's look.
"How is he? He's on tour?" She continued asking.
"Yes." She answered not wanting to say anything more. Kelly understood and this silence was heard, apart from Liam's baby sounds.
After lunch and as promised the two girls left the house. Rafaela drove to the rehab center following Kelly's instructions. She felt her friend nervous when she parked the car in front of this huge white house, Kelly's hands were trembling and so were her legs.
"You're not having seconds thoughts are you?" Rafaela asked seeing she didn't get out of the car.
"No." Kelly said getting out. "It's not easy, but I want to go in."
With that they rang a bell and were received by an old lady. For about half an hour they heard instructions of how the treatment was going to be and how long Kelly was going to stay in there. Finally, Rafaela wrote the check and the girls hugged.
"I hope everything goes well. Be strong ok?"
"Thank you." Kelly smiled. "I am afraid."
"Don't be. It's for your own good and you see life will be much brighter when you get out. I'll bring some clothes and other stuff you need. I'll visit you whenever I can."
"Thanks again Rafi. Will you please tell my parents that I really came here?"
"I guarantee you that." Rafaela kissed her friend's cheek and then a hand was put on Kelly's shoulder, taking her inside. She waved and Rafaela waved back, feeling this enormous relief Kelly was finally doing the right thing.
Instead of driving home, she drove to Kelly's parents, which was in the same neighborhood.
"Rafaela!" Kelly's mother exclaimed surprised to see her.
"I came here because of Kelly." She said. Instantly her mother's eyes watered.
"Did something happen?"
"She entered a rehab center. I just took her there, I thought you should know."
"She did?"
"Yes. She told me that she came here asking for money and you didn't give her..." Kelly's mother interrupted her.
"We thought she wanted the money for drugs!" Kelly's mother defended herself. Rafaela nodded.
"I know...I also refused to give her money. Thing is she asked me to take her there and I paid the entrance, but I have a son and I can't pay for her whole treatment. I came here to ask for your help too. Since she's there, I think it's safe to give her that. It's not for her you know; you pay directly to the center. Kelly really wants out."
"Of course." Kelly's mother nodded.
"Another thing...I think it's important for her to have her parents' support. Kelly feels really lost, so please visit her. She needs you now more than ever."
"We just didn't know what to do with her. She was so lost and refused help, but now... yes... of course... don't worry about the payments, we'll do it and we'll visit her for sure. Don't think I am a bad mother Rafi."
"I don't think that, that's why I came here. I'm glad she's going to have you with her. I need to go now; my baby must eat in a while."
"He's very cute." Kelly's mother said smiling.
"Thanks." Rafaela smiled and began to walk away.
"And Rafi, thank you so much for what you've done."
"Don't thank me. It was my duty to do so." Rafaela answered feeling her guilt surfacing.