“Yes,” Dr. B exclaimed, almost punching the air with excitement. “Fantastic, Joey.”
Darren and I both turned to gape at her. “Excuse me?”
“Verbalization,” she quickly explained. “Fantastic verbalization of your feelings. We have been working on this for months.” She smiled up at me like I was her favorite student and offered me a supportive thumb’s up, while every other member of my medical team looked on in horror.
“Listen, if I could interrupt for a moment,” John Sr. interjected in that cool, calm, and collected tone of voice, ready to steady the ship. “I may have a solution that could be of benefit to everyone.”
“Oh?” Edel sank down on the edge of the couch beside her husband and placed a hand on his knee. “Do tell, love?”
Cool as a breeze, John squeezed his wife’s hand affectionately before turning his attention to the many faces watching him. “You want to extend Joey’s treatment under the guise of uncertainty around his ability to cope under the pressures facing him when he returns home to Ballylaggin.” Turning to Darren, he added, “From what I’m gathering, one of your greatest concerns is your brother’s lack of prospects.”
“He doesn’t have any qualifications,” Darren replied with a grateful nod. “He hasn’t even finished school. He doesn’t have a trade. He doesn’t have a well-paying job. Hurling is out of the question for him. They won’t have him back. I’ve tried. Neither will BCS. They’re standing firm on their decision. There isn’t a school in the area who will consider taking him in.”
“Like I give a fuck,” I snorted.
“You should,” Darren growled. “You’ve got a baby to look after – something you’ve been extremely vocal about telling everyone. How do you propose to do that on a minimum wage job. Because let’s face it, Joe, you with your record, you would be lucky to get a job stacking shelves.”
“I’m a good worker.”
“I never said you weren’t,” my brother argued. “But you have a record as long as your arm stacked up against you.”
“What if there was an alternative?” John suggested calmly. “What if I could guarantee Joey a place in sixth year at the same school his siblings attend. Would that appease everyone’s concerns?”
“The fuck?” I frowned. “What are you…？”
“Tommen?” Darren’s eyes widened. “They won’t have him, John. Especially not after the spectacle back in May. Do you think I haven’t tried? He was removed from the school by the Gards for physically assaulting pupils from Tommen.”
“It’s already done,” John replied calmly, this time turning to me. “You have a place at Tommen College to complete your studies, Joey. It’s yours for the taking.” Shrugging, he added, “If you’ll take it.”
“Tommen.” I stared blankly at him. “You want me to go to Tommen?”
“I want you to consider it.”
“Are you serious?” Excitement filled my brother’s voice. “How in God’s name did you manage to pull that off?”
“How do you think, Darren?” I deadpanned. “Money.”
“He’ll take it,” my brother answered for me.
“He won’t,” I was quick to argue, turning back to John. “I’m not going back to secondary school, John. I need to find work that brings home a steady paycheck at the end of the week.”
“No, no, no, it makes sense,” Edel hurried to say, turning to face me. “The new school term resumes on September 1st, Joey love. If you were to be enrolled at Tommen, then you would need to be discharged before…”
“Before the baby comes,” I filled in, as my brain churned into gear.
“It would be a wonderful foundation to build your future on, Joey,” Dr. B offered up her two cents. “Stability and friendship, and a solid education.”
“I’ll send you money,” Darren blurted out. “Every week. Straight into your bank account. Whatever it takes.”
“Pocket money?” I stared blankly. “Do you think I’m a little kid?”
“No, I think you’re one of the smartest people I know, and the prospect of you having an actual shot at this – at an education – is too important to turn your nose up. I want this for you, Joe. Think about the job opportunities. Think about college. Your future, brother.”
“I’m not going to college,” I argued, feeling overwhelmed. “It’s not on the cards for me.”
“It wasn’t on the cards for you before, but it can be now,” he argued thickly. “Why shouldn’t you have the same opportunities as the rest of us? You deserve this just as much as Shannon and Tadhg. He’s starting first year there too, you know. At Tommen. You would be there to look out for him. To show him the way. Think about it, Joe. This could be life changing for you.”
“Are you alright, Joey love?”
“No, Edel, I’m not,” I admitted, knees bopping restlessly, as I sat opposite her and John at one of the picnic tables in the communal gardens after the meeting.
“You can thank Gerard for those,” she said, pointing disapprovingly to the cigarette in my hand. “He smuggled three packets into the bags I packed for you today.”
Good man, Gussie.
Taking a deep drag of my cigarette, I looked around the garden, feeling beyond agitated.
“I planted those,” I decided to tell them, pointing to a bed of Black-Eyed Susans, standing alone amongst a flurry of pink Dahlias and Hydrangeas. “Those ones are mine.”
“You’ve spent time working in the garden?”
“It’s a part of the treatment,” I explained, waving a hand around aimlessly. “We talk, we sit around in circles during group therapy and cry, we plant flowers, we paint shit.” I took another drag of my smoke before saying, “It’s all very woe-is-me around here. Just one big competition to see whose life is the most fucked-up really.”
John smirked. “Well then, I’m sure you’re in the lead by a country mile.”
I snorted. “You know it.”
“Joey love,” Edel began, tapping her perfectly manicured nails on the table. “About Tommen. I know your first instinct is to say no, but please don’t do that. Just give yourself some time to mull it over before deciding.”
“Okay,” I replied, feeling overwhelmed at the prospect. “I’ll think about it.”
CALL MY GIRL
JOEY
“Fun fact of the day: I officially have udders.”
“Udders?”
“Yep. That’s right. I kid you not. Apparently, I produce milk now. By the bra full.”
“You’re leaking?”
“Like a faulty tap.”
“Shit.”
“Oh yeah, and fair warning, I haven’t seen my vagina since June, so you know what that means, don’t you?”
“No, Molloy, I really don’t.”
“It means you’ll be returning to The Amazon Rainforest of vaginas.”
“Jesus.”