"And I don't want you worrying about that. It was my job to be paying attention, then. Not yours. And it shouldn't have to be your job, now. I'm sorry you ever have to take care of her, when I'm perfectly capable of doing so." Mr. Brennahan whispered, sighing weakly.
Lucas fidgeted with his hands a bit and sighed. "Y-Yeah, I guess so… is there anything else that I can do to help, sir?"
He kept quiet for a minute, slowly shaking his head. "I'm afraid not… keeping an eye on Melissa, and just being there for her is plenty. You've already got enough on your plate as is, anyways."
"Y-Yeah… uhm… we sorta had an incident with my stuff earlier too…" Lucas sighed softly. "Nothing too bad, of course, I just… we were looking through old pictures and there were some with Claus and I just couldn't stop thinking about it so I kinda shut down for a while b-but I didn't hurt myself or anything and it was time for me to take my meds anyway so it's okay?" He said very quickly, rambling on and not even pausing to take a breath.
Mr. Brennahan blinked in surprise when he was done, taking a moment to respond. "Are you alright, now? Be honest with me, are you really alright?" He asked softly, pushing his glasses up on his face as he watched Lucas.
Lucas looked down at the floor nervously, his heart pounding. "Uhm… honestly? I'm not entirely sure… the meds helped some, but it's still lingering in my mind and I'm just feeling… dull. Trying to help Melissa has kept my mind off of it somewhat, but it seems like every time I close my eyes, I see him again…"
"Do you need to talk to someone about it?" He asked softly. "Fully talk to someone? I… I know it might be strange, but I'm here to listen. I'm here for the both of you. If you need to tell someone what's going on inside your head, I'll listen. I'll try my best to carve out time to be here for you. But if you don't feel like talking… or you just need a distraction, know I'm still here."
Lucas sighed shakily. "Alright, u-um… I'm… I'm not sure how much of this story you know, but… Claus, he… h-he hung himself. In our bedroom." He started, already starting to tremble. "It's… he looked so much like me, and… that spawns some of the nightmares for obvious reasons, and I just… I couldn't sleep in there… I just couldn't…" He rubbed at his eyes a bit. "Every time I tried, I just couldn't stop seeing him there. It… it always haunted me. I don't think that's something I can ever forget. I think I'd just… I dunno what I'd do if I had to see that room again… If I let myself think about Claus too much, it always turns back to that. I just can't get it to go away…"
"Well, you never have to go back. Back to that room, or that house." Mr. Brennahan replied softly, offering him a hand. "I can't help you get rid of those awful thoughts, and nightmares, but I can reassure you to me best extent. You never have to go back. You don't have to see that room, and you don't have to see the house. In your own time, if you ever want to, you can. But you never have to go back." He whispered, giving Lucas a soft look. "If there's anything I can do to help with the nightmares, tell me. I want to help you if I can."
Lucas looked up at Mr. Brennahan weakly, his eyes brimming with tears. "I-I don't wanna go back… I don't… I know that I should visit my dad at some point as well, b-but I just… I dunno if I can bring myself to do it… I honestly don't know if there's anything you can do about the nightmares, sir, unless there's some kind of medication for that… after all this, I suspect I won't be getting much sleep tonight due to them…"
"You don't have to go back… and no one is making you go see your father. When you're ready to do it, you can." Mr. Brennahan repeated, his voice soft. He came around the desk, sitting on the floor in front of Lucas. "I'm not sure there is a medication for that kind of thing; I hate to say it, but I'm assuming there's not. But if there is, I'll do my best to get it for you. I hate seeing you like this, and I want you to get better. If you're worried about it, I can stay up tonight and keep an eye on you. Just in case."
"N-No, you don't have to do that sir… I… I can handle it. This happens all the time anyway and you need to sleep too…" Lucas sighed shakily and looked away, his foot still tapping on the ground as his leg shook.
Hesitantly, Mr. Brennahan reached out to rest his hand on his knee. "Lucas," He whispered, trying his best to be comforting. "I don't mind. If you want or need the reassurance, I'll stay up. If you really don't want it, but you wake up in the middle of the night, you can come get me. Or Melissa if you're more comfortable with her. I just want to know you're okay."
Lucas glanced back over at Mr. Brennahan when he felt a touch on his knee. "Uhm… o-okay… I can at least start off alone though, and… hopefully I'll just be fine…"
Mr. Brennahan was quiet for a minute, gently rubbing him with his thumb. Sighing weakly, he dropped his head. "Lucas, you don't have to feel bad if you need someone. I really want you to go talk to someone if these nightmares are coming. You're more likely to get hurt if you wait." He insisted in a soft tone.
"W-Well, I'm still seeing a therapist… like you said, there's probably not meds for that though, so there's not a ton that I can do about it… it's just… it's not exactly something I can just get used to…"
"I meant me or Melissa, Lucas…" He whispered, still gently rubbing his knee. "I want you to talk to one of us when something doesn't feel right. If you don't have your therapist around, of course."
"Oh, uhm… I can… I can try my best, sir…" Lucas fidgeted nervously. "I know you don't mind, but I don't like having to bother you…"
"It's not a bother. Like you said, I really don't mind." Mr. Brennahan whispered, still gently rubbing his knee. "I'm going to be up late anyways, so you really don't need to worry. I'm an adult. I can handle a late night."
Lucas nodded a bit and started toying with his hair to try and calm himself down. "O-Okay, sir… uhm… sorry for all the trouble…" He laughed weakly.
"Hey, it's no trouble to come talk to me." He insisted, smiling softly. Mr. Brennahan watched Lucas, still gently rubbing his leg. "You feeling any better?"
"A little, I think… I'm still worried about Melissa and I'm… stressed, but… I think it's mostly okay now?" He shrugged a bit.
"I'm not sure how I could help you any further, but if there's anything, tell me." Mr. Brennahan whispered, starting to get up. He reached out, and gently tousling his hair. "And don't stress so much. Everything will work out."
Lucas flushed a bit and nodded. "R-Right, uhm… s-sorry about that, sir." He laughed again. "I tend to get all caught up in stuff and I stress myself out more than I should be…"
Mr. Brennahan chuckled some, patting his shoulder before pulling back. "Well, you shouldn't have to worry about it. I can handle this, so you don't have to worry." He insisted, sitting back on the edge of the desk.
Lucas nodded again as he got to his feet, still shaking a bit. "Um… I should… I should probably go make sure Melissa's doing okay. Thank you, sir…" He bowed nervously and headed out of the office.
Mr. Brennahan chuckled at the light bow, not going to correct him about it. He was already gone anyways. When Lucas got downstairs, Melissa was sitting at the piano, numbly playing along the keys. She didn't move or even acknowledge him at the sound of his footsteps coming down the stairs.
"Melissa…? Are you okay?" Lucas asked softly when he'd made his way back down, mentally kicking himself for bowing back in Mr. Brennahan's office. He probably thinks I'm weird now…
Melissa turned around when she was called, attempting to process what he had said. “Oh- I um… I’m fine. Are you okay?”
"Y-Yeah, I'm alright…" Lucas fidgeted a bit and hesitated before sitting beside Melissa, still seeming pretty jittery.