Maybe It's My Problem...

Duke was just heading out of his dorm when his phone rang. Seeing it was Risky, he answered right away. "Hey Risk, whatup...?" was all he got out. Hearing the sobbing, he immediately frowned. Something was wrong. Risky hardly ever cried.

"Sure," he said as he headed down the hall. "Ah, a-are you okay?" he asked, obvious concern in his voice.

"Why do you say that? What happened? Did you two have a fight?" Duke asked, focused now almost completely on the conversation as he nodded in absentminded greeting to two girls from one of his Math classes.

Duke swore under his breath at this. He wasn't mad at Risky, far from it, but he just was angry that this was how Xavier had chosen to react.

"It's not your fault, okay... " Duke said sighing. "Remember how your mom gets if anyone even jokes she has had too much to drink?" he pointed out, trying to make her focus on the fact that raging alcoholics can be like that. Volatile, not wanting to admit they have a problem.

Duke mulled for a second over this as he descended the stairs to the main floor. "I honestly don't know, Risky," he admitted as he smiled tightly at a teacher walking by. "It's not like you can force him into rehab." Duke said.

"Maybe try talking to him again?" he suggested. "Tell him about your mom and how it was affecting you and your dad. Let him maybe know that you are there for him too?"

"Then that is his problem, Rissa," Duke replied using an age-old nickname for her. One from their childhood. "You can't be thinking constantly about all the "What ifs"... Alcoholics use any excuse to drink and you know that," he reminded gently her as he stopped walking for a second.

"My take is that Xavier is upset that you told him he had a problem. He probably doesn't see it, and the fact you did, or think he does, makes him angry and probably ashamed," he told her. "Some guys don't like to think they are weak, or can't handle themselves," he explained.