I look at the scene frightened. My bulging eyes, barely believing what I saw.
- Casey, let Ryan go! - orders Ryder. - You're scaring Brooke.
Casey breathes deeply, then, looking over his shoulder toward me, he locks the gun into his holster. The very against taste, she releases Ryan's arm, which makes a face of pain passing the other hand at the height of the collarbone.
- You're nothing but an ogre! - he says harshly.
- Ryan, that's enough! - says Ryder furiously. - If you're gonna kill each other, let it be outside my apartment!
Casey sighs by passing his hands through his hair and raises his head, lifting his nose.
- You know what? There's no point in wasting a bullet on that idiot! - she says, walking towards the door. - I don't know what these women see in you. They must be a bunch of desperate people anyway.
Ryan holds his breath, while Casey walks out slamming the door. He sits on the couch while I look at the door very scared.
- That little brat! - says Ryan between his teeth. - One day she'll pay me back!
- Ryan, if I were you, I'd stop tormenting Casey. - says Ryder, stopping in front of him. - It's not because you're a doctor and you value life, that gives you the right to criticize people's attitudes. You don't know anything about people's lives.
Ryan, frown.
- What do you mean by that?
- Just think!
I frown with the same confusing expression as Ryan. He stares at Ryder, who sighs and hugs me by passing his hands in my arms, like he wants to calm me down.
- I don't know what you meant and I don't care either! Nothing that comes from this girl really matters to me. - says he standing up and passing his hand over his hair. - I just stopped by to find out about my helmet, but since it's not here, I'm leaving.
He smiles at me, so take my hand and kiss her.
- I'm sorry about that scene! - he says, then turns to Ryder. - See you tomorrow at lunch with Mel?
- Sure!
Ryan grabs the helmet he was wearing and, saying goodbye to Ryder, he left slamming the door. We still hear the sound of the bellow he emits, still angry at Casey.
- Oh, boy. - I mean, still scared. - What was that about?
- It's a long story, but in short, Casey and Ryan hate each other. - says Ryder, smiling and leading me to the stool.
- Yeah, I noticed. - ...I answer, sitting down again. - The question is, why? Because he keeps calling Casey suicidal.
Ryder sighs, so you tell me about the night Casey arrived at the hospital, not only with his wrists, but with his throat slit. Ryan had received a call about a family emergency and preferred to pass the call on to another doctor who was on call.
- The problem was not that Ryan received a family emergency call, he just didn't want to answer Casey and took advantage of it.
- Did she really try to commit suicide?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- Why is that?
- I don't know, but after Mom remarried, Casey got a little reclusive and walked away. - says Ryder sighing. - She got away from her friends and even me. She lived alone. One day, I decided to go to her house when Casey didn't show up for school. When I arrived, she was lying on the floor of the living room with one cut on each wrist and another on her throat. Her vitals were weak, but she was still breathing. I made a tourniquet and took her to the hospital.
- Wow! - I mean, putting my hand on my chest. - So you're the one who helped her?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- What about her parents?
- Her mother was an alcoholic and she was passed out next to a bottle of vodka. His stepfather was a gambling addict and spent all his wife's fortune in the casinos. - said Ryder, shaking his head. - Casey said he was violent and very scary. She didn't like the man, but her mother didn't care much for her opinion, since he supplied all the drinks she wanted.
- Wow! And then what happened?
- After he left the hospital, Casey went to live with his uncles, since his mother was unable to take care of him. - Ryder takes a break. - The doctors said that she suffered from post-traumatic stress because her father had committed suicide in front of her.
- What a bizarre thing! - I mean horrified.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Ryder takes a break, coming to me and sitting on one of the stools in front of me.
- Some time ago, she returned to New York and, to my surprise, sporting a detective badge. - he smiles. - Casey's always been a genius. I don't doubt he graduated before his time.
- You really like her, don't you?
