Ruth had been so anxious she had almost decided not to go. Would he be angry with her for not visiting him all these years? Would he even still care to see her? She had been arguing with him in her head, preparing herself mentally for a fight. The bastard! If he had a big mouth, she’d be ready for him!

But when he stepped in and she saw him, her defences dropped and she was wounded. She had not thought about him for a long time. When he had been ripped from her life overnight, she had felt disoriented. But when it became clear that he would go to jail and was not coming back, it had been easier to just forget him and focus on the challenges she faced in his absence. Now it all came back to her, the missing, the anger, the hurt. He had been her closest sibling. He had always looked out for her, protected her, tried to cheer her up when things were hard, and told her off when she did something stupid. He hadn’t been gentle with her and she had often been rude to him, but in the chaotic world they had shared, he had built for her a small oasis of safety. Then one day he was gone, and there had only been chaos. Ruth felt sorry.

She had risen to her feet when he entered, but it took a moment to find her voice. “Aye… It’s me…” she said, in a quieter tone than she wanted. He had been a teenage boy then. Now he was a man, in age and face at least. He looked older than his age, in a sense, weary, haggard even. And battered. Were those bruises? But his body was so thin that it still looked like that of a teenager. “You look like shit,” she blurted out nervously.