Addiction

Nine - Gatsby

Drink some more, Gatsby. That's all you're good at, my thoughts tell me.

No, shut up. I made a promise. I'm not doing that. I'm better than that, I remind myself.

Come on. Just one drink. One drink won't hurt. I guess that's true. I'll only have one. Then I'll stop. Yeah that'll be fine.

I reach for the bottle resting on the table and take a sip. Before I realise it, the whole bottle is gone. Then two bottles. Then three. Then four. Soon I'm so drunk I can hardly stand.

My heart starts racing and my chest begins to hurt. It feels like someone's putting pressure on it. I can't breathe. I collapse and the pain becomes unbearable, so I cry out for help.

A bunch of the house staff come running into my room. One of them recognises this as a heart attack and calls for an ambulance. The rest of them help move me onto my bed.

Could this be how I die? I start sobbing uncontrollably. I'll never get to tell Nick I love him.

"It's going to be okay," one of the maids says softly, trying TO calm me down. "The ambulance will be here soon."

"Nick." That's all I can manage.

"Nick?" one of the butlers asks. "Would you like me to call Nick and let him know what's happening?"

I nod, causing pain to travel through my neck. I wince.

The maid says, "Try not to move too much, Mr. Gatsby."

Nick is called and the butler tells him to come to the hospital once he's out of work. He says he's leaving work early.

Even if Nick doesn't love me like I love him, he's the best friend I could ask for. Most others, if not all others, would in this moment simply not come to the hospital or even answer the phone when called if they knew my staff was on the other end. But Nick is different.

And maybe I'll go to hell for it but I love him.