Addiction

Ten - Nick

"Where is he?" I ask the front desk staff.

"Where is who?" a blonde haired woman asks.

"Jay Gatsby. Where is Jay Gatsby?"

"Visiting hours are over. I'm sorry but you'll have to come back tomorrow."

"No. I came to see him and you are going to let me. Now tell me where he is," I demand.

"Sir I'm sorry but-"

"TELL ME WHERE HE IS!" I scream. Everyone in the lobby turns to look at me. Her eyes start to water and she mumbles something.

"Look, I'm sorry. I just… I… I'm sorry," I apologise. "I shouldn't have yelled. Please forgive me."

"It's okay." She sniffles. "He's in room 3B on the hallway to your right."

"Thank you so much. Again, I'm sorry. Thank you," I mutter. I race down the hallway until I see room 3B. The door is closed, so I knock on it gently. No reply so I open the door slightly. "Hello?"

"Hello?" a voice replies. Jay's voice.  He sounds tired.

"It's Nick."

"Nick? Please come in."

I enter the dimly lit room. Jay's in bed. There's a book on the table beside him and a glass of water.

"I'm glad to see you, old sp- Nick," Jay says.

I step closer to him. "I'm glad to see you too. You're okay?"

"Yeah I'm okay. They want to keep me here for the night to make sure I'm okay. The doctor also wants to talk to me about something, but I asked if we could wait until you got here."

"What does he want to talk to you ab-"

"Hello gentlemen," the doctor says as he enters the room. I turn to look at him. "You're Nick Carraway?" he asks.

"Yes that's me," I confirm his assumption.

"Nice to meet you," the doctor says. "Mr. Gatsby already knows what I want to talk to him about. Did he tell you, Mr. Carraway?"

"No not yet," I say.

"I suggested that he go to an establishment that will help him recover from his addiction."

I turn to Gatsby. "Do you want to, Jay?"

He hesitates before saying, "Yes. I do."

"You hesitated," I state.

"He would be away anywhere from one month to a year," the doctor explains.

I frown. "Oh."

"But he would come back no longer addicted. The place he'd go to is right here in this hospital and has the best results out of all the options in the state."

"That's good. Could I visit him there?"

"Once a month there is a day where visitors can come in."

"Only once a month?"

"Yes. However, you can call every day if you'd like."

"Alright."

"Do either of you have any other questions?"

Jay and I shake our heads.

"Okay. I'll leave you two to talk about it. Someone will be here in an hour to take you to the addiction recovery unit, Mr. Gatsby," the doctor says. He then leaves the room and shuts the door.

There's a moment of silence.

"I should get dressed," Jay says quietly.

"Do you need help? Should I step out until you're done?" I ask.

"No it's alright you can stay."

I help him get up and hand him the clothes sitting on the foot of the bed. I turn around while he gets dressed.

I feel Jay walk closer to me. He's directly behind me now. "You can turn around now," he says.

I turn to him. He looks handsome but tired. He grabs my waist and pulls me closer to him.

I blush and start to ask what he's doing but he interrupts me with a kiss. I don't know whether to pull away or to kiss back. Instead of making a decision, I just stand there.

Jay pulls away from me. "I'm terribly sorry. I shouldn't have done that. That was stupid of me. I just- I've been wanting to do that for a long time and I couldn't resist. I'm going to miss you," he rambles. I smile at him and kiss him. He's the surprised one this time. His eyes are wide. "Nick? Why did you do that?"

"I've wanted to do that for some time as well," I say.

"Nick, do you… Do you love me?"

"Yes," I answer right away. "Do you love me?"

"I do. But we couldn't ever be together."

"Says who?"

"Two men being together is an abomination," Gatsby says sadly.

"That's a lie. We deserve love just as much as a man and a woman do."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive."

"Okay." Gatsby kisses my forehead.

There's a knock at the door and a nurse steps into the room. "Hello. I'm here to take Mr. Gatsby to the recovery unit."

"Alright," Gatsby says. "I'll miss you, Nick. Will you call?"

"I'll call first thing tomorrow morning," I say.

Gatsby nods and begins to follow the nurse out the door. I grab his arm.

"What is it, Nick?" he asks.

"I'll be waiting for you, okay? I'll wait for you to come back and I'll love you just as much as I do today, whether it be a month or a year," I promise.

Jay gives me a warm smile, then heads out.

A wide grin spreads across my face. I told a man I love him and he loves me back. That's something I'd never dreamed would happen. I always imagined this moment going much, much differently.