ADDICT

Chapter 2

Faint music played from Aiden's phone, drowning out his aunt's show in the other room as blood dripped onto his collarbone. He stared into the mirror, frowning a little as scarlet red rolled down from the top of his ear, somehow gushing from the tiniest of knicks.

His head still hurt, but with a bit of Tylenol and some weed, it was a bit more bearable. The clinic had simply glued his head shut, told him he had a concussion, and sent him on his marry way. He had managed to slip away from Sebastian while in the waiting room and called his cousin to pick him up. He was lucky that Sebastian didn't like to make a scene in public, even when Aiden could tell he was pissed and wanted to scream every insult that came to mind.

He didn't know what was going to happen next. He didn't know where he was going to live or if he was going to go back to therapy or rehab. He didn't even know if he wanted to be alive in the next few hours. All he knew was that he was done with Sebastian for good this time. It wasn't just going to he a break like every separation before. And although he said that the million other times he had left, he had a good feeling this time around. He just had to make it past the first few weeks, and things would get easier. He had to believe that.

He wiped away some of the blood on his ear and decided he'd deal with it later. He quickly ran his fingers through his hair, snipping away as he added more layers. The sound of the quick snips filled his ears as little bits of his hair fell onto his skin, making him itch or the floor around him. Finally, he finished, and he quickly cleaned up and rinsed off in the shower.

He sighed as he stepped out, water dripping down his back before he quickly began to dry off his hair and body. Steam filled the room, making it a little awkward to breathe, but despite that, he couldn't help dreading how much colder it would be outside. He pulled one of his shirts he had left here over his head and tugged on his jeans, quickly noticing how much weight he had lost since he bought them. Aiden frowned a little, grabbing his pill bottle and pouring a few into his hand. He counted, his lips moving despite no words actually leaving his mouth.

"Aye!" A long banging on the bathroom door snapped him out of his transe. "Hurry up, I have to piss."

Aiden rolled his eyes, popping the pills into his mouth and shoving the bottle down his pocket before pulling open the door. Sage stood in front of him, her unwelcoming face still somehow comforting. Despite being family, they didn't look much alike. She had olive brown skin as opposed to Aiden's darker skin and warmer undertones. Her face was slim and well structured with high cheekbones and a sharp jawline, whereas Aiden had rounder, softer features. Perhaps the only thing they really shared was just how angry they both were. At the world and at each other for reasons unknown to Aiden.

He rolled his eyes and stepped around her, noticing her half-done hair. Half was pulled into a tight French braid while the other was loose and frizzy. She pushed past him, slamming the door shut behind her and locking it without another glance at Aiden. He sighed, walking down the hallway where Sage's grandmother sat.

He wasn't entirely sure how they were related. He didn't know if their grandmothers were sisters or cousins. In the end, it was all the same in his family. Blood or tribe didn't really matter. Even being Shawnee and living on a Cherokee reservation, everyone was like family.

"Nephew grandson!" She loudly exclaimed as her kind eyes landed on Aiden. The older woman's hair had gone white over the years and was much shorter than it once was. Her eyes were unchanging, though, despite the wrinkles and cloudyness with age, they were always kind. "Ha koowesilaasamamo?" She asked, glancing up from her puzzle and smiling. He couldn't help noticing the chunky turqoise earrings she wore.

"Noowesilaasamamo. Kwa'kiila?" it was weird to speak his language after being away from home for months. Sure, he'd use the occasional word here and there when talking to Jay or Sage, but nobody he knew spoke it as fluently as his grandmother and her. He honestly had to really think about what he was saying.