Senior Year with My Protector | Protector 1.2

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

       "Is he okay?" I asked Gale over the phone. Grayson went home sick after going to the nurse. Apparently, he vomited shortly after I left and he was feeling extremely nauseous.

       "I think so," Gale said. "He's probably just coming down with the stomach flu or something. He's resting now. I made sure he got his behind in bed as soon as he got home."

       "Thanks," I said, knowing it would be quite a struggle with my stubborn boyfriend. "I'm really worried about it."

       Gale sighed. "Me too. I hate seeing my little brother like this." There was someone on the other line, talking to Gale before she said to that person, "Shut up and get back to bed. You were just puking your guts out." She sighed once again before going back on the phone. "He's being an idiot right now. According to him, he's perfectly fine and...." There was a bang, cutting Gale off. "Good god. Poppy, can you come down here by any chance? Grayson's being really stubborn."

       "What happened?" I asked.

       "He just fainted," Gale said. "He's refusing to go back to bed, saying he's fine, but he fainted. I swear, he's looking for some trouble."

       "Yeah, I'll be right over," I said. "Trust me, I'll talk some sense into that idiot."

       "Thank you," Gale said. "You're the only one who he really listens to."

       She hung up and I turned to Tony, who was waiting for me to get in his car. "Can you drop me off at Grayson's? He's being an idiot."

       "Yeah, sure," Tony said as I got in the passenger seat. "Is he okay?"

       I sighed. "Honestly, I'm not sure. Gale thinks he just has the stomach flu, but I don't know. I feel like something else is going on."

       "Something else always is," Tony said as he pulled out of the school parking lot.

       When he got to Grayson's house, I thanked him before getting out of the car and knocking on the front door. Gale answered it quite quickly, telling me that Grayson was laying on his bed. I nodded, taking off my shoes before going up to his bedroom.

       He was fast asleep, either that or he was still passed out because he fainted. I sighed, sitting on the edge of his bed and rubbing his arm. I hated worrying about him. He was being too stubborn about his situation.

       My eyes wandered to his bedside table, noticing a pill container there. It had seven columns and four rows. Each column was labeled with the day of the week and each row was labeled with a time; morning, noon, evening, and bed.

       Grayson's anti-depressants were in there. The only empty column was the one for Sunday.

       It was Wednesday. He hasn't taken his pills since Sunday.

       I pulled out my cell phone and opened the internet browser before typing What are the side effects of antidepressant withdrawal. Immediately, I got a list of symptoms:

       Anxiety, agitation, flu-like symptoms, irritability, aggression, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and loss of coordination.

       Grayson had all of the symptoms, especially the nausea and vomiting. Did he really stop taking his pills or did he just forget?

       The weight of the bed shifted as Grayson stirred. "Flower, hey," he said.

       "Hi," I said, locking my phone and placing it on the bedside table.

       "Is everything okay?" he said, sitting up beside me.

       "You tell me," I said, finally turning to face him. "When was the last time you took your pill?"

       "At noon," Grayson said.

       Wow. He lied right to my face. I knew when he was lying. We knew each other like the back of our hand. We knew one the other wasn't feeling well or when the other was lying. And right now, I knew he was lying.

       "Don't lie to me," I said. "Sunday, right? That was when you last took it?"

       Grayson sighed. "I don't see what the big deal is."

       "The big deal is that you can't just quit without getting the okay from your doctor," I said. "It's dangerous."

       "I'm fine," Grayson said.

       I couldn't take it anymore. "Grayson, you are not fine!" I said. "You need to stop telling everyone that you're fine! You're being too stubborn about all of this!"

       "You think it's easy?" Grayson asked. "You really think it's easy not sleeping, having nightmares, having dark thoughts? I need to play it off like I'm fine because it's the only way I can get through this crap!"

       "You really think that?" I asked. "Seriously? So you think that stop taking the pills will get you through this? It's the only thing helping you!"

       "It is not the only thing!" he said. "Those stupid pills are making things worse! I tried killing myself and the only thing that's keeping me alive is you! If you didn't come out of the damn school, I would have jumped. But then you did come out and talked me out of it. I don't need those pills. All I need is you."

       "But the pills...."

"They're doing nothing, Poppy," Grayson said. "Nothing. I haven't felt any different from being on it. I promise. Look, I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow and I'll talk to him about the pills. But I promise you that it's crap."

       I sighed. "Can you promise something? Promise you'll stop pretending you're fine? I hate it when you think you're fine, but then you pass out or something. This is the second time it happened."

       "Sure," he muttered, laying back down and resting his arms over his eyes. "Thanks for caring, Flower."

     "Of course, babe," I said, which made him chuckle. I kissed his cheek, before standing up. "I'm going to head home. Take care."

________________

So Grayson doesn't want to take his pills. How about that? It's cute that he only thinks Poppy will help him get through it. cx