Junkhead

Another Chance

When he woke up he was welcomed by the intro song to the sitcom Friends & the aroma of cinnamon apple. The air was fresh, unlike the usual thick smog he was used to breathing in his motel room. When his vision finally cleared, he realized he was in someone else's home. Lying in a soft couch. Glaring at the silky blanket that covered him, his brow curled with intrigue.

Kitten-printed and pink? Obviously a chick's blanket, he thought to himself. He glared at the medium-sized tube TV, smirking when he saw Phoebe on the screen. She was always his favorite character.

Taps of heals on the wooden floor broke Layne's concentration. When he turned to see who it was, his heart fluttered. She was so beautiful. Long, blonde hair. Bright green eyes. Barely any make-up on her face & she was clothed in a classy peach-colored dress that ended just above the knee.

Her smile brightened her face, making her look all the more gorgeous. She knelt down next to him, holding a glass of water infront of him. "Here, drink this," she ordered softly.

He kept his gaze on her as he took a drink of the water. When she held a pill infront of him, he stopped, giving her a weird look.

"...do you even remember me?" She asked, her head tilted.

Layne just blinked, still dumbfounded by how much of a knock-out she was.

She smirked, gently taking the glass from Layne's hand. "Guess you don't recognize me because I'm not in my scrubs," she said, giggling sweetly. "I'm Briana, the nurse that took care of you in the narcotic detox wing? You were Dr. Ryan's patient--"

"I remember you," he croaked. He cringed at his voice, his eyes dropping away from her face in shame.

She held up the pill again, beaming that white smile at him. "It's suboxone."

He bit his lip, glancing back at her. "That stuff gives me head-aches..."

"It's better than going through opiate withdrawal, isn't it?" She asked. She smiled wide as she watched him take it from her & swallow it down. "I already gave you some earlier, when I first got you here." She got up from the floor, taking a seat next to the couch. "You've been passed out all day... You're okay though, your pulse was low but it wasn't detrimental. Think you passed out from dehydration, either that or--"

"Don't you have a husband or something..." Layne interrupted, eyeing her.

She gave him a confused look. "What?"

"I mean...why would you take some stupid junkie in that you only know because his friends tossed him into a hospital," he blurted. His face burned, immediately turning back away from her. His eyes stung with tears. "I mean, you're gorgeous, what the fuck would you want to do with someone like me..."

Briana sighed, placing her hand on his shoulder. She smirked sadly down at him as he turned back to look at her, a tear running down his cheek. "You passed out right in front of me, I couldn't just leave you there," she frowned, resting her head into the palm of her hand and gazing straight into his eyes. "You're a good person, Layne. Whether you recognize it or not."

"Lady!!! How would you know?" Layne snapped. His eyes widened when he realized what he called her. Just like back in the hospital. He grinned when he saw her laugh.

"Is that my nickname from you now or something?" She asked him. She winked at him to let him know she was kidding.

"Sorry..." He squeaked, laughing lightly. Damn, this is the first time I've laughed in weeks... he thought to himself.  His eyes watered again, making him squeeze them shut.

"Don't be sorry, I think it's cute," she soothed, rubbing his shoulder. "But I know you're a good person. I could tell. You really care about your friends."

Layne grunted, keeping his eyes on the television screen. "If I cared about my friends, why am I strung out again..."

"Your friends aren't good for you."

Layne immediately sat up & glared at her.

"Layne, you should lie down--"

"What do you mean they're not good for me?" He asked. His heart fluttered in his chest, holding up his hand to her. "Not that I'm offended! I'm just...I don't know, no one's told me that..."

She smiled, "it's okay, Layne, I understood what you meant..." She giggled as she watched him sigh with relief. "Your friends... I mean...yeah, they helped you get into the hospital. They saved your life. But I could tell straight away that you were going to relapse when you got out. The first night you were in there, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM showed up under the influence. Sean even allowed you to drink some of his alcohol--"

"How do you know that?" Layne interrupted, scratching at his scalp nervously.

She rolled her eyes. "I heard Mike yelling it from the hall, Layne... I'm a nurse."

Layne's eyes widened again. "Damn, lady, you're nosy."

She laughed, watching him blush when he realized he called her 'lady' again. "Anyways, also, Dr. Ryan is pretty upset that you escaped with Alex ScottFrea & Nicole Garder..."

"What the fuck, is his last name actually ScottFrea?!" Layne exclaimed.

She smiled, nodding. "Yeah, the whole staff found it pretty ironic."

Layne smirked at her, chugging the rest of his water. "Am I in legal trouble for that..."

She shook her head. "You didn't steal the key card, Alex did," she said. "But I was upset to find out that you didn't continue with treatment."

"Sorry," he muttered, his expression sullen. He immediately grimaced, his hand clutching his stomach.

Briana tapped out of the room & came back with a mug & another pill. She handed it to him, watching him as his face twisted with confusion. "It's a stool softener...I assumed since you were looking at colon cleansers, you were blocked up...considering opiates can cause constipation..."

"Oh god that's embarrassing," he blurted, face red.

She laughed as she watched him squirm in disgust after swallowing the pill and drinking the substance in the cup. "It's a protein shake..."

"It's fucking NASTY, what the fuck?!" Layne shrieked. He tried to hand it back to her but she wouldn't budge. "What the fuck are you trying to do to me, lady?!"

"I'm trying to help you, geeze," she laughed. "You're obviously vitamin deficient and there wasn't any ensure in CVS for some odd reason..."

He groaned when he caught her giving him that familiar stern look. He shut his eyes tight & gulped the protein shake down quickly, shoving it into her hand afterwards.

She laughed as she started back out the room. "You know, I really missed you," she called out from her kitchen.

"I don't understand why..."

She tapped back into the room, giving him a sad look. "You really don't know how good of a person you really are, do you?"

Layne bit his lip. He didn't know what to say to that. Well, he did, but he didn't want to admit it to a woman like Briana.

She placed her hand under his chin, making him look back up at her. "I'm going to help you. You deserve another chance... You deserve to be happy."

He just sat there, shocked. He watched her graceful movements as she helped him lie back down on the bed, wrapping him up in her girly pink kitten blanket. This seemed too surreal to him.

Could this be real...?