How Are You True?

Chapter 27: Eventually It All Ends

May 2nd, 2032
Sunday, 11:00am - Las Vegas, Nevada

"I'm not taking any medications," Lauren asserted firmly when Camila set down the newly prescribed bottle of Mysoline, from the emergency room seven hours ago, in front of her plate of croissant and fruits. "I'm sorry but I don't feel comfortable."

Camila dropped her shoulders, stomped her foot and scoffed, canting her head partially to the right. "Lauren, don't do this to me right now. Please don't do this to me right now. I'm tired, I had to stay up for you all night at the ER and watch you in bed in case you had another seizure, I'm exhausted and have a lot of shit to do today and I just need you to make this easy for me. Please, just take it and make me feel secure."

Lauren looked at Camila, back at the bottle then at Camila once again. She leaned forward and snatched it in her hand, skimming over the side effects. "I'm not taking this. I'd rather deal with more seizures than take any of this shit. You kidding me?"

"I dare you to tell me no again," Camila stepped forward and leaned over the table, gripping its edges, shooting the sharpest of daggers with her eyes.

"Or what? You'll force me to?" Lauren rose to her feet and flung the bottle away from her, smacking it into a wall. "Don't threaten me. You don't know what it's like because YOU'RE not the one who ever has to take them! It's always me. Me, me, me, me!"

"Yeah because you're the one with the most problems! Compare you to me, the only thing I have to worry about is a personality disorder—"

"You don't worry about it enough," Lauren retorted, emitting a short laugh.

"I disagree and you're not even close to being right about that. You're gonna tell me you'd rather not take any medications that'll help you live and decrease health risks because of some little side effects but you have no problem swallowing a happy pill with a shitty comedown, snorting lines of coke with obvious risks and dangerous outcomes, or even drowning your liver in alcohol?? You're a fucking idiot," Camila pointed at her then stomped over to retrieve the pill bottle.

"That's different! I'd have to take this shit every day and feel horrible every day. AGAIN. I wouldn't know me anymore and neither will you, I've been here before and it fucking sucks! Excuse me if I'd rather have a choice in what I put in my body—"

"Honey, when you're constantly making stupid choices about what you put in your body, I have to interfere. I'm sorry but I married a fucking child, now TAKE THIS," Camila confronted and held it out to her another time, determined to get what she wanted.

"I wish you'd stop taking care of me," Lauren grumbled and showed her palm to Camila, waiting for a pill to fall into it.

"And I wish you'd start taking care of you so that I don't always have to," Camila closed it back up and placed it on the table. She waited with her arms folded over her chest and watched as Lauren reluctantly put the pill into her mouth, grabbed a glass of water and swallowed it.

"Happy?" she asked after confirming she wasn't hiding it.

"Not yet. You're gonna have to cut alcohol completely out of your life forever, change your diet, take these every day, follow up with treatment, and I want you staying as far away from drugs as possible. I shouldn't have let myself be lenient with you for the sake of having fun, because Lord knows we can't ever have it like we used to anymore, thanks to you," Camila spat with more bite than she had intended. "Seeing you convulsing on the floor like that and you being out of reach is triggering for me, and I'd rather not feel like how I felt years ago when I almost lost you twice. So stop being so fucking selfish and help me keep my sanity. Please. Just because you completely lost yours doesn't mean I have to as well."