The two of them approached each other with their instruments as they were about to hit a climactic point.
I'm talking about the tv, of course. The moment had come and my stomach felt like it was gonna turn at any second.
"And the nominees are... the Red Hot Chili Peppers with Blood Sugar Sex Magik...," the presenter said showing a live clip of the band. It was old. John had his red hair and him and Flea were jamming like they always did together.
The presenter slowly opened the envelope.
"And the winner is..."
...
"The Red Hot Chili Peppers with Blood Sugar Sex Magik!!"
My stomach really did turn.
And it did another flip when I kept on watching. The band began walking towards the stage. Anthony, Flea, Chad... and who must've been John's replacement walking behind him. Once they got up on stage, my first instinct was to just yell out Ella's name. And when I say 'yell', I mean it.
A balding man in an open leather jacket, no shirt on... looking near middle age despite actually being in his 20s...
Fucking Arik.
Then I realized Ella wasn't home. She was there. At the fucking ceremony. Seeing this go down. I felt faint.
I wanted to call John because I had a feeling he was watching too. I mean I didn't know for sure but I just had a feeling he wouldn't miss it even if it made him feel awful. It just seemed like a him thing to do, I guess.
However, I didn't call. What I did was sit still, frozen in sheer horror as Arik grabbed the golden gramophone belonging to John. At the end of Anthony's lispy speech, however, Chad (un?)intentionally stood in front of Arik, covering all of him. It made me giggle... a nervous reaction at its best.
I was curled up on the couch when I finally heard Ella's keys rattle at the door.
I rushed to her. She knew exactly what I was thinking and we just began conversing about it immediately.
That's what I loved about our friendship; she could've told me about her boy shenanigans but she didn't because we'd both just prioritized Arik right now. OK, that sounds wrong but you know what I mean.
After like an hour of hysterics, Ella'd convinced me to search up John. I knew it was the right thing to do but I was scared... I didn't know what to expect of him once I'd find him.
Three knocks on his apartment door.
"John?"
No answer.
I kept knocking and ringing the out-of-tune doorbell. After a while I heard footsteps slowly approaching on the other side of the door. Actually, it was more like dragging and not stepping.
The door opened just a crack and I took a deep breath before sneaking into John's moonlit apartment. I wasn't saying anything... just moving towards the light I saw coming from his kitchen nook. It was the only light that was on.
"John...?" I muttered before my heart sank.
John was hunched over the sink. Next to him lay a broken glass... a cigarette stump...
A spoon.
I covered my mouth in complete shock. My heart was beating, voice breaking as I called out his name again.
And he turned.
His pale skin, eyes dark all over.. his eyelids so relaxed they were almost closed.
His torso, exposed and slightly shivering.. ribs sticking through.
I had to lean against the nearest wall.
John's sickly gaze followed me and a frown formed on his face before he slumped down.
I cried out his name as I rushed to his side. He sat there in a near-fetal position, starting to just rock back and forth. I wrapped my arms around his cold skin. He was covered in sweat, exhaling in fragments. Crying. We both were. I brushed over his upper arm with my thumb as I felt a little mark...
John's cries became louder as he looked up.
"I'm so sorry Eva. I'm so sorry." He kept on repeating it.
Through my tears I saw the needle on the floor.
