FLATLINE // kazuscara

7

T/W: Mentions of alcohol abuse & excessive smoking

His phone on the coffee table was ringing. He barely managed to reach for it. 

Accidentally knocking a few bottles over, the glass material bounced on the table. Kazuha's insides twisted, praying to God they weren't going to be shattered. Thankfully, they were all just in his imagination. 

He smudged over the 'accept call' button, letting his phone plop onto his chest as he dropped his head back onto the armrest of his sofa. With the last slivers of energy, he kept himself awake. Just enough to hear what the person on the other side would say, not like he had any idea who the caller was, anyway. He never bothered to check the caller ID.

"Hey, Kazuha!" the other side beamed, he let out a rasped hum in response. 

"Just wanted to check-in. How's my favorite little brother-in-law doing?" the woman on the other side of the phone chuckled, Kazuha immediately recognized who that voice belonged to. 

Beidou, of course. Girlfriend of his sister, Ningguang. He can't fathom how such a grungy woman like Beidou would manage to rake his sister—Ningguang—completely over her. But it happened. And now, they're in the fifth year of their relationship.

Ningguang discovered only two years ago Kazuha had been abusing alcohol and smoking cigarettes like crazy. They got into a huge fight over this. Kazuha kept insisting it was his life choices, while Ningguang kept stressing about the damage it'll do to his health. 

In the end, they compromised. Kazuha is allowed to keep doing what he's doing—in this case, drinking occasionally and smoking sometimes. But Beidou has to check-in on Kazuha once per week; making sure Kazuha doesn't fall into the pit he dug for himself again.

"Fine," Kazuha dragged out, his eyelids gradually closing. They were heavy, like blankets. Tucking himself into endeared dreams, he allowed his eyes to rest. 

"Doesn't sound fine to me." Beidou's voice suddenly dipped into sternness, "I know that voice. Did you drink any alcohol?" she asked, hoping Kazuha would be drunk enough to admit the verity. 

They both knew Kazuha was the one to spit anything truthfully after drinking. Beidou took this chance to her advantage. 

"Yeah," Kazuha croaked, "a bit, I guess." 

"Say the truth." she threatened. Even through the phone, you can still hear the dominance in her voice. "I'm not letting this go until you tell me what the hell is going on there." 

"Okay, fine, fine." Kazuha breathed, "I'm hungover." 

Beidou sighed, the faint sounds of paper flipping escaped the other side. Beidou was a very mindful person. Too mindful, to Kazuha's favor. He'd rather her forget about the promise they made two years ago to check-in on Kazuha every week. After all, he is a grown adult. He knows when to stop when he feels it's too much. 

But maybe, that's what he thinks.

"And tell me why you decided to be hungover on a Friday night?" she inquired.

"And you tell me why I can't be hungover?" Kazuha snapped, "I'll drink when I want to, Beidou." words trailing off as he felt sleepier. His back slumped.

There was a moment of silence between them. The faint breathing of Kazuha, and the flipping of paper coming from Beidou's side. 

"Your sister," she began, "she wouldn't want to see you hungover like this. Remember the fight you had with her two years ago?" 

"What-ever." he pronounced the words, "It's not like she actually cares about me. All she cares about is money. Money, money, money. She just wants herself to appear as if a sisterly figure. I know damn well she doesn't give a shit about me." he spat out in a single breath.