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TITLE: Get Better SEASON: 1 — ? LOVE INTEREST: Jamal Turner OC NAME: Joaquin Ruiz* FACE CLAIM: Jake T. Austin
DESCRIPTION: ❝I SWEAR TO GOD I'LL GET BETTER FOR HIM,❞ HE SAYS, AND WITH THAT HE'S OUT AGAIN.
EXTENDED SUMMARY: It had been going on for so long that Joaquin had no idea when it all first started. He knew it was because of his brother — who else? — and he knew it kept going on because his mother turned a blind eye on everything that concerned her children.
The years went by and with each number that he added to his age, the more drugs he was doing by week. Days were a blur of hangovers and new doses. Nights were spent awake, high as the stars he was under. He began to show up wasted to school. He stopped worrying about the world around him. He began to smile less. His friends stopped hanging out with him and instead all they could see is was empty body, with its ghost locked away somehwere in his own unbreakable prison.
And then he declared his unconditional love for his best friend. When morning came, all he remembered from the night before was Jamal taking him home, tucking him into bed, kissing his forehead goodnight, and then Joaquin's own hoarse voice as he promised the boy he loved that he would get better. For him, he would do anything, actually. Jamal told him they'd talk about it in the morning. They didn't talk about what Joaquin wanted to talk about.
With a little help from his friends, he managed to afford rehab at a small facility just outside of Los Angeles. All that allowed him to keep going was the thought of him, and his promise of waiting for his return, and the lips he had finally tasted before he had to get on the bus.
Imagine how quickly Joaquin's fantasies crumbled when he came back to Freeridge before high school began, only to find out that Jamal hadn't been waiting for him at all. They went to something to nothing, and all Joaquin wanted to do was drink.
(And he couldn't even do that. Stupid heart for holding onto promises that didn't matter anymore. Stupid heart for going into cardiac arrest with every glance he sent his way. Stupid heart for loving this much. How was he supposed to get better again?)
NOTES: — really shitty summary sorry i want to sleep
— this plot needs to be treated with the seriousness and respect it deseves. if you're going to treat the story like it's nothing & not do the appropriate research then don't write it. read testimonies, inform yourself. addiction is not a joke y'all
— and before anyone shows up saying that "he's too young to be doing drugs nd addicted 11!!!!1!1!1" half the kids in my year have been doing lsd since they were like 15 (and don't get me started on coke). one of them couldn't get out of bed without snorting a line before class (he's trying to stay clean now) the world ain't a white suburban neighborhood. so. yeah. shit's rough
— joaquin's older brother was the one who got him into drugs because he was addicted himself. joaquin started consuming weed when he was 11 / 12 and quickly moved on to crack cocaine and other drugs
— he's always been part of the gang and his friends love him with all their heart but they never knew how to help him. they couldn't send him into rehab if he didn't want to and joaquin always found a way to get his hands on more
— joaquin has been crushing on jamal since forever
— JOAQUIN IS SUPERB GAY BTW THIS CAN'T CHANGE
— everything is angst
— jamal becomes distant once joaquin comes back because he, being jamal, is obviously freaking out on the inside 25/8
— HAVE JOAQUIN STRUGGLE. you don't recover with a snap of your fingers. staying clean is difficult and complicated and it should be in the story + his friends will probably treat him like he's made of glass or something, and that'll frustrate him endlessly
— things should start going downhill for joaquin around christmas, maybe? he's lonely ;(
— have him realize that the reason why he isn't getting better is because he has to do it for himself !!!!!!!
— once joaquin is somewhat stable and in terms with what he's dealing with, they should probably end up together. these babies deserve happiness
