"I just need someone to tell me how it is possible that none of your staff noticed that he was being given the wrong dosage!"
"We understand your frustration Mr. Deamonne, and on behalf of all of the staff in this facility, we sincerely apologize."
"Yes, I appreciate the apology, but it doesn't fix the problem at hand. That kid was already so messed up, and with your little mistake , I worry that he'll never be normal again!"
The conversation went on and on, around and around in circles. The staff at the ward would apologize, offer no solutions, and leave an empty apology to fester in the air. Eventually, they offered some monetary compensation, of which Darius chose not to accept. He had absolutely no concept of how much money one was supposed to receive as a result of a mistake as big as the one at hand.
When he stalked out to the car where Camila was waiting, Darius had to take several deep breaths before throwing the door open.
"So?" Camila asked, though she already knew the answer.
"Ugh, these humans are infuriating. I just don't know how to put up with them!" Darius pouted, arms petulantly crossed across his chest.
"Hey, might I remind you that I'm one of those humans you speak so lowly of?" Camila pointed out with a touch of fondness in her voice.
"I don't mean you or Luz, just everybody else. But you see my point, right?"
"Sí señor, I do. This is a very frustrating situation. We just need to keep fighting for what is right, even if it's hard." The woman encouraged while shaking her head, loose curls bouncing softly.
"I don't even know what I believe is right anymore, Camila. I thought that by bringing him here and getting him meds, I was doing the right thing. But now Hunter's even worse off, and his recovery will take even longer..."
"Recovery is something you and he will spend your whole lives doing, Darius. You never 'stop' recovering. It gets easier, sure, but you gotta work at it every day. When my husband passed away, I had to learn how to move forward without him. I carry the sadness of his death every day, but now I know how to live with it, work with it, and grow with it. Hunter will be the same, it will just take time."
"...I guess you're right. I just want him to be okay." The Coven head replied after a long, thoughtful pause.
Camila smiled. "I want you to be okay, too!"
"Me too. I've been looking into therapy. I think it would be good to try, especially so that I can see what it's like for Hunter's sake. Maybe if he sees me do it, he'll be more comfortable in his own sessions."
"I think that's a great idea."
They chatted in her car for a little longer. Their conversations provided a moment for them both to breathe and reflect, which was especially vital on the days that Hunter struggled the most.
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The boy himself was having a hell of a time getting his feet back under him. Slowly, his memory was becoming more reliable and consistent... but he still had moments where he couldn't recall several hours at a time.
Hunter was also grappling with the news that the hospital staff had told him: From accidentally being overdosed on Sertraline, to bleeding out internally through his stomach, and severe bouts of amnesia, this news was not exactly treating him well. It didn't help that during the earliest stages of his recovery, he'd forgotten that they'd informed him of all of this. His doctors had to retell him several times.
Keeping track of time was perhaps the most difficult task. As the bleeding in his stomach began to improve with the absence of Sertraline, he began to experience severe withdrawal symptoms. The hospital's plan was to allow his stomach to heal up, and then put him to take a very low dose of Sertraline, and eventually wean him off the medication.
It sounded like an easy plan in theory, but in actuality it was incredibly difficult. Hunter frequently experienced something called 'brain zaps' or at least that was what the doctor told them that's what they were called. They felt awful. Electricity shivered through his brain, like touching a metal surface and getting shocked from built up static, but inside his brain.
The second worst symptom was the immense brain fog. It left him confused and spaced out for long periods of time. The fog made it hard for him to do anything for more than just a few minutes, and he would frequently find himself midway through tasks with no idea what he was trying to do. Hunter felt like he was constantly in a loop of walking through doorways and forgetting what he was doing, but without having to walk through a doorway.
Because of the damage to his physical body, the blonde had incredibly low energy. He was so underweight and had lost so much blood that even simple or small tasks quickly wore him out. Combining this symptom with the fog and the zaps really made him easily irritable and frustrated. Darius, in the spirit of being bold, pointed this out during one of his daily visits.
"I know a lot of things are probably really frustrating right now, but you seem extra irritable. I'm not pointing this out to piss you off, but is there anything I can do to help?"
Hunter ground his teeth and scratched at his arms. They'd clipped his nails during a particularly long and deep nap the other day, and the feeling of being unable to sink his nails into his skin was just the hate-filled cherry on top.
"I hate being tired all the time."
Darius hummed in acknowledgement. "That's pretty understandable that you're tired, a lot of stuff has really sucked the energy out of you in the last few weeks. Just take your time and rest."
"I feel like I've been resting for months at this point, and I've only been getting worse and worse." Hunter countered.
"Yeah... there's been a lot of shitty stuff that's happened these past few months, I won't lie. But it'll get better"
"Everyone always says that, but I've yet to see it actually happen!" The teenager exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air out of frustration. "I'm so... I just... ugh."
Darius raised an eyebrow. "You're... what?"
"Nevermind, I'm fine."
"Hunter, I'll give you this offer this one time, and one time only. You clearly have a lot going on in your head, and I can tell that you need to speak your mind. I know in the past I haven't... exactly... been the best listener, and I haven't always been understanding. But if you're looking for an opportunity to really lay it all out, this is it."
Hunter looked away for a moment, turning his face to stare out the window while he bit at his bottom lip. Darius waited with bated breath, the silence filling the room like a black hole.
"... I've been... so fucking angry at everything, for months! Months and months, Darius! I've felt so damn close to losing my shit, like I could just snap and freak out and scream and yell at everything, even though most of the people around me have nothing to do with what's been happening. Ever since I started taking the stupid Sertraline, I've felt so fucking angry, and lost, and numb . I don't..." Tears began to well at his eyes, and he raked a hand through his messy hair.
"Cry if you need to." Darius piped in.
Wet, salty tears dripped onto the pristine white bed sheets. "I don't even know who I am anymore. I don't have Flapjack, my body's covered in scars, I can't sleep at night, 'n I'm stuck taking this stupid medication, even though it doesn't make me feel better. It doesn't make me feel anything ! What's the good in that, Darius?!"
"There is no good in that, Hunter. The whole point of the medication was to help you feel like yourself again, not like an empty pit."
Hunter was really starting to get riled up, but at least he was finally telling the truth. "I've been wanting to say something f-for months ... It's b-been months... I've just been so scared that I-I'd disappoint you. I didn't wanna waste Camila's money. I sh-should just be grateful for your help, why can't I just be grateful?"
"You grew up getting punished for speaking up, kid. I don't blame you for having a hard time with it. But you're not with Belos anymore, Camila and I aren't gonna hurt you for needing things."
"I've been hallucinating Belos's head for so long..."
The statement made Darius freeze. The adult had known that during the worst of Hunter's initial delusions, he'd seen Belos in the room. But... Hunter's statement implied that the kid had been hallucinating for way longer than that.
"Wait wait wait, back up. How long have you been having hallucinations?"
"I don't even know... think it started a few weeks after I first got prescribed the medication..."
Darius was flabbergasted. Had Hunter been seeing his fucking dead uncle for that long ? And he hadn't said anything ? "I'm sorry, I think I'm having a hard time comprehending; You're telling me that you've been seeing your dead , tyrannical Uncle ... for almost the entire time you've been on medication?"
Hunter shrank into the bed and clumsily wiped tears away from his face. His voice was painfully quiet when he spoke. "Please don't be mad, I swear I tried my best to get better, I don't know what's wrong with me."
"Little prince, this isn't your fault at all. I wish you'd spoken up sooner, but I just - I had no idea."
Rogue tears continued to slip down Hunter's cheeks. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry for everything, for all the hassle and stress and -"
"Hey, don't start with that stuff. You don't have anything to apologize for. Remember, I chose to get involved in all of this, and I'm gonna make sure that we both see it through. We're both in tough situations. In fact, everybody is. Right now, you and I just need to focus on getting better."
Hunter was trying his best to breathe deeply. After a few seconds, he managed to find his mental footing again, and he nodded.
"Can we make a promise about something?" Darius spoke, after giving the kid a few seconds to stabilize.
"... What."
"If you and I want to get better, we both need to start telling each other the truth about what's going on. Can we both promise to tell each other the truth about everything, even if it's not easy?" Darius's heart thundered as he made the request.
"Okay. But that means that we both have to tell the truth! When something's going on with you, you need to say something too. No more of this 'I'm Darius and I'm too cool to express any other emotion besides confidence ' bullshit" Hunter said, making quotes with his fingers.
Darius scoffed, but a little smile found its way to his lips. "Fine, fine. I suppose I could indulge in one little request."
Hunter smiled back, a tiny and shaky thing. "If we're gonna be honest and make requests with each other, I suppose I do have a request to make of my own."
Darius's eyebrows shot upwards. "Oh? And what's that?"
Hunter sighed, and gripped the sheets around his legs. "I want to go back to the Boiling Isles."