I received a courtesy call from the Your Highnesses of Geffen Records during my day off. It was just King Axl Rose yelling on the other line, "Where the fuck is Emilia when we need her?! Get her here now!"
I never like people with that attitude and I would've ditched them if it weren't for Saul and Duff who sounded terribly worried, besides my senses were tingling, telling me that something could be wrong.
Going to Hermosa where Steven currently lived, I tried to think over what he could have possibly done. We were together a few weeks ago as we planned to take Lennon and his new pug Misty for a walk. He was just fine, though I had to lent him some money because he lost his wallet or some jerk pick-pocketed him while we were stopping by the park to watch a children's skateboarding competition.
When I got to the 2-storey house, I knocked loudly on the door. Izzy opened it slightly and stuck his head out.
"Dude, where's Steven?"
"He's back inside." Izzy said and was about to close the door but I wedged it with my foot.
"What's wrong? Am I not welcome in this house anymore?" I asked humorously.
"No, it's not like that," Izzy shook his head. "We got him, Em. Everything's under contr---"
"MOTHERFUCKER!!!" Then came the sound of things breaking.
I glared at Izzy, pushing him to the side as I got in. "Sometimes, I just can't understand you boys. Y'all are much complicated to talk to.." I grumbled while swiftly walking through the hallway. Izzy jogged to keep up. I heard a child-like giggle coming from the living room.
"Dios mio!" I quickly hid behind Izzy. "Why is he like that?!"
"Yeah that's something you weren't supposed to see," he mumbled.
Steven was lying on the floor, naked liked a newborn. He was drooling and his eyes were wide open like he was looking at things on the ceiling.
"Come on! Let's cover him up with a blanket or something!"
Izzy ran and searched the rooms while I elevated Steven's upper body and softly slapped his face to see if his eyes could focus into mine. He blinked, but his sight remained upwards. Saul and Duff went downstairs.
"He still hasn't moved yet?" they asked together.
"He blinked." I said faintly. Izzy came back with a large blue towel and he wrapped it around Steven's waist. The boys carried him and lie him down on the couch. "You never told me what happened to him..."
"Steven had too much crack, Emilia." Saul said with a sullen expression. My chest tightened after hearing the culprit behind the incident.
"He never came to the studio and we all went here to check him." Duff added. "And we found him like this."
"Oh no... This is so bad..." My lips began to quiver. I could never bear seeing Steven or any of my loved ones in this condition. Saul put a hand on my shoulder, telling me that Steven would soon return to his old self. "Could you guys bring me a basin of cold water and a washcloth?"
Duff and Izzy went to get what I requested. Saul offered to get some clothes for Steven once he regains real consciousness. All he did was either giggle or stare at the huge blank space.
"Emilia..." My head turned to Axl's deep, anxious voice. "When do you think will his high subside?"
"I...I don't know...after a few hours maybe?" I looked at Steven and back at the redhead.
"Fuckin' great," he said through gritted teeth. "We're recording some fuckin' songs in about a fuckin' hour and here he is barely moving!"
"Will you stop cursing?!" I raised my voice and I felt Steven flinched a little. He was reacting to stimulus. Thank God. "You're right, he's barely moving yet you worry more about your recording. Some friend you are..."
Axl clenched his fists and snarled, "You're a damn nurse! There's must be something you can do!"
"I'm a caregiver, not a nurse."
"Fucking hell! We have no use for you then!"
"Don't you dare talk to her that way." I heard Saul say. He was staring daggers at Axl. I looked at Saul and shook my head no. As much as I wanted to charge at Axl, none of us wouldn't want trouble and fight one another with our friend being unwell.
"Emilia seems to know what to do, William." Izzy said. He and Duff put the basin beside me.
I soaked the small cloth in the cold water, squeezed it and dabbed it all over Steven's face, neck and down to his arms and chest. I didn't stop until Steven flinched again and started to respond to my touch.
"Mhmmm..." he stirred, suddenly gasping. He looked around and saw the guys who came up and hugged him. Well, all the guys except Axl. He felt like the world was against him so he stormed away.
"Welcome back to reality, man." Duff ruffled Steven's hair.
"Get your hands off me, Duffy." Steven swatted Duff's hands away but was laughing.
"You scared us a little, Popcorn." Izzy said. "How did you get the whole pack anyhow and where'd you get the money for it? I thought Axl made Alan take hold of your bank account..."
"You're asking too many questions, Izz. It's all your fault y'all took my spaghetti." Steven leaned back and sighed. I guess there was still some tick of drugs in his system. He looked at me through his tired eyes, saying "Girl, I don't know what could happen to me if you weren't here..."
"How about, Axl would have kicked your naked, coke-addicted butt out of the band by now." Saul spoke. "That could happen."
"Preach, oh Reverend," Steven murmured.
I left the boys to talk on their own.
I had enough caffeine in the morning and yet my head ached. No matter how I look at it, I just can't understand the logic. They kept doing drugs and when one them gets kicked hard, they tell them to straighten up and everyone returns happily to step one.
The balcony held a beautiful sight of the sea. I stood there for a long while and let the wind blow my hair in different directions. I eventually slipped out without saying goodbye. The others weren't around and Steven was sleeping soundly so I was done staying there.
The next day, I just got home from work and found an unexpected guest inside the house.
"You gave him money, didn't you?"
"I did. Poor guy lost his wallet about two weeks ago. Why?"
Saul then said how Steven was able to get a new stash of drugs with the money I lent him. I felt bad knowing that I somehow contributed to fuel the madness our friend had.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know he'd use it to sustain his crap..." I said. "He even told me before he had stop with the substance that he had switched back to weed."
"And you believed him.." Saul laughed in a mocking manner. "We can't trust his word, Emilia. Look what happened to him yesterday, we had to cancel the recording all because of him!"
I didn't like the tone of his voice. "I already said I'm sorry! What else do you want me to say?! You think I enjoy knowing you guys this way..unable to function because either one or all of you are stoned? You know what, it's not just Steven. It's all of you." I said, pointing a finger at him. "Yes. Don't think that I never saw you do that shit.. The pills, coke and syringes..you call it smack right? During Mandy and Duff's reception, I saw you sneak out with Izzy and Steven and I was confident that it was needle marks and bulging veins I saw on your arms when you came back to the party that night.."
"Good observation, then. But where are you getting at?!" he stepped closer to me in an almost intimidating way but I didn't let it get me.
"All I want to say is, all of you are hooked in drugs, not just Steven. If you want him to quit, then you quit as well which is for the best. It is what I think..."
"To hell with what you think Emilia," Saul growled and turned his back on me, heading to the door. "Who the fuck do you think you are to tell us what to do?"
A friend? But I guess not anymore. It did hurt to hear but I wasn't going to show how affected I was by his words laced with venom. He just left and I knew it would taked days before one of us talks to the other.
I don't need this, I told myself. Why do I always have to be the bad one? All I wanted was to help. I slumped on the sofa and replayed on my mind the things that had happened lately.
A knock on the door took me back to the present. If it was Saul, trying to apologize I was ready to act like a cold-hearted witch and send him away. He deserved it.
But it wasn't Saul. Outside stood Erin with a bag, shaking in the cold chilly air of the early evening. Her face was stained with dried tears and messy eye make up.
"Erin!" I was surprised she knew where I lived but I let her inside anyway. "W-What brings you here?"
"I...I..." her lips trembled as she still shuddered. I expected she would end up sobbing and she did. "I'm sorry for showing up unexpectedly Emilia... But I don't have anywhere else to go.. Can...can I stay here until I figure out what to do next?"
"You're welcome to stay for as long as you please," I told her as I hugged her.