Chapter Text
“Hello, are you there? You damn idiot!” It was Max, and he's scolding me this time for something I didn't even do. I was too spaced out to notice his yelling for the past hour.
“I’m sorry, but I wasn’t even the one who crashed your car?” I huffed, “Maybe check if it was Rable?” I’m more than sure it was Rable; she's blonde and stupid, of course, she’d crash Max’s car, considering he's head over heels for a dumb waste of oxygen and automatically takes her word. I ain’t no sexist but, Rable is mad dumb. I’ve never met such a stupid person in my life. She is quite literally the type of person to stick her cellphone into a microwave, believing it would charge her phone.
“Are you assuming my girl did such an act? I’m not giving you the keys to my car anymore.” Max is definitely just as stupid; there's no way this guy actually thinks I did it when it was his girlfriend at the crash site. She just called me to check out the crash, and I went to investigate. Then Max showed up and assumed I was responsible, and his girlfriend pinned the blame on me as well. What an idiot.
“I am not assuming, Max, I am telling you that she crashed your cheap car, and now I can’t use it either because she crashed it.” At this point, I’m practically yelling at this dumbo.
“You know what, don’t crash at my place for the next week, I don’t want to talk about this.”
“What? But I don’t have anywhere else to sleep? Come on, tell me you’re joking.” I can’t afford to sleep at my own house with my ex, Raven. I can’t really move out either, as it’s actually her house, but she said I could stay at her house for however long I needed, as long as I give her fifty whole dollars per night, which is hotel prices for sleeping at someone's house that resembles much of a dog pound.
“Well, you’re on your own.” Max shrugged off my entire situation as usual, and he continued calling the mechanic to come fix his car, so I decided to walk over to my ex’s place.
I lost my house recently due to unpaid bills, I slipped into my annual depression again, and I had to choose my medications over my bills. Being off my medications makes me feel horrible. I need it to survive, and I'm fully dependent on it. I never had a car because I was too broke and never had a stable job until now, and yet they pay me minimum wage, so I can barely live anymore. It hurts, it really does, and Max forces me to suffer for other people’s mistakes.
I open the door, and the first thing I’m greeted with is the stench of the uncleaned house, and I just see her lying on the couch with no shame in the world.
“Hey, so you’ve finally come around. Make sure to tip me when you’re done for the night, or nights.” She had made a sneering remark along with that comment under her breath, but I wasn’t able to hear it, so I don’t care much. I dig into my bag to find my wallet, and there's around 75 dollars counted, as my paycheck is probably next week.
“I can only stay for one night. Max kicked me out again.”
“What for?” She seemed a little curious at the question, but still her usual serious self.
“He thought I crashed his car; it was his girl, but he wouldn’t take my word for it, despite all the proof I’ve shown.” I have thoughts rushing through my head, and I have forgotten to take my medication for probably two-ish days..? I don’t even know anymore, but I can feel my thoughts rushing back into my head. Still in her living room, I dig into my bag to look for my mood stabilizers, but I can’t find them, and I can’t find them, and I still can’t find them. I’m done for.
“It’s fine, I’ll just go to sleep for now, no need to worry.” I smile back at her, trying to reassure her that I’m going to be fine, I will be fine.
I walk up to the bedroom, and it smells equally as bad, but I’d rather live in stench than sleep out on the cold streets again. Sitting in bed, staring up, I still try to retrace my steps to find my medications, but no matter how many times I go back, I cannot find them. It felt like it was just erased from my memory. It's the middle of winter 1987, and during the winter I’m usually depressed, which isn’t so great for me, but it's somewhat better than the times I'm… overly energetic. Be me for one second and understand how I can’t complete a basic task because I’m either too depressed and rotting in bed, or I’m going insane and making the most reckless decisions.
“I’m going to sleep, goodnight!” Shouting across the hall so she’d hear me. I wasn’t actually going to sleep because I couldn't afford melatonin either. I will just pretend like I can sleep for tonight and lay off my thoughts.
“Wake up, pay up.” It was Raven, and she was standing over my bed when it was only seven in the morning.
“It’s in my wallet, grab it yourself.” I had a very sleepless night, tossing and turning, emotionally breaking down around three times or so, lost track after the fifth one, or was it the second?
Reaching into my bag, I grab my phone and dial Max. I'll just apologize as if it were my fault for the accident, because nowadays, everything is my fault.
“Hey Max, thanks for picking up. May I apologize for the inconvenience I caused? I’m really sorry.”
“You are going to pay for all the damages, and by the way, come get your stupid medications. My buddy told me if I tried some of the chemicals in your medications, I’d get the same effect as LSD.” I’m dumbfounded. This idiot actually just took my medications because he’s a wannabe stoner and thought it would make him high.
“Don’t tell me you took most of them, please, I’m begging you, I need those medications.” I was crying over the phone at this point. I need my medications. I absolutely need them.
“You seem pretty hooked, that’s not good. I’ll keep these for now until you lay off your addiction. By the way, these meds work well as an LSD substitute.” He shut the call in my face. What the hell am I going to do without them? But I can afford new medications, I have 25 dollars left in my wallet.
Walking down the street, I arrive at the drugstore, and I’m right, the medications are about 23 dollars total, and I’m able to get another bottle.
“That will be 23.50.” Dang, that cash register looked pretty tired, and it’s only about 7:40 am, probably a long shift. I gladly open my wallet just to see no money left. Absolutely no money. My ex took it all untruthfully, and I was naive enough to fall for it.
“Are you going to pay or what? You’re holding up the line.” The register line was angry now, but what was I supposed to say?
“Can I just pay you guys later? I can’t afford it right now, but I really need these medications.” I slip my fingers over the pill capsule, letting my thoughts run free along my mind, until I mindlessly start my dash for the exit door, but the cash register already locked the door.
“Security! We have a thief.” That stupid cash register, I’m going to knock him out the second I get the chance to.
“You’re the fifth shoplifter this week. What's the problem?” The security guard was about my height, maybe a little taller, but he seemed nice enough to be manipulated into letting me shoplift an item.
“What do you mean by problem? Everyone comes here to treat their mental issues, the ones that torment our, especially my mind! Why would we shoplift otherwise? I seriously need this medication, just let me have it.” I tried to replicate the charm that Max does whenever he wants to manipulate somebody, but it did not appear to work. “I beg you.” I pleaded.
He looked at me for a second and just sighed. “I’ll pay for your medications; you don’t owe me anything.”
“No way, really?” Holy moly, I’ve never met somebody compassionate like this; maybe all my friends just suck.
“Yeah, just take them and get out of here, don’t cause any more trouble in the future.” He had a low voice; it’s hard to hear him, but that doesn’t matter. I finally have my medications.
Twenty-two whole years on this planet, and I still can’t find anything to do with my time. All these situations have me thinking if my friends are really my friends. I know about how Max can be a pain sometimes, but he has potential. DeeDee, though, is probably better than Max. I’m still walking down the street to my job since Max likely won’t ever let me near his baby, but I’d like to differ, as his car is mad cheap, but it’s fine, I like to walk.
“Hey John! Why are you walking out in the cold?” I heard a familiar voice from across the street, but I know this area. The teenage Peppermint. Who even names their child Peppermint?
“Peppermint, first thing, shut up, don’t call me John, and second, Max won’t let me borrow his car ever since that idiot he calls his girlfriend crashed it.” I gripped my jacket tighter and refused to look Peppermint in the eye. Though she is a very nice and genuine person to be around, she can be quite annoying at times. She runs this giant shop that sells, apparently, everything in the universe and has infinite stock, but I don’t believe it, as she can’t even lend me a few dollars.
“No need to be such a grump, I can lend you a ride if you need it!” She’s still yelling across the street, but I roll my eyes and head on. She’s only 15, so I doubt she knows what I need. I don’t need her.
I finally arrived at my job. I work as a mechanic for this crappy car place that looks like the type of area you’d deal drugs in. We have quite literally been knocked at our door twice by the cops because some people, no idea if they were serious or pranking us, reported us for drug dealing.
“Johnathan, you’re half an hour late. Where the hell were you?” My boss Hank barked across the shop, walking towards me as I checked in. “It’s 11:32.”
“I was grabbing my medications, my friend thought it would be funny to take my current supply.” I had made the mistake of setting the tone of that sentence as if I hated my boss, which I don’t, but he’s controlling at times.
“Don’t speak to me in that tone, Johnathan. Get to the back; we have a customer, and everyone else called in sick today.” He scolded me, “Your medications mean nothing compared to the work you owe me; you’ve been late a million times this week!”
I check the back of the store, and to my surprise, I see my favorite clown, Max.
“Oh, it’s you, fix my car, slave.” His car was absolutely totaled, and he thought it was fixable.
“The front is completely gone, most of your windows are broken, and your engine is practically diagnosed with stage four cancer. Go get a new car.” I heard a cough behind me and saw my boss giving me an angry look, as if I was supposed to fix this car. Fixing his car is the equivalent of trying to find a cure for cancer; it’s simply impossible to do.
“Actually, I think it’s able to be fixed,” My boss pushed me to the side and assured Max of something I can’t do. “We are very sorry about the inconvenience of this employee; he will get your car fixed in no time!” He turned to me and hissed in my ear with a very harsh tone, “You will fix this car; I’m not missing out on any good paycheck.”
…
It’s almost 9 pm, and I spent around 10 hours trying to fix his car, and it is actually looking better, but I had to replace the entire front of the car, engine, radiator, wheels, basically everything in the front half of the car.
“Johnathan, it's almost time to go home. I don’t pay for overtime.” Hank wasn’t even appreciative of my work, and he just took it for granted. All of my work is worthless, I don’t contribute anything to this society.
“My apologies, I’ll pack up in a bit.” My voice dragged like a dead weight. My mind flickers a memory, I don’t have any money and can’t crash anywhere, until it suddenly came to me. My last hope, Peppermint.
I’m trotting over to Peppermint’s shop, as she had named it “Quarter Second Shop”, which is a stupid name in my opinion, but she’s only so young, she’ll understand eventually how stupid that name is. I feel a little unstable, but I can’t take more medications today than I already have, so I pull out of my bag a half-empty pack of cigarettes and my trusty old lighter. My friend, Stultus, calls me a chronic smoker, but he really can’t be talking, as he’s a raging alcoholic. I really don’t believe how smoking could be bad; all it does is keep me at peace, so I keep my cigarette in my mouth without a second thought. How much longer do I have to walk until I’m there? My body started feeling heavy in my legs, and my head started hurting. My body was screaming for rest.
“So, you came to me because you have nowhere to sleep? Awesome, I have a spare bedroom in the room over there.” Peppermint had spoken to me like a Mother, her house,or shop, you could say, had a sweet aroma of floral lavender and was completely spotless. I always found her quite strange. She doesn’t appear to have any parental figure, and her dog, Jingo, apparently was from a different dimension, which is common here in Silvanox, as most of the people here aren't human. As I sat down in the bed, Jingo came into the room and jumped on me. I hated the way Jingo felt, he was made out of a slime-like substance and constantly felt wet, despite not leaving any marks of water on me, and his eyes lay on a bone mask. I lifted him off me and put him on the dog bed beside me so he could sleep, and I actually do find him quite a cute, thoughtful creature.
I forgot to buy melatonin along with my medications, so I couldn’t sleep again, and I want to know my answer for that. A cigarette. As I was lighting one up, it only took two minutes for Peppermint to come scampering into my room, telling me if I wanted to smoke, I could do it outside.
“I forgot to purchase melatonin from the store, and I just want to relax so I can sleep more easily.” Peppermint just stared at me before slowly inhaling and giving me the most disappointed look.
“You could have just asked me for some.” She sighed. “I have everything here.”
“You’re not going to charge me for it?” Usually, she charges me for anything I ask of her, but maybe I’m just overreacting over my past experiences.
“No, absolutely not! You look really tired.” Her eyes sparkled with hope; despite knowing my situation, she had faith in me.
“Well, thank you, I guess,” I muttered. She went ahead and got me some melatonin pills and a glass of water.
“Rest easy, Johnathan.” She whispered, holding the door slightly ajar with her head sticking out, before closing the door so the only light shining on me was the moonlight from the window. She cared about me; somebody finally cared about me.