Spotlight (Ianthony)

Chapter 07: Ian's Story

"Mr. Padilla, Ian's here." Brett called as I angrily stood up from the couch and and walked outside, slamming the door. I hate this bullshit! Because of Dr. Castlin, I am on an alchol ban for about a month and I'm not allowed to drive for about three days until I fully recover. So now, I have to catch a ride to work with that stupid kid! I haven't had any alcohol or sex in two days and I feel like my head is going to explode. It's DEFIANTLY time to find a new doctor. I walk out to the front of my house to see a cheap ass blue Subaru parked in front of me with the kid sitting in the drivers side. Someone just kill me now, please? I hesitantly get into the passenger seat and buckle my seat belt.

"Don't you dare speak a word to me, kid." I saw him finch from the corner of my eye at the sound of my voice. God, I'm so tired. I only got about an hour of sleep last night and what I did get was so unfulfilling and did not do any good at all. Stupid withdraws! The kid started the car and pulled out of the driveway, not speaking a word or tearing his gaze from the road. Usually, I'm pretty calm when I ride with other people, but with this particular ride, I was a little jumpy. "CAN YOU WATCH WHERE THE FUCK YOU'RE GOING, KID!?" I exclaimed. "DO YOU EVEN HAVE YOUR FUCKING LICENCE!?" The kid shook his head and kept his eyes on the road, not even paying attention to me. "UM, HELLO!?" I yelled. "YOU CAN SPEAK NOW, IDIOT!" The boy sighed and pushed up his sunglasses with his right pointer finger. God, here comes that weird feeling again and with no alcohol to avoid it.

"I didn't even come close to that car; yes, I have my license; and I know you're not very happy about this, but it's for your own good." I scoffed

"You don't know what's for my own good! Only I do!" He laughed.

"Yeah, I guess that's why you were in the hospital two days ago, huh?"

"Shut up, kid." I grumbled.

"My name is not 'kid,' It's Ian."

"Whatever, you still don't know me! You have NO idea what I've been through." He laughed some more.

"You don't know what I've been through, either. You expect people not to judge you, but yet you judge everyone else and expect them to be okay with it." Stupid Ki- Ian.

"I'm pretty sure that what I experienced is worse than anything that you ever have." The car came to a stop as he pulled into the studio.

"Oh really? Worse than this?" He asked as he slid the neck of his t-shirt to the side to reveal a light pink scar about five inches long on the side of his neck.

"What the hell is that?" I asked, still somewhat annoyed but more intrigued than anything.

"My alcoholic father tried to slit my throat because I didn't get him his 18th can of beer. It's a miracle that I'm even alive right now." My jaw dropped as I continued to observe the scar on his neck.

"H-How long ago was that?" I asked, my voice quiet and shaky. He shrugged his shoulders.

"Four maybe five years ago. I'm not sure." I bit my lip a little.

"I-Is that why you knew I had alcoholic poisoning." He nodded.

"Yeah. Daddy used to get poisoned at least once or twice a week. One time I almost lost him, but he pulled through. After he almost killed me, he made a promise to me that he would stop drinking. I thought that things were going to get better without alcohol, but they just got worse. His withdraw symptoms were worse than anything he's ever done to me... Well, besides slitting my throat."

"Didn't your mom do anything about this?" Ian's face fell even more.

"M-My mom died in a car crash when I was ten. Shortly after her funeral was when Daddy started drinking. It started off with just a couple per day, but it got even worse." Holy shit... That's exactly what happened to me.

"O-Oh... I'm sorry. I didn't know tha-"

"It's fine... He's in a better place now...."

"Wait, he's dead too?" Ian bit his lip and nodded, letting a single tear fall down his face.

"Last year, he drunk three bottles of wine and four beers and then went out for a drive... He never came back. I fell into depression short after that. I quit Broadway, collage, and pretty much everything else that made me Ian. I never self harmed or felt like dying, but I didn't feel alive... I was just existing. About six months after his death, I moved here to LA for a fresh start. I tried for months to get a role, but no one wanted a "rookie." That is... Until I met Robert. And the rest is history. Now I'm just trying my best to move on with life. Settle down, get married, have kids, but it's really hard to move on without a loved on. " He finished as he looked over at me as if I was supposed to say something, but I couldn't. I would've never guessed that someone as bubbly as Ian had been to hell and back.

"I-I had no idea.... I'm sorry that you had to go through all of that..." He held his hand up and wiped his tears away with the back of his hand.

"It's okay. That's why I worry about you. When I see you, I see a younger and attractive version of my dad... So I feel obligated to help you even though you don't want it." Wait... Did he just call me attractive? Must be the withdraws making me hear crazy shit.

"You don't need to worry about me. I can handle myself."

"Can you? You seem lost... Like I was when i lost Daddy. It's almost like you're missing something in your life." I bit my lip and shook my head.

"I-I-I think we'd better hurry up and get on set. We're already late." I spoke quickly as I got out of the car and headed towards the make-up trailer. I can't talk about Elise... Not now, not later, not ever. I felt like a different person after hearing Ian's story... I felt more humbled and a lot less angry than ever before. I was so... relaxed and mellow, kind of like my old self. I know that I swore that I would never go back to my old self, but after a day like today, I'm not so sure about my decision now. I don't know how he did it, but I'm sure glad he did because today was probably one of the best days I've had since Elise died, and It was all because of Ian.