As soon as I was discharged, I signed the papers and shuffled slowly out of the hospital. I turned my phone off, and just kept walking. It was like I was in a trance, I paid no attention to where I was going, and I didn’t pay attention to my surroundings at all. I crossed the roads without looking, I tripped over things, I simply didn’t care. Everything seemed hopeless and I didn’t care if I lived or died.
Soon enough I was lost, well outside my neighborhood or any other ones that I knew. It was getting later, and I wondered if anyone knew I was gone yet. I couldn’t stop, I just kept on going, walking and walking and walking. The next time I really opened my eyes, I realized that it was pitch dark out. I was in the middle of a huge, grassy field in the middle of nowhere. I was scared immediately, I was completely lost and I had no one to turn to. I didn’t know who knew I was gone or not, so I didn’t know who to call, and I was afraid they’d think I was crazy and stick me in an asylum. I could hear them now, calling me insane for being this upset. But I couldn’t help it, my mental state had been fragile before this and now I had just snapped. I kind of zoned out again and walked to the edge of the field but a dirt road. I sat in the tall grass, cross legged, staring straight ahead.
After a while my body began to ache from the position, so I simply curled up on my side, with my knees to my chest. I shut my eyes, praying to never wake up again.
Pruitt’s POV
Alex grabbed my hand and we took off running behind Mike. He headed straight(north) and then turned a sharp left. “Mike, where are we going ?” I yelled, he was far ahead of us now. “You’ll *pant* see !”
We eventually slowed down when we got too tired to run, but we speed walked as fast as possible. I dialed Jaime’s number with shaky hands to find out what was going on. He answered on the first ring. “Pruitt ! Where are you guys ? How fast can you get here ? We tried to talk to Mike, but he hung up. You need to hurry up. Pruitt….Pruitt, it’s really bad.”
My heart raced and I started shaking, and we said our goodbye’s and hung up. “How far are we ?” Alex questioned Mike. I stayed quiet, not revealing what Jaime had said. “About ten minutes if we hurry. Let’s go !”
Mike was right, about ten minutes later, and we were walking down a worn dirt road in the middle of nowhere. There was a field on one side, and I could see Tony, Jaime, and Jack all standing there, but no Vic. Where was he ?
Mike ran up to them, but Alex hung back with me, slowly walking me up to them. I was afraid of what I might find when I got there, and it turns out I had good reason.
Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw.
Vic was curled up on the ground, in the fetal position, with his eyes closed. No one knew what to do, so we all just stood with our mouths open. “Vic ?” Mike whispered, dropping to his knees beside him. He shook him a little. I held my breath, but Vic’s eyes fluttered open.
The guys moved back, giving Mike some space and shining the lights on Vic so we could see. Mike tried questioning him, asking if he was okay, but he wouldn’t reply. He didn’t look at any of us, just stared straight ahead. His face was unreadable, his expression blank. He really gave no sign that he could hear us at all. The guys pulled him to his feet, watching him carefully. I stayed behind him with Jack while everyone else held onto his arms and helped him along. No one said anything, we just hurried home in silence. It was an unspoken agreement that we would all be spending the night at the Gaskarth house, and I was afraid Vic would refuse. I was unsure of why he was even fine with him being here now….
I was getting really scared now, Vic had done nothing but stare ahead the entire forty-five minute walk home. He didn’t acknowledge any of us, and I wondered if he was catatonic or something. The silence was eerie as we made our way through the darkness, dead tired by the time we burst through the door of Alex’s house. He flipped on a light switch and ordered everyone except Jack to sit in the living room and wait. I sat on the couch between Tony and Jaime, watching as Mike had to literally help Vic sit down. That was a scary sight, watching the younger Fuentes help the older boy do a simple task.
Fifteen minutes later, and Jack and Alex emerged, Alex with plates of food and Jack with a menagerie of pillows and blankets for the floor. Vic violently refused to eat, instead choosing to stay in the farthest corner of the farthest couch from everyone else. We scarfed down our food, then set to work making a huge, comfortable bed (or something to that effect) out of Alex’s living room floor. We tried to get Vic to lay down, but again, he refused. He did move to the floor though, sitting with his back against the couch. Mike knelt in front of him and tried to coax him into just laying on his side, but he looked up and actually acknowledged him “No.”
We were all shocked that he’d actually spoken, but right after that he went back to the same thing, sitting and staring. I settled down for bed by Tony, who was right next to Vic. I had been careful to stay away from Alex while in the presence of Vic. I knew I wouldn’t be sleeping, but I pretended until I knew everyone else was truly asleep. Everyone except Vic, that is.
I raised my head slightly, checking the time first, then glancing over at Vic. It was four-thirty AM, it had only been about an hour since we’d found him. He was sitting the exact same way, knees drawn up to his chest and back pressing against the sofa, except now his head was turned, as if he were looking out the window. I watched him quietly for about ten minutes, wondering if he could sense I was up. Suddenly, without warning, Vic slowly stood up. I almost woke someone up, for fear he was trying to leave again, but instead watched him. He stood stiffly and made his way behind the couch, heading upstairs. I waited until he reached the top before racing silently after him. He went into the bathroom and closed the door, and I waited outside. He was in there for quite a while, and I began to get worried.
But I really began to panic when I heard the rustle of pill bottles and a thud.