Jamie looked around carefully as he entered the storage room at the EMT station.
He found himself surrounded by large cases of pills, injenction needles and
other assorted drugs and equipment.




"Jackpot."he mumbled a bit too loudly. He took another look around and finally
spotted what he was looking for. The box read 'confinscated items' in large letters
. Jamie quickly began rumaging through the box.





Tyler had seen the door open and heard some one in the room. He poked his he
ad through the door way and soon saw a teenage boy going through the box
that contained what patients had with them when they had to go to the hospital.
The items stayed here until the owner came to reclaim them. Some things, like
five doses of heroin that were found today on an overdose victum, would not
be returned. Tyler looked to the ground in disapountment as his friend
produced five objects that looked like sugar packets from a resturaunt. It was
the heroin. Jamie let out a sigh of relief and turned to get an injection needle.
Tyler made his way down the hall, lost in thought. He couldn't tell anyone what
he had seen. He might have it all confused. He decided to talk to Val about it later.




Jamie shut the door with the drugs in his pocket and went around to the wreck
room.




"Hey, Tyler. Hey, Val." he noticed all fell silent when he entered.




"Um. . . hi Jamie."Tyler was very uneasy now. He had to talk to Jamie. No time
like the present."Um, what's that in your pocket? It looks like an injection
needle."




"No. It's not what you think. It's just, um, it's my pencil from earliear today." He
nervously forced a smile. He had some idea of who he thought he heard
outside the storage room."Why? What did you think it was? Drugs?"




The group laughed dryly. Tyler's face soon grew very serious and walked
towards the other boy until his face was only a foot away from Jamie's.




"Yah. Man, I saw you in the storage room. What's going on? Tell me it's not what
it looks like."Tyler was afraid that if his friend told him that, it would be a lie.




"Look, don't tell Alex. It's okay."





"Whatever! Do you think it'll be okay when he finds the heroin missing?! Do you
think it'll still be okay when we get a frantic call from Katie or something that
she has a friend that's unconcious?! Do you think it'll still be okay when we
answer the call and find you dead in an ally with a needle sticking out of your
arm?!?!NO! It won't be okay."





"Come on. Just don't tell anyone. Please. I know what I'm doing to myself, but
don't worry. I'm not stupid enough to give an over dose. I know what I can
handle."




"What ever you say, Jamie. I just hope that call we had to go to doesn't happen
again with you in the stretcher."Val's voice was cracking, as she didn't want to
let the tears come. She and Tyler were truely worried about him.




Jamie stormed out of the room. He didn't need this kind of stress right now.
School just kept getting harder and his step dad was a nightmare. Now his
friends were mad. Maybe not mad, but really worried. He sat down behind the
station building and roled up his sleeve. Jamie let out a heavy sigh, knowing
that in a few seconds, he wouldn't remember any of it. The needle was empty
and fell to the ground, followed by Jamie. He had passed out behind the EMT
ambulence and did not awake until he found himself lying on the couch in the
wreck room. His dark eyes sleepily fluttered open to see Hank, Tyler, Val and
worst of all Alex looming over him. He was still huvering on the effects of the
heroin and could only manage to choke out."Hi." Jamie tried to get up, but was
pushed back down by Alex.





"What in the world did you think you were doing? You just came back from a
call about an overdosed drugie, and then Hank finds you passed out behind
the ambulence with the drugs in your pocket and a needle in you. You know
what happens now. You are suspended from this program for one month. I have
taken the liberty of putting you in a rehab facility for this time. Since we are
short handed, as much as I would love to kick you out of the program, I have to
put you on suspension. You will come back to us in one month and this time,
you had better be clean.I already called your step dad. He's coming to pick you
up."





"Oh no." Jamie felt sick to his stomach. Partly because of what he knew was
coming to him at home, and partly because his system was screaming for
another dose. "Please, man. Just one more. I just need one more."





"No. Your stepdad's here. We'll make sure he doesn't give you any either."Alex
was obviosly mad at Jamie.





The boy groaned as he walked outside. The ride home was quiet one, but when
they got home, the ride was anything but that.





Jamie gritted his teeth and winced in pain as he was slammed against the wall,
being held up by his neck. The more he struggled, the harder the grip seemed
to get. He suddenly dropped limply to the cluttered floor unconcious.





He had been taken to rehab now, and found himself laying on a matris. There
were no sheets, and only one window in the room, which was on the door. It
was not even large enough for a dog to fit through. The room was cold and
other than a few chairs, was sort of like a cement box. The teenager looked
around more to see Tyler standing over him.




"Yah, it'll be okay. It'll always be okay for you, won't it? At least now we don't
have to worry about this any more."Jamie's friend was obviously dissapointed.




"Tyler, man. I need a hit. I need a dose. Please. Just one." He was now sweating
and grabbed Tyler by the collar of his shirt, then let go.





"No way. You're gonna get cleaned up. No more drugs. We need you." He
turned to leave, to escape the crys of his friend.





"Please! Tyler come back! I just need one more! Please!"Jamie soon realized
that he was actually going to get sobered up. 'Their trying to break me damn it!'
he thought. " FUCK!!!!! All of you!"




He buried his face in his arms and began to shake, but he would make it. With
the help of his friends, he would make it.