Chapter 3: Staying Sober
The next three days were the worst Haruka ever had gone through. She awoke on Thursday morning with a dry mouth and a body that literally screamed for alcohol. Every single fibre of herself seemed to beg for whiskey, almost paining her physically. Slowly, Haruka got out of bed, somehow making her way over into the kitchen without jumping into the living room and grabbing the bottle that still stood on the desk. I have to get rid of the alcohol I have here. Haruka thought to herself while she tried to make coffee. She tried; her hands were shaking so much that she couldn't take the coffee pot she wanted to fill with water, since she feared that it simply would slide out of her fingers and fall to the floor and break. Letting out a helpless sigh, Haruka sat down at the kitchen table, hoping that the shaking of her hands would stop when she just was awake long enough. She sat there for almost forty-five minutes, but the shaking continued; it just got a little bit weaker, but it didn't stop completely. Haruka waited for another fifteen minutes until she finally dared to take the coffee pot and fill water into it. In spite of the shaking of her hands, she managed to fill the water into the coffee machine and also ready everything else that was needed before she pushed the button. The coffee machine started it's work, and while the coffee started to drop into the pot, Haruka walked over into the living room. She collected the seven bottles that stood on her alcohol shelf, as well as the half full one from the living room table, and walked back into the kitchen, lining the alcohol bottles up next to the sink as if they were soldiers. Letting out a small sigh, she grabbed the first one – a fine bottle of Johnny Walker – and unscrewed the lid. She turned her head away from the sink while she held the bottle over it and let it's content run into the drain, partly because she didn't want to watch – and partly because she was afraid that the smell of the alcohol would be enough to make her stop and drink the content of what was inside the bottle instead of throwing it away. She did the same with the other six bottles, her heart aching more with everyone that was empty and fell into the trashcan. By the time she was done and had the alcohol washed down by turning the water on and letting it run for almost two minutes, hoping that it would flush the smell away, the coffee was ready and waiting for her to drink it. Haruka threw the last one of the bottles into the trashcan, deciding that she would take it down to the big trash container in the cellar as soon as possible – she didn't want to look at the remains of what was left of her addiction too long. As soon as she was done with the alcohol, she got herself a plain white cup and filled it with coffee, drinking it like it was – black and without sugar. Her mother always had called that Macho-Coffee, Haruka remembered with a smile. Then, another memory came up – the memory that her father also had been drinking his coffee like this, and suddenly, Haruka didn't want it to be Macho-Coffee anymore. She walked over to the fridge and opened it to get some milk for the coffee, and when she saw what was inside, her blood froze and her eyes widened. Standing in the first compartment of the three the fridge had, just right to be on eye-level for Haruka, were three beer cans. Take them! The teenager voice inside her head screamed. Take them, and drink them empty! And then go and buy new whiskey! And drink that too! Make yourself forget again, for Heaven's Sake, before you remember too much! Haruka bit her lower lip and reached into the fridge, taking the three beer cans out. She slowly carried them over to the sink, ignoring the protests of her own mind while she tore the first can open and started to empty it into the drain. She didn't notice that she was biting her lip so hard that it started to bleed while she did – and she also didn't notice that she was crying while the beer ran into the sink and vanished.
"I'm really worried about her by now." Takeshi softly spoke, looking at the woman who sat in front of him – Michiru Kaioh, the social worker who hopefully would be able to help Haruka with her alcohol problem. "I have to admit that I didn't like her much until yesterday, but when I heard her at the phone…God, Michiru, she sounded so desperate." "She probably realized that she really has a problem when it comes to her drinking habits." Michiru softly replied, leaning back in her chair and folding her hands together like she always did when she talked about one of the people who were part of her program – or would become a part of it when it came to Haruka. "She was crying." Takeshi now added, disbelief filling his voice. "I never thought that she actually was able to cry, but I swear that she did yesterday." Michiru nodded, looking up at the ceiling deep in thought for a few moments before returning her gaze to the mechanic who sat in front of her. "I've seen tougher and harder people than her cry." She spoke, her voice a little louder than before, but still pretty soft. "You wouldn't believe me when I told you, but I assure that I speak the truth…I even saw men cry who looked as if they could challenge Mike Tyson, and win. Sometimes they cry like babies, and when there's no one to comfort them, they often start drinking again." "I tried to calm her down." Takeshi immediately spoke, as if he tried to justify himself. "And that's good. But she will need more than calming words over the phone when the real withdrawal starts. Do you know if she has a boyfriend, or family?" Takeshi chuckled a while before he replied: "You have to say girlfriend, and no, she doesn't have one as far as I know. With her aggression potential, it's probably better that way. And family…she surely has one, but she never talked about them. I don't think that she's in contact with them." Michiru frowned, obviously not too happy with what she heard. "That's not something I appreciate, Takeshi…it will be twice as hard for her if she's alone all the time." Takeshi sighed and nodded. "Probably, yeah. But I don't know who could have enough guts to put up with her…she has no problem with being violent, and withdrawal might make her even worse. I pity everyone who's around her when she gets into her mood." Michirus frown deepened, and she replied: "I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't tell me such things about her. I'd like to get to know her myself without any thoughts about her in the back of my mind." "Oh, okay, sorry." Takeshi quickly apologized. Michiru smiled at him and rose from her chair. "It's okay, Takeshi…but now I need to get going. I just had a good idea." "A good idea?" Takeshi repeated, suddenly getting the feeling that he would hear something he absolutely not wanted to hear at all. "I'll pay our newest member a visit." Michiru announced before looking at the shocked mechanic again. "Care to give me Haruka's address?"