"I'm not sure, I wasn't with him... marijuana for sure, maybe coke." Severus jogged along side wheeled bed that contained the passed out Regulus. Dr Mancusi asked him the questions while a nurse kept a note of Regulus' pulse.
The doctor looked concerned, but didn't say anything. They pushed the bed through a set of doors, and they held Severus back.
When Regulus fainted, Severus dropped to his side and began shaking him, slapping him, trying to wake him as Regulus had done to him that afternoon. When Regulus did not wake, Severus did not wait to ask James and Lily everything they had been taking. He gathered Regulus in his arms and took him to the clinic up the hill.
They had been here before, the first time Regulus overdosed, five months before. Dr Mancusi was the doctor last time, and he and Severus had a long conversation about Regulus' habits.
"Regulus keeps saying that this was the first time he's used heroin," Dr Mancusi has said. "And it's possible, it's not unlikely to overdose on first use. Plus, he was drinking, and the combination slowed his heart. Luckily his cousin saw him and brought him here. If he had gotten here much later, it would have been much too late."
"I didn't realize it was so bad," Severus said. "I thought it was just weed."
"Regulus, like many addicts, is good at hiding his problems through not even thinking or realizing that he has a problem." Dr Mancusi sighed. "O.D.'s are unpredictable. I can't tell you if he has one more O.D. in him, or twenty. No one knows which O.D. will be the last. The best bet is for him to stop now and not risk it."
"What can I do?"
Dr Mancusi handed him a pamplet. "There's no guareentee that anything will help, because in the end, it's Regulus' choice."
Severus paced in the waiting room. Regulus was on overdose number two. Would he make it through this one?
"What happened?"
He turned, and found himself staring at Lily. Thank the stars, she had gotten dressed.
"Regulus overdosed thanks to you," Severus snapped.
"Not thanks to me," she replied. "Thanks to himself. No one made him call Jimmy and me. No one made him snort the coke or smoke the weed. And God only knows what else he's been doing in his spare time. Don't blame me for Regulus' mistakes."
Severus set his jaw. She was right, and he hated it.
"Look, Sev, he'll be fine. Regulus is stronger than he looks." She rested a hand on his arm.
He sighed. "I know, but he's been through this once, I don't know if he can do it again. I... I need to call Bella." He went to the nearest phone booth, and tried calling her, but she was already gone.
Severus went back to the waiting room. He sat down next to Lily. She was the only company he had.
"Where's James?"
"Still at your place. I know you hate him, but he was too drunk to go anywhere. You know he's smalltime, but he's trying to get out there. People like Regulus who can't afford to good stuff, and are just itching for another high, that's what James does. He hates it. And... the coke is our fault. Regulus didn't ask for it."
"It's too late to throw blame around," Severus muttered.
She threw an arm around his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Sev. We shouldn't have fucked him. We should have known better."
"Lily, you're shaking just like Regulus was."
"No, I'm not. I'm high, but I'm being supportive and that's involving sitting still." She tapped the arm of the chair with her first two fingers. "I'm okay, Sev, it's just the coke, it'll go away soon enough. You don't need to be worrying about me when you're worrying about Reg."
I'm not worried about you, he thought.
Dr Mancusi walked into the room and Severus stood.
"Yes, Doctor?"
"He's stable, Severus. He'll be fine."
Severus' shoulders relaxed. "Thank the stars," he muttered.
"I've told you before, and I've told him, he needs to stop. But remember, Severus, it's his choice." Dr Mancusi looked at him closely. "Have you been taking something?"
"No," he said. Elixir wasn't taking something, it was more than that.
"Regulus should spend the night. We'll release him tomorrow afternoon. In the meantime, go home, get rid of all the drugs in your house, and get some rest. You look tired, Severus, like you need to think about yourself for a minute."
"I'm fine. I'll be sure to get rid of the drugs."
"Are you going to get busted?" Lily asked, her voice more high-pitched than normal.
"No," Dr Mancusi said. "As part of Regulus' patient confendentiality, we can't. Besides, these people don't need jail, they need help. Looks like you do too."
Lily jumped to her feet. "I need to get Jimmy. Tell Regulus get well for me, Sev. Catch you later." She hurried out of the clinic.
He shook his head. "You need to rethink the company you keep, Severus."
"I'm trying. I'm trying to make it better for Regulus and me," Severus said.
Dr Mancusi paused. "Come by at noon. Regulus will be ready to go."
"All right. Thank you." He turned to leave. He walked back to the flat. James and Lily had already left.
"What to do first," he muttered absently. He hadn't been alone in the apartment since Regulus moved in eight months before. He wasn't sure how to act alone.
Severus started cleaning. The coke lines were still in the bathroom, and he flushed them down the toilet. He went through the medicine cabinet. The only thing in there was aspirin. He figured that was all right to keep.
He moved to the bedroom and cringed. Two empty gin bottles littered the floor. He picked them up and threw them on the bed. He pulled off the sheets and wadded them into a ball. James Potter screwed his boyfriend on those sheets, he wasn't going to keep them.
He looked under the bed and pulled out an old shoebox. He opened it and it was empty. He tossed it on top of the sheets. No sense keeping it around. It was one less temptation.
He finished going through the bedroom, worked through the kitchen, and he looked at the Potions set on his desk.
These were drugs, no doubt, but how could he throw away their ticket out of this? There had to be some other option. He cleared the desk and put the Potions on the top shelf in the closet. They would be safe there.
He threw out the sheets and put on clean ones. These were blue and white striped, but they would have to do. He had nothing else. Besides, it would be nice to have fresh sheets on the bed for Regulus' return. Like a sign that things would be different.
He stretched out on the bed and fell asleep, still wearing his shoes. At least this wouldn't be another long night.
