Mark's POV
Sepetember 13th
I took in a breath before walking into the Rehab center that was currently containing my best friend. I signed in as a visitor. It had only been five days since we put Roger in here and it seemed like it was forever ago. The loft just wasn't the same without the rocker, even if he was trying to beat me to death. Benny had moved out two days ago after he proposed to Muffy, or what ever her name is, I think I just like Muffy.
I nervously tapped my fingers on the chairs armrests and I looked at the unfamiliar faces around me. It seemed as if everyone had the same expression on there faces, just a blank dull look in all of there eyes made me more restless then before. Finally after ten minutes a man who looked a little older then me wearing a gray suit carrying a clipboard came up to me.
"Are you the Mark Cohen who is here for Roger Davis?" He asked me not meeting my eyes but looking down at the clipboard.
"Yes." I stated. He then lead me to a hallway where people with the same facial expression as the people who where in the waiting room walked from room to room. I fallowed the man to a door which he opened and lead me inside. It was a small simple off white room with wooden table and two chairs.
"We will get Mr. Davis for your visit." I thanked him and he left. In the quiet room I heard a small ringing sound in my ear but paid no attention to it. I began tapping my fingers on the table again. When the door opened again Roger was being head by his triceps by two doctors. He almost looked like he was a prisoner being brought into court. But the scariest thing about it was that my friend now had that look on his face, the same as all the other people I've see today. It was almost like he was a walking zombie, like he was brainwashed to have no emotions at all. He was forcibly sat down in the chair across the table from me. Roger shook off the men's hands and doctors walked out leaving us alone.
"Hey Rog…" I broke the ice after a couple of seconds of just locking eyes and staring. When he didn't respond I continued. "Are they treating you good here? How are you?" he continued to glare at me until he stood up.
"You want to know how im doing? You dumped me here Mark! Just like April! I HATE YOU MARK! I HATE YOU! You just left me alone again! All because you wanted to get rid of me!" I stood up as well I thought he might have taken sending him here like an abandonment but I had to take the risk.
"No Roger, I sent you here because I thought it would help you more then I could! Don't you want to get better?" I told him my side of the story.
"Maybe I don't! Who care anymore! All I know is you're the crappyist friend anyone could ever have!" My jaw dropped.
"I can't believe you would actually say that! After everything I've done for you! You're the crappyist friend in the word! You know what I don't even know why I bother with you anymore!" As I was yelling this I didn't notice roger coming closer to me, when I did it was too late and he shoved me and landed a punch to my jaw. I backed up and stumbled away from him and tried to regain my balance but he tacked me to the floor letting me hit my head on the way down. He got kneeled on top of me crushing my ribs as he kept throwing punches to my face. I attempted to cover my face with my forearms but he kept finding an open spot. As soon as it started it was over because Roger was lifted up off of me I was helped up and I heard Roger yelling a sting of curse words trying to fight the doctors, but in his weak state he had no chance.
"Roger if you don't stop I will sedate you again!" one of the doctors threatened.
"I swear to god you do that and you'll fucking die!" The Blonde yelled back, but did stop struggling. A bright light attacked my blue eyes as a doctor put a flashlight in my face.
"Nothings broken because you blocked but you will have some bad bruises, and the cut might need stitches." The older man in a white coat said to me but I waved him off.
"I-I'll be fine, I'll call my friend to pick me up." By the time the man helped me up Roger was gone, and I was slightly worried what they would do to him. Damn it even after he beats me up I still care and worry about him. I borrowed to rehab's phone and called Collins, and lets just say he wasn't happy when he came and saw me like this.
Sepetember 20th
I walked into the sterile white room, where roger was sitting down in a grey leather chair. A white haired man who looked like he was in his mid 50's sat behind a simple desk in an office chair, he frowned at me probably because of my black eye, my bruised cheek the bandage around my forehead.
"You must be Mark, take a seat I'm Rogers therapist- Doctor. Rankin" He shook my hand and I sat down next to Roger in a chair identical to the one he was sitting in. The rocker kept his eyes on the floor.
"Nice to meet you, but if I may ask, why did you call me into a session?" Usually the therapy sessions where just for the patients.
"Well Roger refuses to talk and I hoped that you could help us get to the root of his issues." I glanced over to the chair next to me where Roger was rolling his eyes and fidgeting.
"Well, he started heroin when his girlfriend April introduced it to him." I looked to Roger whose head shot up and he glared at me. "Then she killed herself when she found out they both had HIV." I explained.
".Up." Roger warned me, but I ignored him.
"After her death and the AIDS we knew he had to stop." The therapist nodded and wrote something down.
"Mark I swear to god."
"Roger please I called him here and-" Dr. Rankin started.
"You shut the fuck up too! You don't know anything about me! Just be cause you went to a fancy school doesn't mean you can judge me!" He then stood up and walked to the door but found it locked. "Why the hell is it locked? This place is a fucking prison!" he huffed and sat back down but not before kicking the door.
"Are you done?" The doctor asked calmly. My best friend didn't respond, just crossed his arms and glowered. "Mark would you please continue?" I nodded.
"Well I guess you already know but he can get… Violent." I shifted in my seat nervously as I felt Roger's stare. "And he wasn't eating and I was worried about his health." I looked over to my best friend whose green eyes softened.
"Mark… I'm going to die anyway." He said softly.
"A month and a year are different Roger you know that!" I didn't want to have this argument again, especially not in front of his doctor.
"Ahhh now we are getting to the heart of the problem." Dr. Rankin stated looking up from his clipboard.
"You son of a bitch!" Roger yelled and stood up went for the older man across the desk, I grabbed his arms and held him back,
"Roger stop it! This is why your in here!" and is why Collins wanted to come with me but he thought it would be okay if a therapist was with us. I didn't know why but roger then sat back down in a chair.
"I don't want to talk because it wont help, my emotions are my own not for you to examine. I already know im fucked up, I don't need anyone else to tell me that." Dr. Rankin seemed surprised by this.
"Well you should know that what happens in here will not be told to anyone, not even the doctors here." He tried to reason with the rocked but it looked like roger was going to have none of it.
"Rog, please just tell him something. Anything, tell him something about April, or your dad." I pleaded with him.
"What do you want a confession about how you where the only thing that kept me from killing my self when I was hiding in the closet as my dad beat my mom and I called you on the phone telling you I was going to do it, that you still are the only thing that keeps me from committing suicide! That when April left me alone with this horrible disease, having to kick heroin and being in pain every waking moment of my life it was like lousing a part of me! Like lousing you!" He was staring to cry now and I hugged him tightly, he didn't hug back so I just held him as he continued. "R-Remember when we where kids and I-I said I was going to k-kill my self and you s-said I couldn't because if I died then you would, th-that I couldn't leave you alone… w-well now im going to weather I like it or not I'm going to die way before you! H-How do I shake the guilt of leaving you all alone?" I bit my bottom lip and let it all out, I started sobbing and let out a painful cry into his shoulder as we just sat there clinging to each other for dear life.
"You can st-start by making the t-time we have left together be t-the best fucking years we've e-ever had." I lost track of time as we stayed in that position, totally forgetting Dr. Rankin was sitting right there until he spoke up.
"I think that will be all for today. Thank you for coming mark." He went to shake my hand but I didn't want to move, I was clinging to Roger like if I let go he would die. The doctor left the room and after about two minutes we pulled apart.
"You're my brother Rog and I love you." He nodded and whipped his tears away as two doctors in white came and grabbed him by the arms and took him out of the room. Our eyes stayed locked until the door shut and I was left alone. After taking a deep breath in I stood up and smiled walking out of the rehab center.
Sepetember 29th
Collins and I walked down the street seeing the rehab center coming up ahead of us.
"You really didn't have to come Collins." Once he found out I had an alone visit with Roger he immediately wanted to come incase he got out of hand again.
"It's no problem Mark; I have to make sure my little albino is nice and safe." I put an arm around my shoulder as we walked. "Plus, it wouldn't be so bad to see how Roger's doing these days, he's still my pal you know." We entered the double doors and signed in and as usual sat down among the bleak faces of visitors and patients alike. We got called by an intern I didn't recognize and we went to a different visiting room then last time, but it still looked the same as the other one, I guessed that they all looked like this. I look over to Collins nervous to see Roger after my last visit, he clamped his large hand on my shoulder trying to tell me that everything would be fine but with no words. Roger was brought into the room escorted by one doctor who sat him down in the chair across the table from us. I smiled to see that it looked like he gained some of his weight back.
"Be good this time." The man said sternly to the rocker who just rolled his eyes. The doctor gave us a nod and left the room.
"Hey kid, how are you feeling?" Collins asked giving Roger a warm smile.
"Better, I can eat now without vomiting." He answered looking down at the table while twiddling his thumbs. This was wrong, something was off about him.
"That's good, have you been talking with Dr. Rankin?" I asked another question, and he kept his gaze down as he answered.
"Yeah, a little." This wasn't Roger; he was answering our questions like we weren't his friends, like it was a game of trivia.
"Benny and muffy got married three days ago." The African American told Roger.
"How was it?" the younger man asked in a raspy whisper.
"Expensive, not that im complaining it aint' my money!" Collins smiled at the rocker who looked up at him with his green eyes which where clouded with no emotion in them, he nodded before looking back down.
"Roger what's wrong? Why aren't you being, well… yourself?" I questioned but only got a shrug as a response. "Rog come on talk to us, you know you can." The blonde muttered something. I looked at Collins who raised one eyebrow.
"Boy you better speak up if you want us to hear you." Collins said. Roger looked up at us.
"I-I feel better- physically. Better then I've felt in months. I crave the drug less, but I still…" He looked down at his callused hands. "I don't feel like me… I don't know what I want anymore, what to say. Everyone here, they don't understand, I've practically kicked heroin but I still feel as crappy as ever." I saw Collins frown and place his dark hand over Rogers shaking ones.
"Are they helping you here?" The older man asked.
He shut his eyes tightly and pulled his hands away from Collins, covered his face with them and mumbled something to me that I couldn't understand. I stood up and walked around the table kneeling down next to him, I gently placed a hand on his back and rubbed it and I realized he was crying behind his hands.
"Shhh Roger, its okay… what did you want to say?" he moved his hand away from his mouth for a second.
"G-Get me out of here mark p-please take me back home." God how bad I wanted to.
"Is this place helping you?" I asked the same question Collins did moments ago in a soft tone keeping the motions of my hand on his back. He put his hands down flat on the table.
"N-No I want to go home!" I shut my eyes and looked at the floor. As I listened to my friends crying I realized that maybe this wasn't the right choice…
"Alright… Alright come on im taking to home." He looked at me his eyes filled with a new light."
"R-Really!" he asked excitedly, like a child who just learned he could get a piece of candy.
"Yes lets get you out of here." I nodded to Collins who stood up and went out the door to go find a doctor. "We are going to bring you back home, it'll just be the three of us, how does that sound?" Roger smiled the first smile I had seen in a long time.
"Nice…" he said hoarsely from crying.
"Im so proud of you Rog, thank you for being so strong." Collins then came in with a doctor.
"Mr. Cohen we do not believe Roger is stable enough to leave treatment just yet." One of them told me.
"Well I am the one who admitted him here, he is here under my custody and I can choose when he leaves." I argued, I was going to have none of it, I made up my mind, my best friend was coming back home today. The doctor seemed to understand my tone and decided not to fight with me.
"Very well." He handed me his clipboard. "Sign here and Roger will be released into your custody." I took the pen and signed. "Thank you Mr. Cohen." He took the pen and bored and walked out. I turned to see Roger clinging to Collins tightly, who was putting a protective arm around Rogers's body. I smiled to them.
"Let's go home."
Yay I updated! Thank you for all your reviews to my last chapter telling me what you wanted, it helped me with ideas and I tried to accommodate as much as I could into the story by writing almost all the sides of Roger that we know and love! I thank you all for being so patient with me as I am dealing with a lot in my life at the moment, but i tried to make it up to you by writing a long chapter this time. Sadly this Fic will be coming to an end in 2 or so chapters :( But I was thinking about wring a sequel about Mimi's withdrawal, do you think should I do that once this fic is over? Hmmm I wonder. As always thank you for reading!
PS: There is a fun little poll on my profile! Check it out!