HER

Chapter 22

Lily woke up but feeling more indisposed than normal. She felt like death paid a visit last night and she couldn't remember the entire conversation. Her head was spinning and gently got out of bed and went straight into the bathroom. Peeled the rest of her clothes off and stepped into the bathroom.

What the fuck had happened last night? She wondered.

She turned the shower on and flinched when cold water hit her skin but soon, she got accustomed to it and bent into a squat with her hands around her knees and her back against the wall. Lily's head hurt more than usual and she tried to search her head for what that reason could be.

After her shower, she felt a little better but she knew she'd need food and a lot of water to get whatever she'd had last night out of her system. She wasn't trying any of those things again, whatever they were. She went back into the room and got Cheryl out bed, who seemed to be in worse condition than she had been. After she got her into the shower, she ordered breakfast because she couldn't go out in her condition.

Cheryl was out of the shower just as their breakfast was delivered.
"What did you order?"

"Pancakes." Lily took it out of the container and set it on the kitchen slab where Cheryl was seated in front of. She brought the syrup and the pot of coffee she had made. Cheryl had her head between her palms and her elbow on the slab.
"Are you ok?"

Cheryl gave a thumbs up.
"I'll be fine."

"Right after breakfast and a lot of coffee." Lily said and joined her.

They dug into their food.
"Do you remember anything from last night?" Lily asked.

Cheryl shook her head.
"Not a thing."

"I have no idea what we took but it seemed to be way stronger than our usual stuff."

"It was so good though."

"Yea, in the moment and now we feel like shitty."

"Isn't that the point?" Cheryl asked.

"The point is to forget your feelings not have a fucking amnesia and feel like death afterwards."

Cheryl shrugged and Lily frowned, she was about to say something when the doorbell rang.
"That shit still works?" Cheryl asked as Lily got off the stool and made her way to the door.

She opened the door and frowned when she came face to face with Cooper.
"Cooper, what are you doing here?"

Cooper opened his mouth to answer but Cheryl was right beside her.
"Did you get it?" She asked him.

"You know I did." Cooper smiled.

Cheryl smiled and stretched out her hand and Cooper shook his head.
"What?" Cheryl asked angrily.

"Your cash ran out yesterday and this stuff is expensive."

Cheryl sighed and pulled out wads of cash from her pocket and placed it in his open palm.
"This is for our next fix for the month. Keep the good stuff coming."

"You know I will." Cooper placed a couple of mini sachet powder in Cheryl's palm and Lily frowned.

"Is that..."

"Fentanyl." Cooper smiled at her. "Had fun last night, right?"

"Too much fun." Lily said before he left and she shut the door and went after Cheryl. "You aren't going to take that."

Cheryl looked at her, confused.
"Why the hell not?!"

"Because it's way stronger than what we're used to. It's too much."

"For you maybe."

"Cher, I woke up feeling like death slept next to me in bed and I still haven't gotten complete control of myself."

"You have been getting really high then."

"Are you kidding me?" Lily asked. "I wake up every morning with a foggy memory of the night before and it takes me a couple of minutes to get my bearing."

"This is way better than the cheap crap we've been having."

"And also, more dangerous."

Cheryl sighed.

"It's going to kill you Cher." Lily said. "Give them to me." She stretched her hand out in front of her, her palm facing up.

Cheryl looked at Lily then her hand. It took a moment before she finally budged and placed them in Lily's hand. Lily walked to the sink and wash disposed them into the sink before washing them down.

She walked back to Cheryl.
"No more, ok?"

Cheryl looked away.

"Cher, look at me." Lily urged her.

Cheryl sighed before she looked at Lily.
"No more of that stuff." She said. "Get anything else but not that one."

Cheryl nodded and Lily frowned.

That was easier than she had thought it would have been; trying to get her not to take it anymore.

"I need you to say it, Cher." Lily said.

Cheryl looked at her.
"I won't buy it anymore."

Lily sighed and nodded.
"Ok, good."

Lily wasn't totally convinced; she'd have to watch out for her for a couple of nights before she was certain Cheryl had truly decided not to do that stuff again. Unlike Lily, Cheryl had parents who sent her money and kept sending anytime she asked. Cheryl had lost her twin sister right their first year in university and Cheryl hadn't snapped out of it just like she hadn't gotten over her own pain.

Cheryl's parents didn't know how Cheryl was handling the situation and since she was their only child and they had money, they sent her some anytime she asked without asking why she needed it. It was her parents' way of dealing with the loss and Cheryl didn't mind at all because it was in her favour.

Lily understood her pain more than Cheryl could know and they were both reacting to their loss in the same way, only Lily was out to numb the pain, not black out or worse, die. She knew the effects of what she was doing and something that had become a way to numb the feelings, she had gotten addicted to. Now she not only took it to numb the pain but to feel good. The morning after was a bitch but nothing she couldn't handle but this morning had been hell. It was something she never planned on repeating ever again. Fentanyl was good, really good but the aftermath was the total opposite. She didn't want to feel like she had this morning again. She'd stick to her usual stuff.