You would've thought a bomb had gone off for the amount of silence in the room. "You're...what?" "...I'm gay, dad. I'm sorry but that's who I am and I'm tired of denying it." His dad stared at him for a minute before getting up and grabbing Vincent by the collar. "You listen to me kid. You are throwing your life away here and I can't allow it. You are going to talk to the pastor and no one else until you get your life turned around." Vincent shoved his dad away from him and ran down the hall towards the staircase.
Vincent ran up to his room and slammed the door. He'd known coming out was a mistake, that his parents would hate him instantly. Well, he thought, smiling a bitter smile, I'm prepared to go somewhere where I can't be hated. He took the bottle of pills that he'd taken ever so carefully from the kitchen out of his pocket, grabbed his phone and called his best friend, Blake. No answer, of course. He was glad there wasn't this time. Hearing Blake speak would've made him chicken out. He left a simple voice mail. "Come to my house. I need to talk to you." before hanging up and staring at the prescription. He didn't know what any of it meant but seeing the words calmed him enough to shakily open the bottle, and, with silent tears pouring down his cheeks, up end the bottle of pills down his throat.
It only took 30 seconds for Vincent to realize that this was a mistake. The 16 year old was sent into wild convulsions on the floor as his body tried desperately to rid itself of the excess prescription coursing through him. But he knew that there was too much. As he was resigning himself to his fate, he heard the doorknob twist along with a sharp gasp. "VINCE!!" Blake's voice. The sound of the bigger boy running to where he lay and shaking him. Dammit all, he had hoped he wouldn't get the voice mail for hours. "Vince, if you hear me give me some indication." Blake was trying to stay calm but Vincent heard the shakiness in his voice. He had almost no control over his muscles but he reached toward the sound of Blake's voice. By now, Blake had called 911 but he took the hand the other teen had reached out to him and clasped it. "My friend just overdosed, 45 West Court Street. Hurry."
Vincent was going to die. He felt it, accepted it, but couldn't yet. Not without Blake knowing. "Blake." He tried to speak loudly but his airways were closing. "Vincent Micheal Flack if this is some sappy 'I'm about to die' shit, I swear I'm going to lose it." Blake's voice was still shaky and from what Vincent could see of the blackening world, his best friend was about to cry. He couldn't say it now as he felt his own tears spilling out even more quickly than before. "I'm sorry Bla..." He couldn't finish before the world slipped into blackness. The last sensation he felt was a tear landing underneath his eye.
