Perfumed Secrets | Kurt Cobain

Flames so hot that they turn blue

Over the past few weeks, Faye's life had become a relentless cycle of obligations and anxieties. Balancing job with studies workload was proving to be more difficult than she had anticipated. Each morning, she would drag herself out of bed, already feeling the weight of the day pressing down. At university, she found it increasingly difficult to keep up with her assignments. The demands of her classes were piling up, and her academic performance, once a source of pride, began to reflect her crazy routine. Evenings were her worst enemy: she would get this nagging feeling, the anxiety of the next days and duties taking over.

To cope, she had started relying more on the pills. What began as an occasional escape had progressively turned into a daily necessity. The small tablets helped her get through, providing a temporary reprieve and helping her to fall asleep. But she was confident that this shouldn't be a problem, after all she was only taking them at night, and it should be right, she thought, simply sleeping pills.

One evening, she reached for the bottle out of habit. As she tipped it over, only a single pill tumbled out. Panic began to rise. She checked it again, hoping she had missed some, but it was empty.

Then she realized this might actually have become a problem. Her initial fears about it were starting to feel real. She placed the last pill back in the bottle, determined not to take it, even though she knew it would make sleeping extra hard. And it did. She tossed and turned, struggling to rest. When she finally did fall asleep, she woke up several times throughout the night.

The following days were just as hard, her anxiety and exhaustion mounting. But she clung to the hope that the weekend would bring relief, afterall, she he would go to Olympia that Friday, after her shift.

"Thanks for this," Faye slid into Amy's car, which was idling outside the mall. "You really didn't have to,"

"Hey, don't worry," Amy flashed a reassuring smile as she started the engine. "I'm always up for a late-night drive."

Faye sighed, leaning back. "I'm just relieved it's my weekend off," she admitted, tossing her green apron onto the backseat. "This week has been... a lot."

Amy glanced over at her friend, concern etched on her face. "Yeah, you've seemed really stressed lately. Everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," she forced a small smile, attempting to brush it off. "I just need to unwind a little, you know?"

"Well, I'm here if you need to talk about anything. And hey," she added with a knowing look, "I'm sure Kurt can help you with that unwinding part."

"Yeah," she gave half a smile. "I'm sure he can."

Upon reaching Olympia, Amy pulled up to Kurt's place and dropped Faye off. She hurried up the stairs and found the door unlocked.

"Thank God it's not a burglar," Dave quipped from the couch, flipping through a magazine. "Hey, Faye. What's up?"

"Hi, Dave," she greeted him, dropping her bag by the door before joining him on the couch. "Where's Kurt?"

"Oh, he went out for some cigarettes. He should be back any minute now." He said, setting the reading aside. "So, how's the coffee brewing so far? Kurt told me you got a job at Starbucks."

"Well," she shook her head. "Can't complain. It pays the bills, in the end. It's just been one of those weeks, to say the least."

Dave nodded. "I hear you. Sometimes, it feels like life is just one mess after another."

"Yeah, tell me about it," she said with a weak smile.  "Hey, do you happen to have any Pepto-Bismol or something? My stomach's been acting up. Maybe all that coffee is getting back at me."