The Boy Who Just Wanted to Get it Right

J

Max, her mom, and Teresa sat next to Joe in the hospital. Joe was going to be okay. He just got his stomach pumped. He was miserable. His entire night had been exhausting, so he fell asleep. The doctor suggested some anti-depressants. Joe was asleep when his mom walked in.
"So over-dramatic!" She exclaimed.
"Attention whore," she added, glaring at him.
"He's not taking those damn pills, it's just a hissy fit he's throwing." She stomped off to wait for Joe to wake up.
"I'm sorry, I can't give him the pills unless a parent or guardian approves it," he said. Teresa sighed. She was glad Joe had been asleep so he didn't have to hear what his mother said. But what she didn't know was that Joe was completely conscious. He heard everything. He was caught when he started to cry, but with no sound as a tear slid down the side of his face.
"Oh Joe, you heard that," Teresa said sadly. Joe nodded softly.
"Look at him!" Teresa said quietly to the doctor, "he needs those pills." But the doctor just shook his head.
"I'm sorry, but I could lose my job." Joe's mom marched back into the room.
"You're done. Let's go," she said angrily.

It was 1:00 am.
"I need a favor," Teresa said on the phone.
"I need some pills. Anti-depressants."
"No. Just those. Please, J. didn't rat you out before, please just do this for me." Teresa didn't know J's real name. That's just what he'd always had her call him.
"Thank you. I'll bring you the money, give me twenty minutes." Teresa gripped the money in her hand tightly. She threw on a hoodie and quietly left the house. She went to the park, inside the men's bathroom. She shivered at the memories. J walked into the bathroom. He still scared Teresa. He handed Teresa the pills in a bag. She gave him the money.
"That's it!?" his gruff voice exclaimed.
"I-I'm sorry! That's all I have! I promise I'll get you more! But I need these now!" she pleaded.
"I had to make someone wait another two months for their pills so I could give you those! How do I know you'll give me the money?"
"Have I ever been anything but loyal to you?" He grunted and walked out. Once he was likely to be far enough, Teresa sighed a sigh of relief. She held the bag so tightly she nearly ripped it. She waited a good ten minutes before she left the bathroom. She put the pills in her piggy bank and put four in a small zipper in her makeup bag and put that in her backpack. She quickly called Joe.
"Joe," she whispered.
"That was quick, were you not asleep?"
"I can't sleep."
"I got the pills."
"Teresa! How? We're gonna get busted!"
"No, we're not. If anyone gets busted it'll just be me. Considering pills was how you tried to kill yourself, you're not keeping them with you. I'll give you your doses. Before school in the morning, during lunch, and at the end of the day. I'm gonna start you off with just two though."
"Sounds risky."
"Well it's better than you killing yourself, Joe!"
"I'm sorry. Thank you, Teresa."

The next morning, Teresa ran to Joe. She hugged him and kissed him. Joe was confused, he almost pushed her off. Then he felt her putting her hands in his pockets. She stopped kissing him and took her hands out. Joe felt the pill in his pocket, and he knew. Before he walked to his first period, he went behind a building and swallowed his pill.

This routine followed for the next few days. Teresa would kiss or hug Joe in the morning, slide a pill into his pocket while sitting next to him at lunch, and give him a pill when she walked him home from school. Today, there was a new boy. His name was Alex. The group invited him to sit with them at lunch. Alex seemed scared. That's normal, though. It's a new school. Teresa kissed Joe on the cheek and slid a pill in his pocket. Alex seemed a little uncomfortable.
"So, Alex, tell us about you," Max said.
"U-uh, what do you want to know?"
"I don't know. What do you like to do?"
"I like to, uh, draw."
"Do you have anything?" Alex had a whole sketchbook of stuff but decided not to show it. He shook his head.
"We're gonna go to Max's house after school, wanna come?"
"Oh, uh, sure," he said.

Alex still seemed a bit scared at Max's house.
"Alex, what's the matter?" Joe asked.
"I, I, uh... I have to go."
"What, why? We just got here? Is everything okay?"
"No, you don't wanna hang out with me. I... I'm disgusting."
"What? You are not? Seriously, what's up?"
"I'm gay. I'm a fucking faggot."
"Hey, it's cool bro, me too."
"You mean bi?"
"What? No?"
"Your girlfriend?" He pointed to Teresa. They laughed.
"Oh! We're not dating. I have to take anti-depressants. My mom is a bitch and won't get me them, so Teresa got me some. She doesn't trust me with all of them, so she gives me some when I need it. The kissing is just so she can non-suspiciously put it in my pocket."
"That reminds me. Joe, you need to take another one," Teresa said.
"I need to have food with it or else I get dizzy."
"Okay, let's go get pizza then. You like pizza?" She asked Alex. Alex nodded.

The pizza place was packed. They ate their pizza happily.
"Teresa, do you have my pill?" Joe had to say loudly because of the noise. Teresa opened her makeup bag but found nothing.
"It's not here!"
"It's fine, you probably just left it at Max's house."
"No, I always keep an extra just in case! I don't know what happened!"
"Did you leave your backpack alone at all today?"
"I don't think so."
"That's weird. We'll check Teresa's house before we worry about it though, okay?"
"Okay."