Existential Indifference (Joshler)

29. Naloxone

***Trigger warnings for relapse, a heroin overdose, and vomit.***

Wait to start the song.

Tyler had never fought with Brendon like this. They'd argued a few times, but nothing like this. The harder Tyler tried to get ahold of Josh, the angrier Brendon became.

"Has he been treating you like that this whole time?" Brendon demanded as Tyler got Josh's voicemail again. When Tyler didn't respond, redialling Josh's number and calling again, Brendon spoke louder. "Why didn't you fucking tell me he talked to you like that? That's just as bad as hitting you, Tyler. Don't you get that? You can't let people treat you like that. You deserve better than that!"

"Shut up!" Tyler yelled finally.

Sarah looked fearfully between the two men from where she sat stiffly on the couch. She said nothing, not even when Brendon started to yell back at Tyler.

"I am not going to let people push you around like that! If you can't protect yourself from assholes like him, I'll do it for you. He isn't welcome here. He's a piece of shit," Brendon snapped just as angrily.

"He was scared!" Tyler yelled back finally. "He isn't really mad at me. He's trying to push me away so I won't stop him, and it's not going to fucking work. I know exactly what he's thinking right now. I know he's getting himself into a bad situation right now, and I need you to shut the fuck up so I can help him."

Before Brendon could yell again, Sarah spoke up gently. "What kind of bad situation, Ty?"

His bottom lip trembled as he sent another text to Josh. "I can't tell you."

The room was silent for a moment, but Sarah stood up with a bit of hesitation before walking over to Tyler and hugging him, guiding him to rest his head on her shoulder. He couldn't help but hug her back, breaking down as she held him. Brendon hesitated as well, clearly not sure what to make of this situation or how best to help Tyler.

"So what do we do? How do we.... How can we get him out of this bad situation?" Brendon asked, his voice tight and restrained. He didn't want to do this, but he would for Tyler.

Tyler shook his head, coughing out a sob. "I don't know. I don't know where he is. I just have a terrible feeling. I need him to call me back or to text me or to come home. I don't know where he is, or if he's-"

Just then, Tyler's phone rang. He didn't recognize the number, but he answered anyways with a hopeful, "Hello?"

"Did my dad call you?" Debby asked, skipping the formality of a proper greeting. She'd been crying too.

"No, why would he-"

"Josh overdosed at his house tonight." Tyler's stomach dropped as soon as he registered the words she'd said. She didn't wait for him to process that, continuing to speak anxiously. "I'm headed there now. I have some naloxone in my purse that should reverse the overdose, but he needs to go to the hospital. My dad said he's had three seizures already. I just.... Where are you? You should come. He'll want you there when he wakes up."

"I'm at home. We had a fight. I don't.... He saw his dad today, and he just-"

"Text me your address. I'm picking you up on my way over. He'll be okay, but he won't want me there when he wakes up. He'll want you, no matter what he said before the OD. Trust me. He's going to be terrified and in a lot of pain when he wakes up," Debby said confidently. "Take deep breaths, okay? Josh has bounced back from worse than this."

The words did little to comfort Tyler, but he still went into his room to get his shoes as he sent her his address. Brendon followed him, still fuming but trying to push the anger down for Tyler.