Rejuvenate | Spruceworth 5.2

Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Shaw

       As soon as Grant came off of his high, he immediately fell asleep on the couch. I thought seeing Grant, a sixteen year old, at a high state would have been the toughest part of sponsoring. That was before the cold sweat and troubled sleeping came.

       In his sleep, Grant kept pulling off and putting on the blanket because of his cold sweats. With the blanket, he was too hot but without it, he was too cold.

       I had to constantly get a cold, damp cloth to wipe the sweat away but it never really lasted long. He just wouldn't stop sweating.

       After another round of wiping the sweat off of Grant's forehead, I walked over to the kitchen to rinse off the cloth. Holden was sitting at the counter, just watching the whole process. "How's he doing?" he asked.

       "Not well," I said. "But it's a normal reaction. It's just hard to see, even though I lived through it. I would never wish it upon any other human, especially someone as young as him."

       "How long will it take for him to get pass this?" Holden asked.

       "It depends what you mean by pass," I said. "Realistically, never. He may get clean but addicts always have a chance of relapsing. But if you mean how long it will take for him to withdraw from it, it depends on the user and how many times they've used it. It can take weeks, months. Grant hasn't been taking it for long, though, so it might not take him months. We'll have to see. If it ever comes to it, would you be okay with Grant crashing here a few nights?"

       "Yeah," Holden said. "Yeah, of course. You're helping him and you did tell me his mom isn't trying to support him at all. He needs the support. And I told you, I'll gladly help if you need it."

       I smiled my thanks at Holden. He never had any experience with drugs. He never took it himself and he was at boarding school and I was addicted to drugs but he still wanted to do whatever he could to help.

       Grant suddenly woke up, sitting up on the couch and breathing heavily. I quickly went over to him, crouching beside the couch. "Hey, you okay?" I asked.

       Grant nodded and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "Y-yeah, I'm fine. Just... Not feeling too great."

       I sat down beside him on the couch. "So... You want to talk about why you scored some coke?" Grant shrugged and looked down. "It's okay. Whatever the reason is, I'm not mad at you. I know what it's like to not be able to stop yourself. Nothing you say will make me mad at you."

       Grant was silent for a bit before giving me the answer. "I thought today was going to be a good day for once. I haven't had a good day since my dad passed away. And even though it's my first birthday without my dad, I was excited. Then my mom came home with the cake."

       I furrowed my eyebrows. "I don't get it. What's so bad about cake?"

       "I have a twin sister," Grant said. "Hennessy. We always got a big cake for the both of us since it was cheaper and we both had the same favourite flavour. We didn't care. It was going to get eaten anyway. But... When my mom brought home the cake, it said 'Happy Birthday, Hennessy'. And in a much smaller font, a very small font, was 'and Grant'. Like she didn't care about me at all."

       "Seriously?" I asked. "That's awful. I'm so sorry, Grant. I wish you called me once you were really craving it but I don't blame you for taking some cocaine anyway."

       "That's not all," Grant said. "You know my cousin, Kenny, right?" I nodded. "Once she found out he was gay, she has always supported him. So I decided to come out as pansexual since it's my sixteenth birthday and I don't want to hide it anymore but for some reason, she didn't take it well. I told her I can have feelings for anyone. I don't care about sex or gender. I can see myself marrying a guy. I can see myself marrying a girl. No matter who it is, I'll be happy. And my mom is totally fine with Kenny being married to another guy. But she wasn't okay with the fact that there's a possibility I could marry a guy. So long story short, my day was completely ruined and I just wanted to feel good."

       "Well, we may not be able to completely fix your day but it might help," I said.

       "What will?" Grant asked.

       "I got my husband to go out and buy a cake for you," I said. "One that doesn't have a small font wishing you a happy birthday. I know you're probably not feeling too hungry right now but we wanted to buy you one anyway."

       "You actually bought a cake for me?" Grant asked.

       "Of course," I said. "You didn't seem to be having the happiest day today and I didn't even know about the cake incident back home, so it might help you feel better."

       Grant gave a smile, one that was weak because of his current state but at least he was trying to smile. "Thank you. I still feel like crap but at least I know I do have people out there who are looking out for me. And you're right. I'm not hungry at all but can I get a glass of water."

       "I'll get that," Holden spoke up since he was already in the kitchen.

       He got Grant a glass of ice cold water and once Grant had it in his hand, I said, "I guess it's time for a formal introduction. Grant, this is my husband Holden. Holden, this is Grant."

       "You know, if you ever need a place to stay for a few hours or even a few days, you're more than welcome here," Holden said.

       "Really?" Grant said. "I won't be too much of a hassle?"

       "Of course," I said. "We're here for you."

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poor grant :( his mom is horrible and rude

imagine what her reaction will be if grant does get married to another guy oof