Fallout

Easier To Run

Mike's Pov:

I yawned and stretched out my arms, seeing it was early and nobody else was probably up. I glance over at Chester's bunk and see his curtain is lazily open and that he's not inside. I climbed out of my bunk and jumped down, suddenly curious as to where our new vocalist is. I see a figure in the corner of the lounging area and rub my eyes tiredly as I walked toward it.

"Chaz? What're you doin' up s'early?" My words slurred together. I looked at Chester and realized he was wide awake, rocking back and forth in the darkest corner of the area and gripping onto his knees for dear life. I crouched next to him and he paused his rocking, his eyes staring off into the floor. "What's up, Chester?"

"Shh," He hushed me and pulled me down so I'd sit next to him. He gripped onto my arm with a shaky hand as his body trembled. "They're gonna get me if they hear you. We have to be quiet, Mike. I-I don't want them to take me,"

"What? Who's going to take you?-"

"Hush!" He shushed me loudly and let go of my arm and covered his mouth with his hand when he realized how loud he was. His eyes went wider, if possible. "M-Mike! They're gonna get me! They're gonna get me! Mike, please don't let them get me!"

"Chester!" I jumped as he suddenly started yelling for me to help him. I heard groans coming from the other guys and I put a hand over Chester's mouth. I looked into his deep dark eyes and saw he was absolutely terrified. I noticed his eyes were bloodshot and that's when I realized he was high. "Calm down, everything's going to be fine."

"I-"

"Shh," I put my arms around him and held him tightly.

"What's... Going on?" Brad asked between yawns. Chester stiffened and gripped me tighter.

"Chester's just being a little paranoid," I said quietly, hiding the fact that he was recently abusing drugs. Brad looked at us oddly before trotting back to his bunk. I dragged Chester's weak body into the small bathroom and looked at him directly. "What did you take?"

"I... What?" He asked, his voice fluctuating between high and low volumes.

"Drugs," I whispered and saw him inhale deeply without making a noise. "What kind of drugs did you take?"

"I-I... Crystal," He whispered the last part and looked to the ground in shame. I roughly exhaled and watched him in shock. I didn't think he'd be capable of such a strong drug, but it definitely explains his new extreme paranoia.

"Ches," I said quietly and instantly devoured his slim frame into my arms. Some people don't understand that the person who's abusing drugs isn't trying to hurt you, they're trying hurting themselves. You have to pull away the layers they build on themselves and discover what's making them do this. "Why did you begin abusing drugs, Ches? And what made you do it now?"

"I-I-I just," He stuttered, eyes wide, now looking at me. He began whispering extremely quietly, being barely audible to my ears. "W-When I was a kid... T-There was this guy. H-He was a few years older t-than me a-and he... Uh..."

"What did he do?" I asked, having a few ideas. He shook his head and stood up.

"H-His name..." He stuttered before stopping and appearing to think. I rose next to him and watched him carefully. "His name was D-Drake. I-I hate him."

"Ches," I called out to him after he began abruptly walking to his bunk. He climbed in, closed the curtain, and that's it. What the hell?

I sat on the couch and stared at the spot that Chester had previously occupied. I couldn't believe how much the drugs had effected him. He was cool and collected before but now... Now he was yelling and paranoid and out of control. I hope I don't have to see that side of him this often. After a while, I hadn't realized I've been staring off into nothing for over an hour until Brad bumped my arm.