I'm Not Dead

[ C H . 4 ]

Trigger Warning: Violence/bloodshed.

After being sent home, I tried to go to the Doctor.

Normally, I wouldn't worry about puking after a night of drinking, but the blood was a new occurrence. I couldn't step foot inside the Urgent Care's lobby though, because the waiting room was tightly packed with people complaining about fevers, and some so sick they couldn't stand. This flu epidemic wasn't just the hospital's problem. 

I had tried to call my mom, but she didn't answer. Which confirmed the hospital was busy too because she almost always called or texted back within thirty minutes. I want to tell her what happened first because I never went to the doctor unless she thought I had to.

Perks of having a nurse in the family.

I tried a couple of different places, before realizing there was no way I was getting looked at today, so, I decided to do the next best thing; Google it. After scrolling through a couple of websites, I concluded there was nothing to worry about. Even if there was, I didn't have much to live for anyway. If I died, I died. Nothing was going to stop me from going out drinking tonight, especially when I might have some company. If Lorenzo showed. Worst case, if he didn't, I'd get Luna to myself for the night.

Expectedly, she was reluctant to go out drinking with me after I coughed up my insides, but after reassuring her and showing her how good I was feeling—we pushed our way inside the bar. I hated the Gypsy Bear lounge. It was a nice bar, but I didn't like the crowd it attracted. They were a bunch of smart-ass, well-off college students who came here to do something rebellious in a safe environment for their kind. I had no idea why Eleanor and her band wanted to perform here, but the pay must be good because it was thirty dollars a person to get in.

El and her friends created their band Grey Head a few years ago, right before she graduated high school. While she did graduate, she decided to forgo college to focus on the band. Just the band. She didn't work, never got her driver's licenses, and probably did some illegal shit to get her Gibson. She wanted to be a musician, so bad, she was willing to self-destruct.

Whether she liked to admit it or not, we had that in common. When I went to art school, I gave up everything and everyone that would stand in the way of me getting what I wanted. It was an admirable, devastating quality.

"I don't see Lorenzo, maybe he didn't show?" Luna remarked, scanning the already crowded bar with a look of relief. There a lot of guys here, but none of them Lorenzo. She didn't want to do this. Luna wasn't the kind of girl to play games with people, whether she knew them or not. This was uncharted territory for her, making it hard to relax.

I knew though, either way, his feelings were getting hurt, so why shouldn't it feel like his choice? "He'll be here, I'm sure of it." I sighed, looking around the bar as well, before locking eyes with Eleanor.

She was on the other side of the room, but in thirty seconds, she'd stormed over to me and shoved my chest. She was small, but the girl was strong. "What the hell are you doing here Rocco?" 

Fair, fair reaction. 

I did threaten to smash her amp this morning. Fortunately for her, I had no intention of following through on that threat. Mostly because I didn't want to get marinated in her pepper spray. "I'm here to see you perform goofball," I then grabbed Eleanor and pulled her in for a seemingly affectionate hug. "I'm doing something for Lorenzo, please go along with it," I whispered, before pulling away and giving her a dimpled grin. "You're going to love her band Luna; they write completely original music. Eleanor here composes most of it!" I beamed, silently praying my sister would go along with it. Like me, she had a soft spot for our eldest baby brother.