The Darkest Hour

Black eyes looked at Serena when she snickered. It helped to remove some of the tension that had been building in his shoulders as he relaxed a bit. He hadn't even realized he was that stressed. He smiled at her, thankful that she was here. "Sorry," he apologized. "I just figured you were more than a pretty face is all." He really was grateful for her friendship. He'd probably helped saved her life,  but she had also saved his. Sometimes you just needed a person to protect in order to keep yourself out of trouble. Call it distrustful, but sometimes he worried that she'd slip up. He didn't want to lose anymore friends. He said nothing when Kinaga claimed himself to be fine. They all knew that was a lie. He ran his hands through his spiky brown hair, stopping halfway through when Marius started to stir. That was putting it very lightly.

Marius woke up in a fit. It was obvious he was in pain and disoriented. Most people where when they woke up in a strange place without any memory of how they got there. He started trying to brush the IV's off him, but they were held firmly by tape. Ocean blue eyes were wide with panic. He started gasping, trying to draw in breath. Everything seemed awfully bright, ironically like being on psychedelic drugs.

Serena rolled her eyes when Roy tried to amend the situation. "Yeah, suuure." She'd been in situations like this before. Some of her old friends had been in the hospital due to overdosing and she'd always come to their rooms to sit with them and their families, even though she had personally never stopped using until a while after she'd met Roy. She knew how these scenarios worked. Everybody was always mopey and mourning over a loss that didn't exist if someone didn't step up and try to lighten the situation up a little. However, when Marius woke up and started panicking, Serena wasn't quite sure humor would make it better anymore. She stood up and took a step back when Kinaga was suddenly right at Marius's side.

The blue haired male's eyes darted to Marius when the other male started into a fit. Kinaga immediately stood up and moved forward, taking one of Marius's hands once the guy started trying to brush off the IV's. "Hey, Marius, Mar, look at me," he said, his voice shaky. "It's Kinaga, hey, you're okay." One of his hands left Marius just long enough to press the red button that would call a nurse or a doctor in. After he pressed the button, his hand went to the side of Marius's face. He'd had a kid go into a fit in the middle of one of his classes before, but this was nothing like that. Kinaga actually had a bond with Marius, the guy was his best friend. This was much, much scarier.

Marius heard a voice, but it sounded so far away. It took him a minute to really focus and see Kinaga. Long enough for the nurses to come rushing into the room. He felt his friend's hand on his face, on his hand. It was comforting. Those ocean blue eyes were wide and frightened. He opened his mouth to say something, but his throat hurt so bad. He glanced at the nurses as they ushered Kinaga away. He placed a death grip on Kinaga's wrist, refusing to let go. He didn't want to let go. He was scared and he didn't have a clue as to what was going on. He gave a pitiful wail as the nurses pried his fingers away from Kinaga. He tried fighting them away, but they held him down, unable to sedate him. They called for a doctor as the seizures started. The room was suddenly loud with blaring noises from the machines, the nurses yelling over it, and the overall movement from multiple bodies at work.

Roy stepped back outside of the room right before the nurses came rushing. He'd heard them coming and he didn't want to be in the way. He took in a shaky breath as shit started hitting the fan. Roy tucked his hands into his pockets, leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and started silently counting to a hundred. It was either do that or run screaming.

Kinaga forced a smile for Marius when he seemed to notice he was there. "It's okay Mar, I'm here," he repeated quietly. And then the nurses came in and tried to remove him from his best friend's side. Even with Marius's grip on his wrist, they still found a way to start moving him away from the pink haired male, despite his own protest. "Let me stay with him, please, please, he needs someone here," he begged. And then the noises from the machines started, and when the nurses finally pushed him back, he stumbled back a few steps. He would have fallen backwards if Serena hadn't been there to steady him. He couldn't even see Marius through the crowding of nurses. Kinaga's face paled a shade and he took a step back, his eyes wide. Gods...was this really happening all over again..?

Serena moved out of the way of the doctors just as Roy did, but didn't leave the room. She saw the nurses trying to move Kinaga, and the blue haired man didn't seem to want to leave any more than Marius wanted him to leave. When Kinaga stumbled back, she put her hand on his back to steady him. "Let them do their jobs. Let's step out for a couple minutes, okay? He'll be fine." A pause and she moved around to look at the male beside her. "Kinaga?" Concern washed over her when she saw his face. He looked absolutely traumatized. Like he was going to break down at any given moment. He looked horrified, like he believed the nurses were there trying to hurt Marius instead of help him. It finally clicked. Kinaga hadn't told her that his fiance had died in a hospital, but it made sense now. Serena felt horrible for not realizing it sooner. "Come on Kinaga," she said, putting her hand on his arm and turning him away, leading him out of the room.

Kinaga looked back when Serena led him away, and when he spoke, his voice was quiet and small. "But...he needs someone there..." They were going to kill him. That's all Kinaga could think. He knew what those noises meant when the machines started acting up, and it wasn't good. He'd heard them a thousand times over.

"And we'll be there for him. But right now the doctors and nurses need to be there for him." She looked to Roy. "Let's go grab some food or something Roy. He'll be okay, they'll take care of him," she told the both of them with a small frown. Her eyes were practically begging Roy to come along. She didn't want to leave either one of them alone right now.

Roy wasn't worried that Marius wouldn't be okay. He was worried that he might be on the edge of that carefully maintained control. He was worried that he might not wait for Tobias to show up. He was worried that six inches of cold steel wouldn't be enough to make him feel satisfied. He looked into Serena's eyes, meeting her gaze and nodding. He didn't want food, although he hadn't eaten tonight because he and Marius were supposed to have gone on a date. He moved away from the wall slowly as Marius started screaming. The muscles in his arm so tense you could see the veins. He restarted his count as he moved away from the room, blindly following Serena. He tried to focus only on the count, but he kept seeing Marius attached to all those wires and in pain. He tried to focus on the count,  but all he could hear was the blaring machines and Kinaga's desperate pleas. He tried to focus on the on the count,  but all he could see was Serena being a much needed wall of support.  He tried to focus on the count, but he saw Tobias, heard the way he talked about Marius. A calmness fell over him, as if he'd resigned himself to the reality of the situation, or rather the decision he'd just made. He walked up on Kinaga's other side. "It's not easy standing on the sideline, not being able to do anything to help, but Serena is right. Let them do their jobs. They're going to keep his heart beating so that the next time he wakes up, he'll have you to keep him company. You saw how relieved he was to see you. He's still there. He's still Marius, and he's not going anywhere." The words came out sincere and calm. He didn't even glance over his shoulder. Marius would be fine.

Kinaga kept glancing back over his shoulder, but let Serena lead them away from the room. Marius had finally woken up, but...they wouldn't even let him stay in there with him. Blue eyes gained a bit of a shine as they turned towards the ground in front of him. Gods, what if Marius thought they were abandoning him? He had to be so scared. Kinaga glanced to Roy when the taller male spoke to him, swallowing lightly. He knew he had to look pathetic right now, but he couldn't help it. His eyes found their way back to the ground when Roy told him that the doctors were going to keep Marius' heart beating. That Marius was still there, and that he wasn't going anywhere. Kinaga's hands clenched as they walked and he barely even realized when Serena told him to sit down once they got to the food court.

The purple haired female put a hand on Kinaga's shoulder once they were to the tables, as if encouraging him to sit, since he hadn't seemed to hear her. "You two sit down, I'll go grab us some food. You in the mood for anything specific?" she asked, trying to keep her voice light as Kinaga sat down. She was glad when she actually got a response from Kinaga, even though it was only a shake of his head, and turned her gaze to Roy instead.

Roy sat down without being told. He looked at Kinaga for a moment then to Serena. "Whatever is fine," he told her, black eyes unwavering. He gave her a small smile, telling her that he'd make sure Kinaga was okay. Rpy was fine. Yeah, he was having flashbacks of a less than pleasant time, but to hell with it. Kinaga needed him to keep his head on straight. He waited until Serena was gone to speak. "Kinaga." He said the other's name and it demanded attention in a gentle sort of way. "I know that Serena and I are pretty much strangers, but we're here for you and Marius." He held eye contact with the other to make sure he understood.  "Marius is going to be fine. It may not seem like it right now, because he looks worse for wear, but he's a fighter. You've known him longer, so you know this much is true. As for Tobias, don't worry about him. He won't hurt Marius anymore.  That's a promise." He didn't even offer a comforting smile. "I'm not good with the whole comfort thing, but I know how to protect people. I like Marius, a lot and I won't stand by and watch someone hurt him. He's going to need all of us. Grieve now, it's fine, but when he wakes up again, let him know you're there for him. Just like you did before. The best way to shut down an abuser is to let the victim know there's more outside the bullshit." He kept his voice even, yet serious. "Marius isn't capable of saying no, but we can let him know that there's more options than just Tobias." That man's name made him feel violent and he didn't want to be violent. The thing was, violence was all he knew.

The gold band on his finger drew Kinaga's attention away after Serena left. He looked down at it silently, his breath shaky, and turned it around his finger again and again. Shisu...I wish I could talk to you again...I need you so much...I miss you so much... His blue eyes were shining lightly, but no tears formed or spilled over. Kinaga looked up at Roy when he heard his name called. He felt bad that he was acting like this. He should have been the one that was the shoulder to cry on. It was how it had always been. He felt worse when Roy told him that Marius was going to be fine. That he didn't have to worry about Tobias. He felt worse because he wasn't afraid of Tobias coming back. Not right now, anyways. He felt worse because he didn't want to lose Marius for purely selfish reasons. He just didn't want to be left alone. Marius was all he had left to cling to in this world. Kinaga took a deep, shaky breath when Roy finished speaking, but nodded. "R...right." A pause. "Yeah...you're right," he repeated, giving a small nod. He wondered if he looked as out of it as he felt. His mind was reeling. The sound of those machines were echoing in his head, burrowing their way in and making him remember things he didn't want to remember. Kinaga continued turning his wedding ring on his finger and swallowed. Marius was the important one right now. He couldn't keep being the pity party like this. It wasn't right. He didn't need the help of others, he couldn't keep worrying everyone else. He didn't matter, not in the grand scheme of things. He didn't know what else to say to Roy, but he felt like Roy's words had helped pull him out of that awful haze he'd been in a few moments ago.

Serena came back a few moments later with a platter full of chicken tenders with various types of sauces, french fries, and three bottles of water. She put them down on the table and sat down next to Roy. "You guys okay?" she asked, looking between them. She was beyond relieved when she saw a bit of life in Kinaga's eyes when he looked to her and nodded without a word. Whether he was speaking or not, his expression said that he was at least better than when they'd left the room. She smiled lightly when Kinaga took a fry and idly started nibbling at it.

Roy sat back in his chair when Kinaga seemed to ease up a bit. Not by much, but the difference was noticeable. He looked up at the ceiling for a long moment, his mind wandering until Serena returned with the food. He looked uninterested in the meal. " Yeah, I'm good," he answered when she asked how they were. He looked at her sideways. "You okay?" That's how these things worked. You made sure everyone was holding up. He really couldn't bring himself to eat right now. What he wanted to do was go out and smoke a cigarette. What he wanted to do was go make a few phone calls and make sure those close to him were okay. Today had made him realize that he didn't keep in touch enough with people that mattered. He'd purposely kept them at a difference, but he'd go to the ends of the earth for them and he never knew if they were well. Never knew if they were breathing, well fed, sheltered.  He expected them to be able to hold their ooen because they were adults, but seeing Marius reminded him that not everyone was strong. It reminded him that not everyone could hold their own. Some people needed protecting.  He knew that personally. He'd needed protecting, but instead he had become the protector. He shook his head lightly, frowning.

Serena gave Roy a small smile and nodded. "Yeah." The purple haired woman sat down and took a chicken tender, ripping it in half and blowing on it to cool it off. "I bet when Marius sees the things we got him, he's going to feel a lot better," she said, looking between the two. She was trying to be reassuring. Kinaga seemed less out of it now, though he was still only slowly eating away at the one fry he'd picked up. Serena saw Kinaga blink in surprise at her words, as if he'd forgotten for a moment that there were other people around him.

Kinaga was still for a moment before nodding. "Yeah...I think he'll like them," he said quietly. He stared blindly down at the food in front of them, his gaze going right past it. He didn't care about the presents they'd gotten Marius. He wanted to go back to his friend's room. What if Marius needed him there? He could help calm him down. They didn't need to give his friend more drugs if he could help calm him down himself. "...when do you think it'd be okay to go back to his room?" he asked after a moment, his gaze still down on the table. He wondered if he would be able to sleep at all for the next few nights after something like this.

There isn't a single force in this world that will save that man from me. That was all Roy could think about as he played over his food and half-listened to Serena. He nodded lightly when she spoke of their gifts. "Yeah, he always gets excited when I bring him things, so I'm sure he'll like them." He glanced at Kinaga when the guy asked about going back to see Marius. He didn't have an answer for that. Instead he pushed his chair back and stood up. "I'm going to go have a smoke and call my brother," he said, placing his hands in his pockets. Roy hadn't spoken to his brother in years, along with the rest of his family. He didn't call them and he didn't respond to any messages he got from them, whether it was voicemail, text, or letters sent to his P.O. box because he'd refused to give them his mailing address. Today's events were really messing with him to even consider calling them. The thing was, Roy had done his fair share of fighting as a kid, and sometimes if you loved a person enough, you were willing to sacrifice more than your fair share, even if it meant losing those closest to you. "I'll be back shortly." He wasn't good with the sentimental crap anyway. He'd never had the luxury of needing it.

Serena wasn't sure how to respond, but it didn't seem like Roy was going to lend a hand in this situation. Instead he simply got up and said he was going out for a cigarette. The purple haired female nodded. But why was he calling his brother? They hadn't spoken in ages. Or at least, that's what Roy had told her. "Okay," she said with a nod, looking back to Kinaga. "I'm not sure, but it'll probably be soon," she told him with a soft smile. "The doctors will take care of him. There's nothing we can do right now, but I'm positive he'll be fine Kinny."

"...please...don't call me that..." Kinaga's gaze once more landed on the table. He didn't want to hear that there was nothing they could do. Didn't want to hear anyone call him Kinny but Marius. He just wanted to talk to him. To find out why, to know what happened. Had Tobias really been the one to push him back to drugs? He'd found Marius outside of a club. As far as he knew, Marius didn't really even go to clubs that frequently anymore. Kinaga put the fry down without bothering to finish it. "...I'm gonna go to the restroom. I'll be right back," he told Serena, getting up from his seat.

Serena blinked. Kinaga was still that pale color he'd been earlier. She wondered if he would really be okay. She really didn't think much of him telling her not to use that nickname. Maybe he felt they weren't close enough for that. Or maybe it was just too sensitive a time for that. Whatever it was, she understood. When Kinaga was gone, the purple haired female gave a sigh and opened her bottle of water. Great...now she was sitting alone.

Roy had a cigarette in his mouth before he'd even exited the building. He'd waited to light it out of courtesy. Once in the parking lot, he was taking the longest drag of his life. The cold air was nonexistent as he searched for his car. His mind was going at a million miles an hour. Roy wanted nothing more than to find Tobias and rip his heart out of his chest. He wanted Marius to be okay. For things to go back to normal, but every time he told himself to relax, he saw Marius screaming. Roy finished off his cigarette and slid into the seat of his car. He hit the steering wheel repeatedly, screaming with frustration. "God damn it! Damn it all to Hell!" He hit the steering wheel again and then leaned back, hands on his face. "....damn it...." He sat in the car long enough to calm down. Roy didn't do tears anymore. His tear ducks had dried up a long time ago. Anger was so much easier for him. He rolled down his window and lit another cigarette. Black eyes stared at his phone for a long time before he dialed his youngest brother's number. 

"Hello?" The voice on the other end sounded sleepy. Roy had forgotten that it was late. He didn't care. He just needed to hear his brother's voice. To know that he was okay. He had an older brother and younger sister, but the one that he'd been worried about when he saw Marius was Ricky. "Hello?" 

"Hey Ricky."

"Roy!?" He could hear movement. It was clear the younger male was sitting up. 

"Yeah, it's me. I know it's late. I just ne-wanted to check on you. How ya doing kid?" Roy closed his eyes, relaxing against the seat.

"No, no, it's fine. I'm just glad to hear from you. It's been so long. You never write or call or visit. I get scared that you're dead or something. I miss you. We all do. Rita is getting ready to graduate college. She's got one semester and then she'll have her Art Degree. She's really good. And Robby's doing well too. He's working at a bakery. He likes it a lot there, and they treat him real nice." Ricky spoke, the sleep had left his voice when he realized who'd been on the other end of the line. 

Roy nodded slowly. He hadn't even known Rita was in school or that Robby had a job. He frowned lightly. He was missing out on their lives. "That's good. Tell Rita to keep up the good work. I'm proud of her. And hug Robby for me. Tell him that he has to bake me a cake sometime." It was a lie. He'd never see them again. Ever. 

Ricky knew it was a lie, but he'd still tell Robby. It would make him happy. "Will do. So how've you been Roy? Where are you?"

"Ricky, you never answered my original question. I asked how are you, not everyone else, though the update was much appreciated."

"I'm doing well. I haven't been doing any drugs if that's what you're implying. I've been clean for three years now. I can't do that stuff anymore Roy. I don't need it anymore." He was silent for a moment. "I'm going to be a dad soon, and I don't want to lose my kid. I want to be a good parent. Better than what we had."

Roy's eyes opened. "Dad? Kassidy is pregnant? You guys finally tied the knot?"

"Yeah," Ricky replied, and Roy could hear the pride. 

"Congratulations Ricky. I'm happy for you. Seriously, you've come a long way kid. I'm proud of you."

"We've all come a long way. Had you not been there to save my ass over and over again, I wouldn't have made it this far. Thank you, Roy."

"Yeah. No problem kid. Get some sleep, I gotta go." 

"Bye Roy."

"Bye." Roy hung up. A weight was suddenly lifted off his shoulders. It was always this way whenever he spoke to him. He was going to be an uncle. 



A nurse came down the hallway towards the food court. His brown hair was cut short, his eyes the color of fresh pool water. He looked as if he hadn't slept in a week. He was rubbing his hands on scrub pants, even though there wasn't anything on his hands. It was a habit when he was tired, almost as if he was trying to remind himself that he was still existing. Sometimes it felt like you weren't real after working so many hours. "Excuse ma'am, you were with the two gentle that came in with Mr. King, correct?" He noticed the two plates with empty seats. He would have loved to take one of those seats. When was the last time he'd sat down? "I need to discuss the current condition of the patient."

Serena looked up from the fry she was biting at when someone addressed her. A nurse. He looked tired. He had probably been working all night and then some. Maybe a double. The purple haired woman nodded. "Yes, that's right." Would it have been better to wait for Kinaga and Roy to come back? Maybe it would be better for her to vet the information first, so that she could relay it to them gently. She liked Marius, but she wasn't as close to him as Roy and Kinaga were. She would probably be able to handle bad news better than they could right now. "Yeah, of course. Sit down," she offered, motioning towards one of the chairs the boys hadn't taken earlier. Luckily they'd picked a four seated table. "Is he stable?" Better to ask if he was stable than if he was alright.

Blue eyes widened just a bit. Sit down? That was probably the least expected thing he'd expected to hear. "Thank you," he spoke as he slid into the indicated chair. He wasn't going to turn down a chance to take a seat, if only for a few moments. "For now he's stable," the man answered. "But there are some concerns." He paused, but not the dramatic kind, just a pause to figure out how to word this in terms that an everyday person could understand. "As of right now your friend is stable," he repeated, "but we're not sure for how long. His organs have suffered a lot of damage from the drugs, mainly his heart which has a lot of stress damage, and his kidneys which have been working overtime to filter the foreign agents in his system." He took a second to let her digest that before he continued. "We're monitoring him to ensure he doesn't go into organ failure, but there's no certain answer right now." He ran a hand through his short brown hair. "He's awake right now and he's in a lot of pain. We're hesitant to keep drugging him. The possibility of a coma is too high. We're not willing to induce a coma without running the risk of him not waking back up. He's going to be very irritable over the next few days, maybe weeks as he's going through heavy withdrawal." He cleared his throat. "It depends on how often he uses." He smoothed out the wrinkles in his scrubs. "And he's asking for someone named Tobias. Was that one of the males that were with you?" 



P.S. I don't know anything about the medical world so I'm just making it up as I go.