The Downward Spiral- Part 5

   Andrew stood there, surveying the scene in front of him. Jeremy, his friend of many years laid naked on the floor. Dried blood, and glass was encrusted into his hair. Tiny cuts laced his pale skin. Andrew took a deep breath, and knelt next to Jeremy. He could see a large laceration to the back of his skull, which is where he assumed most of the blood came from. Jeremy was barely conscious, and was shivering. Hell, his buddy was probably in shock, or at least making his way to that point. He knew he needed to act quickly, warm him up, and get control of his C-spine.

   Dawn entered behind Andrew, with the stretcher and their equipment. They made quick work of Jeremy. First, brushing off some of the glass fragments, then immobilizing him. They worked quickly to actively warm him, by laying warm blankets over his naked body. Jeremy barely acknowledged them. Dawn, skillfully punctured Jeremy's skin with a large bore needle, and attached warm IV fluid to the catheter, now secured to his hand. His other arm, which appeared broken and deformed, now laid across Jeremy's chest splinted. 

   They both could smell the pungent odor of stale alcohol. It filled the air, consuming their senses. There was no doubt in their mind, that it was the consumption of alcohol that caused this to happen. On their way in, they saw first hand the destruction Jeremy had caused, in his kitchen. Broken bottles, holes in the wall, the overturned table, and chairs, the dried blood on the floor where they had guessed Jeremy had fallen. It was amazing to them, that he didn't hurt himself worse. With a count of 3, Dawn and Andrew lifted Jeremy onto the waiting stretcher, and secured him. Carefully, they maneuvered their way through the destruction, out to their waiting ambulance. 

   Andrew hopped in back of the truck with Jeremy. With a nod, Dawn closed the back doors and strode toward the driver's seat. Andrew looked carefully at Jeremy, and nudged him to try to wake him up.

   "Hey dude, what happened?" Andrew asked, trying to check Jeremy's level of consciousness.

   "The hell if I know, my head hurts pretty bad, my fucking arm is broken." Jeremy answered, barely loud enough for Andrew to hear, over the hum of the diesel engine. 

   "Yeah, I bet you are one hurting SOB, brother. You have a nice laceration on the back of your head, and yeah dude, appears you did a number on your arm too." Andrew tried not to let his concern show through, but wasn't exactly successful at it. "Can you tell me what day it is, and where you are?" Andrew asked.

   "Well, I don't know what day it is, or how long I was out for, but I do know the back of A1 when I see it." 

   "Yeap, kind of hard not to miss the broken clock in the back of this darling, huh." Andrew replied with a chuckle. Then, his voice got more serious. "Jeremy, what sent you over the edge? This is the worst I have seen you since, you know. I am concerned, I don't like seeing you like this."

   Jeremy thought for a moment, as if trying to pull the memories from his mind. A wave of sadness overcame him, when the thought of Sammy's letter entered into his mind. Tears again threatened his eyes. "A letter. It was a letter from Sammy. Her suicide note, to be exact. Alexis gave it to me. It... It was a tough read. Brought up a lot of old feelings. She loved me bro, she said so in the note. I... I couldn't handle it. I needed to numb the pain." Jeremy sobbed. The words, coming out in bursts. 

   "Shit." Andrew relied in shock. "I am so sorry man. I wish none of this happened. I don't know what to say."

   "Not much anyone can do now.  Nothing is going to make it suck any less." Jeremy replied, his sobbing more controlled. 

   "Yeah, I know." Andrew replied.

    They both sat in silence as the Ambulance rocked with each divot in the road. As the sirens wailed, the sound was muffled by the noise of the engine. Andrew made a move toward the seat behind Jeremy's head. He reached for the radio, to call his report into St. John's Hospital. After relaying his information, he replaced the mic and moved back toward Jeremy. He checked Jeremy's vital signs, and was pleased to see that he was improving with the bolus of warm fluid. 

   "We will get you to the hospital, and get you all fixed up. I think, maybe after you get released you should come stay with me for awhile, or at least have someone stay with you."

   "I don't need anyone with me, I don't want a babysitter." Jeremy scowled. 

   "It's not babysitting, I just think you could benefit from having some company for awhile. My offer still stands, just think about it, okay? We've already lost someone we care about, we don't need to lose another."

   "I'm not going to kill myself, dammit!" Jeremy yelled, anger replacing any sadness he was feeling. How could they think he was trying to hurt himself? He was a drunk. No more, no less. 

   "Alright. Fine. I was just trying to reach out. No need to take my head off." Andrew replied. 

   The rest of the ride to the hospital was silent. Andrew, now angry with Jeremy was trying as hard as he could to hide it. What had Jeremy become? This is not the person he knew. He'd be damned if he let another one of his friends self destruct. He would make damn sure of that! The sound of the back up alarm snapped him out if his thoughts, they were at the hospital. 

   Dawn put the truck in park. She slid out of the drivers seat, and slowly walked toward the back of the box. She had heard the whole argument, and was not looking forward to getting into the middle of it. She thought to herself, "well, here goes nothing." She opened the doors slowly, and looked into the faces of both men. She couldn't help but smile. They reminded her of children. Arms crossed, stomping off into different directions. Yelling, "you're not my friend anymore", or the more familiar "you're not my brother anymore" that she often heard from her own children. Trying to choke down a laugh she looked at Andrew with amusement in her eyes.

   "Are we all set, or should I close the doors and let you two pout some more?" She asked, in amusement.

   "we're all set, let's just get this miserable bastard into the ER." Andrew replied, still scowling.

   Jeremy didn't offer up so much as a single word. He was lost in his own thoughts. "Well, alright then. Let's roll." Dawn said, trying to cut the tension that laid thick between her two coworkers. "Maybe we can have you two kiss and make up later." 

   This time, Jeremy answered. He looked at Dawn, softness in his eyes. "Sorry sweetness, but if that ass clown so much as tries to tongue me, he will get knocked on his ass."
   That did it, all three of them began to laugh, but only for a moment. Jeremy's laughs turned into winces of pain, as the memories of his injuries ripped through him.

STAY TUNED FOR "The Downward Spiral- Part 6"
Written by: RU- Responders Unite
© Responders Unite- Do not remove author's name from material.