throughout the night, but the doctor will be in tomorrow. So he’ll check in on you at around 9 o’clock.”
I left, and thought all the way down the hall that maybe it’s a good thing, the doctor is going to see me, maybe I’ll be fine, and he’ll say to take the band off right then and there. Or maybe, he’ll tell me the nurses have been wrong and I need to stay in detox for another week. Oh, how I dreaded not knowing what was going to happen. But, if I got enough sleep, I’d be rested and relaxed for the doctor , I thought. That’s all I had to do, get a good night sleep and everything would be fine.
“Hey, where have you been all day?” Barry Eugene asked in a low, slow, drawn out voice as I entered the room.
“I’ve been busy. I can’t stay in this room all day,” I said and passed him at the desk.
Barry Eugene struggled as his arms shook and rattled the chair. I stared at him nervously; he was half-naked and I wondered what he was going to do next. He hobbled over to his bed and huffed with discomfort, as I proceeded to put on my pajamas and plop into bed.
He let out a large grunt as he slowly lowered himself down on his bed, and yawned as his head hit the pillow. Finally , I thought, I will get some rest . The only thing that I had to worry about was the nurse checking my vitals. I rolled over toward the window and snuggled my pillow. With a large yawn of my own, I closed my eyes to sleep.
“You know I’m going home tomorrow?” Barry Eugene said as my eyes sprung open. “Yeah, talked to the nurse and she said she’s checking on everything tomorrow. They can’t keep a man here against his will. It’s not legal. No. So I’m gonna go on that bus that they have here and get a ride home. Yeah. But first I’m gonna tell the guy drivin’ to stop by the store so I can pick up some beer. I can’t keep drinkin’ this orange juice they keep givin’ me. It upsets my stomach, that orange juice does. Then, I’m going to go to my bar that I always go to. You have to watch out though. It’s not a bar for someone like you. It’s a tough bar, where only guys who have been around the block go. Yeah. Gonna go to the bar…they have some good lookin’ women there too. Some of them have tattoos on their boobies that they let me see. I’ve seen big ones and small ones, even black ones.”
I tried not to listen to Barry Eugene’s incoherent ramble and hoped that the Valium I had just received would kick in soon. If I’m still and say nothing, maybe he will get the hint…maybe , I thought.
It seemed to have been only fifteen minutes since I had dozed off when I was awoken by a strong smell. Is that smoke? I wondered to myself as I gradually opened my eyes. “It can’t be,” I said to myself. “And why is the room all red?” I turned over and noticed a red handkerchief over the desk lamp while Barry Eugene smoked in his bed.
I screamed, “Dude, what the fuck are you doing?”
“I didn’t want to wake you with the smoke, so I put the handkerchief over the lamp,” he answered.
I violently pushed off the comforter and threw the handkerchief at Barry Eugene. “You are a complete moron. You know that?”
“What’s going on in here?” Molly said as she walked into the room, followed by Carl.
“This idiot almost started a fire with that handkerchief, putting it over the fucking lamp.”
“Calm down, Matt,” Molly said and turned to Barry Eugene. “You can’t do that, Barry Eugene, and you’re not supposed to be smoking in here. So put it out.”
Oblivious to what he had just done, Barry Eugene looked around for an ashtray and found his dinner still on the nightstand. He slowly leaned over, undid the plastic top, and threw it on the floor. As he dipped the cigarette in the gravy, the cherry burned a hole into the plastic plate.
“Come on, Barry Eugene, you have to come with us,” said Molly as she and Carl grabbed both sides of him. They helped him out of bed and into the hall, both
I left, and thought all the way down the hall that maybe it’s a good thing, the doctor is going to see me, maybe I’ll be fine, and he’ll say to take the band off right then and there. Or maybe, he’ll tell me the nurses have been wrong and I need to stay in detox for another week. Oh, how I dreaded not knowing what was going to happen. But, if I got enough sleep, I’d be rested and relaxed for the doctor , I thought. That’s all I had to do, get a good night sleep and everything would be fine.
“Hey, where have you been all day?” Barry Eugene asked in a low, slow, drawn out voice as I entered the room.
“I’ve been busy. I can’t stay in this room all day,” I said and passed him at the desk.
Barry Eugene struggled as his arms shook and rattled the chair. I stared at him nervously; he was half-naked and I wondered what he was going to do next. He hobbled over to his bed and huffed with discomfort, as I proceeded to put on my pajamas and plop into bed.
He let out a large grunt as he slowly lowered himself down on his bed, and yawned as his head hit the pillow. Finally , I thought, I will get some rest . The only thing that I had to worry about was the nurse checking my vitals. I rolled over toward the window and snuggled my pillow. With a large yawn of my own, I closed my eyes to sleep.
“You know I’m going home tomorrow?” Barry Eugene said as my eyes sprung open. “Yeah, talked to the nurse and she said she’s checking on everything tomorrow. They can’t keep a man here against his will. It’s not legal. No. So I’m gonna go on that bus that they have here and get a ride home. Yeah. But first I’m gonna tell the guy drivin’ to stop by the store so I can pick up some beer. I can’t keep drinkin’ this orange juice they keep givin’ me. It upsets my stomach, that orange juice does. Then, I’m going to go to my bar that I always go to. You have to watch out though. It’s not a bar for someone like you. It’s a tough bar, where only guys who have been around the block go. Yeah. Gonna go to the bar…they have some good lookin’ women there too. Some of them have tattoos on their boobies that they let me see. I’ve seen big ones and small ones, even black ones.”
I tried not to listen to Barry Eugene’s incoherent ramble and hoped that the Valium I had just received would kick in soon. If I’m still and say nothing, maybe he will get the hint…maybe , I thought.
It seemed to have been only fifteen minutes since I had dozed off when I was awoken by a strong smell. Is that smoke? I wondered to myself as I gradually opened my eyes. “It can’t be,” I said to myself. “And why is the room all red?” I turned over and noticed a red handkerchief over the desk lamp while Barry Eugene smoked in his bed.
I screamed, “Dude, what the fuck are you doing?”
“I didn’t want to wake you with the smoke, so I put the handkerchief over the lamp,” he answered.
I violently pushed off the comforter and threw the handkerchief at Barry Eugene. “You are a complete moron. You know that?”
“What’s going on in here?” Molly said as she walked into the room, followed by Carl.
“This idiot almost started a fire with that handkerchief, putting it over the fucking lamp.”
“Calm down, Matt,” Molly said and turned to Barry Eugene. “You can’t do that, Barry Eugene, and you’re not supposed to be smoking in here. So put it out.”
Oblivious to what he had just done, Barry Eugene looked around for an ashtray and found his dinner still on the nightstand. He slowly leaned over, undid the plastic top, and threw it on the floor. As he dipped the cigarette in the gravy, the cherry burned a hole into the plastic plate.
“Come on, Barry Eugene, you have to come with us,” said Molly as she and Carl grabbed both sides of him. They helped him out of bed and into the hall, both
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