Players:
Summary: Jeremy asks Rashmi for a favour in regards to a mutual acquaintance.
Date: April 1, 2011
Log Title: Asking for a Favour
Rating: April 1, 2011
Barnes Academy - Medical Center
The name medical 'office' rather undersells what his, in essence, a state of the art, high-tech and extremely well stocked medical bay and treatment center. There are always orderies and nurses in attendance to handle minor injuries and a doctor is always on call for more serious problems. In addition to a locked medicine storage facility, there are modules for isolating patients, a (hopefully never used) cryogenic storage and stasis module for preserving life (or bodies) when the local team can't stabilize a patient and a pair of ten bed infirmary modules attached to the main area. Each bed and exam table is equipped with the latest Stark-tech diagnostics gear.
Jeremy is feeling much better then he was last night now that the drugs are leaving his system. He's still got an IV in his arm and is wearing hospital clothes designed so that his skin isn't exposed, just his face has the chance of touching something. In one arm he clutches a stuffed Platypus. He's asked to speak to Rashmi since he knows that she has access to Xavier's and wants to ask if she can help him with something.
Having heard that Jeremy was in the Infirmary, Rashmi barely waited for the staff to finish giving the message; in fact she looks slightly out of breath as she enters the infirmary, still in her workout clothes, as though she'd run the entire way. Her eyes are wide and worried as she approaches Jeremy's bed, the redhead biting at her lower lip. "…Hey," she says quietly, eyes flicking from the boy to the IV. "…What *happened?*"
Jeremy shakes his head. "I did something stupid. I've…I've been addicted to herion for a few years." He admits. "Last night I combined it with Kick and the reaction wasn't something I wanted." He then just skips to what he wants to tell her so that he won't hopefully have to deal with a reaction. "Anyway, you went to school with Robin, right, from the Dance committee. She needs help."
Rashmi is silent for a while, pulling a chair to Jeremy's bedside and settling herself in, mind flickering behind her eyes. Nodding to herself, she takes a deep breath. "…What kind of help does she need?"
Jeremy holds onto the platypus stuffed animal as he takes a deep breath. "Well, she's on Kick too. I guess someone sprayed her in the face. I didn't want to give her anymore but….she was hurting herself. I don't want her to go through what I did nor do I want her to overdose on it. I was too afraid to ask for help, she might be too."
Rashmi nods slowly, lips pressing together for a brief moment. "Okay… I'll call the school as soon as I leave the Infirmary, then…" Tilting her head, she turns the chair to face Jeremy, eyes inexpressly sad. "…It's because of your powers, right…? Because you can't get what you see out of your head until you've processed it?"
"That I started using drugs?" Jeremy asks before nodding. "When I first ran away I just couldn't stop it and it was everything. So this one guy at the runaway shelter told me he had something that could help, with my restlessness. After that first time I was hooked." He says closing his eyes. "I quit, for almost a month and then the past of one of your classmates, from Xavier's, just got to me."
Rashmi nods slowly, brows furrowing. "…Which one, if you don't mind? Just… I know a lot of Xavier's kids, and I could probably guess given enough time… It's *really* hard to find one without a lot of hard living growing up. Trust me, I've been *very* aware how blindingly lucky I was in that."
"Hosea." Jeremy admits. "I don't really want to get into it but it was really hard to see." It's never easy to watch a someone kill another person in full detail. "He saw my past in return, I can share things I see but just like my other power, I can't control it."
Rashmi nods slowly. "Hosea… Yeah… That explains a lot, really…" Drawing in a deep breath, she lets it out quietly. "…Look. I'm not going to give you The Lecture, Jeremy. I'm not going to sit here and tell you you're a horrible person, either. That would be stupid and horribly hypocritical of me. You're *probably* expecting me to say a lot of things, which I won't be. Instead, I'm just going to repeat what I said yesterday. You have a friend, if you want it. You have *help,* if you want it. All you have to do is ask."
"Thanks." Jeremy says not protesting this time. "I'm getting help though. I'm leaving tomorrow I think." He says looking down at the platypus again. "Vinny tried to cover it up and say it was forced on me but I told them here the truth. I'm going to rehab tomorrow. I really think Vinny saved my life last night and gave me another chance I don't deserve."
Rashmi frowns deeply. "You're wrong about that, you know," she says quietly, reaching out to rest a hand on Jeremy's arm, over the hospital gown. "*Everybody* deserves as many chances as they need. It's okay to make mistakes, you know… Just as long as you *try.* I'll talk to Vinny, if I see him. *I* want to thank him for helping you. And… don't worry about Robin. I'll make sure she gets help, too."
"I want to see him tomorrow, before I go. Tell him thank you." Jeremy says. "I was wrong." He doesn't elaborate though. "I was terrified that if someone found out here, about my problem, I'd be kicked out. I didn't want to live on the streets again so I kept it secret but they're not kicking me out, they're getting me help." He almost seems like he's in disbelief saying that. "Also there's another girl at Xavier's, who was hooked on Kick. I don't know her name but I also hope she manages to get over it. Drugs…they're great and horrible."
Rashmi nods slowly. "It's weird, you know… When you're in trouble, you don't *want* to ask for help. You don't think anyone will care, or you think they'll hate you, or mae you out to be the criminal…" She chuckles to herself, shaking her head. "…Until you finally don't have a choice, and you end up realizing that you're probably nowhere *near* the first person to need the help, and things turn around so quickly it's unreal…"
"I did it all to myself Rashmi. Robin and that other girl, they didn't have a choice. Everything I did, in regards to the drugs, was all my choice. I won't every deny that." Jeremy says quietly. "And I don't know, I just know that I have to quit or else next time someone like Vinny might not be there to pick me up." He takes a deep breath and doesn't say what's really on his mind - that he doesn't like himself very much.
"Then you should be proud of yourself," Rashmi says gently. "It's a hard, *hard* thing you're doing… A lot of people wouldn't even be brave enough to try."
"Stop." Jeremy whispers. "Just stop. I don't need to hear how brave I am or how hard this is. I don't." He says as it doesn't make him feel better at all. "I wasn't brave enough to try, I almost killed myself last night because I wanted to feel better. What is brave about that?"
"That you didn't," Rashmi answers almost immediately. "And that *is* brave."
"Vinny found me." Jeremy says. "If he didn't come by and see me, I don't know." He says as his eyes tear up a bit. "I didn't intetionally try to kill myself but I almost did. I run Rashmi, I run from my problems, I used drugs to hide from them. Even now I want to do it and just escape myself."
Rashmi squeezes Jeremy's arm, nodding slowly. "It's okay, you know," she whispers. "I don't blame you, at all. Your powers… I can't *imagine* how hard they are on you… And… I don't know *what* I'd have done in your place. I only know that you're not me… so it doesn't even matter. You're here, now… and you're scared, and you're hurt, and you want to make things better. Even if you don't know how they *could* be, you're still going to rehab and trying. You don't think that's *brave,* Jeremy…? My God, if *anyone* ever tried to tell me you weren't, I'd smack them right in the mouth."
"I have to go to rehab. I can't go cold turkey again." Jeremy says. "Look, I really do appricate you trying to make me feel better Rashmi but I'm really not brave or someone to look up to. I've stolen what I can do get drub money, done stuff I'd rather not talk about but when you're living on the streets, you get desperate. People look at me and they see I'm just a druggie. Even that blond lady from Xavier's, I was trying to help that girl and she just acted like it was my fault. But, I do want to go to rehab. I don't like needing it."
Rashmi shakes her head, patting the arm. "All right," she says, smiling gently. "I'll stop… sorry, by the way, I sort of can't help it. But… look. I'll get Robin the help she needs. And if rehab doesn't work, I'll see what I can do about asking some Xavier's people I know to help, if you want. I don't *care* what you've done, Jeremy. Everyone does what they feel they need to get by. But just knowing that you don't *have* to, and *wanting* to stop… That means you deserve the chance to try. No matter how many chances you've been given before. So… good luck, okay? And while you're there, think about us.. Vinny and I, and the Barnes people."
"Tell Robin I'll talk to her when I get back, I don't have my phone right now. I gave it to Vinny." Jeremy says as he looks down at the platypus. "Vinny is letting me borrow him to help me through this. I wish he was family."
Rashmi tilts her head after a moment. "…Jeremy… D'you have plans this Thanksgiving?"
Jeremy shrugs. "Probably stay here, I don't have anywhere else to go. It's kind of in November so I think I have other things to think about over Thanksgiving."
Rashmi nods slowly. "I'm just saying. If you *want* to have plans, Mami and Papi sort of have this tradition of getting the people in our neighborhood together who don't have families, and making a thing of it. So, y'know… you'd be welcome."
"I'll keep it in mind." Jeremy says but he doesn't know what's going to happen between now and then. "Thanks." He says giving her a small smile as a SHIELD agent comes into the medbay. "Sorry Ms. Franklin but I have to talk to Mr. Inada alone, do you mind giving us a bit?" He asks. Jeremy then nods at the agent and Rashmi. "Thanks again Rashmi, and thanks, for Robin."
Rashmi looks over her shoulder, smiling and nodding to the agent. "No problem," she says, rising from her chair. "I'll talk to you sometime later, okay Jeremy? And email me later, if you just… need to talk, y'know?" Nodding to the agent, she turns, slipping out of the medbay and digging for her phone.
