Chapter
9
The guys
stayed in the Bahamas for a month. During that time, they got a lot of work
done on their album. Then they packed up and bought tickets for a flight back
to Orlando.
The day of the
flight, Brian woke up not feeling well. He felt tired and weak, even though he
had gotten eight hours of sleep, much more than he usually got. He also had
gotten a bad cough, and his chest hurt whenever he coughed. He figured he was
coming down with the flu or something. Plus, his leg was aching terribly.
Brian pulled
himself out of bed and got a glass of water. He grabbed his bottle of opium and
shook out six pills into his hand. Usually, he took four in the morning, but he
decided he needed a little extra that day. He didn't want to be in pain on the
flight.
***
A few hours
later, the guys were at the airport, waiting for their flight to be called.
Brian sat down in a chair and put his head in his hands. He felt even worse
than he had that morning.
"What's
wrong, Rok?" Kevin asked, sitting down next to Brian.
"I don't
feel good," Brian admitted. "I think I'm coming down with
something." Kevin gave him a concerned look and put his hand on Brian's
forehead.
"I don't
think you have a fever," he said.
"I'm
fine," Brian said. But he didn't look fine. Kevin saw dark circles under
his eyes, and his skin looked very pale.
As they
waited, Brian began to cough. His whole body shook with the coughs.
"You
should go see a doctor when we get home," Kevin said.
"I don't
need to see a doctor. I just have a cold or something," Brian insisted.
Kevin wasn't convinced, but he dropped the subject, not wanting to argue.
Finally, their
flight was called. The guys all jumped up quickly, anxious to get back home. As
Brian stood up, he was overcome by a wave of dizziness. Nick noticed him start
to lose his balance and immediately ran to him. He got there just in time to
catch Brian before he fell to the floor. He carefully eased Brian back into his
chair.
"Bri? Are
you alright?" he asked, his eyes full of panic.
"Yeah,
yeah, I'm fine," Brian said. "I just got a little dizzy." He
started to stand back up, but Kevin held him back.
"You sit
still. I don't want you to collapse again."
"I didn't
collapse," Brian said.
"You
would have if Nick didn't catch you," Kevin pointed out.
"Look,
Kev, if we don't get going, we're gonna miss out flight. I'm fine now, let's
go," Brian said firmly. Kevin thought for a minute.
"All
right, fine. Stand up slowly now," he said. Nick took Brian's hand and
helped him up slowly. When they were sure Brian had regained his balance, they
walked slowly towards the tunnel that led to the plane.
***