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.

***

 

 

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