Peach Cocaine

Oliver is resting back on an old recliner that Matt had bought for him at a garage sale soon after he had been released from the hospital. Tom, Matt Kean and Jona had helped, too.

At the moment, he is picking at some applesauce that isn’t quite catching his interest, but there really isn‘t much else to eat in his flat, and he doesn’t want to get up because it hurts too much to do so.

What he is waiting for though is Casey to come see him.

She is the only real highlight for his days of recovering. Otherwise he’s watching bum reality television programs, or the Food Network Channel to make himself feel bad for not having real food. Matt will come visit and sit with him for hours watching shitty porn and laughing at it. The weed he brings over dulls the pain exceptionally, but Oliver doesn’t want to tell Casey that he’s been smoking, and upset her even more.

His poor girlfriend has already been stressed enough with him being out of the hospital and not under constant surveillance of nurses and doctors. She wouldn’t exactly call Tom a ‘professional caretaker’ what with him giving Oliver only bowls of apple sauce and canned peaches all the time.

“Babe…” Oliver breaks out into a smile, attempts to get up but a shooting pain runs through him and he lays back down in defeat, “I missed yeh, how was your day?”

“It was slow,” Casey frowns, tutting at the bowl of applesauce that she takes from him and disappears into the kitchen. She comes back out, smiling, with a bowl of grapes and a glass of milk, “How about yours, babycakes?”

“Same old, nothin new, o‘course. Comere so I can kiss yeh.” Casey bends over and kisses him lingeringly on the lips, he pulls her back, staring into her eyes, “I know this ‘as been a rough couple o’ weeks, but thank yeh for puttin’ up with me. I feel like I should be answerin’ some questions, eh?”

Casey nods, drags over a chair and sits close to Oliver. She feels ready to explode with questions, wonderings, that have been waiting for so long it’s like her brain will implode. Oliver grabs one of her hands and laces his fingers with hers.

“Who was she, Oli?”

He opens and closes his eyes a few times, trying to figure on how to begin, “She… she ‘ad been my girlfriend a few years back, but eventually she down-graded to my drug dealer. Rose… that’s her name, I never told yeh did I?,” Casey shook her head ’no’, “Anyway, Rose ‘ad a lot of problems, and because I was so infatuated with the way she looked, I pretended she didn’t ‘ave them. But doing that only made it worse, after awhile she started believin' that I loved her. And, maybe at one point I did, way in the beginning, but me brain was so swallowed up with the sex an’ drugs, her feelings honestly didn’t matter.

“She knew she ‘ad me trapped with the cocaine though, because even when we argued to the point where I would almost hurt her physically, I’d always come crawlin’ back. An’ I think, deep down, she knew that I didn’t care about ‘er, that I only wanted the coke. Which is why she ‘ad me sent to a rehabilitation centre, because Rose didn’t want me to get better just to get better, she wanted me to want her again.

You see, yeh also have to know that… ‘er father is a big drug dealer. That’s where she got all of her cocaine from. An’ if I‘m not careful, next time I may just end up dead.”

Casey is staring so wide eyed, Oliver is afraid her eyes will pop out of her head. He is also terrified she will just get up and leave him here forever.

Suddenly, Casey’s lips are smashed up against his.

“I love you, Oliver. I’m sorry I didn’t say it back to you in the hospital, but I was afraid to… I’ve never told that to anyone I’ve ever gone out with, and it scares me.” She quickly sits back down, her face flushing a bright red, “And, honestly, I don’t think I could completely trust you until you told me all of that…”

Oliver chewed at his bottom lip, he still debated in his head on whether to tell Casey about him helping in Joey’s death, but he feared that she wouldn’t be able to handle that. He was brilliantly surprised she had taken all he had spilled out to her so well, as is.

“I love yeh, too, Casey.”

“Can I ask you something else?” She inquires, staring heatedly at her hands clutching his.

“Anything.”

“Is she gone for good?” Her heart flutters in her chest, afraid of what his answer may be.

“I hope so, love.” Oliver sighs, “All we can do is hope that she doesn’t come back. When I’m able to get back on me feet without help, I’m sellin’ this flat an’ buyin’ a house in Sheffield.”

Casey catches herself frowning, and almost on the brink of tears, “What?”

“I’m not leavin’ yeh! Don’t think that, please don’t,” Oliver says and hugs her, “In case we need to get away from Rose, we’ll ‘ave somewhere to go. I’m only thinking of our safety.”

“O-okay…” Casey lets out a breath of air, tears begin escaping and she desperately wishes they would stop.

“I won’t leave, if yeh don’t.”

Casey shakes her head into his chest, “I won’t.”

Oliver moves over enough in the recliner so she can curl up next to him and soon both are sound asleep.

The End