Score: Rehab - Amy Winehouse

Lydia

Mark and I follow Gloria through the massive hallway and through the glass doors out on the patio.

Diana is lying in a sunbed by the pool, fully clothed, and looks asleep. I reach out and take her hand and lift it up, dropping it in the air. It does an eery free-fall as if she is asleep or unconscious.

Or dead.

I check her pulse and her chest. It is rising and falling slowly, but rhythmically. She is breathing and looks like she is in deep sleep.

I try and shake her a little. Nothing happens. I shake her harder. Still nothing. I turn around to face Gloria and mouth "I'm sorry" at her. Then I turn back to the unconscious Diana and slap her across the face, hard.

Nothing.

Gloria is now sobbing uncontrollably next to me.

"Is she going to die?" She is so upset, I want to turn around and slap Diana again, as hard as I can, for doing this to her daughters, but then I realize she won't feel it, so, there's no point.

God, parents are idiots!

"No, Glo, she isn't going to die," I say softly and wipe her wet cheeks. I take her face in my hands to force her to look at me. I need her to focus.

"Glo, has she taken anything apart from coke? Please, I need you to think, babe."

"I...I don't know... She was drinking earlier. She said she had a couple of G&Ts..."

"That," I say and I point at the motionless body on the sunbed" is not just blow and gin."

Gloria whimpers next to me and Mark softly pulls her by the shoulders to comfort her. It is such a sweet gesture. He is being so nice, even though I dragged him to Hertfordshire to take care of our friend's drugged mother.

It is now that I notice someone is missing...

"Where is Liam?" I ask and furrow my brows.

"He doesn't know," Gloria whimpers again and I feel the frustration building up inside me.

"Hm, why?" I ask, my annoyance creeping into my voice.

"I just couldn't tell him, Lyds... What if his parents found out? What if someone found out that Liam Hayes' girlfriend's mom is a coke addict? Can you imagine what this would do to their career? And all the unwanted attention that we'd be getting? We had to run from the paparazzi the other day because he was buying cigarettes at a street kiosk, and he's underage still. Can you imagine what this would cause?"

"I don't care, Gloria! He is your boyfriend, and he loves you! I know he does! And he would be glad to help you and be there for you! He is a nice guy, and he deserves to know the truth! Plus, I am sure his parents have done way worse..."

"I know, OK. I know." Gloria sobs and I feel sorry for her again. I wrap my hands around her neck and pull her in a tight embrace.

As I lay my head on her shoulder, I see a small figure standing in the frame of one of the glass doors of the patio.

"Hey, baby" I smile and Petra takes a couple of steps forwards. "Come here" I wave at her with the hand that is wrapped around her sobbing sister and Petra joins in our embrace. "It's OK" I mutter in their hair. They smell of violets and coconut, the Dior Sauvage scent lingering on Gloria's neck. "It's OK."

I release them from my embrace and look into Gloria's swollen eyes.

"Do you have any essential oils?" I ask her.

"Yea, in the bathroom on the second floor," She replies and I run inside the house and up the stairs to the bathroom to look for them. I fumble through a couple of cabinets before I find a glass box filled with small bottles of every and any essential oil under the sun. I look through them and grab a few - peppermint, clove, lemon, and some cotton wool pads, and run back down to the patio. I unscrew the peppermint and clove and rub a couple of drops under Diana's nose. Nothing happens.

"We need to call an ambulance," I tell Gloria. "There is simply no other way to deal with this right now. I have run out of ideas."

"But we can't, I told you, there's tons of coke inside!"

"I can drive her to a hospital," Mark says from behind me. I jump slightly at his words. I almost forgot he is still here.

Almost.

"Thank you" Gloria cries and flings her arms around his neck.

Mark takes his car keys out of his pocket and hands them to me.

I look up at his face, confused.

"I will carry her. You unlock the car." He answers the question in my eyes.

He picks Diana up gently in his arms from where she is lying. Her head falls back and wobbles grotesquely. She sighs in her sleep but doesn't wake.

We get to the car, me at the front with the keys, Mark carrying Diana, Gloria by his side, and Petra tagging along. I unlock the Discovery and Gloria opens the back door. Mark carefully lays Diana on the back seat and Gloria turns to Petra.

"Get inside and wait for me there, OK? I will be back as soon as I can."

"But I want to come with you," Petra sobs and I notice just now how swollen her eyes are.

"No, baby," Gloria shakes her head and puts her hands on her sister's shoulders." It will be OK, I will call you as soon as I have any news, and I promise you I will be back as soon as I can. But for now, you promise me you will stay inside. You can call Gemma and ask her to come over."

Petra looks up at her sister, then nods and watches as Gloria climbs next to their mom in the back seat. I get in the front and hand Mark the keys.

He starts the car and we are off.

As we reach the hospital, Marks pulls up in front of the ER and quickly but gently scoops Diana in his strong arms and walks in, Gloria scurrying at his heels. I get inside last, just as Mark puts Diana in a wheelchair, and see a nurse running down the corridor to where we are standing.

"What happened?" She asks. Gloria turns to her and starts explaining something about too much alcohol and prescription medication, avoiding the coke part, and Mark and I move a little to the side.

Gloria disappears in the adjacent hallway with the nurse and her still-unconscious mother.

Mark and I sit in the ER reception and wait for Gloria to come back with some news.

"So, what do you think she took?" He asks, breaking the awkward silence.

"Benzodiazepines and alcohol." I reply instantly. Somehow, I am sure this is the combination that drove Diana to this state. The same one my mother used, when she tried to kill herself. In Diana's case, though, I am sure she didn't do it to try and end her life. She is one of the people, who are loving life too much.

"I guess it was just a mishap," I say out loud, and pray that's the truth, but somehow, I know, deep down, that it is. Diana's case is one of too much partying. She wasn't depressed. I guess she just got carried away.

After what seems like ages Gloria returns.

"She's awake," she says and I jump to my feet and hug her.

"Oh, my God, Gloria, thank God! Is she OK? Can she talk? What did the doctors say?" I look into her eyes and I can see the relief in them.

But I can see pain, as well. Too much of it.

I hate it when I have to watch the same thing, my friends being hurt by their parents over and over again. And it is not the "You are not going to summer camp in France" kind of hurt. It is "I will get so fucked up that I wouldn't move for days", or "I will just leave you to take care of yourselves and go to Ibiza" or "I will basically move out of the house to hook up with a 20-years younger than me "business partner".

You know.

The "You have grants. Do whatever the fuck you want. Just don't bother me much. You can drink as much as you like, sleep with whomever you like and go wherever you like. Just don't do anything stupid in public, keep a low profile, so you are not attracting unwanted attention.

After all, you are Britain's greatest, creme de la creme, the future of the nation.

Don't get caught doing anything illegal, or embarrassing, that might jeopardize your future political/media/showbiz career that we have so carefully planned and curated for you, even though you might not want it.

We know better.

You are just kids, we are the adults, even though it often seems the other way around. We know what's best for you, even though we are in a fucking hospital right now, unconscious from too much snouting.

You know.

"The doctors ran some tests for drugs. She has alcohol in her blood and she has taken blow and benzodiazepines".

I knew it.

I look at Mark and he nods, knowingly.

"Did you talk to her?"

"No, not yet, she has a probe in her mouth, the doctors are trying to get rid of what's left in her stomach. They said, though, that this is quite common among coke users. They take too much and get too excited, and cannot sleep, and then, to be able to relax and go to sleep, they take prescription benzodiazepines."

I nod and reach out to lay my hand on Gloria's shoulder.

"She will be OK."

Without any warning, Gloria crashes into my chest and starts crying again, her uncontrollable sobs threatening to choke her.

"Thank you so much, Lyds! I called you because I thought... you know... you know... she might have done the same as your mum... and you just know... I didn't want anyone else around, because I knew I could trust you and you'd know what to do..."

I hold her tight, sparing her my earlier thoughts about the nature of Diana's...situation. I just want to be there for my friend.

"You should go home," she says when she finally calms down enough to let me go. She wipes at her tear-streaked cheeks.

"No, we are not leaving you," Mark says and Gloria looks at him appreciatively.

"There is nothing else you can do, really," she says and sits down on the blue faux-leather couch in the reception room. "I am going to stay here. I called Petra, and she is fine, I told her mum's awake. She wants to see her, but there is no point in that before Mum can speak, plus, I don't want Petra to see her with that probe in her mouth."

"No," Mark says simply. "It's late. We will stay for as long as you need and we will take you back to your house. Lydia and I can stay at my dad's house," he says too quickly and I whip my head back to look at him.

Whoa, what?

"If that's OK with you, of course," he says, obviously a little startled by my look.

Gloria shakes her head.

"You don't need to worry about me. I called Liam," she pauses and looks at me and I give her a proud smile. "He's coming now. He really is a nice guy" she smiles weakly.

"He really is," I repeat and push a strand of loose hair behind her ear.

"You really should go, though. It's late, and, don't you have to study for our exam?"

Oh, shit! I completely forgot about that!

"Yeah, I do".

Gloria turns to Mark and gives him a big hug.
"Thank you so much! You're the best!" She says and Mark smiles.

I give Gloria one last hug and Mark and I make our way to the exit.

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