The Way Your Heart Sounds

It was really hard for Lauren to hear Jimmy tossing and turning all night. She felt so bad that he was uncomfortable, but she knew it was for the best. After all of this was over, at least part of the fight would be won. It was all a mental fight for Jimmy there on out. She ended up getting a few hours of sleep, and woke up when she heard Jimmy getting out of bed.

“You okay?” she mumbled, rubbing her eyes.

“Yeah, just have to pee,” he replied, shuffling over to the bathroom. Lauren turned her cell phone on and squinted at the bright glow of the screen. She then saw a missed call from Brian. A few minutes later, Jimmy had stepped back in the room and was in bed.

“Honey, I just have to step out and call someone real quick, will you be okay for a few minutes?” she asked.

“I’m fine, go ahead,” Jimmy said, surrounding his very tall body with blankets once again. Lauren stepped out and called Brian back, wondering if he would even be awake this early.

“Hey Lauren,” he answered.

“Hey Brian. Sorry I didn’t answer, Jimmy and I were asleep when you called,” she said.

“I figured so. We were all wondering how he was doing.”

“He’s alright. He’s pretty uncomfortable and has been trying to sleep a lot, but other than that he’s fine,” she said.

“That’s good, that’s good. We’re all worried, ya know? We’ve known Jimmy since we were all kids…” he trailed off.

“I know you’re all very close. Jimmy loves you guys like his family, and it’ll really cheer him
up to know you called.

“If he’s awake later, you can have him call me if he’s allowed. I’ll put him on speaker phone with the guys if he wants.”

“Yeah, I’ll ask him when he gets up. Thanks for calling, Brian,” she said.

“Thank you for taking care of my best friend.”

After she hung up with Brian, she stepped back into Jimmy’s room and noticed that he had dozed off again. She quietly situated herself into the chair again, and started reading emails on her phone. Now that she was wide awake, she probably wasn’t able to fall back asleep.
Jimmy stirred after a little while, and mumbled something.

“What did you say?” Lauren asked. Jimmy didn’t respond. She stood up and went over to the bed, asking him if he was alright.

“I’m fine… can I have some water?” he said. She nodded and told him she would be right back. Sometimes when he mumbled it was hard for her to understand him. She stepped out and walked down the hallway. Although she wasn’t familiar with this facility, it usually wasn’t all that hard to find the water or the ice machine. She filled up one of the small pitchers for him, and then made her way back to his room. He quickly gulped down the water and then laid back down.

“How are you feeling?” Lauren asked. She felt his forehead and noticed he was warm. He looked sweaty.

“So tired… why is it hot in here?” he asked. Lauren pulled his heavy blanket back a little bit, because it surely wasn’t helping his body temperature cool down.

“Sorry babe. How’s your head? Still dizzy at all?”

“Head hurts less. Only a little dizzy. I...kind of feel like I’m on another planet right now,” he mumbled.

“You’re alright. I’m right here watching you the whole time,” she reassured him and rubbed his arm while she examined all of the tattoos.

A few hours later, Dr. Kramer came to check on Jimmy. He chatted with Jimmy for a while, seemingly to gauge his mental state. He asked Lauren to step out into the hallway. Her heart sank, wondering if something was wrong with Jimmy.

“Do you live with Jimmy?” he asked.

“No. We’ve been dating for less than a month, actually,” she answered. The doctor nodded slightly and thought for a moment.

“I sincerely don’t feel like he should be alone when he leaves here. I think he’s a high risk for relapse. Would it be unreasonable for you to stay with him for a while or have him stay with you?” Lauren thought for a moment. She wasn’t too sure about living with someone she hasn’t known for a while, but she loved Jimmy and wanted to be there for him during this tough recovery.

“Yeah, I’m sure we can work something out. I’ll talk to him,” she said.

“Good. I think having you around will help keep him on track,” the doctor said.

“So how is he doing? He seems a little out of it.”

“Understandably so. He’s going through a lot, mentally and physically. You should see him slowly returning to his old self over the next few days,” he said. Lauren nodded, and glanced over at Jimmy’s room, even though she couldn’t see him.

“He’ll be fine,” Dr. Kramer said, putting a hand on Lauren’s shoulder. She smiled and thanked him before he left. When she stepped back into Jimmy’s room, she took a seat.

“What was that about?” Jimmy asked.

“Nothing much, you’re fine. Don’t worry. He actually just told me that he doesn’t want you to be alone when you get out of detox,” she said.

“So what does that mean?”

“He asked me if it was possible for us to live together. Just for a little while, because you’re still recovering. I told him I would talk to you,” Lauren responded. Jimmy nodded and seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, as he often did.

“I mean, I don’t want to be a burden on you. More than I already am,” he said, looking down at his hands.

“You’re not a burden, honey. I’m willing to do whatever would be most comfortable for you,” she said, smiling at him.

“I guess you can stay at my place… just for a week or two, you know… if that’s alright with you… I have a guest room,” he rambled on. He seemed shy, which wasn’t something she was used to seeing from him.

“Of course, that’s fine,” she nodded. He apologized for inconveniencing her, and she assured him again that it was no problem. When she told him that Brian had called for him before, she saw Jimmy’s face light up.

“He said you can call and talk to the guys anytime you want,” she said.

“Can we- can we call them now? Can I borrow your phone?” he asked. She nodded and handed Jimmy her phone. He dialed Brian’s number, which he knew by heart. He put Brian on speaker phone when he answered.

“Am I talking to Jimmy or Lauren?” Brian laughed.

“Both of us!” Jimmy said.

“How are you doing buddy? Hold on, the guys are all here.” After that came a chorus of greetings from the other voices, Matt, Zacky, and Johnny.

“It’s so great to hear from you guys. I’m doing pretty well. Feeling like shit, but that’s to be expected,” Jimmy laughed.

“We hope you’re up and running again real soon, man. We got some cool stuff to show you,” Zacky said.

“I’ve actually been doing a little writing here as well. Definitely need to get together as soon as I’m out,” Jimmy said.

He talked to the guys for a few more minutes. They all said goodbye to the two of them, and wished Jimmy a speedy recovery before they hung up.

“Thanks,” Jimmy started, handing her phone back, “I really needed that.”

“Anytime. They miss you like crazy and it’s only been a few days,” she laughed, putting her phone back into her bag. Jimmy smiled and kissed her, then rested his head on her shoulder. She played with his messy hair, hoping that the worst of this detox was behind them.

Notes