Post by Kat on Oct 25, 2016 1:41:51 GMT
PLEASE LISTEN TO THIS SONG WHILE READING
Emotionless, a blank slate, unreadable.. To those she passed in the hallway, she seemed to be.. The same. The same old empty hole of a self passing through life, trying to fill that nothingness with drugs, booze, and sex. Honestly, a nice long drink of jack would be welcomed right about now. But she had already consumed all of the mini bottles she had on her person.
Her steps were labored, shuffling along the floor while she ran her hand along the wall for support. Everyone around her was heading to their next classes, busily milling about and chatting to each other. All she wanted was to keep her head down, feeling as if they all already knew Whether they were staring at her or not did not matter.
Jezebel.. That’s what they would continue to call her.. Only this time whore, slut, tramp, and hussy would be added to the list. But instead of smiling and laughing at their judgemental faces, Reese would have to agree with them. Not for the various partners, no those rumors were false. But her own stupidity.. She cursed herself for believing him.. That he was clean..
She had no idea where she was going, just letting her feet drag her to who knew where. Against her will, her eyes began to water. No, not now.. You can’t cry in front of all these people.. She squeezed them shut, letting her hair fall into a curtain to hide her face from the world. Her fingers clutched the card tightly in her hand, refusing to let herself look at it once more--at the horrible truth of it all.
Screw that guy from the bar and his claim to be clean! She should have turned him down without a condom but noo… She was just too drunk to even care! Was this how Reese was supposed to live her life now? A slave to medication in hopes that she just might lead a normal life? What was the name of the medicine again anyway?
Against her inner voice yelling at her not to look at the card again, Reese flipped it over in her hand and swallowed hard. Antiretroviral Therapy.. A.R.T.. How fitting.. An art student having to take a prescription whose initials spelled ‘art’. The amusement was short-lived as her eyes stumbled upon the diagnosis, also on the card. Human immunodeficiency virus.. HIV.
The thought made her sick to her stomach. It was a death sentence, in more ways than one. She could say goodbye to everything she had worked hard to obtain. Her reputation, what friends she had, her whole persona… Reese would have to kiss it all goodbye. Forever now she would be known as ‘the girl with an STD’. If she was even luckier, there would be rumors that instead of HIV she had AIDS.. She knew it would be out soon. Mrs. Oak had done the test and told her the results.. Given her the card.. And heaven knew she was a healthcare professional and had to report it.
The full strength of what this meant for Reese suddenly hit her and she stopped, feeling like someone had just given her a punch to the gut. Sliding down the wall, she crumpled to the floor and wrapped her arms around herself, drawing her knees to her chest. Breathing became difficult, heart rate increasing and tears spilling.
No, this was not her! Stop it, stop it! People are going to look at you even more now! Reese tried to pull herself to her feet multiple times but failed, furiously wiping at her eyes to try to pull herself together while trying to think up snappy comebacks for if anyone made snide comments. They were failing to come to mind.
