Page 11 of Capturing Their Omega

“Cassie…Cassie,” Eric calls my name, snapping his fingers in my face.

My mind returns to reality, and I see him looking at me with concern in his gaze.

I remember his question and provide him with an answer.

“Someone bumped into me, Eric.” My voice shakes as the realization kicks in that truly, all my pills are gone. “I'm finished… it's over, I'm dead,” I whimper.

“Hey, come here.” He pulls me to him, and I seek comfort in his warm embrace, crying softly on his shoulder. “It's okay. You're okay.” He strokes my hair backward in a soothing manner.

“They're gone, Eric… everything's gone.” I weep softly.

He breaks our hug and tries to catch my cheeks to look at me. My eyes are red with crying, but I'm not letting him look at me. He tries a little longer and finally raises my chin, gluing my teary eyes to his.

“We'll figure something out, okay?”

“Figure what out, Eric? It's over for me, I'm done.” I try to squirm out of his hold, but he tightens his grip on my hands, unwilling to let me go.

“It's not over,” he says, revealing the bottle with the last two pills left inside.

“These won't do anything, and you know it,” I say to him without acknowledging that those two pills could actually do something. “The last time I ran out of these pills, I nearly died. You don’t know what I suffered.” My heart skips a beat at remembering that horrible experience. “Eric, I can't go through that again. I can't.” I break down, my hands trembling.

I'm going into shock, and I'm hyperventilating. My breathing is once again becoming unstable. My head feels like it’s swelling, and my skin is on fire. I'm cold on the inside but hot on the outside.

“You're not going to go through that pain again, I promise.” He assures me. “I won't let that happen… not onmywatch.”

His words mean so much to me, but I don’t know how he intends to prevent my doom.

“How?” I ask with a sniffle and don't let him reply before adding, “Eric, these pills… they're super expensive and I cannot let you buy them for me.” I bury my face in my palms. “I can't let my Mom find out, either. She's going to be so heartbroken and worried because, at the moment, we really can't afford to get more.”

“Cassie…”

“No, you don't understand,” I cut him off. “There's a lot at stake here, Eric. I could…” I choke on my words. “I could die,” the words come out quietly in a tone filled with fear and anxiety.

“You're not going to die,” he says to me. He sounds calm and in control.

He should be as frazzled as me, but I want to commend him for how well he's taking this. Somehow, it's helping me remain composed to some degree.

“Let me help you, Cass. I want to.” He pleads with his eyes. “But first, I'm gonna need you to calm down. Can you do that?” He looks into my soul.

I'm hesitant. I like how his words and gestures are working wonders on me. I'm trying to stay calm, and with his help, it seems to be working. Eric has always been patient with me and he knows how to handle me whenever something gets me upset. This isn't our first rodeo. However, it's the first time he's witnessed this particular scenario.

It's a good thing that he's here with me right now because I have no idea what I would've done if he wasn't. This would have turned out worse, that's for sure.

“I'll go to Jeremiah,” he says to me. “He and I will figure this out, okay?”

“Eric, it's too expensive. I can't let you guys do that for me,” I say in opposition, even though deep down, I know I want their help.

“Well, since you're so intent on not letting us help you for free, you could pay Jeremiah back later. Is that okay with you?”

I nod. It most definitely is okay with me.

“Maybe he could let you work at the bookstore. Trust me, it'll be like you aren't even working since you love spending time with books,” Eric says in a teasing way.

I can’t help but crack a sad smile.

Wait a minute. The bookstore. Maybe if I dig some more, I might find the answers to what happened to me today.

First, I need to be alive, though. Figuring other stuff out can come later. For now, all my focus and attention is on survival.

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