ROSES AND THORNS-BEING REAL

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX-REALITY & MILAN

UNVEILING THE TRUTH

"Milan, what are you doing?" A middle-aged man in his late forties says, he must be the coach because he was speaking to his team and has been near the court for a while and judging what's happening.

Milan pushes the man to the ground and he loses his balance. Milan picks up a baseball bat from the other side of the court. Everyone's phone is now in the air capturing whatever is happening. We get to the court and Milan isn't there anymore, we start walking following the crowd to the car park.

There Lan is, with a baseball bat in his hands and a red convertible with broken lights and glasses, his hand is bleeding. Did he just do this, who is he? I've never seen this side of him; he seemed to be a cool guy who doesn't get into fights all. His face has changed now; looking all devious and full of rage.

"Oh my God, my baby!" Misha holds her mouth with tears just rolling down, Alejandro holds her and I just get so emotional too and tears just rolling down too. I just feel deceived, why did nobody tell me about this?

"What in the name of fuck have you done to my car?!" Troy shouts and Milan approaches him with the bat.

"No, no, no, someone needs to stop him." Alejandro says about to go to Milan.

"He has that look on his face, he has that very same look." Misha says in between a whisper.

As Milan is going closer to Troy with the baseball bat, his parents try to stop him, but he doesn't listen, instead he just keeps on doing what he's doing. Then I feel an arm around my shoulder.

"Dear, you have to stop him; he might listen to you." Misha says with a look desperation on her face, I wish I could help, instead I just stand and look at her as my tears come out even more. What I call him and it doesn't work out.

"Stop him Real, he might listen to you!" Alejandro says and everyone's attention is on me and people are just murmuring. If I don't try right now then I'll never be able to forgive myself.

"Don't do it…. MILAN!" I scream with all my might.

There's dead silence and the people who were speaking suddenly keep quiet. I look back and Milan has finally stopped and he has turned to look at me.

"Please, don't do it. Please." I say sobbing.

Milan drops the bat to the ground and approaches me. He comes to me, he looks at me and wraps me and smiles at me then wraps me into a hug. I don't hug him back, I just stand there and sob my emotions away.

"Come on, Real." Milan holds my hand.

"Marry me." he says pulling my hand. I look over at Alejandro and Misha for answers.

"Don't go anywhere with him Real." Alejandro says.

I look over at Misha and she shakes her head in denial.

"Don't listen to him, Real. He's not his real self." She says.

"Come on Real, Marry me."

 Milan says still holding my hand with all his strength that it hurts.

"Come on, Real! Come with me!" Milan yells.

"No!" I say as I viciously let my hand go from his grip.

"No, Milan. I can't come with you." I say as I shake my head.

"I should've known." Milan says and then storms off and I just feel powerless and start sobbing; Misha and Alejandro hug me and start comforting me. then it hits me;

"W-Where did he go?" I nervously ask.

We follow him, but we don't see him, a few moments we see him speeding off in his jeep. Misha and Alejandro try to shout to make him stop the car, but he just leaves. We get in Alejandro's car and follow the path he used. We don't see him in sight anywhere, until we spot his jeep on the side. I'm now losing it as he's hit a tree; the bonnet is open with smoke coming out from it and we look through the window and he's unconscious with head injury.

"Someone call 911!" Misha screams as she touches Milan.

"I'll make the call." I say as I take out my phone. They arrive in about ten minutes and Misha goes into the ambulance with him whereas Alejandro tells me to drive Milan's car.

Walking into the corridors of the hospital, I see Misha and Alejandro walking back and forth and slowly walk to them. It's a psychiatric hospital.

"I should've taken the EpiPen." Alejandro says with a low yet regretting voice.

"I shouldn't have stopped you, I just thought you shouldn't have because he hated it." Misha says.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on?!" I helplessly ask with a raspy voice. I'm so terrified.

"Listen Real, Milan has just been going through a bad time and-" Alejandro starts explaining, but Misha cuts him.

"I think it will be best if he tells you himself."

"Is he gonna be okay?" I desperately ask and they both just look away without even giving me an answer.

It's been an hour and a half already, but still nothing from the doctors. A few more minutes pass by and a female doctor comes out.

"He's out of danger now." The young Indian doctor says, removing her stethoscope from her neck and carrying it in her hands.

"He's regained consciousness. You may see him." She adds.

I seat on the chairs for what feels like forever as Misha and Alejandro go into Milan's room. When I get bored of sitting down, I get up and start walking back and forth. I've never been to a hospital this long. An hour passes by and the door cracks open, it's Misha and Alejandro, looking better than before.

"He wants to talk to you. go in." Misha says to me.

I walk towards the room's door, I'm so nervous, I knock on the door and hear a 'come in.'

MILAN'S P. O. V.

I wake up and realize I'm in the hospital bed. I had an accident and something I never wanted has happened. I'm in doctor Khushi Kumari's hospital and she's my psychiatrist which I've been avoiding for a really long time, ever since I was twelve. I chill of coldness surges through my spine as I think of yesterday's incident; it's 2am by the way.

I still can't believe I asked Real to marry me. I first talk with Khushi my psychiatrist who advises me a lot, then my parents, after that's when I tell them to call Real. I've chosen to meet her lastly because I was kind of nervous and I wanted to be calm first before I can talk to her. she must be having a lot of questions for me, mom told me to just tell her the truth myself. I don't know how she will react; like will she still want to be with me or will she leave just like all the others.

I tell her to come in and she enters and seats next to me. My left hand has been bandaged and I have another bandage around my head.

"Hi." Real says.

"Ey." I reply.

"How are you feeling now?"

"A lot better."

"Good." Real replies, nodding.

"Hey, can you tell me what I did last night?"

"You almost killed Troy, then you pushed your coach and trashed pout the court by dropping the borders."

"What else did I do?"

"You literary broke Troy's whole car." She says as she holds out her phone to me to show me the videos of what had happened yesterday. I feel so embarrassed watching. Everyone's posting about it and calling me crazy.

"I don't think I can face anyone right now." I say looking down, guilt written all over my face.

"Of course you can." Real says touching my cheek.

"I can't believe I asked you to marry me. I'm really sorry, Real. It shouldn't have happened in that way."

Real replies that it's okay and that she's not mad at me at all and I'm just thankful she isn't.

"But first you have to tell m what happened. Is it because I didn't reply back?" Real asks which just gives me chills.

"No, I mean partly yes, but then not really because I thought I was okay. Then Troy called me a freaking asshole and loser and I couldn't take it so I just lost it. did what my mind instructed, broke stuff and everything else.

"But you're not like that, what was really wrong with you?" Real asks with a type of seriousness I've never seen before.

"I feel like if I tell you then you're going to leave me."

"No, I won't do that, I promise. I just wanna know coz you scared the hell out of me." she puts her palm on my cheek. I take a deep breathe and decide to tell her everything.

"My head's all fucked up, I have a couple screws lose. The doctors say I'm highly bipolar. I really try to hide this because I'm scared people are going to hate me."

"No, that's not it. everybody has to accept you the way you are."

"I don't think so Real. I am someone who uses drugs to feel normal, without them I'm nothing."

"That's not true. You can be normal." She says taking out a sachet of white powder.

"Look at this; this is he***n. my ex-Ryan was a drug dealer and he gave me these to get normal. To feel free from all my traumas, but every time I used them, it became worse. So, one day I just woke up and stopped using them. I hate cigarette because I smoked such a strong drug and it brings so much of my past. Listen Lan." Real holds my hand; I never knew this side of hers which was hidden behind a sweet perfect smile.

"You can be okay without having to use. It doesn't matter whether the people hate you or not, coz the first step is always accepting yourself the way you are."

"You know how many times I've fucked up?" I ask wide eyed. real can't be serious.

"Trust me Milan, if you tell them the truth and apologize, then everything will be okay. I promise you this."

After Real says that, I wrap her into a hug and then feel a sharp pain on my head. The doctor comes in and gives me an injection.

"I think you should take a break from basketball." Khushi says as she checks my drip and records in a healthy passport.

"Sounds serious as a three-legged person. I really think I do need a break though." I say looking at my arm.

Mom agrees and dad joins her.

"Of course, after all, you were just pushing it on me." I say to dad.

"I'm really sorry, son. I shouldn't have." Dad says putting his hand on my shoulder.

Khushi says she'll discharge me in the morning and I ask Real to stay beside me. she asks me what else I'm hiding from her and I tell her the other night I trashed out the house and that it was no ball game and she tells me how freaking crazy it was because she got pierced and I apologize.

"How about you stay at my house forever?" I suggest.

"Total madness." She replies.

"I'm serious."

"What else are you hiding from me?" Real asks, changing the topic.

"That the whole last year I had a complete mental breakdown due to some risks." I explain.

"Let's hope this is the end of this."

"Only if you're here." I say looking at her.

"You can stop hypering me now." She says blushing away.

"Can't help it."I