Evelyn sat in the overstuffed chair

Evelyn sat in the overstuffed chair facing the window, looking small and lost. Her pallid eyes were without expression. Her hair, still wet from the shower, was combed back, making those tired eyes seem huge, the soft skin appearing bruised around the silver pools. Lucian handed her a cup of coffee, and she stared at him for a moment as if she’d forgotten his presence and couldn’t quite make sense of it. Her exhaustion was so evident. It showed in her motor skills as well as her reflexes, both verbal and physical. He fit her small hands around the warm, steaming mug, and she turned back to the window.
Several long, silent moments later, the guest room door quietly opened. Vivian stepped out and pulled the door shut, at the same time managing to leave it slightly open. Her face was somber. She discreetly sent him a bleak gaze before she approached Evelyn.
With perfect bedside manner, she gently touched Evelyn’s shoulder, drawing her out of her contemplative trance. “Evelyn?”
She looked up at Vivian, desperate hope softening her features. “Is she going to die?”
Vivian’s expression softened and for the first time ever, he saw his sharp vixen friend appear more of a nurturing woman than he ever imagined her capable of. “No, sweetheart, she’s not going to die. Not today.”
Evelyn’s relief was evident. Her body crumpled as she sobbed a breath and folded her face into her hands. Vivian wrapped her in her arms and he wanted that honor, but wasn’t sure his touch would be welcome.
Lucian watched from the shadows of the room as Evelyn cried, and felt absolute impotence with his inability to fix this for her, or perhaps it was his fear that she wouldn’t want his help that had him paralyzed.
Her upset slowly faded and Evelyn wiped at her eyes, once again establishing the invisible walls that kept her apart from others and protected her from them all. “I’m sorry,” she said to Vivian. “I was certain she wouldn’t make it another day.”
“Your mother’s sick, Evelyn,” Vivian stated empathetically. “Hepatitis is something that needs to be monitored and treated. Her immunities are very low right now, fighting off infection. Her bronchial passages aren’t at their best and she’s running a fever, but her biggest issue is the withdrawal symptoms she’s suffering.”
Evelyn’s body tensed as if she wanted to stand, but she lowered her weight back into the chair. “She’s addicted to heroin. I . . . I can get it for her.”
“Absolutely not,” Lucian said fiercely. Evelyn was never going into those dark corners of the city again. She seemed startled by his comment as if it reminded her of his presence in the room once again. She was all he thought about for weeks, yet she kept forgetting his presence with every passing minute.
She’s tired. His self-reassurance rang hollow and was cold comfort.
In a much calmer manner, Vivian said, “No, Evelyn. Drugs aren’t what she needs. She needs to dry out.”
“But she won’t. If I don’t get it for her she’ll sell herself for her next high.”
Vivian purposefully glanced around the penthouse. “No one’s here for her to do that with now, and she’s too weak to go back to where she came from. I know it won’t be easy for you to hold her against her will, but you actually have all the power right now to get her through this. If you have the energy, that is?”
“We can’t stay here.”
Vivian glanced at him, then speculatively back at Evelyn. “I don’t think moving her would be wise.”
“You’re staying,” he said, putting the issue to rest. “Pearl can stay until she’s well enough to move. At that point I’ll pay to have her placed in a rehab facility with the best doctors who specialize in this sort of thing, and she’ll get well.”
“She won’t go,” Evelyn said in the most defeated voice he had ever heard her use. He didn’t like seeing her so hopeless.
“Her other choice is to return to the streets and freeze to death. Surely once she finds her bearings she’ll realize the danger of that. There’s a blizzard coming in the next couple of days.”
She bit her lip nervously. “You don’t know what you’re inviting into your home, Lucian. You’ve never seen someone go through withdrawal before, watching them tear at their skin because everything is agony. She’ll soil your home and be so far out of her head she won’t care about shitting on your sheets or vomiting on your carpet. What do you plan to do when she comes clawing at you like a feral animal because she resents all of your help and would rather die than live with it? She doesn’t want a sober life. She’d choose death first. I know it.”
“Do you think I’d blame you for her actions when she’s sick? I don’t care if it’s a thankless, uphill, unending battle. I’m not letting you do this alone.”
Several agonizing seconds ticked by like fortnights. The scratch of Vivian scribbling something down on a pad of paper was the only sound as he stared challengingly into Evelyn’s tired eyes. He turned when Vivian touched his sleeve. She handed him a script.
“This is the name of a clinic outside of the city. Tell them I sent you and I’m sure you’ll have no problem getting her in. It’s pricy, but I doubt that will be an issue. She won’t be ready to move for at least three days. Maybe seven. She’s going to have to want to be clean or even the best facility, doctors, sponsors, and all the support in the world won’t help her. There are teas she can take. I’ll have a messenger send some over. She probably won’t eat for a few days. When she does, start light, dry toast, soft eggs. Nothing too heavy. You have my number if you need anything.”
There wasn’t much time to talk after Vivian left. It seemed the moment the door closed, a tornado of misery unleashed within the walls of the condo. Evelyn went right into action, her weak body obviously struggling to endure far past the point of her own exhaustion in order to be there for her mother.
Pearl carried on for hours without allowing Evelyn a moment’s respite. She screamed and feebly fought Evelyn back. It occurred to him the woman did not recognize her daughter. She often cried and called for Scout, rejecting Evelyn’s touch, calling her vile names, and accusing her of killing her baby.
She was out of her head, and he worried that perhaps she suffered from more than destroyed brain cells and hard living. This couldn’t be just from drugs. There had to be some level of dementia happening here.
Pearl’s endurance outlasted even his own. He ordered several linens and soaps up and it seemed they’d fallen through a rabbit hole into a world of revolving ups and downs, Evelyn as poor desolate Alice, Pearl the Mad Hatter, and he the frightened rabbit. He consistently caught himself standing back, watching as Evelyn carried on, tapping into an empty well of energy and putting effort forth to ease her mother’s mind and discomfort. There was no peace in the hours that followed.
Evelyn’s affection for such a hateful, spiteful person amazed him. She simply accepted Pearl’s behavior with stoic grace. Lucian knew he could never be as humble as she was in those horrid moments. He knew, even his mother whom he’d loved dearly, could not treat him as Pearl treated Evelyn and continue to be a part of his life. How Evelyn did not snap or retaliate left him speechless. He was completely inexperienced with such raw humanity.
Pearl shivered and glared as Evelyn bathed her with a damp cloth, cooling her sweltering, fevered skin as her temperature reached frightening heights. He feared many times they’d lose her, no matter what Vivian had said. Minutes felt like days, hours like years, and there was not an end in sight.
It wasn’t until long after the sun had set and begun to rise that Pearl had finally exhausted herself. Evelyn was a shell of carbon and flesh, barely holding herself upright. In the corner sat a pile of wasted linens he knew would have to go directly to the incinerator.
Pearl fell back with a weak sigh that didn’t fit her intrepid fight. He waited, skeptically, for her to rouse once more. Convinced her shattered mind substituted itself with an unstoppable will, when her breath leveled out, he remained. But she only slept. The forgotten clock told him twenty-six hours had passed since they arrived back at the condo. He had thought he’d rescued them from the depths of hell, yet now he was convinced he had brought the devil into his home.
Evelyn slipped into the chair like a wilted flower. Her vacant eyes still wouldn’t leave Pearl’s face. She seemed a delicate soul, barely held together by withered threads, yet the set of her shoulders told him she would rally again if her mother needed her. Her fortitude baffled him. He was exhausted, but she wouldn’t give up her stoic vigil.
Quietly slipping from the room, he called the front desk to order food and several trash bags. He also ordered a maid’s cart to be brought up, knowing Evelyn’s pride would forbid another employee she saw as her peer to clean up after Pearl. He would tend to the mess, because there was no way he was allowing her to exert another ounce of energy.
The food came and he quietly placed it in the living room. Returning to the guest room, he found Evelyn slumped in her chair, holding her head up with one weak hand. She looked to be asleep, but he knew she wasn’t. Her heavy eyes watched her sleeping mother’s form through tiny slits.
“Evelyn,” he softly whispered. Her motions were slow and delayed. She turned to face him with great effort. “You need to eat. Why don’t you go clean yourself up and I’ll stay here with Pearl.”
She looked like she wanted to argue, but her verve had simply been too depleted to try. Weakly nodding, she stood on shaky legs. He helped her gain her equilibrium and waited as she staggered with the grace of a zombie into the bathroom.
As the door closed behind her, Lucian went to the hall and pulled the maid cart in.

Hasil (Bahasa Indonesia) 1:

Evelyn duduk di kursi empuk menghadapi jendela, tampak kecil dan hilang. Matanya kusam adalah tanpa ekspresi. Rambutnya, masih basah dari mandi, menyisir kembali, membuat mata yang lelah tampak besar, kulit lembut yang muncul memar di sekitar kolam perak. Lucian siap memberinya secangkir kopi, dan Dia menatapnya sejenak seolah-olah dia melupakan kehadirannya dan tidak bisa cukup masuk akal itu. Kelelahan nya adalah begitu jelas. Hal ini menunjukkan keterampilan motor serta nya refleks, verbal dan fisik. Dia cocok tangannya kecil di sekitar mug mengepul, hangat, dan ia menoleh kembali ke jendela.Beberapa lama, diam saat kemudian, pintu kamar tamu diam-diam membuka. Vivian melangkah keluar dan ditarik menutup pintu, pada saat yang sama yang mengelola untuk meninggalkan sedikit terbuka. Wajahnya adalah muram. Dia diam-diam mengutus dia pandangan suram sebelum dia mendekati Evelyn.Dengan sempurna di samping tempat tidur, dia lembut menyentuh bahu darirony, tanyakanlah Trans nya kontemplatif. "Evelyn?"Dia memandang ke Vivian, putus asa harapan pelunakan kecantikannya. "Dia akan mati?"Vivian ekspresi melunak dan untuk pertama kalinya, dia melihat temannya tajam vixen muncul lebih dari seorang wanita yang memelihara daripada dia pernah membayangkan dirinya mampu. "Tidak, sayang, dia tidak akan mati. Tidak hari ini."Bantuan darirony adalah jelas. Tubuhnya kusut ketika ia menangis napas dan dilipat wajahnya dalam tangannya. Vivian dibungkus dia dalam pelukannya dan dia ingin bahwa kehormatan, tapi tidak yakin sentuhan-nya akan diterima.Lucian Tonton dari bayang-bayang kamar sebagai Evelyn menangis, dan merasa mutlak impotensi dengan ketidakmampuannya untuk memperbaiki ini baginya, atau mungkin itu adalah ketakutan bahwa dia tidak ingin pertolongan-Nya yang membuatnya lumpuh.Dia marah perlahan memudar dan Evelyn menyeka di matanya, sekali lagi membangun dinding tak terlihat yang membuat dia terpisah dari orang lain dan melindungi dia dari mereka semua. "Saya minta maaf," Dia berkata kepada Vivian. "Saya adalah tertentu ia tidak membuat hari yang lain.""Ibu Anda sakit, Evelyn," Vivian menyatakan empathetically. "Hepatitis adalah sesuatu yang harus dipantau dan dirawat. Kekebalan nya sangat rendah sekarang, melawan infeksi. Nya bronkial tidak terbaik mereka dan dia menjalankan demam, tapi masalah terbesar nya adalah gejala-gejala penarikan yang dia menderita."Tubuh darirony tegang seolah-olah ia ingin berdiri, tapi dia menurunkan berat badannya kembali ke kursi. "Dia telah kecanduan heroin. I . . . Aku bisa mendapatkannya baginya.""Sama sekali tidak," kata Lucian sengit. Evelyn tidak pernah akan masuk ke sudut-sudut gelap-kota lagi. Dia tampak terkejut oleh komentar seolah-olah itu mengingatkan dia tentang kehadirannya di kamar sekali lagi. Dia adalah semua dia berpikir tentang selama berminggu-minggu, namun ia terus melupakan kehadirannya dengan setiap menit yang berlalu.Dia lelah. Jaminan diri Nya berdering berongga dan adalah dingin kenyamanan.Dalam banyak cara yang lebih tenang, Vivian berkata, "tidak, Evelyn. Obat-obatan tidak apa yang dia butuhkan. Dia perlu kering."“But she won’t. If I don’t get it for her she’ll sell herself for her next high.”Vivian purposefully glanced around the penthouse. “No one’s here for her to do that with now, and she’s too weak to go back to where she came from. I know it won’t be easy for you to hold her against her will, but you actually have all the power right now to get her through this. If you have the energy, that is?”“We can’t stay here.”Vivian glanced at him, then speculatively back at Evelyn. “I don’t think moving her would be wise.”“You’re staying,” he said, putting the issue to rest. “Pearl can stay until she’s well enough to move. At that point I’ll pay to have her placed in a rehab facility with the best doctors who specialize in this sort of thing, and she’ll get well.”“She won’t go,” Evelyn said in the most defeated voice he had ever heard her use. He didn’t like seeing her so hopeless.“Her other choice is to return to the streets and freeze to death. Surely once she finds her bearings she’ll realize the danger of that. There’s a blizzard coming in the next couple of days.”She bit her lip nervously. “You don’t know what you’re inviting into your home, Lucian. You’ve never seen someone go through withdrawal before, watching them tear at their skin because everything is agony. She’ll soil your home and be so far out of her head she won’t care about shitting on your sheets or vomiting on your carpet. What do you plan to do when she comes clawing at you like a feral animal because she resents all of your help and would rather die than live with it? She doesn’t want a sober life. She’d choose death first. I know it.”“Do you think I’d blame you for her actions when she’s sick? I don’t care if it’s a thankless, uphill, unending battle. I’m not letting you do this alone.”Several agonizing seconds ticked by like fortnights. The scratch of Vivian scribbling something down on a pad of paper was the only sound as he stared challengingly into Evelyn’s tired eyes. He turned when Vivian touched his sleeve. She handed him a script.“This is the name of a clinic outside of the city. Tell them I sent you and I’m sure you’ll have no problem getting her in. It’s pricy, but I doubt that will be an issue. She won’t be ready to move for at least three days. Maybe seven. She’s going to have to want to be clean or even the best facility, doctors, sponsors, and all the support in the world won’t help her. There are teas she can take. I’ll have a messenger send some over. She probably won’t eat for a few days. When she does, start light, dry toast, soft eggs. Nothing too heavy. You have my number if you need anything.”There wasn’t much time to talk after Vivian left. It seemed the moment the door closed, a tornado of misery unleashed within the walls of the condo. Evelyn went right into action, her weak body obviously struggling to endure far past the point of her own exhaustion in order to be there for her mother.Pearl carried on for hours without allowing Evelyn a moment’s respite. She screamed and feebly fought Evelyn back. It occurred to him the woman did not recognize her daughter. She often cried and called for Scout, rejecting Evelyn’s touch, calling her vile names, and accusing her of killing her baby.She was out of her head, and he worried that perhaps she suffered from more than destroyed brain cells and hard living. This couldn’t be just from drugs. There had to be some level of dementia happening here.Pearl’s endurance outlasted even his own. He ordered several linens and soaps up and it seemed they’d fallen through a rabbit hole into a world of revolving ups and downs, Evelyn as poor desolate Alice, Pearl the Mad Hatter, and he the frightened rabbit. He consistently caught himself standing back, watching as Evelyn carried on, tapping into an empty well of energy and putting effort forth to ease her mother’s mind and discomfort. There was no peace in the hours that followed.
Evelyn’s affection for such a hateful, spiteful person amazed him. She simply accepted Pearl’s behavior with stoic grace. Lucian knew he could never be as humble as she was in those horrid moments. He knew, even his mother whom he’d loved dearly, could not treat him as Pearl treated Evelyn and continue to be a part of his life. How Evelyn did not snap or retaliate left him speechless. He was completely inexperienced with such raw humanity.
Pearl shivered and glared as Evelyn bathed her with a damp cloth, cooling her sweltering, fevered skin as her temperature reached frightening heights. He feared many times they’d lose her, no matter what Vivian had said. Minutes felt like days, hours like years, and there was not an end in sight.
It wasn’t until long after the sun had set and begun to rise that Pearl had finally exhausted herself. Evelyn was a shell of carbon and flesh, barely holding herself upright. In the corner sat a pile of wasted linens he knew would have to go directly to the incinerator.
Pearl fell back with a weak sigh that didn’t fit her intrepid fight. He waited, skeptically, for her to rouse once more. Convinced her shattered mind substituted itself with an unstoppable will, when her breath leveled out, he remained. But she only slept. The forgotten clock told him twenty-six hours had passed since they arrived back at the condo. He had thought he’d rescued them from the depths of hell, yet now he was convinced he had brought the devil into his home.
Evelyn slipped into the chair like a wilted flower. Her vacant eyes still wouldn’t leave Pearl’s face. She seemed a delicate soul, barely held together by withered threads, yet the set of her shoulders told him she would rally again if her mother needed her. Her fortitude baffled him. He was exhausted, but she wouldn’t give up her stoic vigil.
Quietly slipping from the room, he called the front desk to order food and several trash bags. He also ordered a maid’s cart to be brought up, knowing Evelyn’s pride would forbid another employee she saw as her peer to clean up after Pearl. He would tend to the mess, because there was no way he was allowing her to exert another ounce of energy.
The food came and he quietly placed it in the living room. Returning to the guest room, he found Evelyn slumped in her chair, holding her head up with one weak hand. She looked to be asleep, but he knew she wasn’t. Her heavy eyes watched her sleeping mother’s form through tiny slits.
“Evelyn,” he softly whispered. Her motions were slow and delayed. She turned to face him with great effort. “You need to eat. Why don’t you go clean yourself up and I’ll stay here with Pearl.”
She looked like she wanted to argue, but her verve had simply been too depleted to try. Weakly nodding, she stood on shaky legs. He helped her gain her equilibrium and waited as she staggered with the grace of a zombie into the bathroom.
As the door closed behind her, Lucian went to the hall and pulled the maid cart in.