OMG everyone I totally blocked a friend's suicide out of my mind and I never end up writing about it. I always feel like I'm forgetting someone when I say how many, and it's definitely him. He was in his mid 20s and was a mass shooter/high speed chaser prototype. His mother MADE him into that, and my bestie agrees, because we watched it for years. He was just a sweet, nice guy who withdrew more from the world every year, but if we hung out, I could always get him laughing. His best friend was my first boyfriend, but I became part of a club as a result of that hookup. I was the first girlfriend they liked enough to make an official "freak sister" within their "freak brotherhood." It basically meant I could hang with smoking weed, and I could drink. (Had a a harder time with that one.) I also could comment on music or other suitable high conversations.
Anyway, at about 21 (I was 17-18) he moved to be with his dad, and my boyfriend got stationed there in the Navy. We all wrote back and forth, he seemed much happier, and of course two young guys had a great time pranking me pre Ashton Kutcher. I would get ridiculous phone calls in the middle of the night. My parents loved it.
Then he just disappeared. My boyfriend and I break up, enter the first challenging chapter of my life where I wanted to CTB myself. I'm about 20, still living with my parents, and just quitting every drug. I didn't know anything about rehab, 12 steps, nothing. My health insurance actually helped me find rehab if you can believe that. And it was a good in its own way, but they did some abusive shit to shame me. I digress.
Saturday, my dad hands me the newspaper (yes, we read it with lanterns gathered round in the log cabin "Pa" built,) and says, sorry kid. My old friend, front page news. Went on a very short shooting spree in a public area, but he'd been reported. Security, county, and state police were on his ass in like 5 minutes. He didn't hit anyone thank God. Takes them on a chase, but he manages to shoot and kill 2 before turning the gun on himself, successfully killing himself.
Thank you for letting me write all this out, and double thank you if you read this. I have held this in for years. I remember my dad coming back, as if he were a normal dad, you'd think he would ask me how I felt, give me a hug, and tell me it was ok and I'll be ok. Instead I think he just mumbled some bullshit about what drugs can do and took the paper back.
His bitch mother wouldn't allow us at the funeral. I never got to meet his dad in person even though we had talked on the phone a lot. I never got any closure on him. Then one of the freak brothers was at a different funeral, and accidentally stepped on his grave. I have yet to go. I don't know if it would do anything. His life, and his death, were tragic. One of the police killed was a county dude who always harassed us about hanging out where we shouldn't be, under age drinking, the usual. But you knew you could always go into the woods and outrun them (which we did with one dude a few times) but you always knew if something serious went down, he had your back, The statie I didn't know. I forgot about all this for so long.
I couldn't remember why even though I'm not a fan of law enforcement in general, I try to not have a blanket statement that all cops are bad. Those 2 cops didn't deserve that. I've dealt with the police in many ways, not always good. I don't know how it is everywhere else, so I'll say I'm sorry if things are horrible elsewhere. In my area, maybe because it's an urban area, the police are actually the easiest people to get help from during a mental health crisis. Yes, it's horrible when someone has you committed, but the police are trained to speak with you calmly and make you feel safe. They've had to cuff me a few times, and they always did it front and hung my jacket over it. Not a huge deal, I know, but I'd rather deal with them than some bitchy EMT questioning if you're really suicidal and treating you like shit because she didn't see enough action on your call. Sorry, this call won't make you the obvious hero. I don't call an ambulance for anything anymore. I've taken Uber twice now to the ER.
All I'm saying is there was a chance if the police weren't totally hyped from the chase and just shot him, things may have been different. Or if they shot him to stop him rather than kill him. I think some of us older heads need to get together to see if they knew anyone like this as well. He was a shooter, but he and his sister were turned into something that was a manifestation of their mother's evil. They were made, not born. The daughter is probably still locked up somewhere. Sweet, poor girl. She barely even spoke.
His aunt was my 12th grade English teacher, and I ran into her after the incident. All I could say was Im so sorry and she hugged me and we both cried. It was the end of an era in my life, and it broke up the brotherhood for good. We still speak every so often, but my ex bf became a total prick and we never talk. Only one brother is still close with me, but I've been pushing a lot of people away.
Thanks again, if anyone read this, God Bless You; this place has helped me remember a lot. This is just one of several pretty serious traumas I went through as a young adult. It's definitely the one that had the most impact because I've pretended it never happened my entire adult life.