The Night We Met
by Abby Jimenez
Contents
14: Chris
Overview
After Mike’s drunken outburst, Chris confronts him the next day and demands real change: medication, therapy, and temporary work. Mike apologizes, professes love, and promises to follow through.
Chris recognizes their friendship’s imbalance, sets boundaries, and resolves to prioritize his own healing, inspired by Larissa’s “door you know” insight.
Summary
Reeling after the restaurant incident, Chris fields a late-night call from Jesse, who is retrieving Mike. Angry and sleepless, Chris worries Larissa might feel embarrassed about the bill but hopes she enjoyed the dinner. He lies awake, frustrated by Mike’s behavior.
The next day, Mike arrives by rideshare to retrieve his keys. Chris bluntly confronts him, insisting the world doesn’t revolve around Mike. When Mike asks for a ride to his truck, Chris reluctantly agrees, reiterating that Mike must restart his meds, return to therapy, and take temporary work with Tony.
In the car, Mike apologizes, admits he was sick from running while hungover, and tells Chris he loves him. He promises to fill the prescription at Chris’s pharmacy and do better. When Mike asks what Chris isn’t sharing, Chris withholds, seeing Mike is barely managing his own issues.
Chris reflects on their pattern: he has long supported Mike, but after their mother’s death he needed reciprocal support and didn’t get it. Realizing he has been protecting Mike’s peace at the expense of his own, Chris decides to set boundaries. Inspired by Larissa’s “door you know” metaphor, he resolves to stop enabling Mike’s loop and focus on rewriting his own script.
Who Appears
- ChrisProtagonist; confronts Mike, demands meds/therapy/work, withholds his own burdens, and decides to set boundaries and prioritize healing.
- MikeArrives contrite after a drunken incident; apologizes, professes love, promises to resume meds, therapy, and take temporary work.
- JessePicks up Mike at night and checks on Chris by phone after the altercation.
- LarissaAbsent but on Chris’s mind; her “door you know” idea guides Chris’s decision to set boundaries.