Lakehouse

Chapter Nine

I was not able to keep my word.

It seemed that just seconds after Theo said his final goodbye before calling the police station, everything turned into a fuzzy haze and went black. Theo tried calling me back several times-thirteen, to be exact-but I was unconscious and could not feel the vibrations of my cell phone that slid down onto the concrete.

About ten minutes after I blacked out, Theo and the officers found me lying in a pool of my own blood after making their way through the streets, checking every alley they passed. The man had hit my head so hard against the wall that it split in the back, hence how badly it hurt and throbbed. I don't know how I didn't notice the blood trailing down my spine; according to the doctors, my jacket was covered in it. It was so sticky and hot that they had to cut it off my body before beginning the stitching.

I woke up six hours after the procedure was completed. When my eyes fluttered open, all I could see was the dull, colorless wall of my hospital room across from where my bed was lying. I was covered in a soft, white blanket from my chin down, my head caressed by a large, feathery pillow. I had groaned, my head instantly pounding in the back.

"Oh, thank god!" I heard Lou exclaim, and the room burst into chatter. My foster parents rushed to my bedside, looking straight at my face and smiling so graciously. I was unable to turn my skull, because it hurt so badly even after hours, but I grinned back and yawned.

"Hi," I said.

"Hey, Sadie," O'Brien replied. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, except my head really hurts."

Lou laughed softly at that, and took my hand in hers. Her palms were warm and sweaty, yet her fingers felt like icicles. "We're glad you're okay."

The doctor, who I never really discovered the name of, then came in, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. He asked me how I was, like Lou and O'Brien, and proceeded to check my heart and respiration rates. The three of them hastily asked me what had happened, since there was no one cognizant to tell the tale, and I told them exactly what occurred, from the moment I woke up to when everything was starting to fade away. I clarified what the man looked like and what he was asking for, which left them with pale faces and straight expressions. They knew, just like me, that Levi's case was getting much more complicated.

After a few moments of silence, they explained to me what happened during the ambulance ride and the hospital procedure. The doctor said that it went smoother than he expected, and honestly believed it was the end for me when I arrived in the infirmary. I had lost a lot of blood as I laid there in the alley.

I asked to be alone after our discussion. They agreed instantly, all quietly walking out the door and closing it tightly behind them. Since then, I have been sitting here, alone with my thoughts. I assume that Theo was sent to school, worried silly, and Jake is sitting in class, a guiltless heart sitting in his chest. I want to be able to move around and go somewhere, anywhere, but I am stuck.

♒

After three more antagonizing hours of unneeded support and attention, the door bursts open and makes me jump under the blankets. I've been sitting here so long in physical silence that I'm becoming restless and jittery. On the other hand, the thoughts and voices in my head have been incredibly loud-I was pulling on my hair to try to quiet it down not too long ago.