Farm Girl Meets Bad Boy (#1)

Chapter Thirty-Four

“Emery,” I sob, staggering forward. He lies unmoving on the ground with closed eyes. My heart aches, wanting to get to him. But his father is already there.

The gun makes a clicking noise as he readies it for another shot. I know the shotgun I hold is loaded as I stumble two more steps closer. With a shaky hand, he aims the pistol down towards his only son. It’s aimed at his head; a shot to kill. Before, he shot Emery to save himself. Now, he wants to finish the business he came here to attend to.

I raise the shotgun and look down the sight. As I point it towards Mr. Hastings, I remember everything my father taught me about shooting it. He had taught Ocean and I when we were younger for emergencies like the mountain lion, or if there were any trespassers while our parents weren’t home.

My eyes watch closely as Emery’s father places his forefinger in front of the trigger. My finger is already waiting, and I don’t waste any time, knowing that if I did, it can cost me Emery’s life. I inhale a deep breath and make sure the barrel is pointed on my target.

“This is for Emery,” I whisper quietly. Exhaling, my finger gently squeezes the trigger.

The noise is deafening; much like every other time I had heard it. It never fails to shock me, or make my ears ring. Mr. Hasting’s body makes a thump as it falls lifeless on the floor. No one can survive a shotgun blast without immediate medical attention, no matter where you shoot them. It tears you apart from the outside in.

The shotgun slides out of my hands and hits the floor, making the only noise that echoes in the barn. I don’t look at the dead body as I stumble towards Emery.

“Emery!” Slowly, I stagger towards the unmoving boy, seeing through foggy vision and tears. I fall onto my knees, much like he had moments ago, and touch my hand to his cheek. His face looks more peaceful then I’ve ever seen it in my time knowing him. I grasp his shoulder and begin to shake him awake. “Wake up,” I sob, trying to get him to open his eyes. “Please, wake up!” When I get no response, I collapse on his unmoving body, crying my heart out. It’s a minute later when I finally notice that he’s breathing. It’s raspy, uneven and horrible sounding, but he’s still breathing!

I sit up and smile sadly down at him, knowing that help will arrive anytime now. It couldn’t be much longer of a wait after all this time. I’m overjoyed, and the adrenaline pounding in my ears has reduced the pain slightly. I had just potentially saved the love of my life, but now the only thing we can do is wait for help to arrive.

“River?” I blink through tears and stare down at Emery whose eyes are barely open.

“I’m right here,” I murmur, brushing the black hair out of his sight. There’s so much of my blood everywhere that I don’t even notice it anymore, but Emery’s on the other hand, worries me.

He looks over slowly, and his eyes land on his dead father. I can’t help but follow his gaze, and stare at the gaping hole in his stomach. An eye for an eye my dad used to say. Well, in this case, it’s a bullet in the stomach for the both of us.

“Let’s get out of here,” Emery mumbles, pushing me off of him and rising to his feet. We’re both incapable of doing anything right now, but clearly he doesn’t realize that. I try to stop him as he slowly stumbles, putting one foot in front of the other. He collapse’s near the entrance of the barn, where rain is gently falling yet again.

“It hurts so bad,” he mumbles, fading in and out of consciousness. We sit on the ground, wrapped in each other’s arms.

“I know,” I cry softly, stroking his hair. If I could comfort him, that would be comfort for myself, too. “We’re going to make it out of here, Emery,” I murmur, resting my head gently against his shoulder. His head falls onto mine, and we’re as close as two people can get. “I promise.”

Before, I was suicidal, scared, and in agony. But now, I can’t pay attention to that. It will only make things worse. Instead, I have to help Emery get out of here alive, and comfort him until he does.

“Why do these things happen?” He whispers through tears. “You deserve better than to have watched this happen.” He shakes in my arms, and I shake in his. Together, we are one big mess. We look like hell, feel like hell, and have just seen hell. Truly, there really can’t be a horrible afterlife, if the life before it is just as horrifying.

“You deserve better than to have watched this too, Emery,” I tell him, feeling myself starting to drift away again. “You deserve way better than what you have seen.”

I feel him wince at the pain, and for a while, we just sit in silence. We stare outside at the rain, and sit in our anguish. All my boring life, I’ve wished for something interesting to happen. When nothing ever did, I planned to leave here as soon as I got my truck so I could live a more eventful life. Now, looking back, I want to tell myself to be careful what you wish for. I’ll never trade Emery for anything. Not all the money in the world, not a new truck, not even for the world itself. However, I would give up knowing him, if that meant he could have had a better life.

“I know I really screwed things up between us,” Emery tightens his grip around me. “But for what it’s worth, I never actually disliked you.” I smile at his words as fresh tears leave my eyes. “It’s just hard for me to get close to people, and allow them into my life.”

“I know,” I tell him. After what I had just witnessed, Emery has an extremely good reason for being the way he is. I feel Emery begin to sob again, as we wait for help to arrive.

“I love you so much, River,” he cries into me, his grip getting tighter with every word. “I’ve lost too many people I care about. I can’t lose you, too!”

I pull away from him, and his grip barely loosens. Looking him in his crying, gorgeous blue eyes, I don’t allow myself to copy his worry. I have to be strong for the both of us. “Emery,” I say sternly but softly. “You are not going to lose me.” I don’t know if that’s entirely true, considering I’ve been bleeding out for quite some time. “You are more hurt than I am, so you worry about you.” I gently press my lips to his and pull back. I lean into him, and snuggle my head into his chest. “I love you so much, Emery Hastings.”

“I love you so much, River Snow.” His words ring out in my head for what seems like an eternity. My vision skips between blurry and completely black, but I show no sign of it to Emery. I know I’m very close to dying. The pain is horrifying, and my senses are so horrible that I can’t tell whether I’m awake or not.

Everything in front of me flickers like I’m seeing photographs, or as if there’s a strobe light that cuts movement in between scenes. In front of me, Emery lies on the ground, his eyes closed. His hands no longer clutch his wound like mine clutches my own, and that worries me greatly. I’m losing him, and I’m losing myself.

It’s hard to keep myself conscious as I fight it to crawl towards Emery’s motionless body. With shaky hands, I pull away from my own wound. I press them into Emery’s, trying to stop the blood from flowing. I feel myself become weaker, and the pressure I’m using against the wound is becoming less and less. No longer capable of standing up, I collapse sideways onto the ground.

Emery and I face each other, much like we had done some nights in my bed. Except now, were both dying and there’s nothing either of us can do about it. Then I see the light. It’s out of the corner of my eye, and at first, I wonder if all the movies are really true. Its bright white and blinding against my failing eyes. Is this what death is really like? Is this really how it ends?

Sighing quietly, I pull my hands away from Emery’s chest. My right hand tremors as I reach towards his left. The familiar feeling gives me security as I grip it as tightly as I can. His limp hand makes my heart ache, as I hold onto the only person I will ever love while I die.