Breaking Point

Once Again

"Call 911!"

"Sweetie, sweetie, can you hear me?"

Jennifer leaned against the steering wheel, unable to move. She could barely breathe. Somebody had opened her door, and was touching her face. Jennifer's eyes cleared up for a moment, and she was staring into Justin's bloodshot eyes.

"Jen, how could you be so stupid?!" he sobbed, and started taking shards of glass off of her cut up face. "How could you be so stupid?!"

Jennifer wanted to talk, but she was having trouble breathing. All she was able to do was look at Justin blankly, she couldn't even think. Her mind felt empty.

Sirens started blaring throughout the street, and Justin was shoved out of the way by an EMT.

"Sweetheart, can you tell me your name?" the EMT asked, but only got a blank stare from Jennifer.

"Who are you?" another asked Justin, and he told them his information, as well as Jennifer's. Maribelle and the others were forced behind a police line, tears streaming down their cheeks.

"We're gonna have to take her to the hospital, she's leaking spinal fluid." An EMT said urgently, then others joined him to eject Jennifer from the car and onto a gurney. All Justin heard was hospital, leaking, spinal fluid.

"I have to go with you." Justin choked out to an EMT. He looked at him, ready to object, then saw the pain on Justin's expression.

"All right, let's go." He said, and guided Justin into the ambulance.

They started pricking Jennifer with needles, and Justin watched and prayed for her to look at him. All he saw was her blankly staring at the ceiling of the ambulance.

"How much longer?" Justin asked an EMT, tears streaking his cheeks as he stared down at Jennifer's unresponsive body.

"A few more minutes." He responded distractedly.

When they finally got to the hospital, Jennifer was carted off to an operating room while Justin was forced into a hospital waiting room chair.

Soon after, Justin was joined with Maribelle, Celeste, Austin and Alex, and all five adolescents cried and prayed for Jennifer.

Not again, Maribelle kept thinking as she leaned on Alex's shoulder, sobbing. Oh, God please not again.

Periodically, doctors would come over to them and tell them how Jennifer's surgery was going. They'd ask questions and the doctor would try to explain to them as best as possible.

Hours later, the waiting room was filled with the Believe tour crew, waiting for the shy and quiet girl to come out of surgery, safe and sound. Justin nervously shook his leg as he waited, regretting every single word he'd uttered to Jennifer during their argument.

Is this what she felt like? Justin thought painfully, as wave after wave of regret, anticipation, anxiety, pain, sorrow, and more regret rode through his veins like electric shock. Waiting for him? Is this what she felt like? He was anxious for her to come out of that surgery alive, so he could apologize ten thousand times over for his stupidity.

The hours seemed to drag on for the Believe tour group. Every second felt like an eternity.

Soon, Maribelle went into a full blown panic attack. "This can't be happening." She muttered through the tears.