iridescent ↠ grayson dolan ✓

↠ f o u r t e e n

"Promise me you'll never leave me, Laur. You're all I have."

She shook her head, burying her face into his chest and hearing a faint heartbeat against his chest. "You're not leaving me." She sobbed into his shirt. "You can't leave me."

Her tears turned the world into a blur. All the noises behind her were almost completely blocked out; the people scrambling for their phones to call 911, Ethan telling Lauren that the ambulance was on their way, a woman putting her hand on her shoulder comfortingly. The tastes disappeared; of salt from her tears, of blood in her mouth.

Everything disappeared.

Except for him. She refused to think about him leaving her just as those feelings from her surroundings left her.

Her sobs didn't lapse. Not once. Since that first lone tear raced down her cheek, the floodgates had opened and didn't stop. Tears burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down her face as her chin trembled like a small child. She breathed heavier than ever before, gasping for air that simply wasn't there.

Her throat burned forming an agonizing scream. It was ear splitting, cutting through the air like a knife. The kind of scream that people were wired to pay attention to. The kind of scream that provoked the worst memories of every single person around her.

The kind of scream that meant all hope was lost.

By the time the ambulance came, Lauren's eyes could not cry anymore. The tears that stung her cheeks were now dried up tracks that lined her flushed skin. Her hands still shook, her legs refusing to stand up.

She could barely make out a figure looming over her and Grayson. "Ma'am," A woman said, clothed in blue. "Ma'am." She repeated, this time more firmly which caught Lauren's attention. "We need to put him on the stretcher. Please let go of him."

Lauren refused to let go of him.

Letting go meant leaving.

And that was simply not an option.

The woman sighed, as though she had to deal with this kind of behavior on a daily basis. She pried Lauren's hands off Grayson and heaved him on the stretcher. The second her hand's left his body, she screamed.

She screamed and kicked and cried like a toddler throwing a tantrum. How dare they take him away from her. How could they not understand how much he meant to her? It wasn't fair. He couldn't leave her just like that. He was her everything.

The nurse took her by the arms and sat her down on a nearby bench, before hurrying back into the ambulance. Soon, she found herself in someone's arms. A deep, musky scent filled her nose as she blinked away tears.

It wasn't Grayson.

Grayson smelt like vanilla. He smelled like clean sheets and soap and everything that made her feel calm and safe.

This wasn't Grayson.

Grayson was gone.

It was Ethan. Lauren knew she should be mad at him, but she didn't have the strength to. She flung her arms over his shoulders, burying her face into the crook of his neck. His fingers stroked her hair and his arms held her tight, swaying her this way and that until her breathing steadied.

"Hey." Ethan said softly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "It's okay. You're okay."

Her sobs slowly subsided. There was something about being in Ethan's arms that calmed her down. Not quite to the extent of Grayson, but that didn't come as a surprise. She doubted anyone could comfort her in the ways that Grayson could.

Ethan looked at the grief shaken girl in his arms. If she took just a few steps, she too would be unconscious. He picked her up in his arms and carried her into the ambulance, setting her down on one of the seats as he took one on the opposite side.

Between them was Grayson's body. Nothing had changed at all. His lips were still colorless, melting into the rest of his face like a lifeless statue instead of the warm, animated boy he was just a little while prior.

"We need to stop the bleeding." One of them said, gathering up bandages. She looked like she was going to try to stitch him up.

One of the nurses sounded doubtful. "It's too much." He said.

"If we don't he'll go into hypovolemic shock." Another said. "We have to."

Lauren stared at his body. Her head hurt from overthinking. She couldn't move. The five nurses around Grayson were clearly doing everything in their power to stop the bleeding and make him regain consciousness, but Lauren had a sick feeling to her stomach that their attempts were futile.

Ethan, however, couldn't even look at Grayson. He couldn't. Seeing the state of his own brother and knowing that it was all his fault absolutely shattered him. He didn't know what to do with himself.

The two had only spent a little short of ten minutes in the ambulance, but to them it felt like eternity. They were ushered out by one of the nurses as the others pushed Grayson into the hospital. As Lauren walked in with him, Ethan noticed a bag stained with blood thrown onto the floor. The very same bag that Grayson was holding before he collapsed. He grabbed it and followed Lauren into the hospital.

After stating the necessary information about Grayson, Lauren sunk into the uncomfortable hospital chairs. She looked up at Ethan. He was a sore sight; his hollow eyes tinged with pink from crying and his cheek a brilliant violet from Grayson's punch.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled, his eyes brimming with fresh tears as he watched his brother being wheeled into the emergency room. "I'm so so sorry."

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i hate this chapter so much ugh

again dedicated to my main bih luaMa Fijmindolan bc she's an impatient shit and told me to post a new chapter asap