Trained To Kill

twenty: communication.

“Matt,” I reach for his shirt with my free hand. “Matt, I can’t breathe.” I strain through my throat. It feels like its closing in on me. I can’t see anything, but I can still hear and feel. I hear the door burst open and it sounds like a herd of elephants stomping in the room.

“What the fuck, Matthew!?” I hear Jacob’s voice and I black out.

When I come back, the pain has subsided, but I’m burning up and there’s a throbbing pain in my head. The beeping noise of the heart monitor next to me feels like a needle sticking in my ears. I get extremely hot, then cold, then hot again. I keep zoning in and out, and each time I zone back in there’s a different person in the room with me.

I wake up sweaty and shaky, and I before I even see him I can feel his presence in the room. It’s like… a physical force that I can touch. It’s strange. I shift my eyes to him, my breathing shaky and my vision still blurry. He’s looking at me with a dead expression, leaning on the counter with his arms folded across his chest.

“Jake,” I choke out but when I talk, I feel dizzy.

“You lied to me, Karm.” He says calmly. I would respond but if I open my mouth I’m almost sure I’ll throw up. “You’re temperature is up to a hundred and twelve degrees.” He checks something that I can’t see. Then he sighs and covers his eyes with his palm.

“Jacob, I-I’m sorry.” I say weakly. I feel myself about to pass out again.

“You said you trusted me.”

I can’t respond anymore. I’ve already done enough talking and even then it feels like I’m chewing glass. Not to mention every noise I hear sounds like it’s happening right next to my ear.

He shakes his head and walks out of the room, right in time for me fall into darkness again.

--

Next time I come back, Matthew is sitting in the rolling chair next to me, switching out my I.V. When he sees that my eyes are open he gives me a weak smile. His jaw has a long, deep gash with stitches running through it. His mouth has a sharp scar trailing from his top lip to just under his eye. He notices that I’m looking at it and shrugs. “It was much worse. These are just taking a little longer to heal.”

“Jacob?” I mumur.

“Yeah. He tore the whole room we were in up. We had to move you.” He says. “He’s had time to cool off though. You, however, have not. Your temperature keeps going up. We’re pumping you with medicine but it’s not working.”

“I think I’m going to-“ I say and gag. He quickly gets a bin and puts it in position as I lean over the bed and hurl. He moves my hair and holds it back. The contents of the bin are black.

The door opens and Valencia walks through and shuts it gently behind her, but to it sounds like a loud clap in my ear. I wince. “He says he doesn’t want to come.”

“You told him she’s not getting any better?”

I feel little sweat beads running down my forehead and I groan in pain. The light hurts, so I keep my eyes closed.

“I told him, and then when I tried to console him he dislocated my damn arm.” I hear her say and silently beg her to stop yelling.

He sighs. “She’s about to go out of it again. Tell him that she asked to see him. He’ll come then.” Matt says and sticks something in my arm. I cry out, cause it feels like he just jammed a knife in my freaking arm. He softly apologizes and I fall asleep once again.

I wake up with a huge gasp of air. My eyes get really big and I try to get a hold of my surroundings. I’m still in the hospital room. Still hear that stupid heart monitor.