Beyond the Screams ✔

Chapter Fifteen

She had died in her sleep.

After about an hour of us arriving at the hospital, I rushed back out and told Bryce to go home. Told him that Alice couldn't leave mother and I couldn't leave her. He had simply nodded and restarted his car, I didn't watch him drive off, simply running back into the hospital. I had been eating overly priced, badly made hospital food from a cafeteria that only had about four workers. I had almost had to spoon-feed Alice, dragging her away from Mother's side since I wasn't able to bring her food to the room. 

The doctor's had told me her death was painful.

But their eyes told me otherwise, silently telling me that the complication that ended up killing her had been extremely painful, and they were not able to rid the pain as she died. We had been sitting in the waiting room. An unfamiliar doctor had come in and kicked us out, saying that we could no longer be in here and we would have to either wait outside or go home. I didn't even need to ask Alice what she wanted to do, We had only been sitting for an hour and a half before the doctor walked towards us with a somber and slightly nervous expression. We had only been sitting here, the news fresh in our minds, for about fifteen minutes. Alice still hadn't stopped crying.

I didn't feel anything.

Alice had whispered that everything felt numb, except, of course, for the pounding in her head. A result of the copious amount of sobbing. But I didn't feel anything, no overwhelmingly large amounts of the guilt of never forgiving her, not the pain of losing my mother. Nothing. At least, no feelings regarding the death of my mother. I felt the pain of losing a sister, not a mother. Alice would no longer be allowed to have Alice live with me under my supervision. Not until I was married or she turned 18. Alice's 18th birthday isn't until next year, and I had no possible suitors, nor anyone I had dated, whether it be recently or ever really. Alice would be sent to live with our Aunt and Uncle and I would be trapped in our too-big of a house alone.

Alice took a deep intake of air before moving her hand up and rubbing her nose, already a bright red.

"I think I'm ready to go home," She whispered.

I nodded, rubbing her back, "Alright then, I'll call a cab,"

She shook her head, mumbling over her words, "No, can you call Bryce?"

I hesitated. I didn't want to say no, she was hurting but I didn't want to say yes either. It would be hard to contact him, I didn't know where he was at the moment. I sighed,

"No Alice, I don't want to bother him. We'll just go get a cab," I said, a little more firmly this time. Sitting up straight before standing up and out of the seat, bringing Alice with me.

If she was annoyed, she certainly didn't show it. Standing and walking out of the hospital with me as if she had never asked anything. We didn't say a word, not when we walked out into the bitterly cold winds outside the hospital doors, not as we stood on the sidewalk a few streets away from the antiseptic-smelling, white building. Not as I held out my hand, signalling over a cab.

Our drive was silent. Obviously not counting the dull, quiet hum of the radio and the few coughs from the driver in front.

We were in silence until,

"Lost someone?" The driver asked,

"What?"

"I'm sorry if I'm intruding, but I picked you up from the hospital and you both seem awful upset, I just thought I could help..." He said quickly.

I sighed, not answering. So Alice spoke up, "Yes, we recently lost a family member, have you?"

He paused, "Not recently, I s'pose. But I lost both my Grandfather and Uncle back in the World War."