Declan's POV
I should have known to come earlier.
I saw her walk off during practice. I think she ran an errand for coach because he was shouting after her, something about a red binder.
We were just setting up a new drill when I heard it from the locker room. It was a scream. The way my stomach tumbled to the ground was my body telling me that I knew it was her.
"Did you hear that too?" Cyrus had asked me, but I was already running.
I threw the door to the locker room open and I heard something fall. Actually, it was more of a slam. My mind went off with a million different scenarios, all of which caused my legs to pump faster.
I found two people on the ground. There was Rowena kicking and trying to crawl backwards... and then there was Jeremy with his hand wrapped around her ankle and trying to tug her closer.
Fuck that. He must have been out of his goddamn mind. The way they both looked up at me the same time told me I must have said something out loud. I didn't care, the heat of my anger was flowing everywhere.
So one second I was standing there and then the next second I was throwing Jeremey off of her, yanking him to his feet, and then slamming him against the lockers.
I understood it, the way Cyrus was barely able to hold himself back that one time this fucker was mouthing off to Natalie at the diner. I bet he used his hands on her too. I understood his anger back then, and now I understand it even better.
"Go ahead, Jeremey. You want to act tough so bad you can start with me." I brought him down at the same time I threw my knee up and knocked him as hard as I could in the abdomen.
He was on the floor now struggling to breathe right. I didn't fucking care, I barely gave him a moment to sit up before I threw my fist into his jaw. His head snapped to the side.
He spit out some blood onto the floor and looked up at me. "Give it a fucking rest, Declan. You saw what she wrote about me."
"I don't give a single fuck what you think she wrote about you, you don't get to put your hands on her. Ever."
I punched him again and went in for another one, but some arms came around me and I was being pulled back. It was James, some quiet kid on the team who was telling me to stop because coach was coming, and I would be benched next time I was caught fighting.
Again, I didn't fucking care. But then I saw Jeremey on the floor and his had this giant red mark on his neck like he was punched there too. I didn't do that.
It must have been Rowena. Of course it was her, that was my girl. And then I turned to where she was last but she wasn't there anymore. Cyrus was standing there, death glaring at Jeremey and I moved out of his way so he could get to him.
Where the hell is she?
Then I saw her. She walked over to me from where the bathroom stalls were. Adam took a water bottle from her. She looked pale.
"Hey, Rowena," I took her face in my hands, searching for injuries there and anywhere I could find. "Are you okay? Where did you go?"
She didn't answer me. She wasn't even looking at me, she was just frowning and staring at the boys helping Coach get Cyrus off of Jeremey.
"Row, are you okay?" I repeated. She looked at me then but her frown didn't settle.
"Declan I think-" She stopped and cringed like something was hurting her. "I think I hit my head really hard."
"Fuck," I cursed under my breath. "Okay, where does it hurt? Let me see." But all she did was fall into my chest and she closed her eyes.
"She threw up back there, I don't-" Adam started but stopped when he saw her go limp in my arms.
His eyes widened with her lack of movement and I wondered if I mirrored his expression. I held her up as best I could. If it's a head injury you're not supposed to move them, right? Fuck fuck fuck fuck!
"Coach!" I yelled.
He turned immediately with the urgency in my voice and seeing an unconscious Rowena in my arms, his face went slack. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I'm calling an ambulance. Declan set her down as gently as you can, keep her head elevated but try to move her as little as possible. Adam, I want you to run and see if the nurse is still in her office. If she is, maybe there's something she can do in the meantime. Go, hurry!"
Adam was running before Coach even finished his words.
———————
It's been four hours since they brought her to the ER. Four hours and Rowena was still unconscious.
They called it a medically induced coma. She did hit her head really hard and their other procedures to avoid brain swelling didn't work. Now, the coma was helping with that. All we had left to do was sit around and wait for them to decide it was safe enough to pull her out of it.
They said it would only take a day or two. I think they said that to calm my nerves, but it didn't help shit. A day or two sounded like a fucking lifetime while I sat here looking at her in that damn hospital bed.
It had only been four hours.
Her dark hair was sprawled out on the pillow while she slept. I wanted to see her open her eyes already. But it had only been four hours.
So I counted her freckles instead. She had twenty seven of them sprinkled on and around her nose. I had counted them five times to make sure I didn't miss any.
Her wrist was back in a cast. That must have been the reason I heard her scream. It was still replaying in my head over and over and so was the image of Jeremy crawling on top of her.
Fucking Jeremey. Fuck. Him. I felt my breathing pick up just thinking about it. I leaned forward on the side of her bed and took her hand in mine. My fingers glided over her pulse and I kept them there. I put my head down on her mattress and with every few beats and I made myself take slower breaths.
"Hey Kid," someone said from the doorway. I looked up and found Rowena's dad there. He had been getting to the bottom of why Jeremey attacked her. I filled him in on the exposé and his relationship with Natalie because I thought it would help.
He found out that Giovanni Bruno was Jeremey's estranged uncle from his dads side. His parents had no idea he was keeping contact with Giovanni. They seemed like nice people, I had met them before at games and meetings.
"Did you know that Jeremey was technically a sophomore?" He asked me.
I felt myself frown. "What?"
"He skipped two grades. Supposed to smart," he said the word like it was a joke. It was. "He would have been in tenth grade if he hadn't skipped. His parents decided to hold him back those two grades. They're okay with juvie for a few months and then they're shipping him off to live with his grandparents for a while so he can attend a disciplinary education program."
I had no words to give him, just a humorless laugh. Juvie and then a disciplinary program... I guess it would have to do.
"Hey," he said, catching my attention again. "Give me a minute with her, yeah? Go get some coffee, something to eat. You look like shit."
I felt my lips twitch at that. "Yeah, alright," I replied. I got up to give him the chair. I walked towards the door and paused when he passed me.
"Hey Mr. Salone. Um-" I turned around to face him but I still couldn't make myself look him in the eye. I looked at her instead. "I'm sorry," I said it to them both. "You asked me to watch over her I could have- if I had noticed Jeremey walking off I could have been there earlier before he-"
"Stop," He said forceful and serious. "Listen, it wasn't fair of me to ask that of you. It's my job to watch over her. The only person I blame is him and his uncle. This isn't for you to feel guilty over, you hear me?"
I couldn't answer, the lump in my throat was too big. I let my head hang deciding I couldn't look at either of them anymore. What if she had hit her head harder? What if she had hit it on the corner of something? She could have- so easily she could have...
"Declan." I didn't hear him get out of his chair or walk over to me. He's standing right in front of me and grips my shoulder. "I know what you're thinking because I've thought it too. We can't get ourselves stuck on the what ifs. She's going to be okay because you were there for her. She'll be okay."
I looked up because of his tone of voice in his last words. It now sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than he was me. He was looking at her but when he turned back to me I could see the tears in his eyes, threatening to spill over.
"She'll be okay," I agree. Before I knew it he was tugging me into a rough embrace.
"Yeah I know," he says before he steps back again. "Rowena would laugh at this drama. We're being a bunch of crybabies huh?"
"That's all you Sir," I respond in good humor even though I fight back a sniffle and blink away some blurry vision.
He gives me a good pat on the back before stepping away and clearing his throat. "You tell anybody about this moment we had here I'll have you arrested for slander. Now get out of here son, your friends are waiting for you outside."
A/N: this chapters end was a little more emotional than I planned. It just kinda happened.
so hi besties <3
We are about 2k reads away from 100k. Everyone take a deep breath ... AND SCREAM WITH ME !!!!
Super grateful for you all and so glad you've stuck around for this long. Love you hooligans !!! ❤️
Switching POVS gives me ✨anxiety✨ but next chapter will be another Declan POV considering Rowena is still sleeping beauty. See you there (;