harper and griffin are 17 years old. when a disaster strikes at the Tremont, griffin is left in the care of the dunns. depressed, he needs help from his girlfriend harper to make the most difficult decision he's ever faced.
TRIGGER WARNING: GUN VIOLENCE.
lets begin! :)
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
That's all that echoed in Griffin's head as he replayed the days' events in his head. Over and over again. Like a broken record.
Harper walked in, eyes red and puffy from crying, quickly followed by a nurse to check Griffin's vitals for the fourth time that hour.
She recorded the information and swapped his IV's before exiting the room.
"How you feeling?" Harper asked. Griffin shrugged his good shoulder. The other one had a bullet wound right through it.
Let me explain.....
********
It was a beautiful, sunny day. The Tremont was bustling. Kids were running around, giggling and playing tag, adults were sipping special beverages on the covered porch, many guests were splashing around in the springs. It was a great day overall. Until it wasn't.
All Griffin remembered hearing was; "Everybody get down!". With that, the first gunshot was heard. Every guest screamed and got down. Except Ben. He was shot, blood spilling out onto the floor. His last breath of life leaving his body. No one had known who this masked shooter was.
The shooter had shot his dad in the stomach, blew his brothers' brains out, shot his little sister in the side, and his mom in the heart. Sarah had been lifeflighted, but didn't survive the helicopter ride. Zoey was in emergency surgery at the moment, no telling if she would survive. Griffin was shot in the shoulder and the leg, lucky to get paramedics there quick enough to save him from bleeding out.
17 guests were injured, 6 murdered. The shooter had gotten away. The police were still in pursuit, hopefully getting closer to the culprit.
*******
Now, here he was, parentless, brotherless, and there was no telling if his sister would live, and even if he'd get to say goodbye if she didn't. He was hooked up to 7 different IV's, was constantly kept on a heart monitor, and was sobbing uncontrollably.
"Zo?" Griffin squeaked out.
"I don't know, love. She's still in surgery." Harper sighed. Griffin sniffled. Harper sat on the edge of his hospital bed and kissed him lightly on the forehead, playing with his hair gently as he cried and holding his hands in her own, rubbing circles into his palms, doing her best to calm him as much as she could.
He cried even harder as he looked at his girlfriends bruised face. When the pretty teenage girl had tried to disarm the gunman from the back, he took the gun and hit her in the face with it, knocking her out. At least she didn't get shot.
"Hey, Griff. How you feeling?" Jess asked, walking into the room, Topher on her heels. He gulped.
"I'm fine." He tried to convince himself.
"I'm gonna steal Harp for a minute. Toph, will you sit with him." Jess said. Topher nodded and smiled at Griffin. Harper and Jess exited the room.
"She's gone." Jess said, tear falling.
"No." Harper cried. Zoey was like a little sister to her and even worse, she knew that this would be Griffin's last straw.
"I'll tell him, just comfort him, okay?" Jess asked. Harper nodded. Both girls wiped their tears and reentered the room. Harper retook her place on the bed and gripped his hand.
"Griffin, I have to tell you something. I'm so sorry, kiddo. They did all they could. She's gone, Griff." Jess sighed. Griffin felt his will to live shatter into a million pieces. He held tears, clamping his eyes shut. He trembled and quivered and Harper gestured for her family to exit the room.
The boy burst into tears and Harper sighed wishing there was more she could do to help him feel better.
Harper whispered soothing words, a few tears of her own escaping her eyes. Griffin was crying so hard, his heart rate increased impeccably and the monitor began beeping rapidly. Harper held him tight, trying her best to calm the broken boy down.
Two nurses ran in, one fixing the monitor, the other running to Griffin's side. Harper backed off and watched as the nurse looked him in the eye, desperately trying to calm him down. He coughed, struggling to breathe.
"Is he okay? What's going on?" Harper asked the other nurse nervously.
"Panic attack. Not good for his heart. He'll be okay." The nurse assured.
The nurse with Griffin eventually got the boy's breathing slightly back to normal and the tears were to a minimum. She rubbed his back and had him drink some water before hooking him back up to the heart monitor.
"If that occurs again, we're gonna put him on an oxygen line. Keep him as relaxed as possible. I know that's hard right now." The nurse said. Harper nodded and sat next to Griffin yet again. He looked up at her with tears in his eyes.
"Hey, it's okay, baby. I've got you. You're alright." Harper comforted as Griffin whimpered into the crook of her neck.
***********
Two weeks later, all the funerals were over. Griffin was broken. He barely talked, Harper hadn't seen him smile since the incident, and he cried often. The poor boy's soul was destroyed. She walked into his room the day of the twins' funeral.
"Hey, can we talk?" She asked. Griffin shrugged with his good shoulder, other one held up by a sling. "I know today is hard."
"Understatement of the year." Griffin sniffled. Harper wrapped her arm around him.
"I know. I understand though. I know what its like to lose a family member. Losing my dad was the worst thing that ever happened to me." Harper admitted.
"With all due respect, Harper, I don't think you do understand. At least you still had a family that cares about you, to be there for you during that hard time. My entire family is gone. All my extended family is in Chicago and NOT ONE of them wanted to help me. They didn't care at all." Griffin cried.
"That's not true, Griff. They all cared. And you have my family." Harper assured.
"It's not the same." Griffin whimpered. Harper sighed sadly.
"I know, love. I'm sorry."
*************
The next week, Griffin went back to school. Everyone was staring and muttering, avoiding Griffin at all costs.
Him and Harper were eating lunch and Griffin's friends Gino, Luke, and Preston came over.
"Hey, dude." Preston greeted with a smile.
"We missed you, man!" Luke exclaimed, patting his shoulder. Griffin forced a fake smile.
"Hey guys." Griffin stated. "What have you been up to?"
"Your mom." Gino laughed, looking around the group for a reaction. Griffin looked down, tears welling up in his eyes.
"Yeah, dude! Nice one! Perfect set up." Luke laughed along.
"Guys, cut it out." Preston whispered.
"Why?" Gino and Luke asked at the same time.
"Because his mom's dead, losers. Welcome back, Campbell." Mitch said meanly.
"What the hell, man!" Preston yelled. Mitch shrugged and laughed.
"I'm sorry, Griffin, I forgot." Gino said.
"Yeah, man." Luke said. With that, the two walked away.
A tear fell from Griffin's face as he laid his head down. Harper sighed and grabbed his hand from across the table, rubbing circles into the palm.
"Hey, Griff. I'm really sorry. Gino and Luke are idiots, and Mitch is an ass. If you ever need anything, I've got your back." Preston assured, giving him a reassuring side hug.
Griffin stood up and sprinted away. They watched as the bathroom door flung open and he threw himself in there.
"I'll get him." Preston assured Harper. Harper sighed and thanked him as he walked towards the bathroom.
***********
Griffin couldn't take it. He had gone home early that day. Harper walked in the door and walked into the spare room, finding Griffin sitting on the bed, staring at a photo of him and his family, in tears.
Harper walked in with a sigh, sitting next to her distressed boyfriend. She rubbed his back and he held the picture to his chest, crying and trembling.
"I'm sorry about what happened at lunch today. I had to keep myself from punching Mitch right in the balls. An idiot like him should NOT be allowed to procreate." Harper joked lightly, trying to de-stress the boy.
One corner of his mouth turned up, but it quickly faded away.
"I wish we'd never moved away from Chicago." Griffin quivered. Harper felt as though she'd been kicked in the gut. That felt like a slap to the face.
"But, we never would've found the portal, hell, we would've never met!" Harper tried.
"I know, and love you though I do, I want my family back." Griffin shook lightly. Harper sighed and held tears of her own, standing up and walking away without warning. "Wait, Harper."
She slammed the door behind her. Griffin flinched and felt more tears arise. He burst into a heap of sobs, thinking that he lost the only person he had left. It was all his fault.
********
"Woah, Harpies, slow down, what's going on, baby?" Jess asked, worried as she noticed the tears streaming down her face and the angry expression.
"Griffin said he wishes he'd never moved away from Chicago." Harper sobbed.
"Well, honey, he lost his entire family, of course he feels that way." Jess reasoned.
"I don't care, it still hurt!" Harper yelled, running into her room and slamming the door behind her. Jess sighed and walked into Griffin's room.
He was sobbing, legs pulled up to his chest, and he was trembling heavily.
"Hi, sweetie." Jess said gently. Griffin looked into her brown eyes with his green ones as they shimmered and glistened with tears in the light. "She didn't mean it. She just needs time to cool down."
"It's all my fault!" Griffin cried out.
"No, its not, Griff. None of this is your fault, okay. Everything's alright, Griffin." Jess comforted. She hugged him tight and rubbed his back. He cried into her shoulder. "She'll come around."
**************
"You wanna go back?" Harper asked blankly, walking into Griffin's room.
"What?" He asked. Harper had been shunning him for days and now she walks in with a random statement. What was going on with her?
"To Chicago? You wanna go back?" Harper asked, sounding semi angry.
"I-I'm so confused." Griffin muttered.
"Get in the car." Harper stated.
"Huh?" Griffin asked once more.
"Get in the god damn car, Campbell." Harper said. He was slightly scared as he followed her down the stairs and climbed into her small purple car.
She drove to the Tremont.
"What are we doing here?" Griffin asked.
"Get out of the car." Harper said. He nodded shortly as the two approached the door.
"It's locked. The police are investigating." Griffin stated. Harper sarcastically waved a key.
"You forget, my mom co-owned the place." Harper said, sticking the key into the keyhole. She twisted it and pushed open the door. It squeaked as it revealed the dim hotel.
She walked in, not waiting for Griffin. She set her stuff down on the main counter as Griffin entered the falling apart structure, looking around unsurely.
"Do you wanna go back to Chicago?" Harper asked, sounding angry. Tears welled up in Griffin's eyes.
"Harper, I don't know what you want me to tell you." Griffin whispered, tears threatening to spill.
"Great, its settled. Come on, we're going to the basement. You're gonna go back and when your mom suggests leaving after her and your dads' fight, you don't argue and you go to Chicago. Boom, happy ending for you." She sighed, glaring at him. He looked at her angry face and his lip quivered. A tear ran down his cheek as he started to tremble. Harper's face softened. "Griff?"
"I'm sorry. I don't wanna go back. I don't wanna lose you, I just want my family back. It hurts, Harper, it hurts really bad. And being back here doesn't help." Griffin's voice came out at a meek whisper. He let out a small whimper and looked around the room before falling to his knees on the floor, breaking into heavy sobs.
Harper felt tears in her own eyes and she carefully approached him.
"Hey, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I made you even more upset then you should be and I'm sorry. None of this is your fault. I love you, Griffey, I'm sorry, baby." Harper apologized. She held him in her arms and comforted him.
"I love you too, Harper." Griffin choked out, letting everything out.
He knew that in the end, everything would be okay, because he had his Harper. <3
sorry it took so long to get a new one out! hope you enjoyed! love you all! if you have any requests, let me know!!
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