AFFECTION
chapter 14 — effect of anxiety
"BLAIR, WHY DIDN'T YOU COME OUT with us yesterday. it was so fun, and ryan and irene were all up on each other, so also not fun." dylan said as he and blair walked to the football field.
"i was busy sorry."
dylan looked over at blair, worried since she didn't shoot him a playful insult. he saw scratches on her face, and blair looked paler than she ever did.
"hey are you okay?" he asked, leaning over to meet her face. "yeah, tired. it was a long day you know." blair moved her hair to cover the scratches on the side of her face.
"oh, hopefully cheer cheers you up. get it, cause it's cheer." dylan said, expecting a "that was your worst joke yet." from blair.
instead she nodded, and then walked away from him to the track around the football field to meet the rest of the cheer girls.
dylan watched her as she went straight to her coach, asking her a question and then her coach went into her bag and handed her a bandaid.
his eyes didn't leave her, seeing if he could find anything else that was abnormal about blair. he watched as she put the bandaid over her scratches, and the put her hair up for practice.
"hoffman! come on." the football coach yelled, forcing dylan to snap out his thoughts and go over to his team.
"you guys are going to take two laps, and then we're gonna do a tire drill, and then we're gonna run some plays."
"yes coach." the boys all said, a drag slightly in their voices.
"let's go let's go!" their coach yelled out again, blowing his whistle.
dylan jogged over to ryan, who was waiting for him so the best friends could take their laps together.
ryan and dylan started to run together, not going to fast but not too slow that they would get yelled at by their coach.
"hey have you seen anything different about blair?" dylan asked as they jogged.
"no? and no offense but i don't pay attention to blair like that. she's my girlfriend's best friend."
"yeah but, we're all together after school. they're literally right there." dylan said gesturing to across the track.
"either way, irene and i both said to not get distracted by each other when we're at practice." ryan said.
dylan sighed, "why do you have to be in a happy relationship. and i can't even like someone without me thinking their using me for the fame i've been getting."
"blair wouldn't though, she could care less. the only thing she would use me for is someone to chase around school."
ryan just shrugged, and they went onto the grass and ran past the girls they were just talking about.
"i mean, you know what i'm gonna say." ryan said.
"what if i don't." dylan said. "then that would make you an insane idiot."
the practices went on, dylan continuing to look over at blair just in case.
he officially knew something was off with blair, she was breathing extremely heavy, kept rubbing her arm, and for the first time ever she had fallen in one of her tumbling passes.
dylan had seen blair cheer since 6th grade, she had never fallen when tumbling. it was her speciality, she never fell.
so when dylan saw her fall out of her full twist and onto the concrete and irene go over to make sure she was okay, dylan's theory was proven right.
blair was totally not okay.
"hoffman, piney. grab." dylan's coach said, stopping dylan who was watching blair run her hands through her sweaty hair and she drank from her owala.
"yeah, yeah sorry coach." dylan said going over to grab a piney.
"everything alright? you've seen a bit distracted today." the coach said.
"yeah, long day." dylan said, glancing over at blair.
"hopefully football will cheer you up." the man said, patting dylan on his back.
dylan smiled at his coach, going to his spot as the wide receiver on his team.
but he couldn't focus, in between each play he would look at blair, and even while he was running the ball he would look out his perephial view to see the girl.
something inside was telling him that he had to keep an eye on blair. dylan had no idea why, but he was going to go with his gut.
so when dylan was listening to his coach, since he was explaining the new play they were learning, he immediately dissasociated and did one more check up at blair.
but this time, something was seriously wrong. physically wrong. it had only been an hour into the practice, and dylan could see blair turning white as a ghost.
he kept watching her, blair stumbled backwards as if she was loosing her balance, then started to hit her forehead.
and then the weirdest thing happened, blair started to put her hands over her ears, as if someone was yelling at her.
dylan looked back at his coach, and then started to make his way towards blair.
"hoffman! hoffman! where are you going, i'm explaining a play to the team. you need to know this for the homecoming game next week!" the coach yelled at dylan.
"i have something to take care of, well someone." dylan said continuing to walk.
"if you don't turn around right now you're not playing in the homecoming game."
dylan stopped walking, and looked back at his coach and his team.
he huffed, and continued to walk to blair. dylan could see the head shake his coach was doing behind him, and he could care less.
"blair, blair hey are you okay?" dylan said, holding blair's shoulders when he got to her.
"excuse you dylan, we're in the middle of learning a routine." the cheer coach said, and dylan ignored her.
"yeah get off me." blair said, shoving him aggressively. she would learn to regret that, since the way she flung back after pushing dylan started to make her dizzy, even thought she was already losing her balance and vision.
"blair. blair talk to me!" dylan said, tapping her again.
"dylan i can't - irene where are you, guys i-" blair said, before completing collapsing.
her legs gave out first, and she started to fall backwards and sideways and dylan rushed behind her to catch her head before it hit the hard ground.
"blair!" irene said, dropping her poms and running over to her best friend.
she crouched down next to blair, and dylan held her head.
"what happened? oh my gosh, the nurse, we have to get her to the nurse." their coach ran over, and so did dylan's.
"we can take her."
dylan and his coach made eye contact, and then dylan looked back down at blair who was passed out in his arms.
irene was freaking out, shaking her best friend while ryan came over to try to calm her down.
dylan's coach suddenly reached to help dylan carry blair, and dylan pulled back a bit
"no. im going to carry her, i dont need help." dylan said, suddenly becoming protective.
"hoffman, the nurse is far from here, and we need to get blair there fast." the football coach said.
"and she will get there fast. i don't trust you guys to carry her there, anyone." dylan said.
he caught irene's eye, and she was more confused than she was offended by dylan's words.
"okay..just let's go." the cheer coach said, and dylan picked up the girl who was passed out in his arms.
"i'm coming with!" irene said, running after her coach and dylan.
-
blair had been passed out for about an hour and a half, and the sport practices in the school were starting to end.
she was draped in a blanket on a bed in the nurse's office, with her hair down as she layed on her back.
dylan was sitting next to her, running his hands through her hair as he scrolled on his phone.
he had no idea what he was doing even in the nurse's office, or what he was doing with his hands in blair's hair.
his chest felt heavy, and he didn't know what he was feelings, and all his friends were at practice so he couldn't even ask anyone.
so that's why he resorted to texting the groupchat with his costars from his big acting job.
sunny street
you're worried about her
you unlocked a new feeling dyl 😮
juddstein
unlocked is insane
but yeah
apple (dylan) dash
guys that's not worry
he likes her
deanie bag
i thought we knew that
isn't the hatred a front?
juddstein
idek atp
sammi salmon
or maybe...it's both
sunny street
hey sam that was genius
apple (dylan) dash
DYLAN HAS A CRUSHHIE
MILLIEons
what did i just wake up to
deanie bag
dylan has a pain in his chest while waiting for blair to wake up
MILLIEons
HA
he likes her
pay my dyls
you guys are no help yk.
sammi salmon
we figured out why your chest hurt silly
deanie bag
yet we're the bad guys...
pay my dyls
but you're wrong
so you didn't help
MILLIEons
day 719 of dylan being difficult
sunny street
will the streak ever end 🤧
-
clearly that didn't work out in his favor, so he ignored their continuing conversation and switched to tiktok.
except he was looking at blair, smiling when he could tell she was becoming less pale.
blair was beginning to wake up, but dylan couldn't hear her since he had his airpods in.
once blair was back to full consciousness, she looked around the room, realizing she was no longer outside.
her eyes made their way to dylan, and blair was shocked seeing him next to her. then, she saw his hand.
"dylan...hey...dylan!" blair said, and dylan jumped. his hand flew out of blair's hair, and his phone dropped onto his lap.
"gosh, you scared me! but..what's up..." dylan said, and blair didn't answer him.
"are you feeling better?" dylan asked. "yeah, a bit." blair said playing with the sheets.
"that's good." dylan said, smiling awkwardly. blair cleared her throat, and then forced herself to make eye contact with dylan.
"so what are you doing here? where's rene? and why were you touching me." blair asked.
"um, irene had to stay at practice cause you guys were learning a new routine, and someone had to be here to monitor you, and comfort you..so that's why my hand was.."
"why aren't you at practice?" blair asked. "coach already said im not playing in the hoco game since i went over to help you so, i'm just gonna be benched." dylan said.
"what? dylan that's terrible." blair said. "you always called me a bench warmer anyways, guess you're right."
"you didn't have to come help me. dylan that's football, that's your sport."
"blair, i have two more homecoming games i can play, but you only have one life to live. if your head would've hit the concrete, you would be way more than passed out." dylan said grabbing blair's hand.
blair laughed a bit, and then looked up at dylan who flashed her a smile back, squeezing blair's hand.
"blair you're up!" irene said running into the nurse's office.
blair and dylan separated their hands, and blair turned around to face her friend.
they started to talk, and then the nurse came in to check up on blair again before irene helped her up to take her to her mom's car.
dylan didn't know what's wrong with him, it was all he could think about as he went to the locker room to get his football bag.
he met eyes with his best friend, who walked over to dylan immediately.
"what's wrong with you?" ryan asked.
dylan sighed, "nothing, i'm perfectly fine man. swear."
nayah speaks !!
he is not perfectly fine...
also this chap was 2000 words.
not yet.
bla
bla
YAY