Ally's POV
Being in the hospital and mute honestly sucked. I had absolutely nothing to do, and I could even talk to people when they visited. Dinah, Normani, and Demi came to the hospital everyday. They would talk to me and try to cheer me up, yet I was stuck drowning in my thoughts with absolutely no way out.
Demi would stay five minutes after the others to inform me what was going on with Camila. The two of them had been in constant contact, however both made sure to do so very discreetly. Demi would tell me while no one else was there so that no one else would find out, since if more people knew then there would be more chances of Camila and her family's lives to be put in danger.
Nothing had changed in this situation after an entire week. I had to stay in the hospital until I regained my ability to speak, yet the others all had to go home, except for Demi who was trying to find a way to save Camila. Since I was in the hospital of Washington, there was no way my friends from home could visit me, and it wasn't like my parents were going to come, and Demi wouldn't come either since she was so busy searching for Camila, so I was all alone in my room, watching as different patients and doctors came in and out.
Knocking came from the door of the room. I looked up to see Ashley in the doorway. She strutted in the room and sat on my bed without even asking permission. I glared at her, causing her to speak. "Hey little loser," she smiled, "How are you here, all alone in the hospital? How are you, knowing that you're not going to get out of here?" I gave her a questioning look, causing her to snicker and say, "My uncle's your doctor."
"You're a bitch," I wrote on a piece of paper and handed it to her. Ashley read the paper and laughed. "I know, thank you," she replied. I rolled my eyes at her. "Just for that, I'll have your death be even slower," she hissed. "I highly doubt you'll actually be able to have me killed," I wrote again. "We'll see about that," she remarked with a devious grin as she got up and left me there.
A swarm of doctors and machines then rushed in the room as Ashley exited. The doctors brought in a hospital bed with someone who was attached to all of the machines. They put the bed next to mine and all left, except for one. He filled out a chart and hung it on the foot of the patient's bed where there was a hook to do so. The doctor then walked up to me.
"How are you doing, Allyson?" the doctor asked me as he picked up my charts and read through them. I shrugged in reply, then wrote him the message, "Where's my usual doctor?" "Doctor Tisdale was fired today. There was some issue about a conspiracy that I don't really know about nor do I care about," he informed me, bringing a slight grin to my face, "Anyhow, it's been a week, so you should start trying to speak. Try to say ah." I opened my mouth to do so, yet no sound came out; the only thing that occurred was that I was put into great pain.
The doctor looked concerned. "Are you in pain?" he asked. I nodded with a frown. "I'll go get you some water. I'll be right back. After I get you some water I'll go figure out what's going on because that's not supposed to happen at this stage in your recovery," he hurried off. I slumped into my bed and rested my eyes until he came back and gave me a glass of water, which I drank appreciatively, then watched him leave.
Realization that maybe that damage that Ashley had wanted to happen had already been done. Perhaps her uncle did something during the operation, or slipped something in either my food or my IV. I began to worry frantically about this. I wasn't ready to die just yet. I had to see Lauren one last time. I needed to apologize to her about making her situation worse. That was the only thing I needed to do; the only thing I needed to live for. After I would do that I'd be ready to die.
My worries kept increasing until the voices in my mind took over. They began to tell me how I deserved the slow and painful death that was coming my way. As the voices got louder and louder, I turned onto my side and curled into a ball. I shut my eyes and concentrated all of my will power on trying to get them to stop. I did this since there was nothing else I could do. I couldn't cut and I couldn't purge, so that was what I had left.
Strange noises erupted from the machines of the patient beside me, pulling me out of the darkness that was drowning me. I opened my eyes and focused on the patient in the bed next to me whose machines kept on making strange noises. I couldn't see who it was, however I could tell that I definitely knew this person, which basically only left two options; it was either Selena or Lauren.
Quickly, my doctor came back in the room to assist the patient beside me. He checked all of the monitors and machines in a hurry to try to assess the problem. I watched as the doctor seemed to realize what was wrong and was able to at least stop the machines from doing what they were doing. Whether or not the patient was alright or not; I was totally clueless.
"What happened?" I wrote a note for the doctor. "This patient needs more blood than we gave her. We'll have to give her more. For now she's alright though, it was just kind of like a warning," he informed me, causing me to nod my head. "Anyhow," he continued, "about your throat, the cause of your pain is undetermined. It could be as simple as because your throat just doesn't heal as fast as the average, or it may be something much worse. It's probably the first one, though." I smiled to thank him as he walked out again.
Closing my eyes to get some rest, I realized something important. Selena had only gotten spinal damage due to the crash. She wouldn't need any blood transfusions. However, Lauren had been shot and lost a significant amount of blood. This must have meant that Lauren was lying in the bed right beside me, possibly in serious danger of not making it through.
Camila's POV
Demi and I were in constant contact since that moment at the gas station. She told me everything that had happened, except for what had happened with Selena and Lauren. Whenever I'd bring it up, she'd say that she'd have to go or something of that sort. This worried me deeply because I felt as though there was perhaps something incredibly important that she wasn't telling me about two of the most important people in my life.
Geoffrey's information had been correct, as he had actually brought me to the White House. He had brought me in without a problem and left me in a grand room with my mother and little sister, who I was overjoyed to see. It was hard for me to believe that they were even alive because I had thought that either Bryce or Geoffrey would have done something like shot at least one of them.
Even though it had only been about a week since the entire thing, it felt like I had been trapped in that room forever. The only contact we had was with each other, and with a guard who would bring us food three times a day, as well as with Demi since we would text, although it was really just to say what was going on for each of us.
"Food," the guard said from the door, breaking me from my thoughts. My mother, my sister, and I went to him and took the bag he had provided us. "Thanks," I muttered as he left without forgetting to close and lock the door. This was the standard procedure we went through three times a day. Even though we were fed, being in this room was torture because we were basically sitting around waiting for our death sentence. Bryce had made it very clear to my mother that he was going to do this to all of us.
My family and I sat on the giant bed in the room and opened the bag to reveal three small sandwiches; one for each of us. I nibbled on my food in silence as my mother gave her sandwich to my little sister since she needed to eat much more than we were being provided. Sofia was losing a lot of weight, which certainly wasn't good for her. The same happened to both Lauren and I, although we had gained some of it back after we started working.
I got up to throw away the bag that our food had come in when a folded piece of paper fell out of it. I picked it up and opened it to reveal that it was note from Geoffrey. "I'm coming to get you out and bring you to Bryce in a week. I can't do this if you're not there," it read. I threw out the note with the bag as I began to ponder over it.
Was Geoffrey telling us to escape? That wouldn't make any sense. Why would he pick then to start helping my family and I? He had never done so before. Geoffrey would just let his brother do whatever he pleased with us, and in fact had caused us some troubles himself. For example, he was the one who had shot Lauren, not Bryce, which truly saddened me beyond belief because my older sister was truly my hero.
Vibrations came from my pocket, signaling that I had received a text message. I pulled out my phone in a rush and checked the message. "I'm outside the White House. I'll wait here until you come. I'm on the red motorcycle," Demi had sent me. I looked up at my mother and little sister as I realized that this meant that I couldn't take them with me; I couldn't save them. "Can we come back for my family in less than a week?" I texted. "Of course, we definitely will," she replied immediately.
"Camila, who are you texting?" my mom asked. "Demi, she says she's here, but she can't get us all out now. I need to get out of here and then we'll find an easier way to get you and Sofi out," I informed her. "Alright then," she sighed, although I could tell that my mother disapproved. However, I didn't care too much about that. Obviously I loved my mother very much, but she had abandoned Lauren and I for ten years; she couldn't get mad at me for this.
There was a window in the room which thankfully opened. I looked outside to see that we were two stories high. It wasn't such a huge jump, yet it wasn't nothing either. I took a deep sigh, closed my eyes, and jumped. Gratefully, the ground was soft so I didn't get hurt. I got up, dusted myself off, and ran as fast as I could to the gate and slipped out without a single person noticing me. It was suspiciously too easy to escape, yet I pushed the thought away as quickly as it came to mind.
"Oh my gosh! Camila!" Demi squealed as she ran to me and hugged me tight. "Demi! Oh my god I missed you so much!" I exclaimed as I hugged her back. "Come on, lets get out of here, we have to head back to the hospital," she said when she let go. "Okay, lets go," I agreed. We hopped onto her red motorcycle, me behind her while I held onto her waist, and hurried off without further a due.
"Hold on, why are we going to the hospital?" I questioned after a moment. "Most of the others are there. Justin, Normani, and Dinah all went home, though," she replied. "Oh yeah, you never told me what happened with Selena and Lauren," I reminded her. No answer came from my friend, rendering me much more suspicious than I ever was. "Demi," I warned. "You'll see when you get there," she mumbled, barely audible.
For the rest of the ride, I thought about my sister and my best friend. What could possibly have happened to them that Demi wouldn't even begin to tell me? I hoped that both of them turned out alright and Demi wanted to give me a joyful surprise, although I could sense that this wasn't the case at all. I felt this in the pit of my stomach, and no matter how hard I tried to push these worries away, the feeling in my stomach only grew larger and more intense.
Demi and I got to the hospital after what seemed like an eternity. I hopped off of the motorcycle and rushed into the hospital frantically. I needed to find out what had happened to the two most important people in my life. I needed to know that they were okay. I needed to know that they were alive and healthy and ready to go.
"You don't know where you're going," Demi reminded me from behind. "Oh right, in that case lead the way," I said. She lead me to an elevator and into a hospital room with only two patients in it, and four empty beds. The first patient was under their covers, and the second patient had so many machines hooked up to them that I couldn't even see them. Demi casually walked in and sat down on the chair in the middle of the two beds and said, "Ally, I'm back."
Ally then emerged from underneath the covers. She smiled at Demi, then turned to me and began to bounce up an down in her bed with joy. "She can't talk," Demi informed me as I was confused as to why she wasn't speaking. I went to hug my friend, then sat down on her bed. "I missed you guys so much," I told them. "Me too, I've been so lonely," Ally wrote on a piece of paper with a friend face. "Don't worry, at least we're all back together again," Demi smiled.
"Now, who's going to tell me what happened to Selena and Lauren," I questioned after a moment. I turned to Demi first, who was refusing to make any sort of eye contact with me, then turned to Ally who was pointing at the bed beside her. I slowly got up and approached the bed beside. I looked closely at the face of the person in the bed. I recognized her immediately and broke into a fit of tears.
Lauren's POV
My eyes fluttered open to the sensation of droplets soaking my cheek and the sound of weeping. Although my vision was just starting to become familiar with my surroundings, I was able to tell immediately who was crying. I knew the sound much too well, bringing tears to my own eyes and causing me to reach out my hand in a struggle to comfort her.
"Lauren?" Camila barely made out, noticing this. "Camz," I gave her a warm smile, although my voice was incredibly raspy. "I'll go get a doctor," I heard Demi say, although I wasn't able to see her. "Hi Demi," I said anyhow. Demi came into my view, smiled, and said, "Hey there, I'll be right back okay?" With that, she left as my sister knelt down beside me.
"How are you feeling?" Camz asked. "I'm really tired, and my shoulder really hurts," I told her. My sister nodded in understanding, then turned around to receive a note. She read it and asked, "Do you feel weak and/or cold?" I gave her a little nod. Camz put the note down and got up from her position. She turned tucked me into the covers gently, then kissed my forehead.
"Where did you get the note?" I asked softly moments later. "Ally, she's in the bed right next to you, but she can't talk," my little sister informed me. "Hi Ally," I called in the same raspy voice I spoke in whenever I tried to raise my voice. "She says hi," Camz told me. For some reason, I couldn't help but smiled at this.
Demi came back into the room then with a doctor close behind. He passed her as they got into the room and came straight to me. "Lauren, I see you're up. This is a very good sign. How do you feel?" he asked. My sister told him how I felt for me. "Alright, those are all normal symptoms for someone in your predicament. You see, the amount of blood you lost was close to fatal. We were able to give you a blood transfusion, however what we gave you wasn't enough. Don't worry though, first thing in the morning you're going to have another one, and it should go smoothly. In addition, you broke a few ribs, although those have been healing quite nicely," he informed me. I nodded in understanding as he added, "If you need anything just let me know." He then walked out of the room.
Camz gently sat down on my bed as Demi raised the upper half of my bed so I could see in front of me yet was still at an angle, then grabbed a seat next to Ally and I. We all chatted with each other, except for Ally who wrote notes, until visiting hours were over, at which point Demi and Camz went to a hotel to spend the night, leaving Ally and I alone in the room together.
Once my friend and sister left, my thoughts were consumed by the blood transfusion I was to have the following day. For the first time ever, I hoped to live through this experience and to move past it. This wasn't because suddenly I fell in love with life, I had just finally realized that I couldn't leave this planet. I need to be around to protect my sister as best as I could. There was no way I could leave her alone in this cruel world.
Soon my thoughts drifted to Ally. I thought about how she was lying in the bed right next to mine, unable to do very much. This brought me great pain, although I quickly realized why. I had never wanted to admit this truth because I was honestly afraid of what would happen if I did. This was an incredibly frighting thing to even begin to think about.
I had feelings for Ally. I had feelings for her that were much more than just friendly feelings. Even though it was much too early to think this, I believed that what I felt for her might actually be love. It would make perfect sense if I loved her. After all, I had done things for her I had never done for anyone. I had beaten up Ashley for her, for example. I had never done that for anyone, not even Camz.
"Ally, can I talk to you?" I slowly turned my head to face her, breaking the silence. Ally did the same and nodded. "I need to say this now, before it's too late, so just bare with me," she signaled me to go on, "I know that over the time that we've known each other things haven't gone so smoothly, but I've been thinking a lot recently. I've been thinking about your feelings for me, and how I feel in return. I've realized something very important that there's no way I could wait to tell you. I feel the exact same way for you, and I hope that if and when we both get out of here, we can maybe try something?"
"Yes, I would love that Lauren," Ally barely made out in a voice that sounded unfamiliar. Despite this, her words brought a huge smile to my face, not only because she had spoken and they were words, but because of their meaning. Her words meant that there was hope that we could be together, and maybe my life wouldn't keep continuing on being so awful
** hey everyone!!!! :) what do you all think of the update? I hope you liked it!! If not then let me know how to make it better, and if you did well then thank you and I'd live to hear any ideas you might have :) and as I always say thank you for bearing with me if I don't update fast enough and thank you for all of the reads and comments I've received :) it means the world to me!