AN: Since I am such a horrible person who didn't update; this is 2 chapters in 1 :) ENJOY!!
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I laid there, afraid. Barely moving. Barely breathing. Barely alive.
Dying?
No.
Almost dying.
On a limbo between life and death.
In the front row to my own funeral.
My lungs were burning so bright, my sight was blinded.
It was becoming brighter. And brighter. And brighter.
Then it was dark.
And just like that; I was free.
I don't know what happened, or how that occurred but I was suddenly standing.
That's good, right?
No.
Not if I'm looking at my dormant body, with tubes and such connected to it.
I looked so pale, my lips almost blue.
Almost, but not quite.
Like how I'm almost dead, yet not quite.
How I almost burned to death, but not quite.
How I almost lost Jay, but not quite.
How I'm about to lose my parents. There's no "not quite" about this.
My spirit thoughts were shattered when the door to my room swung open. A leg with a cast on it sitting on a wheelchair was all that I saw for a whole minute. Maybe the person was debating whether or not to enter. They decided against it, because they were wheeled out, murmuring "I can't" over and over again.
-Soundtrack for Jaycee's part. Play for dramatic effect-
Then the room door opened again and Jaycee came inside.
As soon as he closed the door and looked at me, he broke down. I felt my spirit heart break.
No, get up.
Please don't cry.
Please Jaycee I'm fine.
"Oh...m-my God. Lex... no!" He held my hand with his right hand -since the left one was in a cast- and just started crying.
"Alexis, please come back to me. Baby, I can't live without you.... I can't function without you! Please. How am I supposed to go on with my life? I need you. Please...please."
The bedsheets were fully soaked with his tears and the pain in his cries caused a little jolt in my heart that hurts.
You won't lose me.
I'm here.
Just feel my heart, it beats for you.
I'm here.
I'm always here.
"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for being reckless. I'm so sorry for being a douche to you. I'm sorry for anything I might've said or did that hurt you because believe me that I didn't mean it. I'm sorry Lexi. I'm so so sorry. Please... just come back. Come back to me. My story doesn't go on without you in it. I don't go on without you by my side. I can't lose you too baby girl. Please. Say something. Move your finger. Anything. Anything at all. Please. Please.." He continued sobbing until Sebastian came in the room.
"Come on Jay. Let her rest. If mom ever finds out that you're here, she'll put us both on a one-way flight to Madagascar. So come on."
"No, I can't leave her. I love her Sebastian and I can't see her in this state and not be by her side. I need to be there for her. Please don't make me leave, please."
"If you want to protect her, then you need to rest yourself. You're covering from massive breaks and injuries. So come on little bro, I got you. I promise that I'll bring you to her when she's awake."
"Did you know that it was because of her that I woke up? I heard her voice telling me to come back and it worked because I came back. So I just want to help her too."
"I know the feeling. Come on now, you need to rest. The doctors will be here any minute now to check on you."
"Bring me back to her ok?"
"Sure thing."
And with that, they left, leaving my in my broken state of mind.
Someone else opened the door. A guy in a suit.
He looked at me, sighed, then closed the door.
Oh well.
Guess people got too tired of seeing me on a hospital bed.
I guess I can continue on my own.
I just want my mommy. And dad. Oh my God. My soul is crying tears of blood. I can't lose my parents! I simply can't, because I don't know what I'll do without them. How will I survive?
I can't let anything happen to them. I can't!
I have to stop being the girl everyone picks on.
I need to stop being a pushover.
I need to stop waiting for someone to save me.
I need to fight this.
I don't know how I never realized this, but looking at my lifeless body just lying there with tubes after tubes protruding from it gave me a harsh wake up call.
I look vulnerable.
Weak.
Like a true damsel-in-distress.
I can't let that happen. I won't let that happen!
I started screaming at my own self to wake up and to snap out of it!
Wake up!
Snap out of it!
Wake up!
Snap out of it!
"Alexis, please wake up. Please. Please..."I faintly heard Sabrina tell me. And I do just that, I wake up.
I willed myself to wake up.
I did that.
I squeezed her hands since this breathing tube was still plugged into me; painfully so.
My eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the blinding white light.
I mean, we're in a hospital where people lose consciousness all the time, can't they at least make them dimmer so that when they open their eyes, they don't feel the light rays burning through their corneas?
Damn.
Sabrina's head snapped to my direction. A look of relief washed over her face.
"Lexi!! You're awake! Thank you dear Lord! Thank you.." she trailed off, bawling her eyes out.
I didn't know what to do, so I just stroked her arms.
"You had me so scared Alexis, everyone was so worried! You... you just disappeared! What happened? You got us so worried we thought something happened to you!" She looked at me for answers, but I tiredly pointed at my tube.
"Oh! I'll go call the doctor!" She said, wiping her tears with her sleeve.
She looked at me a while longer and came back to give me a hug.
"I'm so glad you're back!" And with that, she ran outside the door.
How did I ever get so lucky? I feel truly blessed to be alive despite being targeted for ages. I'm so blessed to have a brother that apparently cares enough for me to put himself in harms way for my safety; though that's still debatable. And most of all, I'm so lucky to have such caring friends. If that's not called being lucky, then I don't know what is.
Sabrina came back with a doctor and a few nurses in her trail. Even Ashton and Aaron came rushing here, their eyes a dark shade of fear and restlessness.
"Welcome back Ms. Pierce." He said, and I smiled. Well, sort of.
"You're very lucky to have such amazing friends, I hope you know that."
I nodded then winces because of that damn tube.
"It's ok, we'll get it out for you in a little while. But first, you need to know what happened. When they brought you in two days ago, you had already consumed so much smoke that your lungs were about to give out. At some point they stopped breathing on their own, and that was the time we had to intubate you. It took you a day and a half to breathe back on your own, and half a day later, you finally woke up. Does anything hurt?" He asked.
I slowly shook my head, my throat hurting very much.
"Well nothing seems to be wrong, based on your tests, so I will let the nurses and our respiratory therapist take it out for you. I do have to say though, that it is going to be a little painful. Also, try not to talk for at least an hour after it." He said, as he signed off on some paper.
Have you ever had to be extubated? Because let me tell you that it is such a horrible experience. I felt like throwing up and my eyes started tearing like crazy. I started coughing until my face turned blue. It was probably the worst hour of my life. Or was it ten minutes? No probably fifteen. See I can't even tell!
After they left, I felt exhausted and so drained.
And now I'm also wearing a face mask. Just perfect.
"Alexis! You had us so scared! I really thought something happened to you and I was even more afraid when I couldn't find you!!" Said Aaron, his hands running through his hair.
"The amount of worry that was running through my body was enough to work a power plant!! What happened?" Said Ashton.
"It did work a power plant. Remember your mouth? You couldn't stop running your mouth for 3 full hours!" Said someone as they came through the door.
Brenda.
"Why are you... OH. EM. GEE!! Lexi!!!!" She squealed as she jumped on me.
She looked at me, then she slapped my arm.
I gave her the "what the hell was that for" look.
"You scared the living crap lights out of us!! Why do you always keep doing that?? We need you alive!"
I tried talking, but my throat was hoarse. I took a sip of water and tried.
Apparently it worked.
"I was kidnapped by my uncle."
They all looked a lot less surprised than they should've been.
"Yes, CJ filled us in. We need to help him." Said Ashton.
Of course he did.
"Where is he?" I said, my throat hurting.
I really need to stop doing this.
"We don't know but he said to not come looking for him. He said he can handle himself." Whispered Ash.
"Why are you whispering?" I loud whispered to him.
"Because your housekeeper is in fact an FBI agent and she left two agents standing at your door. We know as much as you know." Said Ashton.
"My parents!! I need to get home!" My voice croaked.
"Your parents are on their way to New York right now. Something happened with their plane two days ago, so now they're changing destinations to NYC. They're ok don't worry." Said Brenda, stuttering a little. Also looking a tiny bit nervous.
"How do.."
"Sebastian told me." She said quickly, almost making me jump.
That's weird.
I'll ask her about that later.
But for now...
"Then I need to get the hell out of here, and help CJ. Blake and Lucas might hurt him. Please guys. Please."
"Wait. Wait. Wait. Blake and Lucas?! As in.." said Sabrina.
"Our chemistry teachers? Yes. Long story, I'll explain later."
My throat is killing me.
"What can we do? Trust me Alexis doesn't even seem like she's fazed by anything and she'll be helping him with or without us. So what's the plan?" Said Brenda, rubbing my back.
"I need to get home right now." I said.
"With these two standing outside? Not a chance." Said Brenda.
"I have an idea! Why don't we use the flash they use in "Men in Black" to make them forget!" Said Ashton, grinning at himself like he just came up with the brightest idea ever.
"Someone make him shut up or so help me we will have another room in this hospital booked for him." Said Brenda, slapping the back of his head.
"Ow! Damn for such a little girl you hit pretty hard!" Said Ash, rubbing the back of his head.
"Shut it ape face."
"You mean a-pleasing face? Because thank you very much."
"Ok, I need you guys to help me, because I can't do this on my own." I said.
"Anything." They said in unison.
"We're not going to let you go through all the fun by yourself." Said Aaron.
"And also to keep you safe." Said Sabrina, smiling at me. My guardian angel.
"Ok then, but I need a phone because mine disappeared."
"Here. You can have my other one." Said Sabrina, giving me a brand new iPhone 5.
"Are you sure?" I asked, afraid that I'll ruin it like all the other ones I ever used.
"Of course!"
"Then in the group chat, I will tell you what to do." I said, laying down on my pillow.
Before anyone could say anything, the door opened and a man in a suit, came in.
"Visiting times are over. Please proceed to leave."
And he left.
"Why does he look and sound like a robot?" Said Aaron.
"Cops. They're trained for the kind of stuff. Anyways we have to go. Come on guys, we need to get ready for tomorrow." Said Sabrina, pulling them along.
"Bye Lexi!" Said Ashton
"Bye bye girl!" Said Aaron, high fiving me.
"Umm bye Lexa! We'll see you tomorrow." Said Brenda, hugging me.
"Is everything ok Brenda?" I ask, becoming very unsettled by her constant nervousness.
"Uh yeah! Everything is great! We gotta go."
Sabrina was the last one to hug me.
"Don't worry about him. He's sleeping in the next room. Heavily sedated though." She said, giving me a beautiful smile.
"How'd you.."
"You're my best friend Alexis. I can see the worry in your eyes. And besides, he's been asking for you like damn! I've known him for twelve years and I have never seen him this afraid and weak. Trust me when I say that he truly loves you. There is no question about that. So try forgiving him ok? And also, Jace went home three days ago."
I smiled, knowing well that she means everything she said, and so does he.
I admit it.
I'm irrevocably and undeniably in love with him.
Down to my very bone.
I know that now.
"And from that spark in your eyes, I can tell that you love him too." She continued.
Before I had the chance of saying anything else, she spoke again.
"I have to go, but I found him listening to this song. I'll send it to you on my phone in a while. Love you Lex! Bye!" She said as she hugged me again.
"Bye Reena." I croaked out, and winced. It was getting better, but still.
"Just rest. It'll be better in an hour or so. I brought you your laptop in that bag and your clothes from before are there. See ya!" She said as she closed the door.
I laid down, smiling.
I have the bestest friends ever! God bless their souls for all that they do.
I looked at the clock, and it read 6.10 pm.
Way too early.
And I've been asleep since forever.
I'm not tired.
I'm just broken.
And alone.
A ping caught my attention and I looked at the phone. A text message from Sabrina.
"Us Against The World." Was all that it read.
That's the song I dedicated to him. The one I said I wanted on my wedding.
He was listening to it!
Tears were threatening to invade my eyes so I just closed them for a while. Thinking about Jaycee and how damn lucky I am to have him in my life.
Lucky...
I never knew that closing my eyes for three seconds would turn into three hours because the next time I opened them, it was 9.18 pm.
Holy Hanna!
I sat upright and tried speaking.
"Hoyoyo!" Wow ok it worked, I sound fine. Ish.
I removed my face mask and those IVs in my hand and sat up.
I decided to go and visit Jaycee before I started planning for my escape, so I grabbed my hoodie and opened the door...
...to be stopped by those agents. Dang it! I forgot about them.
"I'm sorry ma'am but I can't let you go anywhere. Agent Higgins' orders."
"I need to go see my friend. You can come with me if you want. He's right next door." I said, feeling very lightheaded.
"I can't.."
"Please! Where would I even go in this state? Why don't you come with me? I need to see him!" I said, hoping I don't fall on my face from exhaustion. Even walking felt like a burden.
"Ok fine, let's go."
He took me to Jaycee's room and told me that he would stay outside.
I knocked the door and entered.
"Alexis darling!" Said his mom as she ran towards me, embracing me in a very tight hug. Her dark red hair reflecting under those horribly bright lights.
"Hi Mrs. Royce. Nice to see you again." I said, almost collapsing on the floor.
She brought me a wheelchair and sat me on it.
"Thank you ma'am." I said, relieved that I won't be standing anymore.
"I'm so sorry for everything that has ever happened to you honey. Know that you can consider me as your mother okay? Don't be afraid to tell me anything honey cheeks." She said, stroking my hair.
"I'll leave you to talk to him." She said as she wheeled me towards his sleeping body.
"And thank you dear for saving Sebastian's life. I can't thank you enough." She said, kissing my forehead.
"It's my pleasure ma'am."
"Please! Call me Genevieve!"
"Ok Genevieve. You are more than welcome." I said, smiling.
"I'll be outside if you need me." And with that notion, she left.
I looked at him. His face seemed so full of color. He seemed better.
I stroked his hair.
"I love you Jaycee Royce, and unfortunately for you, there's nothing you can do about it. I would risk it all for you, give it all to you. One day, we'll have our happy ending, I promise you that. For now, we'll take it one step at a time. I'll be there for you. I'll never judge you. I'll never hurt you. I'll always stand by your side. It's me and you; us against the world." Then I started singing the song; feeling my heart swell with unexplainable happiness.
Sometimes I feel like The world is against me
The sound of your voice, baby
That's what saves me
When we're together I feel so invincible
Cause it's us against the world
You and me against them all
If you listen to these words
Know that we are standing tall
I don't ever see the day that
I won't catch you when you fall
Cause it's us against the world tonight
••••
••••
••••
Lying down on my bed at about 11.30, i took out my phone to find our group chat intact.
Hooligans of Bel Aire:
Me: So you guys ready to hear it?
Ashton: FINALLY! I thought you ditched us for hospital jelly.
Sabrina: Ew! Ya tho we ready!
Aaron: What are we talking about again?
Brenda: Ignore these baboons. Go!
Me: 😂😂 ok here is the plan....
AN: Thank you guys for all the support I'm getting on this book!!! Also whataya guys think of this chapter???
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