Beep. Beep.
Beep. Beep.
"No. The cake isn't even close to done cooking," I mutter, rolling my eyes at my dad. I roll over to turn the clock off...
and smack my forehead straight into a plastic bar.
Pain sears through my skull and the dream fades. My eyes open of their own accord and the light is so painful, so hot-white that I let out a shriek.
Or try to, anyways. The only thing that comes out of my mouth is a hoarse whimper, and right away, I start to panic. My chest closes up and what little oxygen I was able to breathe before is completely gone, fogging up the... oxygen mask over my mouth. Where the hell am I?
With a gasp, I finally have the strength to sit up. Now the ever-present beeping makes sense. It's not an alarm clock. It's a heart rate monitor, one for hospital patients. Because that's where I am. The hospital.
"What the hell?" I say, wanting to cry when my words sound like faint scratching against sandpaper.
"What, you don't like the outfit? I had it picked out specially for you," Jase says. He's lounging on a small black sofa a few feet away, one hand pointing at my pink hospital nightgown and the other holding a TV remote. He practically gives me a heart attack. Why is he here?
"Jase, I'm serious. What the hell is going on right now?" I say. The anger in my voice would sound a lot more intimidating if I could actually speak like a normal human being. Instead, it just makes me want to cry. Everything hurts. My head, my lungs (I'm not joking, I can barely breathe), my eyes, which feel swollen, like I've been crying, my chest, my stomach, which feels like it's doing flips inside me. And I'm in the hospital and for the life of me, I can't remember why. And my mom isn't here and instead I'm left with... Jase? God, wake me up from this nightmare. Jase is probably videotaping this entire experience, planning to post to YouTube later a video of Sienna Brown looking like absolute death in a pink nightgown that is way too small for her chest. If I start crying, well, I think he may die of excitement.
Jase opens his mouth to respond when a nurse walks into the room, befit in bright red scrubs, his short hair peppered with black and gray. He takes a look at the clipboard in front of him and then looks back up at me. "Hey! You're Sienna, right?"
"The one and only." I try to smile, but it ends up looking more like a grimace.
"Perfect," he says, like everything's completely normal. Though I guess, for him, it is. Today's just another day, and I'm just another patient. "I'm Nurse Oni, by the way. And how are you feeling right now?"
I raise my eyebrows. "Well, that's kind of a subjective question."
He smiles. "Let me make it easier for you. Does the oxygen mask work okay?"
"Yes. I barely notice it," I say. The oxygen mask is actually the least painful part of this whole ordeal.
Nurse Oni looks back down at his clipboard, handing me a piece of paper with faces on it. "What would you rate your pain on a scale of 0-10?"
I look down. Zero is a smiley face proclaiming no pain, and ten is not being able to move.
"A seven..? I guess? I mean, it's hard to think about anything else, but I can... move. And talk. Obviously."
Nurse Oni nods. "Areas of pain?"
"My head, eyes, I guess, my lungs, chest... and I feel really dizzy and nauseous."
My nurse nods and finishes writing down his notes. He takes my blood pressure and listens to my heartbeat, almost as if this is a normal checkup and I'm not... you know... in the goddamn hospital.
Nurse Oni regards my face with a frown, turning to Jase. "She's not usually this pale, is she?"
Jase looks over at me, shaking his head. "No, she's pretty much always blushing."
"Excuse me? I am not!" I say, and immediately start a fit of coughing, intentionally avoiding Jase's smirk.
"You two are too cute," Nurse Oni says, winking at me. "Reminds me what it was like when I was young with a boyfriend."
A boyfriend? Me and Jase? Yeah, right. It almost makes me want to laugh, except that I can't seem to stop coughing.
"I'm going to go give Dr. Chase your information and get you some water, but I'll be back soon, okay? The call button is right up there in case there's an emergency and-" he points to an empty plastic bucket next to me- "in case you throw up."
He walks away, but turns around right before he reaches the door. "Now, keep an eye on him," he says to me, pointing at Jase. "We both know he's a bad kid."
I giggle and Nurse Oni winks at me before closing the door. At least there's one other person in the world who would rather make fun of Jase than me.
Jase turns his gaze to me, smirking. "I'll give you... ten minutes before you toss your cookies."
"I'm not going to throw up, Jase. And who the hell says 'toss your cookies' anyways?"
He shrugs. "I say it. And if you're not going to throw up, then you shouldn't mind taking the bet."
"Fine," I say. "Whatever." Then I think of the real reason I want to be talking to him. "What the hell happened in the first place?"
"How much do you remember?" Jase asks me, moving to the closer side of the couch. I sigh, admitting, "I have no idea what happened, or why I'm here. And, where is my mom?" A sudden thought flashes through my brain. "Oh my god, please tell me she's okay."
"Your mom is fine, Sienna." He looks up at me, his blue eyes like lightbulbs illuminating the entire hospital. They look so earnest. It almost distracts me from the dark circles under his eyes, the frown of his lips. "My mom forced her to go home, take a shower, get some coffee. She's been like a zombie. Mom practically had to drag her out of the hospital."
"Wait- how long was I out for?"
Jase thinks for a second. "Maybe like... 36 hours?"
"You're kidding. It's... Sunday?"
He nods. "And you don't remember anything, right?"
"The last thing I can think of is... going into the school. I left my physics binder in class."
"All this for a physics binder?" Jase asks, a brow raised. "Damn, you love school too much."
"All what for a physics binder?" I ask, exhausted. I'm... so confused.
He looks at his hands. "I don't... I don't know if I should be the one telling you this. It should've been your mom. But, Red, there was a... fire. At the school. It somehow spread to the Physics classroom and you got caught in it. You could've- a minute longer and you probably would've died." He turns away from me.
"Please tell me this is another one of your pranks."
"You're in the hospital, Sienna, for smoke inhalation, burns, and carbon monoxide poisoning. What more proof do you need?"
My god. I- I need- this is- I can't-
Nurse Oni walks back in, but it's Jase who notices it first, the way my face goes green. He grabs the stupid bucket and I grab it, pulling my oxygen mask off as he holds my hair away from my face- and I throw up.
Holy shit. Please tell me that this is not happening right now. Holy shit holyshitholyshitholyshit.
I shut my eyes and try to block out everything happening. Someone's holding my hair back, a steadying hand on my shoulders. I straighten up. Nurse Oni, I'm guessing, takes the bucket away, hands me a glass of water. I'm shaking. There's a beeping from Nurse Oni's pager and he leaves, saying something before he goes. There's a response, but not from me. I block out their words.
And then it's just me and Jase.
"So," he says, one of his hands still on my shoulder, "You lost the bet."
He's standing next to my bed, technically, looking down at me, but I'm turned the other direction, trying to pretend he isn't here. "So what do I owe you? A thousand dollars? My firstborn child? All of my hair spun into gold?"
"Don't be crazy. No one wants hyoid firstborn child, Red. That's so 1400s. But don't worry, I'll think of something."
Why is this happening? "Just- go. Please." My voice, already strained and weak breaks, and I feel a tear fall down my face. I have to bite my lip to keep more from appearing and turn further away from him until I'm almost face-down. "I've embarrassed myself enough already."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Jase asks. His tone is confused, but... gentle?
"You really don't have to pretend, Jase. I know you're going to go back to your friends and make fun of me and-"
Jase sighs. "I'm not going to do that, Sienna."
I can't help it, I turn around. "Sienna?"
"I didn't- what are you talking about?"
"You just called me Sienna."
"No, I didn't."
"Yes. Yes you did. I'm not hearing things."
"I mean you are probably concussed, so..."
I roll my eyes. "You're ridiculous."
He smiles. "Here, sit up for a second."
"What are you doing?" I ask, but obey anyways, my confused expression saying it all.
He reaches behind me, and I can hear the pillows moving. I turn back to face him. "Jase Turner, are you fluffing my pillows?"
He smirks and I roll my eyes, knowing where this is going. "You realize that not everything has a sexual undertone, right?"
"Hmm," he says, moving his hands away. I lie down again, gritting my teeth at how exhausting the simple act is. "And, by the way, I was not fluffing your pillows. I mean, I was, but-" he looks flustered, and I'm still confused. Why are you here, Jase? I've embarrassed myself sufficiently. Now you're just reveling in my suffering.
"Jase-" I start, looking down. The lights are too bright, the sound of someone wheeling a cart down the hall too loud. It's too much. And now I have to figure out what the hell Jase Turner wants from me? "I think you should go. I don't know why you're still here, but please, I think you can stop pretending to be a nice guy, because I'm not going to fall for it."
Jase looks hurt, and I regret my words— just a little. "Is that really all you think of me?"
"Do you really expect me to have a different opinion on you? You've been a jerk to me since we met. And I can't-" Why am I admitting this again? "I can't hold it together anymore. And I really can't cry in front of someone who's only going to make fun of me-" the tears start coming, coating my eyelashes in heat and moisture, rolling down my face. I look away from him.
"Can I sit?" Jase asks softly.
And I should say no. I should tell him to go away again, try to retain at least a shred of my dignity-
But something inside of me...can't. So instead, I just say "yeah," my voice soft and defeated. I don't know why I want him here, but I just can't fight against it right now.
I move over a little bit to give him space to lie down next to me. His hand brushes against mine for just a second, our fingertips touching, and pinpricks of electricity flutter through every inch of my skin. I want to close the gap between us, I want to feel the electricity of pressing myself against him, kissing him.
Holy shit. I did not just think that.
"You okay?" he asks, seeing my unease. I nod, the lump in my throat like a dam, minutes away from breaking. "Yeah. I'm fine," I say looking over at him. And that's when I notice him, really notice him for the first time. He's gorgeous. I always knew that, but I mean... I never really took it in. His bright blue eyes, the way the corners of his mouth lift up when he smiles, the one singular dimple on his left cheek, the way the freckles on his nose fade. But I also notice the dark circles under his eyes. He looks like he hasn't slept in days. And his arms, bare from his T-shirt, have multiple bandages criss crossing them. I can see the beginning of a large burn peeking out of a bandage. "Jase- what happened?"
He grimaces. "Who do you think saved your ass?" He shakes his head. "Thank god I saw you go inside after practice or-" he looks away, shakes his head, rakes a hand through his hair. "I don't know what would've happened. I should've been there earlier."
And it's too much. It's just really the worst twist of fate that Jase Turner saved my life.
My eyes burn and I turn away from him.
"Red? You okay?"
"Am I okay?" I ask, almost wanting to laugh. "You're funny, Jase. I just- I just almost died and out of everyone you were the one to save me and now I'm in the fucking hospital and- oh my god. How the hell are we supposed to pay for this?" Tears stream down my face. "My mom can't pay for me to be in the hospital- oh my god."
"Sien- Red. Look at me."
I turn to face him, my heart fluttering a little bit when I realize just how close together the two of us are. The light makes the blue of his eyes soft, and his expression is warm. "Just breathe."
"Easier said than done," I grimace.
He puts a hand on my shoulder and I struggle to pretend like I'm not completely dying, like every nerve ending in my arm isn't going haywire and tingling like I just got struck by lightning. "Why are you being so nice to me?" I ask. "It doesn't make sense. We h- we hate each other!"
"No," he says. "I could never hate you." His smile is distant and sad and I'll be damned if it isn't the most confusing thing I've ever seen in my life. "Just stop thinking for a second, okay? You don't have to figure everything out right now."
I nod, still aware of his arm, still wrapped around me. And all of a sudden, I feel my eyelids get heavy, like they're being pulled down by lead weights, and I close them. "I still can't believe this is happening right now," I say softly.
"Stop thinking," he says in return.
And so I do.
A/N: Hey guys! Happy New Years! I hope everyone's had a fun and relaxing holiday season, and now it's back to SCHOOL (ugh!!). I know I said I was going to take a long break until mid-January, but I actually got a laptop for Christmas so now I can update! And I also just had to put out this chapter so I could stop hating it haha, this chapter was really hard for me to write for some reason, and I don't like it very much. I always feel like what's in my head is so much. better than what ends up on paper!
Anyways, I have a question for y'all: Do you ship Sienna and Jase? Or would you rather have her end up with Noah?
Have a great end to break! :)
-Selene