Final Chapter
Awakening
I never gave much thought as to how I would die. I always figured it would be in my sleep surrounded by the ones I loved most as they watched me go peacefully into the darkness. Death was not what I expected until I was left alone in the endless tunnel of emptiness. There was no pain, no sight, no sound and no touch to be felt. In a sense of absolute bliss death had been peaceful. I would have laughed if someone had told me I would be dead at the young age of twenty-two and by the hands of someone I trusted and knew.
As Richard pulled that trigger I was thankful that I barely had my sight because I knew what I saw in his eyes would be nothing but pure evil and hatred. What have I done to deserve this? I thought I was protecting the ones I love from harm but in the end I had been the cause of everyone’s heartache. As I fell further and further into the endless hall my thoughts began to wonder. I knew I would die one day but never in my wildest dreams could I imagine that I would die in such a horrible and bloody way, as I felt completely numb surrounded by iciness. I remember feeling nothing as the bullet pierced my skin because truthfully I was already gone the moment my head smacked against the concrete. My moments were slipping and I was hanging by a very thin unstable thread. Did the darkness ever end? If I had known that last threat would come true I would have told Ryder the words I longed to speak, he didn’t say those words during my last breath and it made me wonder if he believed me to be fixable.
Truth is I believed I would, falling into the endless until my heart gave out or awake from this horrible nightmare. Though soon the endlessness ended and I was dropped headfirst into freezing water, making me completely numb. I watched my mother die when I was younger she had been in so much pain until her time came and she slipped away peacefully into the night. She seemed like an angel as she slept, she gave no indication that death felt icy, cold and numb like how I felt at this moment. Maybe it is because she died from a sickness as it slowly drained her until there was nothing left unlike I who had been shot point blank in the chest. Truthfully it was a miracle that the bullet had missed my heart but in the end I still died. The drowning feeling vanished from around me making me gasp for air as I lay there not moving forward or backwards as I had become stuck in the in between. A place I had only heard about from those who have come back from the brink of death but they only stayed in the in between for a few minutes and mine felt like longer. Though this darkness if only for a few minutes did not warn off the screams and sounds that filled me as I held in my tears.
Could you cry if you were dead? Was the final process painful? My curiosity got the best of me and I ventured further into the darkness not a sign of light or life around me. Soon a tingling sensation shocked through me from my head to my toes to my nose pulling me quickly from the darkness for only seconds though.
“Clear” A deep voice shouted gargled by the darkness around me, I felt I was underwater listening to them talk from above me.
“Her heart rate picked up but its not steady, we need to get her prepped for surgery before her heart fails again, I think we can save her.” A voice shouted, the sound of cries filled my ears moments later a beeping sound blared like warning bells through the air. Soon I was being pulled under the water filling my lungs with ice and murk, I tried to fight my way back to the top but it was useless the more I struggled the weaker I became.
“Quick we are losing her we need to move, now!” A voice yelled in panic.
“No Bell don’t leave me I need you, we need you!” Ryder’s voice screamed, I tried to reach for him in the gurgling water but I was greeted with nothing but the chill of the pain. Opening my mouth once more to scream to tell them not to let me go, buckets of water rushed down my through caused me to gasp for air as my body went weak floating to the bottom of the emptiness. Death so far wasn’t peaceful it made you feel weak and vulnerable. It made you feel useless like a newborn baby depending solely on their mother and father to survive. Those first crucial days of life when you are premature fighting to stay healthy with still growing lungs and heart.
A light appeared but I was to weak to lift myself up from the ground as I just continued to gaze into the night. Slowly a figure emerged surrounded by pure white light, illuminating the complete form of my mother. I was speechless as I gazed up on her form.
My head had ceased hurting and the pain that I had felt in my collarbone had vanished as well the bone no longer feeling broken. When you die does all your pain just… vanish? Her steps were graceful and soft; she shimmered in the light like the angel you had become twelve years ago. I knew she was my guardian angel. Dressed in shimmering white, the dress flowed freely down her tall lean figure. The curls of her brown hair shinned with wisps of gold and red gleaming in the bright light twinkling like the late night stars. Her green eyes twinkled like the northern lights creating a soft calm peaceful feel to fall over you. Her presence always did this even before she died and now she stood before me breath taking beautiful, seeming as healthy as could be that was until the illness took her from us. This just added to her beauty making her seem translucent, shinning and bright like the moon herself. She looked magnificent.
“Mom?” I questioned as I sat there flabbergasted by the scene before me. Taking slow gliding steps she made her way toward me before kneeling on the floor and helping me into a sitting position. Taking in her eyes up close I noticed they no longer shinned but had begun to fill with pain and sadness as they starred down at me. Slowly I sat up before her. Could I really be dead? I thought. I mean my heart had stopped once or twice I knew this from the small electric currents I been going through me, now it seemed peaceful.
“My beautiful butterfly” she cooed softly as she ran her fingers in a soothing manner through my hair bringing my head to rest on her shoulder as we sat there after she moved to be beside me. Her dress flowed outwards across the floor as she sat there, the glow of the light as bright as the shinning sun shown from behind her.
“You have grown up so much since I have been gone my dear, I am sorry I was not there butterfly when you needed me most though I never left you completely. I have been watching over young one.” I closed my eyes as she placed her lips briefly to my forehead in a motherly sweet manner, familiar kisses I have missed.
“Mom… why am I here?” I whispered as I continued to stare into the endless blinding white light, was I supposed to go through there?
“Darling butterfly I am sorry for the hardships you have had to endure these past few years without me there to help you. But look at you and all that you have come to accomplish in the years I have been gone,” Blinking my eyes I turned to face her taking my head from her shoulder. She did not answer my question so this time as I looked fully into her eyes I asked her once again.
“Am I dead?” Her eyes flashed with hundreds of emotions before they stayed on sadness and a dreadful chill chilled me to the bone leaving me breathless.
“Darling… butterfly it is hard to say for sure if you are or are not dead. Its your fight right now and only time will tell what is to come because it is up to your heart and body. The bullet had missed your heart by Meer inches but pierced your lung causing it collapse and begin to fill with fluid, your collarbone was snapped in half and you had minor cuts in your head.” Wide eyed I starred at her as she continued to tell me my injuries.
“A broken nose, bruises cover every inch of your body, several broken ribs, internal bleeding from your ruptured spleen and a busted lip.” Looking down at myself I noticed that I was still dressed in the same clothes I had worn that day to the carnival though they were not covered in blood and tears. The pink of my cardigan had lost its drenched red bright crusty tinge that had happened with my nose was broken as well as the wounds I had received to the back of my head. My mother watched me as I reached a shaky hand to the back of my head to feel my hair knot free, the dried blood no longer clotting in it. Heaving a sigh of relief I came to realize that once you died just like your wounds that you went back to the way you looked before your death. She grabbed my hand in hers the one I had just ran through my hair bringing my attention back to her just as she closed her eyes. The light changed and began to reflect millions of colors as they flashed before me as I turned to look a startled weak gasp left my lips. The scene before me unfolded like one out of a horror movie. A pale figure lay there strapped to different machines; a heart monitor beeped steadily to her weak heart beat, a breathing machine was working to keep air in her lungs and an IV stuck to her forearm giving her the required nutrients and liquid. She looked so frail and pale as she lay there half dead looking; we helped each other to our feet and moved closer to the scene before us.
A strangling gasp left my lips as tears filled my eyes as I took in the girl’s whole appearance.
Her once beautiful shiny brown long wavy hair had been shaved in different areas so they could stitch up the cracks in her head an overly large white bandage wrapped around her head. You could see the remaining hair as it was left exposed from under the bandage though you could defiantly see that it had been cut. The length was shorter than it had been before as it now lay at her chin because it had been chopped off to get rid of the blood clotted hair. Her face was swollen black and blue tinged with purple along with green as they spanned out across her face and continued down her neck. A bandage lay on her nose keeping it in place from moving as the bones healed underneath. White fabric stuck out against her collarbone from under her dressing gown, the white fabric of a figure eight brace one used to keep you from jostling the bone as it mended back together. The exposed skin at the top of the gown gave way to bruised skin red and raw and swollen, finger marks could be seen as the red contrasted brightly against her white skin. A butterfly stitch lay over the corner of her lip as it held together the soft skin where it had busted from a solid punch as her lips lay around a large breathing tube.
The once pink skin looked milky and white void of all color and life. A cast incased her wrist as it mended the sprain that had happened as the chair had fallen over the ropes pulling her wrist out of its socket. A sob tore from lips as I realized who the girl was before me, I was starring at my body as I stood firmly in the in between.
“No, no” I sobbed as I gazed at my body as it hung on a very thin thread between life and death. That girl before me looked unrecognizable and made me freeze with fear.
“I am sorry young one but I had to show you” Came my mother’s soft reply from beside me a look of sympathy in her eyes. She didn’t move to embrace me and I was okay with that as I stood there gazing at my still body.
“How long ago was the carnival mom?” I asked hesitant of what her answer may be because I knew the bruising should be going away soon though these still almost seemed fresh.
“Two weeks after the attack honey” her angelic voice spoke as she finally wrapped an arm around my shoulders pulling me into her side and all I could do was nod my head at her. Leaning my head on her shoulder I let the scene before me sink in as I tried to process everything. She said two weeks after my attack not how long ago it had happened; so how long have I really been in this state in a comatose state that the doctors had put me in to give my body time to heal.
“Darling there are things you need to see and I will show you but Bellie you have to understand that you have been asleep for awhile.”
“How long?” I mumbled no louder than a whisper as the scene before us morphed with different angles and colors then people began to appear.
“This one dear is from the middle of May a month from when I showed you the last one.” I only nodded as I watched the scene unfold before me.
“Sissy when are you going to wake up?” Benny said as he sat on the hospital bed by my legs his small hand lying softly on my blanket-covered legs. My body did not move at his touch, as I lay there frozen.
“Why does it only feel like minutes though mom not weeks?” I asked her as I took my eyes from the scene before me to look at her a remorseful look on her face.
“Time is different here Bellie, truthfully you have been here longer than a month though I will tell you when the time is right.” She said as we turned back to the scene of a moment that had happened a month ago.
“There is a reason I am showing you these, you have to find the will to fight” Her voice sounded from next to me and all I did was nod my head as I watched it unfold.
“Emma its dad can you hear me?” My dads voice cracked with unshed tears. The tears that my father did not let fall, fell freely from my own as her arm tightened around me in a soothing manner. Her hand rubbing up and down my arm trying to reassure me.
“Its out fault this happened Bryan, we should have taken her with us because none of this would have happened if we had.” My stepmother wailed her echoes sounding in every corner of the room as tears streamed down her face smearing her mascara. My dad walked over to her and wrapped her in his arms as he tried to sooth her. Benny just sat there looking at me then down at his fingers as he began to mess with a stray stand from the blanket. His brown eyes twinkled with unshed tears as he took a deep breath to calm his five year old self down before he let the string fall and lay his head on my stomach.
I noticed the cast on my wrist was gone, the color of my skin was no longer tinted with black and blue, my lip looked healed and the bandage on my nose was removed as well. Though the brace around my upper body was still there as well as the bandage around my head. She still was pale like the snow and if she opened her eyes they would no longer shine with life but be filled with pain, suffering and sadness. Her wounds held her in place, letting her move not an inch. I was slowly slipping away and the chill was starting to reach my bones, I could feel it. My mom then wrapped her arms completely around me pulling me into her chest as the tears fell like waterfalls from my eyes, I knew her heart was breaking for me.
“We did not know this would happen though Jane, you cannot beat yourself up about this.” He whispered to my stepmom as she just shook her head in his arms, the room was silent for a few minutes only the sound of the television played in the background.
“Still Bryan we left her alone here while we went on vacation, another vacation without her. I think we are putting to much pressure on her.” She said into his chest before she pulled away from my dad’s arms making her way over toward my body and took a seat grabbing my right hand in hers.
“I know… just I want the best for her Jane and I want her to have a stable job” His head dropped toward his chest as he realized his wife was right.
“Bryan we have been pushing her none stop for the past four years we have never given her a break to be herself. I want her to follow in my steps but now as she lays here barely clinging to life I realize now that we cant keep trying to control her life she is twenty-two.” Her thumb ran over the back of my hand slowly as she looked at the little boy who lay on my stomach his breathing steady and slow as he had fallen asleep.
“I want her to take over the company though Jane and our jobs are different so of course she wouldn’t want to follow in yours but I expect her to follow in mine” My dad snapped as he ran a hand through his hair before making his way towards the left side of my bed.
“Bryan! You cannot expect so much of her and I love my job but I see now that Emma wouldn’t be happy with what I do because she has a mind of her own, her own thoughts, feelings and opinions. I get it you want her to take over the company but I swear it is not what she wants to do.” She hissed back her dark stormy brown eyes clashing with my father’s from across the bed. He looked taken back for a moment before he spoke.
“Jane…” “No! I will not lose my daughter due to our selfish ways in trying to control her life because I know we will lose her if we keep doing this” Her voice cut through his like a knife, his eyes wide as he thought for a moment on what she said and knew that she was indeed correct.
“Okay” He said before he bent down and placed a soft kiss to my forehead.
The moment his lips touched my forehead warmth spread through me slowly and only for a moment before the warmth vanished. I smiled at the scene before me though I was also sad to know that all it took for them to realize their mistakes were for me to be on my death bed fighting for my life. Though as I heard what my stepmom said and hearing my father agree made me fill with warmth and love as they finally realized I wanted to make my own path not follow theirs. There was one reason to fight to live.
“She is right, they were to hard on you to be perfect though it makes me happy to see them realize their mistakes. I am sorry it took them this long Bellie,” My mom said before the image vanished another image filled its place.
“How long?” I asked as I took in my still pale body though some color had begun to return.
“It’s the end of May dear.” A month and a half I have been laying there so still, two months after the attack.
“Hey Emma”
I snapped my head around from my mom to face the scene before me and took in a very distraught looking Chrissie as she made her way into the room with Jamie latched onto her hand. They are together? I asked myself wondering when that had happened, I was also shocked to see that even after two months they still had tears left to shed for me as I lay there like a statue on display.
She looked different. Her once bouncy red hair lay flat and stringy upon her head. Her eyes that once shined with the stars, looked lifeless and red from hours of tears and she was completely covered in clothes that were unlike her. Jamie must have had a say in things and made her realize she did not have to wear what she use to get attention. The love in their eyes as they gazed at one another was true and real. Though as they stood before me even Jamie looked distraught and rugged. A silent gasp left my lips as I watched her crash to the ground with tears streaming down her down her makeup free face, Jamie was there to catch her as he was dragged to the ground as well.
“Emmie!” Chrissie screamed, her scream shattered my heart and broke it into pieces at the sight of my best friend as she sat curled up in a ball in the arms of Jamie on the hospital floor. Her wails filling the room as Jamie tried to quiet her down, finally her sobs stopped and she just shook in place. Jamie had managed to get her off the floor and into a comfortable hospital chair that must have been asked for, because the room its self seemed very uncomfortable. Chrissie curled herself into a ball on the chair her arms wrapped tightly around her knees as she sobbed again silently in her arms as Jamie pushed the chair closer to the bed so that she could grab my thin frail hand in hers.
Jamie was the first to speak as he walked over to my other side grabbing my hand in his.
“Hey Emma its been awhile two months to be exact since you were shot” I looked at my mom in shock as she stood beside me a sad look on her face.
“Chrissie is a mess well actually everyone is a mess right now, they keep hoping you will wake up soon the court date has been set and will happen in a few weeks. It took this long to find evidence and get everyone’s statements to get a date to be seen in court. We got it finally, everyone is so happy to finally see Richard and Sydney get what they deserve.” A small tear ran down his cheek dropping onto my hand. He dropped to his knees beside the bed placing his head on my hand while his body heaved slowly up and down as he calmed his breathing. Lifting his head up slightly his eyes looked at Chrissie before turning to face me.
“I know this year we weren’t able to talk much with everything going on plus I was being watched constantly and thought it wouldn’t be safe to be around you. It was hard having to keep looking over my shoulder all the time at school, I even spoke with a few teachers to allow me to do some of my work at home because of what was going on around campus. I had managed to get away before I could get blackmailed like the everyone else from Richard.” He took a breath as Chrissie’s tears ended and she sat there hugging her knees with one arm and holding my hand tightly in hers then he continued.
“That day all those months ago was a day that seemed unreal. I had gotten there early to meet with Chrissie and talk with her about my feelings for her but little did I know that she was already in class that day. Leaning against the locker my back was towards the door when angry voices arose their voices screaming at one another, I paid them no attention as I waited for Chrissie. I remember moving slightly to look at Emily and Torrance as they sat a few lockers down from me then I turned the other way to see someone leaning on your locker. I swear I thought it was you at first but then looking closer I noticed it was Ryder, I looked at him with confusion on my face cause he is never in the hall in the morning. It made me wonder why he happened to be standing in the hall and more specifically why was he at your locker. Glancing around me I only noticed it was only really me, Emily, Torrance and Ryder in the hallway it seemed everyone else was outside or in class besides the two voices arguing by the doors. It was silent until the sound of a scream and the first bullet went flying, Ryder gasped loudly I remember seeing red blood start to drip down his head before he stumbled on his feet and fell.” His eyes shut for a moment before he spoke once more, tears started to fill my own eyes as I listened to what he was saying. He knew it was Ryder from the start but how could Richard not see this? Where was Sydney though? I wondered.
“I heard the second bullet before I felt it tear through my arm spinning me around in the process to face where the bullet came from. Falling to my knees I gripped my arm as I watched Tori and Richard fight for the gun, that was when the third and fourth bullet rang out at the same time. I watched with frightened eyes as Emily screamed and collapsed onto Torrance mere seconds before the second bullet hit him. My voice was lost as I kept pressure on my arm, my eyes closing in the process just as another bullet rang out hitting someone else and then a loud thud. Footsteps echoed in the hall before I opened my eyes and saw the greenhouse door slam shut, looking back where Richard stood I saw him lying there blood pooling around him just as Sydney ran out from somewhere and into the hall making the 9-1-1 call.” He stopped speaking and stood up moving around to stand behind Chrissie wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders. That was when Chrissie spoke her voice coming at quietly at first before getting a little bit stronger.
“Jamie got away before he could be blackmailed. I am sorry Emma, at first I wanted to get back at you for just being perfect you have everything but then I came to realize a few weeks later that I was being stupid. I was jealous of what you had, I was jealous of the way Ryder looked at you and the fact that he never gave me a second glance. We actually met a year before me and you met Emma, I was infatuated with him because of how good looking he is and I wanted him for myself.” She paused. I let her words sink in a hurt look crossed my face as I never knew this; I never knew that they met before college I always assumed she just didn’t like him. But now I realized they had met before.
“Nothing happened that night he turned me down saying he was in love with someone else, that someone was you. This five years ago Emma, I was so mad when he told me that and I became obsessed with him sending him letters of love not hate. Everyone assumed I hated him by the way I acted when truth was I loved him. I did it you know…” As she paused I took that second to ponder and my breath caught as I realized what she meant, she stopped our friendship.
“ I-I ruined your friendship for my own selfish reasons, Em-Emma I am so sorry if I could I would go back and change that day maybe then all of this wouldn’t of happened you know” Her sobs rang out as Jamie pulled her into his chest her cries muffled by his shirt before she took a deep breath and continued.
“I told him you hated him, I told him all these rude outrageous lies about what you really thought of him and I told him you couldn’t be with someone like him. He believed me because I guess he always thought he was not good enough for you even though he is a year older. To him it was easy to believe everything that I said that week because he was hopeless in love you and I made it seem like you were way out of his league. I told him he was going no where in life.”
My eyes were wide at her words but truthfully after dealing with everything I had in these few months her words did not surprise me.
“Tori asked for my help to get back at you to scare you into giving up your position as school president, neither us knew what they really had in mind. We both had no idea that Sydney was part of it, she was first to help Richard then Tori then Bobby and I. Though after only a week, I realized the pain I was causing you and I wanted out but she wouldn’t let me she told me that the ringleader would not have it. I had no idea who was behind it all, though I knew that Tori had made Emily and Torrance leave and would have made Jamie if stayed. Though she told us she made them leave to keep them safe. She told me she was also the one texting you from an unknown number pretending to be someone else while Richard was your second unknown number. He knew where you were from Sydney though; she was his inside source to everything. I know you thought it was me Emma and I am sorry I made you feel like you lost best friend when truth was I had to do what I did to keep the ones I love safe- including you. By the time I wanted out I had also realized I was not in love with Ryder but with Jamie and that was when we started talking and seeing each other in secret. I had to keep him safe. I am sorry for hurting you like I did and I feel even worse because I may lose you due to my own selfish reasons because I helped the wrong person. Now you lay here lifeless, unmoving, pale, beaten and hanging onto a thin thread of life and I if you die I will never be able to tell you how much I love you like a sister as well as how sorry I am. I want you to know if you can hear me that I made a mistake, I should have never broken up your friendship and I should have never ever gotten involved with Richard’s crazy plan though I had no idea it was him. We all thought he was dead. But most of all Emmabell I want you know that I became your friend because I wanted to and I came to think of you as a sister”
Her words touched my heart and soul and made me cry tears of multiple emotions that I could not choose just one to feel at that moment, the scene before me vanished leaving me once again to stare at the light before us.
“Your friends love you Bellie,” My mom said as she put her hand on my shoulder giving it a small squeeze of reassurance.
“I know,” I whispered as I remembered the look on both of their faces the love they showed for each other as well as myself. Closing my eyes I waited a moment before opening them once more to that a new scene played before me.
“A week before the end of June” My mother whispered answering my thoughts from beside me as I turned to face her before turning back to the scene before me. I had no idea how Sydney got involved in this whole thing because it all just seemed like a huge unsolved puzzle with only certain pieces in place. It had to have been Tori that they were speaking to that day that Ryder got in a fight with Bobby- the first time that is- because Chrissie had just admitted that she had no idea Sydney was involved. Though as I think about it on different situations that have happened in the past months I realized there was a few times that only Sydney knew things. Like only Sydney knew I had taken Ryder to my house early, the day that the creepy haunted dolls appeared on my doorsteps only moments after I arrived home. Chrissie was the only one who knew Ryder and I had switched lockers and she hadn’t told anyone because the threats still went to ‘my’ locker because if she had told Sydney or Tori than I would receive them not Ryder. Though it made sense why the threats still went there because if Tori did do the notes she was never in that hall, Sydney had class on different days and times than me so she never was in the hall when I went to my locker. Richard couldn’t do it himself because he was supposedly dead, he couldn’t walk into the school without drawing attention to himself and getting questioned. Chrissie had to wear a mask she no longer wanted to, to keep us safe though in return she was getting punished for her own selfishness that she no longer wanted part of. Sydney was the only one to know I had a doctor’s appointment that day as well and that black Sedan was eerily familiar and now I knew why- it was Richards. You would almost think it was Tori’s because she has a dark blue Sedan but her windows are not as tinted black like his. Now I realized Chrissie’s freaked out expression was about that day at the pool, she knew who it was the person dressed in black it was Sydney. Tori had never been to my house before so she had no idea there was a second entrance to the pool area. Though I still had no idea who beat up the guys that day at Ryder’s house it could have been Tori or Sydney but then the man who was also there made me wonder who he was. I never asked Chrissie about that day and she never spoke of it either. Thinking back to the rider on the motorcycle it made my heart squeeze because it wasn’t Tori like I had originally thought but it was Sydney because now as I think more on it I remember catching glimpse of bright devilish blue eyes through the visor as the sun shined on it. Sydney also went camping every summer with her older brothers and father to ride bikes, fish and be outdoors for days on end. She knew where Jace lived. Tori happened to be a pawn who received the full force of my anger because she had to do the dirty work for Richard. Why would Sydney do this? How did Tori even get involved? Why did Richard want to get revenge on me?
The scene had not begun to play, as it stayed frozen before me.
“Why mom?” I asked nervous of her reply as I starred at my body.
“Sydney darling has been in the game from the very beginning and I think you have come to realize this as well though you are confused as to why.” Her arm came around my shoulders and pulled me into her side before she released me and the scene began to play.
Mike and Bryan walked into the room then stopped before me and Mike leaned on Bryan for support. The scene brought happy tears to my eyes as I realized that my two big footballers could finally be together fully without worry and all it took was for me to be shot with a bullet to cause this to happen. Mike and Bryan have been together secretly for three years though they were afraid of what society would think of them if they came out of the ‘closet’ per say as well as what the football team would think as well. How could society be so cruel? How can someone judge you on your race, gender, religion and sexuality? Truth in the matter is that we are all the same breathing, living humans with unique differences that make me-me and you- you. When did living in this world get so hard, so judgmental? How did our world get to where people are afraid to even walk out their own front door scared that they will get shot? The news played on the television that was in the room as it played events going on in our world. Riots, uproars, deaths, accidents, homecomings, wars, shootings and more, What have I missed in these past two and a half months?
Mike walked toward me tears streaming down his face. “Mike” I whispered out loud because Mike rarely cries in front of anyone including me.
Bryan took the chair Chrissie sat in a month ago his hand holding mine our skin contrasted against one another, light and dark.
“Emma” Bryan said first breaking the silence of the room as Mike sat on my left side pulling the chair up from behind him so he could grab my hand in his.
“It has been awhile since we have been here, our team made it to the championship game so we busy with practice and couldn’t come every weekend like normal until the final game was over… We won.” He said as he ran a shaky hand through his hair before bringing that one onto the bed incasing my hand in his.
“You weren’t there president cheering us on like normal and it seemed everyone noticed how quiet it was during the game without your voice screaming our names and insults at the other team. They did a slide show in your honor though at our championship game it brought everyone to tears, Ryder was there he planned it you know. We missed having you there,” Mike’s words brought warmth to my chest and then in a slow manner I felt the warmth shot up my arm from where Bryan’s hands held mine. I began to feel small speaks of warmth where their hands both held mine. I smiled to myself at this.
“Ryder’s mom came back that day baby girl the day you were admitted into the hospital you should have seen it baby girl he just exploded on her, saying that if he lost you then he would have no one because she was never there. His mom burst into tears at his words in the middle of the hospital’s lobby, she had come home early to attend your hospital when she got a call from Jace’s mom. Jace’s mom arrived at the hospital with Ryder’s it had been the first time they had seen each other for few years since Ryder’s mom distanced herself and consumed herself with work after the death of your mother. It seemed your mom was the one to hold everyone together and when she died everything fell apart. They both burst into tears when the doctor had rushed into the ER due to complications with your surgery and he had to revive you again. Mathew broke into tears once he looked at his mom to see her in tears, Jace had to sit with him as the little boy just cried and cried. Your family had just arrived as both Ryder’s and Jace’s mom walked outside because Ryder’s mom could not be around everyone right now especially after Ryder yelled at her and hearing about you getting shot.” Mike took a shaky breath and inhaled deeply as if he was holding back his tears that threatened to fall once again so Bryan continued.
“I have never seen your father cry baby girl and it was not a sight I want to see again, he looked completely heart broken just as your stepmom had and little Benny.” He stopped as if waiting for me to laugh or giggle like I would have, though I did as I watched the guys below me tears streaming down my face.
“The doctor had just came back out to tell us you had died when a nurse ran out saying your heart had restarted and was faint and slow but there. Your stepmom broke down into tears even more as she crumpled to the ground we all just watched her wail a sight we have never seen. About a month or so ago the doctor told us it might be a good idea if we talked to you that if you heard all of our voices telling you stories and talking that you may find the will to fight. We all need you baby girl. You missed finals though the school said you can redo them once you wake that is if you ever wake up and there also might be a slim chance that you don’t remember anything. The blows to your head were pretty bad the doctor said and if you wake up you may have memory loss.” Bryan said as he brought my hand to his lips and placed a small kiss there and the moment his skin made contact with mine warmth spread from my fingertips to my elbow.
“The trial came and went a week ago Em. It happened last week we weren’t there because of the football game though they had already taken our statements before we went to play because we had told them we would not be able to be there as witness to the case.” Bryan said. At this new news I knew I had to wait until someone else came and saw me to hopefully hear what happened since I knew the guys wouldn’t know much except what they had heard. I wonder who took the stand? As well as what evidence they had found against Sydney and Richard, I hope Tori and everyone else didn’t get in a lot of trouble since they didn’t play such major parts or beat me to a pulp.
“All I can tell you baby girl is that Richard and Sydney both received sentencing for first degree attempted murder which is life in prison with the possibility of parole.” Bryan stated before pausing a moment to breath letting Mike continue for him. Happy tears streamed down my face as he told me this because that meant that they were behind bars rotting for what they did to me.
“Though if you don’t wake up Richard will get a more severe sentencing because it will be aggravated murder. Because he wanted you dead, he planned to kill you Em and he had this all planned out a month before the shooting in November of last year. He played everyone to believe he was mental but he wasn’t mental he didn’t have a disorder at all it was all part of his twisted plan. Though I will say that he is mental for wanting to kill you, your murder was premeditated and planned. Tori had no idea he wanted to kill you neither did Chrissie, Bobby, us as well as everyone else he blackmailed, though I can not be to sure if Sydney knew or not about his plan to kill y-you.” Mike let a stray tear fall down his face as he let the words leave his lips, his voice breaking on the final word.
“I shouldn’t have let you walk off alone that day Em, I should have waited until Ryder go there before leaving your side.” Mike sobbed as he pressed his forehead into my arm and at his touch the warmth once again spread through me and this time to my heart.
“It isn’t your fault Mike” I whispered quietly as I never thought Mike would blame himself for my kidnapping.
I looked at my mom with a raised eyebrow and she just looked at me before placing a chaste kiss to my forehead before speaking my unspoken question of why.
“This is now Bellie you are feeling the warmth more so now because this is happening as we watch, you have been here in the light for two and a half months honey you just woke up here after all this time. Your body needed time to rest before you could make your way here I am so sorry it took you this long to get here.” I looked at her with a shocked expression on my face; I didn’t wake up in the light for two and a half months so the scene before me is now. My heart raced and then I heard a gasp before me and I turned sharply to see that the heart monitor had spiked for a second before going back to normal as it had just corresponded with my heart racing.
“Mike did you just hear that?” Bryan asked shocked, I took in his facial expression as he starred wide-eyed at the heart monitor the monitor that had just spiked with my heart beat.
“Baby girl can you hear us?” Bryan said louder as he stood up and leaned over me his face only inches from mine.
They were welcomed with silence.
I wanted to do something- no I needed to do something so with slow steps I moved closer to the scene before me reaching out a shaky hand my fingers felt tingly then my whole body was thrown through the invisible tube as I landed with a loud ‘oomph’ on the ground. Looking up I noticed I no longer gazed down at the two boys but I was in the room with them instead of above as their large frame’s crowded above me. Standing up I made my way toward the bed closer to the two men as they stood there watching my frozen form. I made my way toward the side of the bed where Mike stood his arms wrapped tightly around himself as he watched Bryan take a step back from my body. Though I stood closer to the end of the bed as I watched them. He inhaled slowly before closing his eyes then opening them to look at Mike with a sad look.
“Her heart spiked Mike I think she can hear us” Bryan then moved around the bed making his way towards Mike my eyes went wide as he turned around and starred at me but not really looking at me. I watched with sorrow filled eyes as Bryan made his way towards me, closing my eyes as he approached me I felt slight warmth then nothing. Opening my eyes I noticed as I turned my head slightly to the right that Bryan had walked right through me a tear fell down my cheek. My chest ached as a strangled sob left my lips as I fell to the ground clutching my chest in my hands as I wailed my sobs fell on deaf ears. Of course he couldn’t see me I am a ghost a ghost that is stuck in limbo, walking between the line sting of life and death. Some how I had managed to get to my feet again as I wrapped my arms around my middle trying to bring me a sense of comfort though it felt empty. With slow steps I made my way toward the guys, lifting a shaky hand out toward Mike’s shoulder the moment I should have hit solid muscle my hand slid through. I pulled my hand back bringing that hand to my mouth to hid my sob though this time as the sob left my lips I saw Mike tense up before he turned slightly to face Bryan with a confused look on his face. Bryan had moved closer to my body trying to see if he could get another reaction out of me and that is why I made the move to touch Mike.
“What?” Bryan said as he took in his boyfriend’s confused face, I took a big gulp air as I waited. Mike looked away from Bryan before he turned my way and his soft eyes landed on mine, they gazed into my hazel eyes though they looked right through me. Mike shook his head before he mumbled a silent “How can that be”.
“What are you talking about?” Bryan said as he turned away from me but grabbed my hand in the process and at his touch warmth shot up my arm.
“Mike” I whispered silently as I closed my eyes letting my voice travel through the air.
“She wont want you to blame yourself” Bryan said but then his voice seemed to freeze, I opened my eyes shakily to see both guys facing me a look of disbelief on their face.
“Did you hear that?” Mike said as he began to spin around looking to see where the noise came from before his landed on my pale body.
“Em?” He asked as he pushed Bryan to the side a small giggle left as I watched Bryan stumble backwards landing in the chair behind him with a thud.
“What are you doing?” Bryan asked as he looked at Mike with a raised eyebrow his eyes full of confusion as he thought his boyfriend may have gotten tackled one to many times to fully be here.
“I swear I heard her Bry didn’t you?” Mike turned with wide eyes as he looked around the room then he turned back toward me. Taking small steps I made my way toward the other side of the bed and slowly climbed onto the bed beside my still legs and looked at the guys.
“Mike I didn’t hear anything, are you sure you are okay?” Bryan asked as he stood up to stand beside Mike, slowly I reached out a hand to lie upon the one Mike had resting against my shoulder. I knew I would go straight through but I had to try, the moment my hand went through his I watched Mike’s face scrunch up and fill with pain and curiosity.
“Baby girl” Mike whispered out loud breaking my heart in the process as I pulled my hand back to rest beside me on the bed as I watched Mike stare at my pale unblinking face. In a flash he grabbed my unconscious face in his hands and begin to lay small kisses upon my forehead and cheeks in a brotherly manner.
“Mike!” Bryan said in astonishment as he jumped forward to grab Mike’s shoulder to pull him away a laugh escaped my lips though the ones on my body stayed set around the breathing tube. As he took his lips away from me I was overwhelmed with warmth across my face as my heart spiked once again sending the monitor to react to the spike of my heart. I held in my breath as I watched Mike pull away from Bryans hand and lean down to whisper words in my ear and the moment he spoke I felt I was in my body for a moment because I heard each and every word before the energy drained from my soul and I was back again twirling in the darkness.
“I know you are listening and hear little one, fight it come back to us, fight this and be strong like I know you are.”
I awoke the moment my body slammed into the hard cold ground of the world between life and death. Glancing up I was met with unaccepting, angry bright green eyes those ones that had been filled with love moments before I entered the scene had changed. She no longer looked like my mother as she stood towering above me with that look in her eyes. Why did she seem so mad?
“Mom I went down there and I began to feel again mother, it was wonderful I want to fight.” I told her as I leaned on my elbow as I lay on my side before her, her eyes flashed with anger before a wicked smile slowly crept onto her face. Pushing myself up fully I managed to make it onto shaky legs before here.
“Who are you?” I questioned suddenly afraid of the woman before me, slowly I took a tentative step back the bright lights before me but the changing scenes still lingered behind me.
“I am your mother Emmabell, I gave birth to you twenty-two years ago and you are mine. Your father has failed you but I wont, you will choose to die and come with me to heaven where you will be with me always. Once the plug is pulled you will come with me there will be no questions asked because I can take care of you better than he has.” She said in a sickly sweet voice one laced with pure honey. My eyes went wide as I took in her words letting them sink in as I took more steps back until I could feel the air change to one of warmth behind me letting me know where is stood. She took a step towards me and I took that last step backwards falling back into the endless tube her voice following me down.
“You wont last long down there on your simple newborn energy, you will have to come back soon and when you do I will make sure you have no will to fight because you are coming with me the moment that plug is pulled.” She screeched.
Fear gripped my heart sending it into a wild screaming frenzy as the monitor blared with the change of heart beats. With a loud bang I slammed once more onto the floor this time as I looked up the doctor stood above me a look of confusion on his face as he watched my heart speed up before slowing down to its normal slow beep.beep.beep. speed.
“Ms. McCain your family and friends need you to wake up soon or we will have to pull the plug on you.” A silent wail left my lips as I lay there propped up on my elbow on the tile floor of the hospital room as I watched the doctor turn from the machines and make his way from the room living me alone with my body. Pulling myself up from the ground that gave me no temperature what so ever until when I landed in the in between. Looking up the ceiling above me I knew my mom was watching me so with my chin thrust outwards I spoke sharply “I will fight and not let you take me.” Slowly I walked with tentative steps toward my unconscious body and the moment I got near a gasp left my lips.
“Oh gosh” I cried as I took those last steps and stood next to my body finally being able to take in everything about me as I lay there. I looked whiter than a sheet, the tubes were huge as they supported me and the only sound was the noises coming from the machines around me. My hair seemed a few inches longer though not as long as before they had to cut it all off. I tried to touch my hand to see what it would do…and all it did was go right through leaving me feeling empty.