Squid
"Has he woken up?" I ask Nicole and Ash. "No, we only just stopped all the blood, so it may be a while. What happened in here anyway?" Nicole asks. "Stampy must've felt bad about it," Ash says, pointing at his wrist. I hear my phone go off again and turn it on to see a text from Amy; Where are you guys? I tell her that we're in Stampy's hospital room, but realize at the last minute that I didn't warn her about what happened. She comes inside with Rosie, Netty, and Finnball and gasps. "What happened?" Finnball asks. "Um..." I trail off. "We've got time. Just tell us," Rosie reassures me. "Alright," I agree reluctantly.
We sit in a circle near the edge of the room, Nicole in the corner, with me next to her. She leans on my shoulder and smiles. "Well, I came to check on Stampy to make sure he was okay, and he got a bit angry," I explain. Netty's eyes go wide in surprise and Ash laughs. "He pinned me against the wall and...basically took his stress out on me. He slammed me into the wall a few times, yelling, and I punched him to try and get him off me. That's how he got a bloody nose. He slammed me against the wall again and I blacked out. I guess he felt bad and cut his wrists," I go on.
They all stare at me with horrified looks on their faces. I hear some unintelligible whispers next to me and look over to see Nicole with her head buried in her knees. "Are you okay?" I ask her carefully. She peeks up at me. "You could've died," she whispers shakily. "It's okay, you don't need to worry about me," I try to reassure her. Amy crawls over and rubs her back soothingly. "You could've died," she repeats. She starts shaking and sobbing quietly, and I immediatley know what's wrong.
She's having a panic attack.
"Guys, she's having a panic attack," I warn them. I hear collective gasps, and they all come over. "Careful, we should give her some space. Ash, can you and Finnball bring some water and an ice pack? But don't let anyone know about it," I ask them. "Yep," Ash agrees. They quickly scramble up and run out of the room. I grab her hand. "Nicole, look at me," I say firmly. She looks up at me again, tears brimming in her eyes. It kills me inside to see her this way, but for her sake, I stay calm.
"I need you to calm down. When I tell you to, we'll both breathe in and hold it. Okay?" I ask. She nods quickly and stares at me. "Breathe in," I say. We both take a big breath. "And out," I sigh. "In." "And out. There you go. Are you feeling better?" I ask her. She nods again and smiles weakly at me. "Thanks."
"Guys, I think Stampy's waking up!" Amy says. We look over at Stampy's bed to hear quiet groans of pain, and see him sit up from his bed. He looks over at me with a regretful look on his face. "Squid, I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened, I just..." he apologizes. "It's okay, Stamps. I get it," I smile. "I'm glad. No hard feelings?" he asks. I nod and laugh. "And I'm sorry if I scared you, Nicole," he adds. She smiles again at him, still shaking slightly. "I don't mean to interrupt, but shouldn't we be saving Sqaishey?" Netty pipes up. "Yea, we should. Lets go. Is everyone packed?" Rosie asks. "Yep, we're all good, Billy," Finnball answers for them in a silly voice.
Stampy presses the button for a nurse, and she comes immediately. "Ready to go?" she asks. "Of course," I say. I get up and help Nicole into her wheelchair, and wheel her out of the room. "David, I don't think I need this anymore," she whispers shyly. "Are you sure?" I ask. She nods. "Then you need to prove it," I say. "How? Walk?" she asks. "Of course not! Gimme a kiss," I grin. She laughs and plants a kiss on my cheek. "That's it?" I joke. "Yes, that's it! No more, or I'm gonna put you two in another room," Ash interrupts, laughing. "Alright," I sigh. Nicole giggles again and gets up from the wheelchair.
We all run down the stairs, deciding not to take the elevator because we all agreed we needed to be able to run in case something...bad happens. We head into Lee's car and drive to Sqaishey's ex's house. "Take a left here," I say as we get closer. "Fifth house on the right." "Wow, Squid. You really know your way around," Ash says. "Like I said, we talked for a while," I laugh. We park next to his house on the curb and get out. "What's the game plan?" Lee asks.
"I have an idea. I'll go in, saying I need to borrow something, since we're neighbors, and then...figure out a way in. And Stampy, you won't come until later. If I need help I'll call you and Ash, the rest of you guys wait out here for when we get out. If we aren't out within thirty minutes, Lee, Amy, and Rosie come inside. Nicole, Lily, and Netty wait out here," I say. They nod in agreement, but Stampy looks hesitant. "Don't worry, Stamps. She'll be okay," Ash reassures him. "Yea, we won't let anything happen to her," I add. "Thanks, guys," he says weakly.
"Be careful," Nicole warns me. "I will, don't worry," I say to her. She grabs my shoulders and pulls me into a kiss. I close my eyes, and only focus on her soft lips against mine. She pulls away, breathing heavily. "Trust me," I say. I head up to the door and knock a few times. "Coming!" I hear someone call from inside the house. A man opens the door, about my age, and smiles. "Hi, David. What brings you here?" he asks. "Hello Jackson. I wanted to know if I could borrow some tea bags. I ran out," I say. "Sure! Come on in," he says.
I follow him inside and look around, trying not to make it to obvious. He walks into his kitchen, and I quickly peek inside some rooms. Damn it, there's nothing there. As I head into the kitchen, I hear some quiet sounds coming from another room. Sqaishey! "Here's your tea bags," Jack says as he hands me a few boxes of tea bags.
"Thank you," I say. "You're welcome. Bye!" he says quickly. "Why so soon? We've never really talked, lets have a chat," I say, trying to seem ignorant to how quickly he tried to rush me out. "Uh, okay," he says hesitantly. We sit on the couch in his living room and look over at each other. "So, what have you been up to today?" I ask him. "Not much. One of my old friends was in a coma and woke up today, so I went to visit her," he replies. "You know, I actually just woke up from a coma...I think a few days ago. I don't really have a clear memory of it," I say. "Really? That's interesting." "Yea, it is," I respond. "Is that all you did?" I ask. "Yea..." he says. "Really?" "Yes!" he argues.
"I know you have Beth here," I say. He stares at me for a moment. "Who's Beth?" he asks. He gets up and heads back into the kitchen. "You don't know her?" I ask sarcastically. "No, I don't. Is she your friend?" he calls. "Yes, she is," I say. He comes back in with his hands behind his back. "She's my friend too. And I don't plan on our visit together ending just yet," he says. He takes his hands out from behind his back, and right before I can call Stampy and Ash, points a gun right at my chest.
"I don't suggest yelling. Now, be cooperative, and I won't shoot."
Don't kill me!! Please!! I'm already working on the next chapter. I'll publish it soon. I know, this wasn't really what you expected, was it? And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Justin and the pneumonia and all that drama. I'll get to it soon. I don't really have an author's note...so...peace out!
