Kindness

Chapter 7: Broken

I groaned, trying my best to stand. I somehow managed to sit up, leaning my back against the wall for support.

"Bryton?" I whispered, praying he was still conscious. No response. "Bryton!"

I heard a soft groan. Thank God he's awake! "Bryton, I know it hurts and I know you're tired, but please stay awake." All I got was a barely audible groan as a reply.

Somehow, with the help of some bizarre miracle, I managed to stand. The pain in my knee became excruciating, but I did my best to ignore it.

I hobbled into the bathroom to fix myself up. I opened up the cabinet under the sink, and very elated to find useless junk.

It didn't take long for me to find a few old Popsicle sticks. I grabbed two of them, washed the off with the dirty water,
And pulled the hair tie out of my hair. I set the Popsicle sticks on either side of my throbbing finger, which I was certain was broken, and tied the hair tie around them, finishing my makeshift cast.

I then took a few of the dirty wash rags, rinsed and ripped them, and tied them around my knee. I splashed some water on my burning ribs and stomach, but there wasn't much more I could do.

I limped back to the room and rushed to Bryton's side. He was barely conscious. He had mainly been punched in the stomach, which at least meant there was a slim chance of him having any broken bones.

I walked back to the bathroom, grabbed a dirty cup from under the sink and a few of the rags. I filled up the glass to the brim and careful carried it out to Bryton, immediately pouring it on his head. He gasped, then groaned, giving me the suspicion that his ribs were bruised or fractured. Not much I could do about that. I filled up the cup again, this time soaking the rags in it. I tied one rag around his bleeding head, another around his arm, and one more around the gigantic gash across his stomach.

I forced some water down his throat, then gave myself a drink. I didn't even care that the water tasted terrible. I hadn't eaten or drank anything for over 24 hours!

With great difficultly I managed to get Bryton on the cot. I decided to sleep on the blanket. The cot was small, and I knew how awkward it would be if we both slept on it.

I was having trouble keeping my eyes open, so I stopped fighting and gave in. Just before drifting off to sleep, Bryton turned toward me.

"Thank you," he whispered. I didn't even reply. I had fallen asleep.