as fragile as a dandelion

lowest

A/N: Don't start the music yet, I'll tell you when to!

Two's POV

I woke up to an instant bad feeling in my gut. Something was wrong. Very wrong. I opened my swollen eyes. My throat was parched from the constant crying I had done. I reached over to the side table on August's side of the bed for the water glass. I gulped it down hurriedly, instantly cooling the desert that was my throat. I remembered what had happened that made me cry yesterday and choked back a sob. I would not cry. Not again. I would figure this out with August. Together, like it's supposed to be.

That's when I saw his hand. It was laying next to a discarded pen and a crumpled receipt with something scribbled harshly on the back of it. I gasped, scrambling over to the side of the bed. I slid onto the floor next to him. His lips were blue and his skin was tinted purple. His chest rose in frantic gasps, but I could tell he wasn't getting any oxygen. His eyes were closed and one hand was clutched to his chest.

"HELP! SOMEBODY PLEASE! HELP ME! Please..." My voice cracked.

*Start the music*

I pulled his upper body into my lap, covering him with the comforter I ripped from the bed. "August stay with me. Please. I can't do this without you. I need you. Please. I love you."

His gasping was becoming shorter and shallower as he drifted away from me. I screamed again, louder, hoping anyone would hear me. My tears dropped onto his cold cheeks, leaving paths like tiny rivers. I touched his jawline, with it's little bit of stubble and pointy angles. I wanted to kiss that jawline again. I wanted him to hold me again. I wanted to feel safe in his big arms, with his warmth surrounding me like the home I never had. I wanted to hear his annoyed, husky morning voice when I woke him up too early. I wanted the little things. I wanted him. It couldn't end here, not for us, not for August.

I decided it was up to me. I have to help him. I wrapped the blanket tighter around his body and put my hands under his armpits. I lifted, dragging him closer to the door. I winced at the lack of leverage I got from my one leg. My muscles protested as they lifted someone that weighed twice as much as I did. I struggled with the doorknob, flinging the door open, and it hit the dresser with a thud. I pulled more, but my foot slipped and my head cracked against the concrete floor, despite the rug. I saw stars and felt my hair become damp with blood. I tried to stand again but I was too dizzy and my legs collapsed underneath me.

"MONICA! SOMEONE! HELP ME! ITS AUGUST!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

Stay with me August. Please. Just a little longer. Hold on. Keep fighting. I'll fix this.

I saw Monica and a man I didn't know sprint around the corner. "Two! What's wrong? Are you okay? Oh no. Oh August." Monica saw him as she came up to us, panting.

I moved out of the way as Brian and Cam walked down the hall, hearing the commotion from their rooms further down the hall from August's. I made eye contact with Cam first and then Brian. Their faces crumpled as they saw August.

"I- I don't know what- I was sleeping- If I hadn't been- He looked like this..." I hiccuped to Monica.

She reached out and kissed me on the cheek before returning to August. "Honey. None of this is your fault. I should've been keeping close watch on him. Two, he had a heart attack. Heart problems run in his family, the news was just too much for him. There's nothing you could've done."

I felt like throwing up. Brian and Cam sat down on the floor next to me, wrapping themselves around me like a protective shell. They held me as I sobbed. I looked at August's lifeless body as Monica frantically used the defibrillator on him, once, twice, three times.

"I- I can't... Please. I can't live without him... Please August, wake up." I sobbed, trying to crawl towards him.

Cam held me back. "Monica will save him Two. Don't worry. She'll help him."

I leaned my head back to scream at the ceiling, but my world swirled and I swayed. Brian cupped the back of my head and I couldn't hold in the yelp of pain. His eyes immediately filled with concern.

"It's just a bump, Bri, I'm fine."

He bit his lip in doubt. "I know you're worried about August, we all are, but you need help. That's not just a bump, Two, you're bleeding. And you know August would want you to be safe."

I couldn't help it, I started yelling in pain, hurt, fear, and rage. "You don't know what he would've wanted! None of us do! He's barely hanging onto his life! And it's my goddamn fault Brian! If I hadn't been sleeping! If I hadn't been so fucking weak... Too busy crying to realize..." I broke off and started coughing.

I looked up at Brian, and he had tears welling in his eyes. My eyes widened and I realized I had yelled at him. I had yelled at poor, innocent, Brian, who did nothing but help, always. I gasped.

"Oh, Bri. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. I didn't mean it. You didn't do anything. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."

I stood up before he could say anything, and, despite my swaying, I hopped over to where August was laying. I was trying to prevent myself from hurting anyone else just because I was in pain.

Monica had restarted August's heart but he was still struggling to hold on. His face had some color in it but it was barely there. I held in my tears, biting my lip, staying strong for him.

"Please come back to me. You're my guide in the dark. My light at the end of the tunnel. My savior. The love of my life. I can't do this without you. I can't do anything without you. August I love you so much. You brought me out of the darkest places of my life. You helped me see the good that was still out there. You loved me like no one else has. When no one else cared, you always did. I appreciate you with every cell in my body. I owe not just my life, but everything, to you. I would do anything for you. I would jump in front of a bullet for you. Because I care. Because I love you. That's why I used to come here August. Because I knew I would see you. Because I knew you cared, somewhere behind your hard exterior, you loved me too. Plus, your beatings were never as bad as my father's, ha..." I realized I was speaking out loud when everyone looked at me with tears of a sad kind of happiness in their eyes.

I looked down, embarrassed, and Cam and Brian appeared, sitting next to me. "Two. It's okay. I get why you lashed out. Obviously you love him a lot. More than a lot. You're just worried. I get it, I really do. I can't imagine what I would do if something happened to Cam. We love him too, in our own ways. He'll be back. He will come home Two. I promise you that."

I wrapped him in my arms this time, inhaling the deep scent of his hair as I rubbed his back. A few minutes passed and Monica had gotten August stable and transferred him back onto the bed. I sat next to him with my leg tucked under me. I grabbed his big hands, caressing his rough knuckles with the pads of my fingers. I felt his pulse, weakly, as I put a hand on his neck, stroking his head. I never left his side, not sleeping, eating, or drinking until I knew he was okay.

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Author's Note
This chapter mostly focuses on Two's feelings about August, I hope y'all liked it! She's so in love, it makes my heart happy. I've noticed that the past four chapters have zero views so I don't think I'll be posting every day, seeing as no one is following the story closely. Oh well, I write because I love doing it, and a lack of views isn't gonna change that.
See you guys in the next chapter!