Kashmir [BxB]

Chapter 28 - Wrong side of the car

Everything was dark. The darkness covered everything, coating it in black, calming it down. Nothing to see, or hear, or feel. Like floating underwater, being able to breathe perfectly while the rest of the world remains muted.

Then comes the pain.

Daggers digging into my head, the incessant scream of sirens, flashes of blue blinding me as someone pulled and poked on my side.

"No.", I try, words coming out slurred. I try swatting away the hands but it doesn't help. Everything is blurry when I finally open my eyes. Why was the windshield all cracked? It hurts to look, so I close my eyes again, trying to go back to that dark place where nothing would bother me.

"No, let me be-"

"Kash? Kash!"

Esme's panicked voice jolts me, and the creeping sensation that something was wrong starts blaring now.

"Es- Esme?"

A rush of nausea hits me and before I know it I'm curling in on myself, hurling. It doesn't stop even when nothing comes out, my whole body shaking. I can't breathe I'm coughing so hard, and someone refuses to stop touching me, maneuvering me so I'm laying down on something uncomfortable.

The air is cold and welcome on my clammy skin, but it smells and tastes awful. Like burning chemicals, and vomit, and gods why won't the world stop spinning. I try opening my eyes again but everything is too bright, too much.

"No, no, let me though! You don't get it, please, please-"

I squint when I hear her and finally catch sight of her panicked state. Esme's face has a large gash across the forehead, and the red blood paints her blonde hair a rusty color. Her eyes are wide and just as red, but when I try to reach out to dry her tears she disappears.

"Nate... where's- where's Nate?", I mumble, trying to locate him too. It's like I have a set of needles steadily making their way into my skull, just a bit further for every second I keep my eyes open.

"It's okay, sir. We're helping your friends right now, but you need to stay calm so we can take care of you. Can you do that for me?"

The stern voice must belong to whoever is prodding at me, refusing to leave me alone. I whine and try to get away as she shines a bright light on in eyes, holding the eyelids up with her fingers.

It hurts.

"No, my friend. Where is he?", I try again, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to curl into myself again. I didn't like being spread out, they had too much poking room.

"You need to stay still, sir. We'll take care of your friend."

The ground starts moving and someone straps large rubber bands across my body to keep me down. Through the sound of sirens and people running around I can barely hear my ringtone, but I know it's there. Where's my phone?

"Nate...", I croak, but no answer. Where is he?

And then, everything is black again.

•••

The air tastes better when I come to, the ground moving beneath me again. It's very bright, too bright, and I try to shield my eyes.

"Careful, we got another ambulance arriving in just a minute."

The disembodied voice is somewhere above me, and I try to turn to see who it is only for my head to spin. I feel the nausea hit me again, starting to dry heave before someone unsnaps the rubber bands and turns me on my side.