Survivors

Chapter 11 - Resurfacing

Eric started hyperventilating as ambulance sirens started blaring in the distance, and I tried to comfort him.

"Eric," Nurse Miller said after snapping her fingers a couple times to get his attention. "Breathe, honey." She took off her jacket and pressed it against Jade's neck to try and decrease the violent blood flow.

Eric jerked away from me. "You think I can breathe right now?!" he shouted. "Are you crazy?!" His eyes started glowing bright yellow.

Something was wrong, and it wasn't Jade. There was something my boyfriend wasn't telling me. I knew an attack from trauma when I saw it; something had happened to him that was causing him to react like this.

Meagan looked at Nurse Miller's bloodstained clothes, then she looked at me and whispered. "We should get some stuff for the hospital for them," she said. "You know, pack a bag of Jade's comfort items."

"That's a great idea," I whispered back.

"We'll be right back, guys," Meagan said.

We rushed back inside and into Jade's bedroom. I found a cinch bag in her closet, and I put a black wolf plush that was sitting on her bed, along with the blanket that was draped over the bed. Meagan came in with a shirt and a pair of jeans.

"Eric's gonna want to change into clothes that don't have his sister's blood on them when we get to the hospital," she said, quickly stuffing them into the bag.

After we'd grabbed everything we needed, including Eric's wolf plush, we ran back outside. Nurse Miller was still cradling her daughter in her arms; the sirens were closer now. Eric was sitting on the ground, rocking back and forth and crying, as if he belonged in an insane asylum.

"Eric--," I began, starting to approach him.

"Tilly, don't!" he snapped.

I stepped back, shrinking into myself as my heart sank a little. Nurse Miller looked at me and gave me a quivering smile; while trying to hold back tears, she was also reassuring me. Eric was just scared. That was all.

"Eric," Nurse Miller said. "Honey."

"What?" Eric replied, his voice oscillating.

"Meagan and Tilly won't be able to get into the ambulance," Nurse Miller said, "and you can't legally drive anyone without me in the car."

"But--," Eric began.

"I can drive, legally," Meagan said. "So you and Eric can get in the ambulance and I can drive Tilly and I to the hospital."

"Oh, good," Nurse Miller said. "Never mind, Eric."

Eric merely shook his head, and his tears kept flowing.

"I grabbed your car keys from inside," Meagan said.

"You're very smart, Meagan," Nurse Miller said.

I started chewing on my lip, knowing what Nurse Miller's objective was. She was trying to hold herself together so Eric didn't break down even more than he already was.

The EMTs arrived, and they took Jade from Nurse Miller and put her on a stretcher, holding a thick cloth against her neck. Eric and Nurse Miller went into the back of the ambulance, and it raced away. Meagan and I got into Nurse Miller's car but waited a few minutes before heading toward the hospital.

The anxiety started to kick in. My breath became a little heavy and shaky, and my leg started bouncing up and down uncontrollably.

"Do you think that thing we saw in the woods was a vampire?" Meagan asked.

"Yes," I said, trying to keep myself together. "Looking at Jade's neck, I could tell a vampire had bitten her." I ran my tongue across my new fangs and suddenly became self-conscious. "You don't think... you don't think Eric will start acting weird around me. Do you?"