Finally Breathing

~ Chapter 11 ~

Tobin's POV

There was along and awkward pause when Sky left the office. I looked at my hands, fiddling with my sports watch and bracelet. What did they mean, her brother? What had happened between them? She was quite clearly hurt enough to fight with her teammate, so something must have happened. Something bad enough that she didn't want it to get out, even if the said teammate did insult her.

"Excuse me principal, but maybe we could talk to her?" Jill asked, gesturing towards us.

I looked at her, unsure. Would she really want to talk to people who didn't know her? Or was that all she wanted? It was a risk, but if it payed off we could have potentially saved her. I guess it was worth it.

"By all means go ahead, if you can find her." The principal agreed.

Jill brushed past me, waving as if to follow her. It turns out we didn't need to go far.

As soon as we had exited the office, Jill stopped abruptly, her breath catching in the silence of the halls.

"Tobin, stay with her." She said, her voice low and serious. I caught a glimpse of Sky, curled up in a ball on the floor, clearly unconscious. Oh god. Jill rushed out of the hallway, back towards the principal's office.

I knelt beside her body. Her breathing was shallow and ragged, face pale and devoid of emotion.

"Stay with us Sky." I whispered, starting to shake. I found this girl; she was my responsibility. I had to look after her, and so far I'd failed. A soft tear slipped down my cheek. I didn't know much about her, but what I did know was that she needed her friends around her, supporting her. And right now, I had to be that friend.

"T-Tobin?" she stuttered, eyes fluttering open.

"Shhh, sh, stay here." I whispered, supporting her head with my hand, stroking her hair back.

"What ha- happened, where am I?" Her blue eyes glistened. She was starting to panic, clearly terrified.

"At school." I reassured her, "I think you had a panic attack. We found you unconscious."

"Shit." She replied, raising her hand to her cheeks as she tried to brush away her tears, a swollen and bloody bruise forming.

"Hey, language." I laughed softly, taking her hand as she sat up.

"Sorry." Sky mumbled, "It's just that I thought I had them under control."

"So, you've had them before?" I questioned.

She nodded in reply, before we heard hurried footsteps down the hall.

"Sky!" Coach Nicholls exclaimed, somewhat emotional. "Are you okay? For a moment I thought we had lost our favourite forward." She smiled, looking at Sky with concern.

"Yeah I'm fine, no need to worry." Sky pulled herself up off the ground. "Just a little panic attack."

Coach Nicholls looked at me, her head tilted slightly. I gave her a small smile, putting my arm around Sky's neck. "Okay, well if you're sure." She said, not completely convinced. Jill took a step forward.

"Sky, if you're okay with it, Tobin and I would like a chat." She spoke, her voice ringing out in the empty hallway. She looked concerned, a wide look of worry spread across her face, along with a mixture of something that looked like pride.

"Yeah, okay." Sky replied, looking at us with curiosity and timidity all at once.

Jill led her towards an empty classroom. I sighed before following on behind them.

Sky's POV

I woke up dazed. The world was still spinning, and my breathing still shallow. I had no clue where I was, disorientated. That was until I saw a familiar face looming over me with a worried expression on her face. She was stroking my hair, tears streaming down her face. It was Tobin. She cared. A stranger cared about me. A famous stranger, my idol. That was enough for me to pull myself back into consciousness. Her brown hair was swinging by my burning cheeks, cold hands resting underneath my head, supporting the weight as it rolled lazily. After years and years of careless abuse and thoughtless relationships, someone cared about me enough to cry. Why, I don't know. I'm not worth it. Yet it was enough.