weak | choni

29: "Waking Up"

a/n: the last chapter, prepare for the waterfalls and thank you so much for reading my books! should i make another mental health book or do a age regression one?? comment and tell me pls :)

All at once there was nothing.

And then, all at once, there was everything.

Blinding light suddenly filled Cheryl's pupils and she inhaled sharply, moving to sit up. She winced when there was a tug in her arm. Groggily, she opened her eyes and tried to figure out what was going on.

"Cheryl," a voice rang out of nowhere and the smaller girl blinked a few times. "Cheryl, it's Josie, can you hear me?"

She knew this feeling all too well. The beeping, the pinching sensation in her arm, the blinding white light – she was in the hospital. Again.

Cheryl groaned and wiped her eyes, moving to sit up.

"Woah, calm down," Josie jumped forwards and grabbed Cheryl's shoulders, moving her back onto the bed. "You literally just woke up."

"I'm aware," Cheryl muttered, but she sat back down. "What happened?" she asked quieter, biting her lip.

"You, uh," Josie sat back down on the edge of Cheryl's bed and sighed. "We were at a party ... and your drink was ..."

"Drugged," Cheryl whispered, finishing Josie's sentence for her. Everything was starting to come back to her.

"Yeah, that," Josie laughed nervously, running a hand through her hair. "Whatever it was really fucked you up and I guess ... you just ..."

"Passed out?" Cheryl tilted her head to the side.

"That too," the brown-skinned girl furrowed her eyebrows. "Toni found you. You had another seizure, Cher."

And suddenly, it all came rushing back to her. The smell of alcohol, the murmur of the crowd around her, the thumping of the bass in her ears, Toni kneeling beside her.

Toni.

She remembered it so vividly now. She remembered the panicked look on Toni's face, and the sheer terror in the girl's voice when she was screaming for help. Cheryl's body suddenly froze.

"Where is she?" Cheryl stood up, yanking the IV out of her arm. "Where's Toni? Is she okay? I need to see her." She bit her lip anxiously and scanned the room.

"Cheryl, you need to sit down," Josie moved to block the door of the room.

"Where's Toni?" Cheryl ignored the older girl's instructions. She needed to see her. She couldn't scare her away. She needed Toni.

Cheryl noticed the nervousness in Josie's features. Something was up, she could tell.

"She's ..." Josie shook her head and grabbed Cheryl's arm, pulling her back over to the bed. Huffing, Cheryl sat back down and rolled her eyes.

"She's in a meeting with the other girls. I'm not really supposed to be back here," Josie confessed. Cheryl sighed and shook her head.

"Well I'm fine, I need to go see her," she pleaded, glancing at the door. "Can't you just ... sign me out of here or something?"

"Hospitals don't work that way," Josie laughed nervously. "They said you'll be out in a day or so if you ... comply." She glanced at the door once more. "I really should go, though. If they find out I snuck back here we're both in trouble."

"But ..." Cheryl's voice trailed off when Josie stood up. The girl really was serious. She grabbed Cheryl's hands and stared her straight in the eyes.

"Please get better, Cheryl," she whispered. Cheryl, unsure of what to say, just nodded softly. Josie gave her a sad smile before slipping out of the room without another word.