For The Love Of A Snake

Chapter 6: Count Me In

     My first instinct was to fight Imelda, but what good would that do? It's not like Sebastian and I were a thing, we were just friends. Although every moment I found myself wanting more than that. My second instinct was to run and that's the one I went with. I turned away as they approached and began to quickly run down the stairs bumping into someone on my way down.
 
   "I'm sorry!" I croaked fighting back my emotions trying to push through them. The person then grabbed my wrist forcing me to stop and face them.

    "Ruby?...what's going on?" It was Ominous. Thank god he couldn't see my face but I still needed to get out of here.

     "Ominous I'm sorry, I'll tell you later I just need to leave right now" I stammered knowing they'd be coming down the stairwell any second now. I really wished I could transfigure myself into a painting or something right about now. He released my wrist and allowed me to leave. As I sped down the stairs I could hear yelling behind me. Worried they had seen me I began to panic. I tried to run faster than I should have and as I went to take my next step my foot slid off the stairs edge sending me tumbling down at least 5 more steps, into the corridor hall floor. "Mother of a Boggart!" I screamed out as a searing pain spread from my left ankle and up into my shin. A couple of other students reading in the corridor study area quickly ran over to me noticing that I had fallen. "I'm fine!" I yelled at them as I tried to stand up. I managed a few steps towards the study before falling again unable to put weight on my left foot. Crap, they will come down the stairs all lovey and I'll be sitting here on the floor in pain, like the clumsy, foolish idiot that I am.

    "Ruby! What on earth happened to you? Why are you here?" Sebastian's voice carried across the hall towards me as he ran up to help me.
  
   "Leave me alone Sebastian!" I choked out while grimacing in pain. His face looked confused as to why I would come off so violent towards him. He obviously thought I hadn't seen him with Imelda.

   "Ruby let me help you. You need to go to the Hospital Wing. Your ankle is clearly sprained or broken" he pointed at it while trying to lift me up from my back. I groaned out in pain as he did this. He wasn't wrong about my ankle but I was just so upset with him that for the first time since meeting him, I didn't want to be anywhere near him.

    "I want Ominous to help me then!" Tears were now escaping my eyes. I had held them back this whole time but finally lost it. Normally I'd probably be able to hold them back longer but the combination of the pain and what I had seen was enough to send me over the edge.

   "You're talking nonsense Ruby. I'm taking you to the Hospital Wing. I'll make sure Ominous meets us there if you want to see him so badly" he was clearly annoyed at my request. After all Ominous wouldn't have even been able to carry me while also using his wand to guide us there. Sebastian then scooped me up a bit more gently this time, threw my left arm around his shoulder and began to carry me to the Hospital Wing. I wiped my tears as we went. An hour ago I would have killed to be in his arms like this, now it just felt like something I was to never have. Those feeling I had felt, and sworn he felt too, were all just in my head.

   As Sebastian carried me I knew students were whispering about me and what had happened. I could feel their eyes on us as we passed through the main hall and towards the hospital wing. I was mad at myself, for being so stupid, so naive, so trusting. On top of those things I was mad at myself for being so clumsy. My clumsiness was my achilles heel sometimes, and this moment proved it. As we reached the hospital wing Sebastian carried me in through its big doors and laid me down on one of the empty beds. To my surprise he then sat in a nearby chair waiting with me for the doctor.
 
   The room was spacious, filled with clean white single beds lined up against the walls. Each area had their own drapes nearby to be pulled out for privacy. The hospital doctor quickly came over to us and looked at my ankle. "What happened my dear?" The doctor who was an older lady asked me in a calm yet sweet tone.

    "I fell on some stairs at the Transfiguration Tower" I wince as she gently touches my swollen ankle with her nimble hands.

     "Ahhh I see, thankfully it appears to be a bad sprain. A quick spell should do the work and you'll be able to return to your normal schedule around dinner time" she then waved a small white wand towards my ankle while saying the incantation for healing, "Episkey" her wand let out a white glow and my pain quickly decreased. "Mr.Sallow are you planning on staying with Ms.Ryzmec while she heals?" He looked up from the floor towards the doctor and nodded his head. "Perfect then I shall take my leave until I'm needed again. Please rest Ms.Ryzmec, at least until dinner time. Then the spell should have done it's job" she smiled at me, closed the drape around our area and then hurried off to her quarters.

     "Why were you in the Transfiguration Tower? I thought you were going to wait for me?" Sebastian seemed a bit angry that I hadn't done what he had asked. His eyes seemed a bit sorrowful as their pools of copper and browns swirled in my direction making eye contact.

    "I  finished class early. I was going to surprise you Sebastian" I looked away from him after I said this. I could barley stand to look at him right now.

     "Don't look away from me like that. What's gotten into you? Just a couple of hours ago you were all sweet to me and now you seem to hate me" he stammered while reaching out his hand towards my face. He grasped underneath my chin gently and pulled my face to look at him. Even now when I swore I hated him my heart was about to beat out of my chest.

     "Imelda Reyes is what has gotten into me!" I snapped my chin out of his grasp and away from him, crossing my arms in the process. His face looked shocked as I said this, he now knew I had seen them together.

     "Imelda?.... You saw what she did didn't you?" He paused his sentence while standing up. He suddenly kicked his chair and threw his hands into his chest. He was pissed and turned away from me, rubbing his hands into his face. After a moment he sighed, let out a big breath, picked up the chair and sat back down near me. "I'm sorry you saw that but if you would have stayed a little longer you would have also seen me jerk my arm away from her and told her to screw off" he then laid his head into his hands against my hospital bed. I wanted to run my fingers through his hair to comfort him, but I held myself back. "Imelda and I will never happen. I want you to know you never have to worry about that" he looked up at me once again trying to read how I was feeling. At this moment I didn't exactly know what to say. I didn't want to give away how I felt but at the same time I wondered if he would admit to the same feelings.

     "When I saw it, I ran. I felt as if I had been betrayed Sebastian. Imelda seems to have it out for me, so seeing you and her together, hurt. Especially since I consider you to be one of the few people I trust" I explain to him hoping that it isn't too obvious that I was actually just extremely jealous and had developed feelings of some sort for him. I let out a sigh and reach my hand out to Sebastian, resting it on his right shoulder. He looked into my eyes as I did this and leaned towards me. I immediately felt my heart pound, was he going to kiss me?! I closed my eyes as Sebastian's lips gently pecked me on the top of the head.

    "I could never betray you" He whispered into my ear sending goosebumps throughout my body, "...don't ever forget that".  I opened my eyes to see him stand up again. "I can go get Ominous now if you want, I know you wanted him here". He walks towards the drapes and peaks through them. I stop him before he can leave.

     "I do enjoy Ominous's friendship... but I only said that because I was pissed at you" I laugh a little as he quickly turns around to face me again, this time his mischievous grin is upon his face causing his freckles to scrunch up a bit.

    "Ryzmec you are trouble, you know that? I genuinely thought you'd rather be with Ominous than with me. I was a little hurt" he jokes as he clenches a hand against his chest pretending that it hurt where his heart resided. "When your ankle is healed, I want to take you somewhere" he walked back over sitting in the chair once more. My heart began to race at the thought of being alone with Sebastian tonight.

   "Will it get us in trouble if we are caught?" I ask, grinning back at him.

    "Most definitely" Sebastian smirked.

    "Then count me in"