Before They Get You

PROLOGUE PART TWO

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。

She Sat There, Alone And Cold, On The
mattress that lay on the hardwood floor. Shaking, whimpering, and regretful. She had just swallowed a bottle of aspirin and she cried. Lying down in the blankets, shivering, she spoke into the phone.

Her friend, Caleb, sat on the other end listening to her mistake. She stared up at the ceiling, begging for forgiveness from God. Even if she had not been religious, she pleaded.

Her mother was gone for the fair, along with her sister and grandfather. But there she stayed, too depressed to go out with them. She waited for the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs, the keys jamming into the lock of the door.

Minutes, she waited, crying, feeling sick to her stomach. Ears ringing and fingers trembling. "I gotta go. Please, be safe, Ash," Caleb told her before hanging up. She sobbed harder at the loneliness.

Finally, after moments of darkness, chilled air, and quick breaths, keys jangled. Her eyes drowsy, she wiped her tears, grabbed her phone, and tried to act normal. First, her sister, Liz, came in.

She undressed in front of Ashlynn, changed into pajamas, and walked back out of the room.

Hours later, her mother came in to sleep. Ash crawled out of bed, climbed to the top of the bunk bed she shared with Liz, and held her stomach, wondering if she should tell her mother.

At one a.m., she finally did it. She stood with shaking legs, and walked over to her mother, kneeling down on the bed. "Mom," she whispered, over and over until she awoke. Her mother stared at her blankly until Ash spoke up.

She didn't. She reached beside her mother and grabbed the empty pill bottle. Shaking it in front of her mom, no sound echoed. "Yeah, I noticed that too." Her mother said, confused. Ash opened her mouth to speak, but the tears came first.

"Did you..?" Her mother started. Ashlynn nodded, sobbing.

Her friends convinced her to tell her mother. Caleb, Mia, and pigeon. Well, technically Jeremy, but she called him pigeon. Her pigeon, she thought.

"Okay." Her mother stood quickly. "Stay here, I'm going to get you some water," she said, frantically. She came back with a bottle of water and four activated charcoal pills. Ashlynn took the pills, her throat almost rejecting them after all the pills she took early.

Tears streamed down her face as her mother handed her sweatpants to change into and dialed the local doctor's emergency room. "Take her to the hospital," they said. That only made Ash feel worse.

As she sniffles, she tied her shoes and listened to her grandfather snore on her mothers bed. "Dad," her mom whispered. "I'm taking Ash to the emergency room." He nodded off with a groggy, "okay," and continued his sleep.

The walk to the car was one of the worst parts. Her mother insisted on holding her shaken hand, making sure she drank lots of water.

The door slammed shut, and the keys were put into the ignition. "Why did you do it?" Her mother asked with tears welling up in her eyes. "Were you trying to kill yourself?" Her mother sobbed. Ashlynn nodded.

The drive began and it was silent. Her mother holding Ash's hand, telling her to drink water.

Ash took out her phone and texted her friends.

She's taking me to the hospital, she tells them. Good, they tell her. She couldn't stop crying. Couldn't stop shaking. Her knees bounced up and down against the mat as she stared out the window, watching as the city passed by her.

Her mother found parking once she arrived and rushed Ashlynn inside. They walked through the quiet halls until they reached the check in room. The nurses took her weight, her blood pressure, and asked her questions.

They brought her a wheel chair and wheeled her into a room where she would be put on an IV. They sanitized and pricked her skin, drew blood and cleaned her up. But before they could, she watched the blood go through the tube. The blood fall onto the towel below her arm.

They took her phone, her clothes, and her jewelry. She changed into orange scrubs and they asked her more questions. She was calm during this part. Her mother stopped crying, so did she.

It was the worst night she had ever had.

Please, God, if you are listening, I am sorry.

·:*¨༺     ★      ༻¨*:·.
Authors Note:
This is my first Non-Fiction book! I'm hoping that non-fiction will help me write more because it's my story and I know it well. It should come easier to me so I'm hoping I continue this at least twice a week.
Thank you all so much for supporting me on 'He's Just That Into You'! I know I haven't been writing as much but I really want to.

★Word Count: 820★