Still Alive - Adam Stanheight

Chapter 9

The two have been mainly silent on their walk home. Adam continues to cry quietly, although he feels almost relieved that he never has to worry about his parents again. He mainly feels guilty though. As much of a fake person his mother is, he still cares about her deeply and maybe cutting her off was irrational.

All these thoughts cause Adam to spiral into panic. His breathing increases rapidly as he holds his hand to his chest in agony. Brielle notices straight away. "Holy shit are you alright?"

Adam nods even though he is certainly not okay. "It's just a panic attack," he tries to say, but it comes out as a breathless sob.

Brielle grabs his hand and brings him to a nearby tree. She has him sit down as his panic and anguish increase. She softly places her hands on his shoulder and tells him to look at her in the eyes. "Breathe with me, okay?" She demonstrates her slow breathing technique. Adam tries to copy it but it is not easy for him. Everything that has happened to him in the past few weeks replays in his head on a loop. It is too much to handle.

"Fuck!" he cries, unable to even think clearly anymore. His panic becomes so intense that it almost scares Brielle. "Adam, it's okay. I'm right here."

Those words mean nothing in the midst of all his turmoil. That's when Brielle gasps in shock, after thinking of another technique she knew about to calm him down. If this didn't work, it'll be hard to sleep at night with the embarrassment.

Brielle leans closer to Adam which he doesn't notice immediately. "Adam?" she then whispers, trying to catch his attention. Once she has, she cups her hand on his cheek and gently presses her lips against his.

Adam's eyes widen in shock. His heart thumps even more but it blends into the affection quickly. The anxiety gradually leaves him as Brielle kisses him, leading him to close his eyes and kiss her back softly.

Brielle anxiously parts, hoping to God that it worked. Her stomach explodes looking into the boy's eyes as she realises that she's wanted to do that for a long time. Adam is looking at her confused, although he feels the exact same way.

"I'm sorry," Brielle says with humiliation. "I've heard that a slap or a kiss are good ways to break a panic attack and I didn't wanna slap you so...."

Adam lets out one last shaky breath before a slight smile forms on his lips. "That's okay. I could get used to that."

The two of them chuckle as Brielle helps Adam to his feet. "You sure you're okay?" she double-checks. "Yeah," Adam replies with more certainty. He wipes a few excess tears off his face and then takes out a lighter and cigarette from his pocket. "I'm just gonna have this to make sure. Sorry."

Brielle shakes her head. "I told you, you don't have to be sorry for smoking if it helps. It's not like you do it to fit in like every other person I know."

Adam lights the cigarette and smokes it almost as happily as he did in the bathroom. It mainly takes that last bit of panic away, although it didn't beat Brielle's method.

"I've been trying to quit but it never works out. God, I'm such a piece of work."

Brielle smiles with sympathy as Adam throws his cigarette into the disposal. He pops a breath mint into his mouth to get rid of the smoky scent.

"I'm guessing your parents told you that. Well, you can forget about them," Brielle tells him. "You don't have to feel guilty for that. I saw exactly how they treated you and I think you had every right to cut them off."

Adam smiles as he definitely needed to hear that. "I'm so lucky to have you."

Brielle nods at the compliment as her head turns to the faded sound of music coming from a nearby bar.

"Since we're still dressed up and all...would you like to see what's happening over there? Maybe even get a drink?"

Adam doesn't even hesitate. "I'd love to. Anything to distract me from this fucking night."

***

Adam and Brielle are three drinks in but don't plan to have more. They're not drunk but their humour tolerances are much higher than normal. Brielle was extremely relieved to see Adam let his guard down a bit and have a laugh despite the shitty events earlier.

"This band reminds me of my buddy Scott's band," Adam tells Brielle, as they watch the performing band in the bar perform some Radiohead songs.

"He was the lead guitarist and singer, except he couldn't sing at all. All his band-mates wanted to tell him but they were too nice. Then one night I was selling tickets at their mini-concert and I decided to be brutally honest with him before he went on stage. I still think he hasn't forgiven me but at the same time I prevented his band from failing and he knows it."

Brielle giggles. "Is that the same guy who stabbed you with a nail on your 6th Birthday?"

"Yep, I've probably told you every story I have about him already. Scott Tibbs was one chaotic guy," Adam replies. "I mean I can't blame him. His parents were also lunatics. They were a part of Scientology I believe."

"Now they're people I'd wanna have a conversation with," Brielle jokes.

The two joke around in the bar for another hour and then decide to go home around midnight. On route to Brielle's apartment, they both don't notice that they've entered a dark alleyway.

"Oh shit, places like these are where people get murdered in the movies," Adam remarks a little spooked.

"Don't worry," Brielle then says after recognising the area. "This way is actually a shortcut."

They proceed to make their way down the alley until they sense a loud bang of a door from in front of them. Somebody wearing a black cloak with their face covered emerges from afar. "I swear if it's fucking Ghostface," Brielle jokes nervously.

That's when Adam gets a closer look. He can tell that the man under the cloak is elderly.

That's when the man takes off his hood for a split second to check his surroundings. Adam holds in a gasp, finally realising who it is. Once the man goes back through the brass door, Adam sprints down to get a closer look, carefully staying out of view.

"Holy shit," Adam repeats under his breath with nerves but also triumph.

"What is it?" Brielle asks catching up to him.

"We just found Jigsaw's headquarters."