Past the Tipping Point

\ Chapter 22 /

The group had settled in the nearby diner, just down the street from Rebecca's apartment. They knew she had to have been awake by then, but wanted to give her some time to sit with her decisions and think about them.

They didn't like to relate to dealing with Rebecca's antics like you would a toddler, but sometimes, on the wrong day, it was hard to differentiate the two. It was an especially sore spot for Pamela.

She knew what Rebecca was like beforehand. Probably more so than anyone else, even Colby. How vibrant and full of life she was. How determined and ambitious she could be. Pamela knew that woman was still inside of Rebecca somewhere, she just hoped they could pull her out before something irreversible happened.

They waited a while, they knew her reaction could vary, and selfishly they didn't want to face the brunt of things. But when Rebecca hadn't contacted any of them or left her apartment, they began to feel worried, no matter their best efforts not to.

"Maybe you blinked and missed her?" Pamela shifted uncomfortably, turning to look behind her.

"Pam, I'm facing the fucking doors." Joseph pointed out, his arms crossed on the table in front of them. "If she left, I would've seen her."

"Woah man chill out." Jonathan raised an eyebrow. "Stop being bitter because she trusted him again."

Joseph waved him off. "She was definitely drunk."

"Doesn't make it mean less." He shrugged, gaining a half nod from Mercedes. "Drunk actions are sober thoughts, my friend."

"Maybe we should go back." Pamela insisted, shaking her head. "Something doesn't feel right."

Jonathan chuckled slightly. "She's a grown woman. She can deal with the repercussions of her actions."

"I know." Pamela couldn't help but entertain the scenarios running through her mind. "But something... something still feels off."

"You're just getting into your own head." Mercedes rested a hand on hers gently. "Everything's fine."

Her eyes bounced between the doors to Rebecca's apartment building and the group by her. She let out a deep breath and stood abruptly. "I'm going."

She rushed out and Mercedes started to follow her, but Jonathan shook his head. "Don't."

"She's gotta see for herself." Joseph agreed with Jonathan. "It's gotta soak in."

While Mercedes looked between them, Jonathan continued. "Pam has to learn that Rebecca can function without her around twenty-four-seven."

"She'll see Rebecca's fine and will hopefully take a few steps back." Joseph added with a nod.

"Sounds like wishful thinking to me." Mercedes raised an eyebrow, and she reluctantly sat back down. "You know how Rebecca is."

Pamela knew the group would most likely be right, but she still couldn't shake the feeling rattling her bones. When she entered through the unlocked apartment door and saw Rebecca on the ground with Colby hovering over her, however, she knew she was unfortunately right.

"Colby?" She tried to take it all in. His hand pressed against her chest, his ear to her mouth. "What..."

"Her heartbeat... I can't, I can't feel it." Tears poured from his eyes as he struggled to breathe. "I can't feel her."

Jonathan and Joseph did their best to assure Mercedes it'd all work out, and it seemed to be working well until she got a call from Rebecca's number. She put it on speaker with a raised brow so the guys could hear and immediately regretted it.

"She's... I-" Her words were muffled by her cries and she could barely piece anything together.

"Pam?" Mercedes shot up, grabbing her phone, and they all immediately started heading in her direction. "What's going on?"

"She's not breathing." Pamela sounded like she was hyperventilating, only being able to speak after five failed attempts. "We can't get her to breathe."

The trio barged into Rebecca's apartment shortly after, and froze at the scene of Rebecca splayed out on the floor, glass everywhere and red wine spilled across the floor.

They saw Colby in the midst of trying to perform CPR on her, with Pamela beside him crying hysterically, sitting back on her legs and pushing her hair back in exhaustion and devastation. Joseph swiftly directed Pamela to the other two.

"Help her." He ordered them while shoving Colby aside harshly to take his place, promptly performing CPR at a rapid and aggressive pace. "Come on, Rebecca."

Colby was too exhausted to even fight Joseph to take his place, and Jonathan guided Pamela to the couch and faced her away from the scene. Yet Mercedes couldn't help but stay grounded in her place, like watching a train wreck.

She heard a foreign voice speak up again and noticed Pamela's phone on the floor with the police's phone number displayed. She then noticed a small and opened bag on the table next to Rebecca, full of different shaped and coloured pills, some crushed and some intact. It didn't take her long to connect all of the dots after that.

"She was perfectly fine a few hours ago." Jonathan must've snuck up behind Mercedes while she was zoned out. "What the fuck?"

"I told you." Mercedes responded halfheartedly, her vision blurring, watching Joseph give her mouth-to-mouth as a last attempt. "You know how Rebecca is."

"I know. But..." Jonathan trailed off, not knowing how to continue.

"Come on!" Joseph moved back to chest compressions and almost lost his stride the moment he heard a bone crack beneath his hands. "Wave the paramedics down, Jon! Now!"

His regular cold expression was full of tears as he tried desperately to bring his friend back to life. Just when he felt his arms burning and his body overcome with exhaustion, thinking all hope was lost, two paramedics were on the scene.

Then the rest of the group was forced to sit back and watch a lifeless Rebecca get shocked by a defibrillator, giving in turn, absolutely no response of life.