Quantum Entanglement ~ Tamber

Chapter 10

The light pierced her eyes, stabbing daggers through the back of her skull. It was easier to keep them closed, but she needed to see if she was alone. Turning her head made the pain worse – made acid rise in her throat. All she could do was grit her teeth in pain and try to keep turning her head to see.

It didn't take long to find Amber perched on the chair beside her. She was sitting in the way that Tara had often teased her for being like "manspreading." She looked pensive and worried, hugging one leg to her chest and chewing at her nails. When she casually glanced over and noticed Tara's eyes were open, her demeanor totally changed. She stood up and rushed to her side.

"Angel! You're awake! How do you feel?"

She gave a thumbs down, her throat still feeling too raw from the tubing they'd placed to administer the anesthesia.

"Do you need a nurse? Water? What do you need?"

The smaller girl and closed her eyes. There was no way to explain exactly what she needed. She needed answers – needed to know exactly what happened and just confirm how much of what happened Amber was involved in.

She pointed to a glass of water she could see next to Amber. The taller girl understood and retrieved it, holding it up to her lips until she turned her head away.

"Thanks," she rasped. "How long have you been here?"

"All night. I couldn't leave you." Her eyes sought out Tara's, wide and filled with sorrow. "I'm so sorry."

Looking into her eyes made Tara want to cry. This was the girl she loved and trusted. She knew the attack was coming eventually, but she still had so many questions. And somehow, the stab wounds hurt worse this time around.

"Why?" was all she could ask, because she had to start somewhere.

"It was part of the plan," she said quietly, hanging her head in shame. "To bring home Sam." She reached out her hand to touch the smaller girl but withdrew it, unsure if she was allowed to touch the girl anymore.

"Why did you stab me?" Her voice broke as she asked it, sounding small and helpless. She could feel her eyes already starting to fill with tears, an inevitability at this point. She was a puppy having just been kicked, still desperate to be loved by its abuser.

Amber's eyes widened and she shook her head animatedly. "Baby, I'm not the one who stabbed you. I found you, remember? I promise it wasn't me."

She did remember – vaguely. She recalled being stabbed and looking up to see her girlfriend standing over her, but she wasn't wearing her mask or robe. Was she yelling at someone?

"Richie?" she croaked out.

The taller girl nodded and tried to reach out again. She gripped the side of the bed instead, unsure if Tara was ready to be touched. "I'm so sorry. It's my fucking fault."

"How?"

"He wanted me to do it, but I couldn't."

"Why?"

Amber swallowed hard and looked up at the ceiling. Tara knew her well enough to know she was trying to get her voice to even out, because she'd cry otherwise. The girl hated showing vulnerability, but Tara had seen it in her a million times or more.

"When we started making the plan, I was supposed to be the one who attacked you," she confessed. Her voice still broke and cracked in certain parts, but she breathed through it.

"You did attack me the first time," Tara said drowsily.

The look of confusion her girlfriend shot her didn't go unnoticed. "No sweetheart, it was Richie, but it was supposed to be me. I was supposed to hurt you."