SOUL

post accident fight

December 1st, 2014

Mary sat in the hard plastic chair outside the hospital room, her hands trembling uncontrollably in her lap. The metallic scent of blood clung to her skin, the feeling of Leo's lifeless weight still fresh in her arms. His blood had soaked through her clothes, smeared across her hands and face as she had pulled him from the wreckage. She glanced down at her hands, shaking so badly they were a blur. The deep red of his blood had dried, cracking across her skin, a morbid reminder of the night she couldn't escape.

The hospital buzzed around her—nurses rushing down the hall, doctors barking orders—but she didn't hear any of it. She couldn't. All she could focus on was Leo's room, the sterile white door separating them. She'd been sitting there for hours, waiting. Waiting for his Dad to arrive, waiting for any news. Waiting for him to wake up.

She had tried to wash the blood off earlier, but it felt like it was still there, like it had seeped into her skin, staining her forever. She'd scrubbed her hands raw in the hospital bathroom, the water running red for what felt like an eternity, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't shake the feeling that his blood was still clinging to her. Every time she looked at her hands, they felt dirty, heavy with the weight of what had happened.

Her heart lurched painfully in her chest when she finally saw his Dad rush through the hall, their faces pale and panicked. She stood up, her legs weak, barely able to support her as Roy James grips her forearms.

"what's happened?" he asks

"a car accident, he's alive but the others - they're gone" she whispers

"Jesus Christ," he says, rushing inside the room.

Mary stayed outside for a while, her mind a blur of guilt, pain, and exhaustion. She'd saved him, but at what cost? Three people were dead, and Leo might never be the same. And worse than all of it—he wouldn't even know she had been the one to pull him from the wreckage, to hold him as the world collapsed around them. He wouldn't know she had tried.

Eventually, after what felt like hours, she couldn't stay away any longer. She needed to see him, to make sure he was truly alive. She pushed open the door quietly and stepped inside, her heart pounding in her chest.

Leo lay in the hospital bed, his body wrapped in bandages, his face bruised and swollen. He looked fragile, broken, and the sight of him like that made her stomach twist with guilt and sorrow. His parents were seated on either side of him, gripping his hands tightly, their eyes red from crying. Mary stayed back, unsure if she should even be there.

As if sensing her presence, Leo's eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, he stared at her in confusion. Then recognition flickered across his face, followed by something dark, something sharp.

"Mary?" he croaked, his voice raw, barely above a whisper.

She stepped closer, her heart thudding painfully. "I... I just wanted to see if you were okay," she whispered, her voice trembling. She didn't know what else to say. What could she say? She had tried to warn him. She had done everything she could, but in the end, it hadn't been enough.

Leo's gaze hardened, his jaw clenching. "Why are you here?"

The coldness in his voice sent a chill down her spine. She blinked, taken aback. "I—I"

"spit it out!"

"I didn't want this to happen"

"Didn't want what?" he interrupted, his voice louder now, filled with anger. "You didn't want this to happen? Is that what you're saying?"

Mary's breath caught in her throat. "I—I tried to warn you..."

Leo let out a bitter laugh, but it quickly turned into a grimace as pain shot through his body. "You tried to warn me? Yeah, well, you didn't warn them, did you?" His eyes flashed with something close to hatred, and Mary felt her stomach drop.