Riptide (An Emblem3 Fanfic)

Chapter 10

I shot up in bed. Maybe it was just a branch or something-. Ting. There it was again. I walked past Adrianna who was sound asleep. When I reached the window I was completely shocked.

"Drew!?" I was too confused to think. "Uh what are you doing here?" At that moment Wes peeked out from behind the corner. He had his typical cute smile on his lips.

"Heeeeyyy." He said. I couldn't help but smile, the idea of him being here was just too funny.

"Haha really guys? Throwing pebbles at my window? That's kind of cliché don't you think?" I tried my hardest not to laugh. This was serious. Wes had hurt me. He had betrayed me. I looked back down at them. Even though it was midnight, they were still dressed for the beach. They were both wearing tanks with baggy board shorts. The colors matched pretty well, it was kind of adorable. Focus Avery. Focus.

"What do you guys want anyway?" I sounded kind of impatient, but they didn't seem to notice. Wes looked at Drew and nodded. Before I knew it, Drew was lifting Wes up onto his shoulders. I watched them with disbelief. Before I knew it, Wesley was at my eye level, swiveling from side to side slightly.

"Dude your lucky I can bench more than your weight." Drew said, his voice slightly strained. Wes grabbed hold of the windowsill to keep from tipping over. 

"Hey." There was that smile again. He's got to stop doing that. It gets me every time.

Slightly exhausted, I locked eyes with him. "What do you want Wes?"

"Your forgiveness." His stare was so intense it freaked me out a little. His forwardness caught me off guard.

"Uhhm... uhh..." He just looked at me intently. I finally thought of something to say. "Listen Wes, I- I just can't trust you. Not yet." 

"I understand. I really tried to turn my life around, I'm not usually the kind of person that you saw that night. Please. You know that really wasn't me. Kissing that girl was a mistake, it didn't mean anything and I really hope that you'll find it in you to forgive me. I know it sounds crazy, but I really care a lot about what you think of me." He was telling the truth, I could see it in his eyes.

"Hey Wes, this is real cute and all man, but do you guys think you could hurry it up a little bit?" I saw Drew sweating and breathing hard on the ground and I didn't blame him. Wes had been standing on him for 7 minutes straight. Wesley grabbed my arm and looked at me again.

"Please, Avery." His voice sounded so desperate, so truthful. He really valued what I thought of him. I had to forgive him; he needed me in my life.

"Okay Wes, I forgive you." His eyes shined like he had just won the lottery. "But," I continued, "I can't trust you. Not yet." I bit my bottom lip and looked up at him nervously. He was surprisingly calm.

"I completely understand. I have to make it up to you before you can trust me again." He must have been nervous, because I saw him gnaw slightly on his bottom lip. I know him well enough that I can read his face like a book. 

"So, are we friends?" I asked him, trying to see where we stood.

"Were we more than friends before?" He wiggled his eyebrows and I could feel my face redden. I couldn't stop blushing. I was about to say something clever back to him like "no", but before I could say anything Wesley went tumbling out of the air. I saw him strewn across Drew on the lawn. They were both grumbling and moaning. I woke Adrianna and ran downstairs. Wesley had rolled off of Drew and was clenching his jaw tightly. Drew was sitting up and looked fine. We rushed over to Wesley's side.

"Oh my god! Wesley, are you okay?" I said worried. Drew crawled over to where Adrianna and I knelt. 

"I think his shoulder's dislocated!" Drew said. Adrianna was dialing 911, and the ambulance was there before we knew it. We all went into the ambulance. It was really hard for Drew to see Wes laying there like that. The paramedics had given him some really strong painkillers before resetting his shoulder, and they made him pass out. I couldn't watch either. When the paramedics popped his shoulder back into place, I couldn't bear to listen. Hearing Wes scream like that was terrifying. Looking back at him after it happened, I could see a few tears running down his face. When we got to the hospital, Wesley's mother and Keaton were already there. Drew had called them right when the ambulance came.

When visitors were finally allowed in to see him, Keaton and Laraine, the boys' mom went in first. Adrianna and I sat on both sides of Drew with our heads on his shoulders. As more time passed he started to freak out. Adrianna slipped her hand into his and he started to calm down.

When Laraine and Keaton emerged from the room, they looked completely relieved. "The paramedics were  not successfully able to reset his shoulder completely, but they did it soon enough that he's not going to need surgery. If he takes his medicine, he should be fine in 2 weeks." Laraine told us smiling slightly. "Oh and Drew?" she said, Drew's head snapped up. "Wesley has been asking for you.  You too Avery." she gestured at me. I gripped Drew's arm and we walked into the hospital room. 

To see Wes laying there, so powerless it was heart breaking. It hit Drew pretty hard too. "Dude this is all my fault." Drew said. "I should've tried to hold you up longer." He shook his head. It wasn't his fault that his body had failed him. Wes punched him in the arm lightly.

"Bro, there's nothing you could have done. Thanks for being there. Both of you." He saw me standing in the corner rocking back and forth on my heels. Drew looked over at me and then at Wes, and decided to leave.

"I'll uhh meet you guys outside." Drew said over his shoulder, exiting the room. Wes gave him a nod goodbye. I walked over to his bed and sat in the chair next to him. And then I couldn't help it. I burst into tears.

"Avery? Are you... crying?" He sounded kind of freaked out. He's never seen me cry before. He held his hand out in some effort to comfort me, but it hurt his arm too much.

"I just feel like it's all my fault. You were standing on Drew, talking to me." I said between sobs. At that moment the doctor came in with his team. A couple of nurses held Wes down while the doctor went to reset the rest of his shoulder. The screaming was ten times louder than it was before, and the tears started rolling again. I had to stop crying. I had to be strong. For him. I saw his arm laying there on the bed so I reached out and squeezed it. And that's where I stayed, until the doctors finished and gave him more painkillers. A few minutes later, he was passed out, still holding my hand.

I wasn't allowed to stay overnight at the hospital because I wasn't immediate family, so Drew offered to take Adrianna and I home. Before I left I gave Wes's hand a final squeeze and slipped it out of mine. He started fidgeting a little in his sleep, so I decided it was time to go. I softly pressed my lips to his forehead.

"Goodnight Wesley." I whispered to him