Danger Love Ahead

Chapter Twenty-One: Suffer

(Brandon's version)

Hours had passed and still I had heard no word. I paced impatiently infront of April's room like someone possessed. As much as I was sure I didn't deserve that brunt of anger from her, I was angry at myself for having caused it. She had amnesia! I shouldn't have expected her to accept me so easily... "I HATE YOU!" Hell, how those words hurt. I folded my hands behind my head and sighed.

"Can you cut that out?" Kenny's small firm voice cut into my thoughts. I stopped pacing and looked at him, lowering my hands in defeat. 

"How many more hours do we have to wait!?" I almost yelled. However, I kept a neutral volume to avoid unleashing the scary receptionist. I glanced at Mrs.Summer's apologetically at my outburst but the woman was looking at her watch in confusion. Dave spoke up.

"Dude, it hasn't even been an hour?"

"Exactly 54 minutes now," Mrs.Summers agreed tapping her watch. I frowned. I was sure that hours had passed.

"You need to relax-" Am stopped when I glared at her. RELAX!? Was she mad? "I mean...April wouldn't want-"

"She wouldn't want me here," I interrupted bitterly. "Or didn't you hear? She HATES ME!" They all opened their mouths to say something but closed it as a middle-aged man in a white coat walked out of April's room. He had on millions of identification cards around his neck and I wondered how his stethoscope didn't get tangled.

"Well??" I asked wanting to throttle the doctor for taking his own dear time walking towards us. Not even flinching at my harshness, he surveyed us for a moment before speaking.

"She seems to believe that the young man here had done something terrible..." he paused and glanced at me critically. I met his eyes head on trying to mentally tell him to get on with it. "She won't say anymore and she was clearly distraught. We had to stabilize her and considering the pain all that movement and stress has caused...we gave her morphine."

"So basically, I caused it?" I asked. Without waiting for his answer I whipped away to leave. If April found out I was still here when she came around, she would blow up again and won't heal at any rate. I couldn't let that happen. The outside breeze hit me like a boulder. I stepped back at the impact, the reality of all that happened finally making itself known. Maybe April's suffering was my fault? Her life at Graham was hell because of me. I remembered how weeks ago, Kira and I quarreled in the cafeteria. April had been absent for while due to her seizures which I hadn't known about then.

"I never took you for one who did CHARITY!" Kira yelled. The cafe had gone quiet to watch the drama unfolding in front of them. Dave stood twitching beside me but because it was my fight, said nothing. Kira's friends on the other hand were all for cheering her on with loud "YEAH!"'s.

"The only charity case I had was you, Kira!" I had growled. "You were so desperate to have me...I felt I had to do something." That earned an "ooo" from Dave and the crowd. "Now I have something that's real so why don't you get out of your fantasies for once and get a life. And I don't want to be a part of that life."

"YOU DON'T MEAN THAT!" She had yelled but she was almost in pieces. Not yet though. She couldnt let her weakness show. "YOU'RE JUST CONFUSED-"

"You're being desperate again."

"IM DESPERATE!? THAT LITTLE...SKANK WALTZES IN HERE WITH A SPLIT WANNA BE HANNAH MONTANA PERSONALITY!!" She had screeched. "The gick and the cheerleader!! I had to make you SEE WHAT A DORK SHE REALLY IS! She's JUST PLAYING YOU....ITS LIKE SHE NEEDS ATTENTION OR SOMETHING..." I felt the muscle tick on my cheek and felt Dave's restraining arm. "Now she's ABSENT AND HAS THE WHOLE SCHOOL HYPED ABOUT WHAT WAS WRONG...PLEAAAZE!! ATTENTION SEEKER!" The school laughed and Dave's hand tightened on my hand. He whispered something but I didnt here.

"She's not the one yelling in the cafeteria for everyone to hear," I pointed out keeping the feral warning in my voice. "She isnt the one always skipping into the gymn just to stare at the guys...too pathetic to make the cheerleader squad-"

"SHUT UP!"

"April's first day and she was in.."

"APRIL APRIL APRIL, ITS ALWAYS HER!!"

"Whereas you...been here all your life and cant even survive a toe touch..." She screeched loudly already in tears and instantly, Dave relaxed his grip.

"YOU'RE GOING TO REGRET PICKING HER-"

"ARE YOU THREATENING ME?" I had lost it. All of the male cheerleaders were quick to jump to her defense. 

"STAY BACK STATES!" they warned but I was ready to bust their heads off.

"ADMIT IT BRANDON!! APRIL WILL SUFFER IF SHE DATES YOU! SCHOOL PLAYER-"

"IM NOT A PLAYER-"

"WITH A PSYCO BEST FRIEND AND A HOT EX-GIRLFRIEND WHO WOULD RIP HER EYES OUT WHEN-"

"Psyco best-friend?" I asked confused. Kira's eyes shot to Dave then back to me.

"If you ask me, April belongs with Dave," she stated. "Both a little loopy...what with all that Therapy sessio-ARGH!!" We lunged at her then. A big fight broke out and of-course the teachers had to get involved. 

I shook out of my thoughts and trudged to Dave's vehicle. He was in the driver's seat a few minutes later and without speaking a word, started the engine and headed towards my house. I wanted to hit something right at that instant. Kira was right. April suffered.