Heart Key (#Wattys2016)

Chapter 29: Church Bells

Song: Church Bells

By: Carrie Underwood

I lay in the back of Chloe's truck, attempting to stop the tears that refuse to quit. "We're almost there." Blake says calmly as he looks at me in the rear-view mirror, a flash of concern as he sees that I'm still bleeding. I make the mistake of looking down to see the bleeding scratches and nearly throw up as I lean back, letting out a groan.

"I'm sorry, beautiful. We'll be there soon." He says, worry breaking into his tone, and not helping with the mass panic and pain levels flooding my mind. In a fetal attempt to make a joke I grunt out, "Stop with the weird pet names." He lets out a slightly relieved chuckle as he glances at me once more.

"I just call them like I see them princess." I let out a shaky laugh before letting my head fall back against the car door. We ride in silence for a few more moments until he stops abruptly, jolting my head and causing me to let out yet another groan of pain.

"I'm sorry, beautiful. I was trying to be quick." He tells me as he opens the door at my feet. I nod in reply, biting at the inside of my cheek as he reaches in and lifts me up once more. I wince at the movement and fresh tears spring into my eyes but I blink them away as I look around to discover a suburban neighborhood with matching two-story houses lining the street. 

I look around in surprise at the thought of Blake even setting foot here, but he looks around with an uninterested look as if this is an everyday occurrence as he walks up to one of the houses and kicks the door with his foot. I hear some rustling on the other side of the door before it's open and a little boy is standing in front of us with wide eyes.

"Blake! You're back! We can play Pokemon now!" The little boy shouts in excitement and I can't help but laugh with Blake at the little kid's obliviousness to the situation we're in. "Sorry Luke, I can't right now. We'll play later." Blake tells him as he carefully slips around him, carrying me deeper into the house.

I bite my lip and squeeze my eyes shut as Blake walks, jolting the pain with each movement. He carries me through the living room and through another door to a kitchen where a woman stands stirring a large pot of something while the smell of something else burning fills the air. 

I look up at Blake who looks like he's about say something when a shrill buzzer goes off, causing both me and Blake to jump a bit, hurting me in turn. "The pie." I hear her murmur as she leans down and opens the oven to reveal a black lump, which I assume was supposed to be the pie.

I watch her set it down on the counter, turning off the oven and shutting it before turning to stare at the charred remains of what once was considered food. She stares at it and I faintly hear her say, "I'm sure Luke won't mind that it's a tad blackened." I laugh softly at that before wincing as a jolting pain racks through me once more.

"Aunt Dee, I need your help." Blake says and his aunt immediately jolts in surprise as she whips around, her curly, black hair flying everywhere as it comes back to hit her face. "Goodness child! You scared me! I could've have a heart attack!" She exclaims before finally noticing me.

Her face turns serious and she quickly turns off the stove before taking a towel and leading us into a bedroom. She quickly lays out the towel before motioning for him to lay me down. I let out a cry of pain as the glass digs in even deeper and Blake winces at the sound.

"How did this happen?" His aunt asks softly as she starts pulling out her first aid kit. Blake chews on his lip nervously as he kneels beside me before looking back at her. "She fell into the glass of a busted window." He's only telling half of what happened and I can tell his aunt knows this too but she remains silent as she lays out everything she needs. 

As soon as she finishes preparing she turns back to Blake. "Leave the room and play with Luke. I will have to check her to see if there's any more glass on the rest of her body and you can't be in here for that." She tells him and he nods before casting me one more worried look and leaving, shutting the door on his way out.

Once he's gone she comes closer to me and offers a gentle smile as her eyes scan me for any more injury. "I'm sorry sweetie but I'm going to have to take out all the glass so it doesn't get infected and then disinfect it. All of that is going to hurt really bad and I don't have anything to numb the pain or put you under with. I promise it'll be worth it, but it may be complete torture." I stare up at her fearfully and she lets out a sigh before kneeling beside me and stroking my hair soothingly. 

"I wanted you to know what was about to happen so you could face it with courage. You will be alright and I'll be as quick as possible. I won't allow anything bad to happen to you." She tells me softly, looking me straight in the eye the entire time and helping to calm my nerves tremendously. 

"Thank you." I croak out through the pain and she smiles in return before walking over and grabbing a pair of tweezers. She turns back to me and a needlepoint of dread drives into my heart and I begin to fear her movements greatly as she comes back to me.

"Let's get this over with." She mutters softly as she reaches to the first piece of glass in my skin. The pain hits me hard and I fell my vision darken as I let out a loud groan before passing out.

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I wake with a jolt as a dull ache hits me and I let out a small sigh at the relief it brings compared to when I had last been awake. I look down at my body to see myself wearing different clothes. I have a baggy T-shirt and shorts that reach down past my knees and bandages wrapped around any exposed skin from my neck to my ankles. 

I can feel the sting of the cuts rub against the bandages every now and then, reminding me of their presence as I slowly come into a sitting position, looking around at my surroundings as I do. I remember the room from when I had been brought in. It's cream walls surround me with one small window over the nightstand that stands beside the bed. 

A dresser stands against the opposite wall and I can see some clothes peeking out of the drawers. There are two doors, one on either side of the dresser. The one to the right is fully open, revealing an en suite bathroom while the other is only cracked, revealing only a sliver of the couch in the living room.

I look down at the bed to see a slightly bloodstained towel where I had been laying before pushing myself to stand. I immediately fall back down as the stinging pain on the bottoms of my feet make me grunt in pain. 

Man, I got cut up bad. I think just as the door leading out of the room opens, revealing a worried Blake. The sight of him brings chills to my spine at the memory of what happened before the glass as I stare at him worriedly. 

What's he going to do? Do I need to run? How am I supposed to run with the scratches? Does he know I can't run? My thoughts race through my head as he comes to sit beside me, offering me a relieved smile. "I'm glad you're awake. How are you feeling?" He asks softly and I return his smile with a nervous one.

"I'm feeling better. Just a little sore." I tell him softly and he nods in understanding, his eyes never leaving my face. I make the mistake of meeting them with my own and am immediately hit with that unknown emotion once more as he seems to dive deep into my eyes, reading all of my thoughts.

We stay in this little staring match for a good few minutes before he finally says, "You should probably get something to eat now. You've been asleep since yesterday." I feel my eyes widen as I put a hand over my mouth. 

"I missed another day of school!" I whisper-shout in disbelief and he laughs in response. "You fall into a pile of glass and that's what you're so concerned about?" He asks with an amused smile and I quickly nod. "Education's important." I tell him and he nods with a small smile as he stands before leaning and picking me up.

"Yeah, but so are you."