Do You Read Me?

Chapter 4--Winter Resurfacing

Robbie was weak...and Johnny was heavy--the feat he’d just accomplished might as well have ripped his arms off. On his knees in the mud and rain, he found himself shaking violently, from his head all the way down to his feet. His heart was pounding, perhaps enough to break out of his chest--at least, that was how it seemed.; In turn, he couldn’t seem to get enough air--no matter how many times he took a breath he seemed to need even more after that, and he just couldn’t stop; He realized he was hyperventilating again.

His hands noticeably quivering, he examined them. He was shocked at their condition: absolutely unharmed. Yet, only minutes ago, he had been using them to handle fire.

He turned and spotted Johnny face-down on the concrete. He appeared to be breathing, which at least meant he was alive--but what was more, his skin also lacked a sign of any burn or any other trace of the flame. He had no blisters or burns of any kind, as would have been expected. Johnny’s breathing appeared to just be getting down to normal.

When Robbie glanced behind them at the affected bus, he was just in time to see the last licks of flame die out, as if all on their own accord. As he looked around, no one seemed to notice. No one was even looking their way. Some of the kids were trying to get Mr. Burman, the bus driver, to come to; Others were on the phone, probably with parents, or the authorities. The rest were talking to each other in a low murmur that blended  into one lulling sound. Had no one even noticed that Robbie and Johnny were gone?

Just as that moment crossed his mind, Melissa pushed through the crowd to prove him wrong, trying to reach her best friend. She found Robbie in an unstable state of mind. He was freaked about something, but he was having trouble explaining why. It might have been expected from what had just happened to him, but there was something else, something that Robbie couldn’t have even begun to explain.

“Omigosh, are you guys ok?” Melissa squeaked, rightly sounding frightened. “Why isn’t Johnny moving? Is he hurt?”

“We-I think...I just….we, the--” Robbie was stuttering along in his unstable state of mind, stumbling around his hyperventilation.

Melissa threw her arms around him sympathetically, and tried to calm him down with tenderness and a gentle voice; Meanwhile, Johnny was finally coming back down to Earth.

Finally, Johnny summed up the courage to push himself off of his face and onto his knees. Dizzy, he put his hand on his head as if to steady it. He had a bad scrape on his brow, and crimson blood rushed from his nose in a double river all down the lower half of his face. He seemed to be fine otherwise.

“Johnny, are you alright?” Melissa inquired, slowly pulling away from Robbie.

“I...I’m fine, I guess. I’m feeling a little out of it, though…” He mumbled, slowly getting onto his feet.

Robbie, who was finally starting to breathe right, could only stare at him in sheer wonder.  He squeezed Melissa’s hand a bit, hoping her presence could somehow help him make sense of things.

“You mean...You’re completely fine?” Melissa asked in disbelief.

Johnny laughed, as well as he could with a bloody nose. “Well. I’m going to have a hard time grieving over my favorite shirt...it was completely fried, as you can see.” He shivered. “Speaking of, does anyone happen to have a jacket I could wear? I’m freezing!”

Robbie’s hoodie has survived the incident, so, silently, he handed it over.

“Thanks,” Johnny acknowledged with a smile, starting to pull it on.

“...You’re welcome.” Robbie managed flatly. “And um...your nose is bleeding, by the way.”

Johnny touched his nose in surprise. “No kidding! It’s gushing.”