cemetery ☞ n.m

xviii

"how could this happen?" nate whispers to himself, running and running and not even daring to stop. "how could this happen?"

he remembers the look of fear on cameron's and gilinsky's faces when just nate's facial expression had changed during the conversation they were having, when he got a phone call. all he could remember.

all he could do at that point was get to her. he just wanted to see her and he wanted to hear  that she was okay. he wanted to be able to carry her over to his house, so she could meet cameron and gilinsky. he just wanted to hold her.

he just ran, and ran. he didn't stop. he didn't get tired. he didn't take a breath. because him taking a breath meant him lessening his own chances of seeing her.

"don't leave me," he whispers. "don't leave me."

in finally making it to the hospital, he ran over to the unconscious body the doctors were rushing into the emergency room. pushing past anyone that was in his way.

"hey, hey, hey, anna-marie listen to me, okay?" he spoke, grabbing her limp hand into his. "stay, please. don't leave me here. you've gone way too far, you can't just leave it all behind, do you hear me? i'm not giving up on you, not ever. just please you- you have to stay. anna-marie ple-"

"i'm sorry, sir you can't go in there-"

"-no, no you don't understand! i have to go, i can't let her leave." he tries to fight off the woman without hurting her, trying to remove himself from his grip. and when he does, he sprints to the room she was brought in. trying to detain the tears that were threading to pour out of his eyes.

"stop! just stop, you can't leave me. you can't, you have to stay-" he cries. "you have to stay."

he fights off the security guards that had came after him, too many of them for him to take on alone. and he couldn't shake off the heart-throbbing sight of having to see her the way he did. it hurt. and it didn't hurt as a euphemism. it hurt as if someone dropped cinder blocks onto his stomach repeatedly. it didn't hurt mentally.

"don't leave me, anna-marie. you're better than that." he whispers after being pushed out of the hospital.

this is death.