Arm Distance Apart | ✔️

28

Chapter Twenty-Eight | Makes you crazy
"You were unsure which pain was worse–the shock of what happened, or the ache of what never will."

I ran into the hospital, looking left then right frantically for anybody who can help me. "Excuse me! Excuse me!" A nurse ran up to me. She looked just as panicked as I did. "I–I," I struggled to speak as tears poured from my eyes. It wasn't even like I tried to hold them back. "M-My girlfriend. She's here somewhere." She looked at me like I had broken her heart with such a simple yet sad sentence.

She grabbed my shoulder gently. "Okay, follow me." I nodded and sipped my eyes with the sleeve of my sweatshirt. On her birthday. This happened on her goddamn birthday! We walked down the hall to a water bubbler. She grabbed a cup and poured me some water for me. "What's your name?" I told her. "What's her name?" I told her. "Well go find her, okay?" I nodded and a few more tears sprang from my eyes.

All the possibilities courses through my mind. I never pray, but now I prayed that she would be okay and that she will get better. That she won't be dead. That we can go back to how things were, because if we don't, I don't know how I'll ever recover. My whole world would've caught fire and turned to ashes.

We walked the the corridors and looked at the names on many rooms, non of which belonging to Hadley. It felt like we would never find her. Until we came to the last room in the hall. "Ashby, Hadley". The nurse looked at the file and she blinked many times and frowned. "This is it." She motioned towards the room. I tajantes her and walked into the room. My heart clenched at the sight of her mom, David, Malik, Tai, Oliver, Lyra, and Max all here with shattered expressions.

Her mom clutched David's arm. David looked just as upset. His fists were clenched tightly to the point where I'm sure his palms would bleed. Malik and Tai both silently cried while max should almost no emotion but I knew he was feeling the same way we all did, Lyra was sobbing uncontrollably. I don't blame her.

I took my seat far away from the others, right next to Hadley's empty bed. I don't know where she was but I was praying that she wasn't where I thought she was. I smelt it...the fire, but I tried to fan it away. I wouldn't allow myself to think of the worst. I didn't ask though because that would make everybody more upset. I looked at Hadley's bed, hoping she'd manically apear and still be her quirky, lovable self.

"She's in surgery." Malik spoke up. That seemed to through some people off their balance because they flinched then cried a little. "She's been in surgery for an hour. They say it'll take at least three or four. She was—she was really injured, Bell. Really–."

"Enough, Malik." Ms. Ashby hissed.

He looked back at the floor. I curled up in my seat and laid, looking at nothing in particular. The room was deathly silent and that certainly didn't give off good vibes.

-

I sat up at the sound of the door opening, all of us did. A woman in a white coat walked in. "The surgery was successful. However, we will not know how much she has been effected until she woke up. Hadley is okay." My stomach dropped, in a good way. I've never felt so happy in my life. Instantly, Ms. Ashby broke into a fit of tears of both sadness and joy–sadness because her daughter was out through this and joy because she was okay. I felt my own tears coming on. Relief is what I felt. She was okay.

She was okay. They had us switch rooms to a room on another floor where Hadley was put. Immediately when we arrived everybody rushed up to her. No she wasn't okay, but it was comforting to know she was living. That she hadn't been killed in this horrible incident.

Once everybody sat down I went up and sat next to her. I put her hand in mine and gave it a gentle kiss. "I love you so much." I whispered to her.