Second Love to the Right (Neal Cassidy/Baelfire Love Story)

Chapter 8: The Enchanted Forest

The first thing I felt was a warm substance hitting my face. My eyes flutter open and I realize that I am no longer in the cannery. My eyes completely open and I realize the warm substance I felt on my face was sand. I also hear waves crashing against each other. I turn around to see an ocean. It takes me a moment to re-collect my thoughts. The last thing I remember was Neal and I going through a portal. Why would the portal drop us off on a beach though? Then, the thought about Neal hit me like a ton of bricks. Where was he? I frantically look around for any sign of him. Then about 10 feet to my right, a body laid flat on the ground. I can only assume that it was Neal. He was not moving however. I quickly scramble over to him. 

"Neal?" I say not being able to find my voice.

No answer.

"Neal?!" I say a little louder. 

Still no answer.

I flip him from his stomach onto his back. I place my hand on his neck. Moments later, I feel a pulse. He was still alive, but unconscious. Then, remembering how he got shot, I pulled his hand away from his wound. He's lost too much blood and if he continues to, he might die. The thought worries me. I shake his arm a little bit.

"Neal wake up please" I say. 

No answer. 

I sigh sadly. I unbutton his coat a bit and take off his scarf to look at his wound. Tamara hit him on the right side of his chest, just above his breast. I breathe a sigh of relief. It didn't hit his heart, but who says this hit can still be fatal? I used his scarf to press up against the wound to continue to suppress the bleeding. I look around to see if I could find any form of shelter. Up ahead of the beach we were on, there seemed to be nothing but forest. There also seemed to be no form of help. I'm guess I'm just going to have to do this myself. I'm not sure if I'd be able to support Neal. Plus he was wet, giving him extra weight. I'm just going to have to try. I wrap my right arm around his waist and try to pull him up. Unfortunately, a sharp pain pierced through the shoulder I got shot at. I immediately drop Neal back off in the sand. Surprisingly, it didn't wake him up. I really hope I didn't hurt him by dropping him. However, there was no possible way of carrying him now. I simply just laid on the ground next to him, placed by head in my hands and started crying. Neal's going to die and I can't do anything about it. Then without warning my thoughts were interrupted.

"Are you alright?" a voice asks. 

I pull my head out of my hands to see who it was. It was obviously no one I knew, but I still got a good look at them. It was a man, probably somewhere in his late twenties. He was tall with dark brown hair and a beard. He was also wearing armor and had a sword. Why would someone around a beach be wearing something like that? Maybe a cosplayer or something. Nevertheless, I'm relieved he came. I notice that his eyes stray to my wounded shoulder.

"Oh my gosh you're hurt!" he yells.
"No no no, I'm alright. It's him who needs your help" I say as I motion to Neal behind him. 

The man turns around and kneels down right next to him.

"What happened?!" he yelled.
"He got shot" I said. 

The man looks at me as if I were crazy.

"He got hit by a bullet" I say. 

The man continues to look at me the same way.

"Listen that's not important. What's important is we get him to safety" I say.
"You're right" the man says.

Then out of the distance somewhere, two other figures, both female, run up to us. 

"Philip what did you find?" one of the women asked.