No Such Thing As Broken

Chapter 8: End

Susan woke up but didn't open her eyes. She didn't like opening her eyes when she first woke up, to bright. Someone was holding her hand. They were warm. She squeezed her the person's hand. She didn't want them to let go. She wanted them to stay and hold her hand forever.

"Susan!" Her hand was carried up when the person jumped up. Not person, Jordan. Well, Jordan was a person. But he was a special person. He counted for more than others.

"Hey Jordan." She mumbled. It was the only way she felt like talking, anything more took too much energy. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the kid next to her. He looked so tired. Like he hadn't slept in days. "What happened?" He was wearing different clothes than she remembered him in. They looked a little too big for his frame. Not handy downs, probably lent for the day. His hair was greasy and a mess. Two days? It had been a period of time long enough that he felt the need to change. Well, there was a chance he got blood on his clothes. And the bags his eyes were hauling could be from stress.

"Susan," his voice was weary, sad, he had been through so much "You got shot."

"Well I know that much." she tried to laugh. It was fake, forced. She saw Jordan's look. He knew, she stopped. "What happened after that?" she pushed on.

"Well, the police took down the gunman."

"Did you open the door?" She shifted in her bed a little. All the entries and exits had been barricaded. It must have been difficult to open the door. When had he done that? As she was getting shot? He was with her right after. That was him wasn't it? It had been his warmth.

"Yeah. Punched a guy to." Susan smiled a little, it was a real smile. She enjoyed Jordan's company. "Hey Susan, I'm sorry."

"You said that already."

"No, but. I'm really sorry. I hurt you, I put you in danger. I screw up." he was crying. He wasn't even trying to hide it. Just accepted it and let the tears fall down his face. He really was sorry for what he believes he did.

Susan took a breath. She could breath. "Jordan, this was the day I knew was coming for as long as I can remember. I always thought that today I would die. I've always accepted it that way." Her words were sad but her voice didn't carry that tone. It wasn't one of acceptance either. She wanted to live. She was going to live. "But I didn't. I didn't die." And she was happy for it.

"You never knew if it really was how you would die." he bowed his head slightly, not wanting to look at the girl in the hospital bed "You just had nothing else to go off of."

"Always knew I'd get shot though." she smirked, gripping Jordan's hand a little more tightly, it was real, it was warm, it was getting a little sweaty but Susan didn't care. "Hey, at least now I'm going to get some cool scars."

"Yeah." he breathed out. There was silence that followed his words, but it wasn't annoying silence. It was the kind she could live with. It was the kind she wanted to live with. A comfortable silence where she could spend eternity just holding hands.

Susan looked out the window in her room. It was snowing outside. It was beautiful and warm. One normally wouldn't think of snow as warm. But Susan did. It was like a warm blanket that covered the land. Susan had never seen snow before. Funny how the first time she saw the white was in a hospital. Normally she hated white. Couldn't stand it. But now.

Susan loved the snow.

The soft white was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. It hurt her eyes slightly but it was beautiful, absolutely breathtaking. Susan could sit there and watch the light powder float from the sky for the rest of her life.