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52. Fabric

After the alarm went off, Paige and I stayed in bed and made out for however long, sufficiently causing us to rush out of the house so we wouldn't be late to school.

The bell was ringing as we pulled into the parking lot and Paige was out of her car and standing by the light pole before I was even parked completely.

"I'll see you in history," Paige murmured against my lips as we separated in front of the office.

I begrudgingly walk to the locker room knowing that everybody in there saw me get punched twice by Ryan Fucking Strickland. Nobody gave me a second glance as I walked around the lockers to get to mine.

The tattooed guy patted my back as he walked past me, giving me a wink as he rounded the corner away from me. I stuffed my basketball shorts and t-shirt into my backpack and then headed for the track. I knew that Paige wasn't going to be there but sitting on the bleachers by myself was better than sitting in a rowdy gym.

The rest of the day went by beyond slow, I was constantly tapping my foot on the ground, excited and nervous to be cleared to run at the doctors. Paige looked just the same as I felt as she patted my thigh.

Ms. Puerto assigned a geometric drawing and I finished it in 10 minutes, too nervous to pay attention to how the drawing actually looked.

At the sound of the dismissal bell, I bolted out of the classroom and practically ran to the parking lot. It didn't hurt nearly as bad as the other day, my ribs seemed to have gotten used to my constant deep breaths.

"Ready?" Paige smiles at me as I stand in front of her as she leans against the light pole.

"More than," I bend my head down and place a kiss against her pursed lips.

Music would distract me so I drive in silence as I follow Paige's silver car down the highway in the direction of the hospital.

I start to panic. What if I do get cleared? I'd never thought about it before now. What if I don't last long or if I suck? I'd probably get so manic and psych myself out. Dammit, I'm going to ruin this for Paige, I'm going to ruin it for myself. I have been deprived for so long.

"Collins?" A nurse dressed in blue scrubs stands from a desk in the hospital waiting room and Paige and I stand from the seats. We'd been waiting five minutes and we get scowls from the people sitting around us, they have probably been here for hours.

"So we are doing a physical today," David announces as he walks into the room. Paige grips my hand tightly as I sit on the bed they have lined with paper that cracks under my weight.

David instructs Paige to go wait in the seating lounge at the end of the hall and she does after placing a chaste kiss on the side of my mouth. She looks so nervous and I feel it. Part of me almost doesn't want to get cleared, and that freaks me out.

Paige's POV

Shit. I should have made the deal something completely different. I don't know if I can do this. Landon looked freaked out when I left the room. I think he's just as nervous as I am.

I just keep picturing Landon laying in that hospital bed with tubes and wires attatched to him all over, his entire body covered in bruises and cuts. I puked 3 times in the bathroom before David told me that they were bringing Kyle into the emergency room. As I wait, I zone out and smile at my most bad ass moment.

"Paige? Kyle Reid had some pretty bad lacerations, we have to bring him in." David knocks on the door of the bathroom as I wipe my mouth with a wet paper towel.

"Let him bleed out," I say loudly so he can hear me through the door.

"He will be on the other side of the hospital, don't worry," David says to me as I open the bathroom door.