Unlikely

Chapter Twelve

We walked back in total silence, not even batting an eye whenever Mark frantically asked where Ethan was. Somehow, all we could do was stutter.
     "Where is Ethan! I am accountable for everybody and you lost that boy. Where is he?"
     "The other side..." PJ trailed off. Mark looked at him like he was insane.
     "The other side?" What the hell are you talking about?" Mark shouted angrily.
     "O-of the cavern, the tunnels. Logan wanted to explore with Ethan and neither of them made it back." Jake said, wiping his eyes for dramatic effect.
     "I'm gonna send out a search party. Me, PJ, and Jake; Tyler, Felix and Marzia; and everybody else. My group will look over to the right, Tyler's group will search to the left, and Phil's group will look straight ahead. We will find them." Mark said determinedly. I briefly wondered if he even wanted to find them. Doctors are very good at making you believe.
"Don't worry, we will!" Nurse Howell said.
"You better..." Mark said threateningly. I chuckled without humor. Why was Mark so hellbent on trying to find Logan and Ethan?
     "Mark," Marzia started in her soft, beautiful voice, "you know you can't save everybody, right?"
     Mark looked up in shock. "I know. But after Daniel killed himself, I wanted to try. He's the reason I even wanted to be a counselor in the first place. I wanted to make sure nobody dies like he did."
     "Well, I think you're doing a good job." Sean said.
     "Yeah." Tyler agreed.
     "You are." Jake said.
Pretty soon everybody but me and PJ had joined in a group hug. Marzia quietly motioned for us to join in, mouthing "come on, you guys." PJ joined in and, when I got over my crippling fear of human contact, I joined in as well.
"You-you guys are the-the best. Th-thank you for e-everything." Mark said.
"No, thank you. You've helped save lives every day, and you give people the help they deserve. You've been through a lot(though haven't we all), and you handle it like a champ. Daniel would be proud." I said. Mark's eyes watered. Will he cry?
He did.
Tears cascaded down his face in waves. He kept trying to silence his sobs, but all it did was make him hiccup.
"Um, guys, the storm has passed, according to my phone..." PJ jutted in.
"THEY WERE HAVING A MOMENT PJ!" Phil exclaimed. We all chuckled.
"We'll search first, then go back later." Mark said, regaining his composure.
We heard a loud crash. Then, a blinding white light. A couple figures came through the ceiling.
     "Dad! Daniel! Ethan! Logan!" Mark shouted.
     "We will only take one. Choose wisely."
     "What the fuck...this isn't like you guys. You guys are nice." Sean said.
     "Is nice punishing Felix for being a general piece of shit by raping for years repeatedly? Then I am a very nice guy." Logan said.
     Everybody turned to face me. "What? It's not like I could do anything." I said.
     "One person."
     "I'll go."
     We all turned to Mark in surprise. He wanted to die?
     "Mark, no..."
     "No. This is something I need to do. I've awaited long for this moment, I've prayed for this to happen, I have to go."
     "Mark no!" Sean shouted. "Look, I get it. You've loved and you lost, but that shouldn't dictate what you tell yourself. I love somebody and my heart aches for them every single day. I pine for them, but I know I can't have them because they'll waste away with me. Please, don't go." Sean whispered the last two words.
     Mark looked at him with dish-plate eyes. "No! No! No! I have to do this! You don't understand!" He sprinted at the spirits, and they lifted him away.
     "Who do you love, Sean?" Nurse Howell asked.
     "Mark."
     "Holy shit." PJ said.
     "I swear to god everybody here is gay." I said humorously.
     "I'm not!" Marzia said.
     "Me neither!" PJ said.
     "I'm not gay either!" Jake said.
     Nurse Howell, Phil, Tyler, and Sean were oddly silent.
     "Guys, Ethan and Logan shot themselves. There's no point in looking." Tyler said. A chorus of 'aww's sounded from them.
     Then we headed upstairs.

Well shit. I just killed off a lot of people. I apologize. I tried to make a serious chapter but I failed. I'M SORRY! Stay safe!
1-800-273-8255 American suicide hotline