I wake up coughing. There is someone crying close to me. I'm not sure who it is. There is so much smoke everywhere. I hear a siren in the distance and there are people running.
That's when I hear it.
Gunshots.
Something's happening.
"Gem...Gem are you ok?" Rahmell's voice says.
He is turning to my right. I can barely see his face through all the smoke. He leans down and I can see that he's bleeding from his forehead. There is a gash. There is blood all over him. My heart races.
"What just happened?"
"Gem look at me. I'm going to need you to stay completely still."
"Rahmell what's going on?"
Rahmell has this worried look on his face. He's standing over me. I see him point to my leg at that moment and notice that there is piece of glass jammed clean through my leg. I start to panick as soon as I see it. My heart races. I think I'm about to faint.
Rahmell holds my head together keeping me from fainting and keeping me from completely going crazy in this moment.
"I'm here...I'm here..."
"I can see the bone."
"Shh...I'm here, I need to get it out. I need you to hold completely still ok? Look in my eyes. No matter what just look in my eyes."
What beautiful eyes those were by the way. I stare at Rahmell. He holds my hand with one hand and thrusts the shard of glass out of my leg. I scream like a little bitch. I scream at the top of my lungs and even then it doesn't matter. The convention is echoing with screams, moans, sirens, crying and gunshots. All hell has broken out.
Rahmell takes off his shirt. He continues to look at me as he is bareshirt. I have to admit the sight of his strong lean muscles calms me all the fucking way down. His tight chest and biceps distract me from the pain in my wound and seeing him without a shirt on made me want to be just a little bit more strong and masculine.
Rahmell wraps the shirt around my leg.
"Keep pressure on it OK?" he asks, "I'm going to carry you."
"Where the fuck are we going Melly?"
"I don't know..."
Rahmell keeps his word. He lifts me up and cradles me in my arms as though I weigh nothing at all. I wrap my arms around his neck and rest my head on his neckline.
From Rahmell's arms I get my first look around the convention.
The only words that come out are.
"Oh shit."
I can barely see much but one of the walls seems like a part of the walls seemed like they have partially collapsed. There is rubble everywhere and there are bodies. There are lots and lots of bodies everywhere. The smoke is coming from a collapsed rainbow tunnel. It seems like a fire has begun down in the shaft of the tunnel.
A crowd of people are attempting to make their way to the fire escape. Rahmell joins that crowd.
"My mother. She had a bomb sewed into her and pretended it was her baby. She was probably able to get past security with that."
I look at Rahmell.
"Rahmell I'm...sorry..."
I'm not sure why I'm apologizing to Rahmell. I'm not sure if it's because I realize that his mother was the cause of this terrorist attack or if it's because his mother just died. Either way he doesn't seem to want to come to terms with it. His relationship with his mother is the only part of him that he's always kept away from me as best as he could. I wonder if he knew she was capable of something like this. The serious look on his face doesn't seem surprised. He just seems sure right now.
