Bringing Me Closer

Chapter Three

        After about twenty minutes of getting ready, Liam walked in with a fully packed picnic basket. "Roxy, you ready?" He was literally so excited for this. When I half walked, half jogged down the stairs Liam was completely dumbfounded for some odd reason. "Roxy you look absolutely beautiful, I'm speechless." I smiled and thanked him, except it wasn't a big deal, I just had a skirt and tank top on. When we got to the beach he set up our picnic and we ate some yummy turkey sandwiches and strawberries. After sitting by the shore and picking up seashells a girl began to walk our way. Liam's face lit up at the sight and he ran over and gave her a big old bear hug while saying, "Mary! It's been so long!" She hugged him back, and may I just say, she was absolutely gorgeous. I mean, I don't even match up to her. When she looked my way, she kind of just smiled and then put her eyes towards Liam again. He hadn't even bothered to introduce us, he was too focused on her. After a good ten minutes of me just standing off to the side and Liam and his friend Mary chatting it up, I just decided to walk home. I knew I shouldn't have been jealous of this Mary girl, but I was. I mean Liam led me on, and now what? Was he just leaving me in the dust?

        As I began to walk home I realized that I would have to face Liam again soon because he would still be staying the night, his parents wouldn't be coming back until next weekend. When I was going past a bar near my house, I heard shuffling to my side. Since the dark had settled in, I couldn't see anything and I kept walking. Suddenly I heard breathing behind me and I turned my head to get a whiff of alcohol and a middle aged man standing behind me. He tried to grab my side but I pushed his arm away. Then he got mad and so I started to back away. I heard some running come close to us but I felt like I had no hope, I was a goner. When I turned the other way and began to sprint I felt a sharp pain in my left side. It stopped me in my tracks immediately and I felt someone grab me from behind, but this time in a gentle motion. Whoever it was didn't realize that my left side was what was hurting me because their hand was cupped right over it, I'm surprised they didn't feel it throbbing. Suddenly I realized it was Liam holding me up, he looked into my tear filled eyes and set me down up against the bar. He ran towards the guy who attacked me and punched him so hard that he almost fell back, but instead he stumbled and then ran towards the woods. 

        Liam literally sprinted to my side, by this time black was coming into the sides of my vision. He looked at my eyes and then at my hand which was clutching my left side and covered in blood for some odd reason. Liam grabbed my bloody hand gently and looked at me with absolute shock. He put his head to the side and puked from the sight of blood. After wiping his mouth and grabbing out his phone, I watched him dial 9-11 and scream into the phone, "I need an ambulance now! My friend she's, she's been stabbed and we're in front of the bar on sixth..." At this I passed out from loss of blood.

        I woke up to my mom's face covered in tears, multiple beeping noises, and a numb feeling all down my left side. "Honey," my mom cried, "you're okay, baby, I'm here. Oh my goodness." She came over and hugged me and pushed my hair back, "You know what happened right?" I nodded and let out a single tear because the last thing I had remembered was Liam calling an ambulance saying I was stabbed. It was all my fault, I shouldn't have went home alone. Suddenly Liam walked into the room with two coffees in hand. He set them down and ran to my side. "Roxy," now he was tearing up, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. I just, I don't even know." He put his head into his hands and sobbed. I reached up to his hand and grabbed it, it was wet with tears. "Liam, it's my fault, okay? I was jealous of..." "Wait that's why you left? You thought I liked... Oh my gosh, no! Mary's my cousin! I haven't seen her in about three years, I, I would never do that to you." "Liam, it was stupid of me to walk away I'm sorry. I just, I don't know I think that I... I really like you a lot." "Well Roxy, I really like you too." At this my mom decided to walk out of the room because she knew that it wasn't her place to be listening to our conversation too. Liam grabbed both of my hands, "Roxy, will you be my girlfriend?" "Liam, I'd love to!" At this he leaned over to me and gently turned my lips towards his. While we were kissing my side began to throb again and after a little while I couldn't take it anymore and had to pull away. Liam's heart just about sank, but then he saw me clutching my side. "Roxy, you okay?" "Yeah it just hurts where umm..." I couldn't even say the word, I felt like saying it would make me relive the whole traumatic scene over again. "Baby, I'm sorry, how can I help?" "You could kiss me again?"

        This time he kissed me less boldly on the cheek because my mom walked in. "Hello you two, something going on?" Liam pulled away embarrassed and I said, "No, not much, just talking. Any news from the doctor?" Our faces were bright red, but I seemed to change the subject quickly. "Well the doctor said that you've got to stay here a few weeks to heal up and then go through some therapy and..." "Wait therapy?" "Yeah, he's guessing that you're going through some emotional trauma." I looked to Liam and burst into tears. He grabbed my hand and rubbed my palm with his thumb repeatedly until I finally took my hands off of my eyes. "Rox, I'm sorry that this happened to you. I'm going to be here with you, okay." All I could do was nod and rest my head into his hand. 

        So it was finally time for me to stand up for the first time since the accident. With my mom holding my left hand and Liam, my right, I had full confidence I could do it. Even though it had been over a week since the accident, I was ready. I hoisted myself up and let my feet touch the cold ground, my knees immediately collapsed and Liam caught me inches before I hit the floor. My stab wound felt like it was tearing open so Liam set me into the bed immediately. Suddenly all of the doctors were crowding around me, and one ripped open my hospital gown only to reveal the slice below my ribs was once again bleeding. So I guess it did rip open. He began to stitch it up without even giving me anesthetics. The pain was absolutely unbearable and so I reached for Liam's hand and squeezed it. I could feel the tears spilling out of the rims of my eyes, so I just closed them. There was no escaping this and I almost couldn't handle it anymore. I squeezed his hand harder and harder but the pain wasn't leaving me. The doctor had only stitched up a fraction of my side before my legs began to shake out of pain. Meanwhile Liam took his other hand and brought my gaze to his own, "Roxy, it's okay just look at me. Just don't look okay. You're going to be okay. They're almost done." I winced as he put in the last stitch and then sighed in relief. The pain was more bearable, but not gone. "Look at that, you're done! You made it! He kissed my hand again and thanked the doctor along with my mom. I decided to take a nap to try to forget the pain for a little while.