It's Above Me Now.

27: Close Call

"Chance! Yo, what the fuck! Chance! Where the fuck is my phone? Hang in there man, help's on the way!"

My eyes were closed but I could hear Mario's voice booming. I was unconscious, yet conscious if that made sense. I couldn't move, nor could I speak but I was well aware of the vocal occurrences that were happening. I didn't expect Mario to be the first one to find me. Shit, I lowkey thought he would have left me there for dead. But here he was bellowing out for help, and I couldn't be more thankful for it.

It was a weird feeling being in this state, and it was quite indescribable. The pain was excruciating, and I actually wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. I can't believe Drew really shot me. He was someone I considered a brother, a friend. We shared so many memories together, and for him to do this without properly hearing me out was wrong on so many levels.

"Hey man, we're over here! Hurry the fuck up!"

I remembered when Dylan introduced me to Drew. I was now entering middle school, and Dylan thought I needed a new friend because he and I were going to be in different grades. Back in the day I wasn't the best at making friends, so Drew and I connecting as instantly as we did was remarkable. We ran our grade, acting bad, brave and untouchable. We were known as the two troublemakers in our class, and as bad as it sounds, I don't regret it. Before Jacques and I got tight, Drew was my sidekick, and we were inseparable in school. No one besides Dylan could take his place, and that's why it's even more fucked up how things ended between us.

"Alright now, I'm gonna need y'all to move a LOT faster than that!" Mario snapped. "This man's life is at stake, this is a fucking emergency!"

Now don't get me wrong, I can completely understand Drew's fury. I'll always admit to my wrongdoings. I did overlook Shawn's addiction, I did neglect my sense of humanity and was more money hungry than I should have been. I fucked up and I can own that. But I felt like his blame was misplaced and one sided. Because let's face it, I damn sure didn't cause his father's addiction by myself. Shawn's an adult, a grown ass man capable of making decisions. Where's the fucking accountability on his end? Why do I have to be the bad guy?

Nevertheless, I wasn't angry, nor was I ready to retaliate. If I was to make it out of this fucked up conundrum, going after Drew wouldn't be up next on my agenda. That wouldn't solve anything. Andrew was hurt, I could clearly see that. So fighting fire with fire wasn't the way to go. My respect and liking for him wouldn't allow me to take it there. Even though our friendship is fucked up now, I truly hope that he received the healing needed to get over this feud against me and really fix the situation with his pops. He owed that to himself. I still wish him the best.

"Wait, what the fuck's going on? Why's he on a stretcher? Somebody answer me!"

That was Dylan's voice now, and I heard him and Mario going back and forth from a distance. It seems as though I was moving away from them, and I figured I was probably in an ambulance by now. I was hearing a lot of voices now, but they were talking too quickly for me to make out what they were saying. Hopefully they were assisting in turning this disastrous situation around, because I had so much more to live for. Shit, my life was now starting.

And that only made me think of my parents, Bud, and Lou. How would they take this? Especially if it was detrimental? Veronica and Ruben have literally been protecting me my whole life, but this time around they couldn't save me. I hoped they wouldn't beat themselves up about this if shit took a turn for the worse. They've done so much, and I honestly appreciate and cherish it.

All in all, it is what it is. If I survived, if I died. I knew I left this earth going out a better route than I ever envisioned. Never in a million years would I have thought that my life would play out like this, and I'm beyond grateful for all the experiences. I literally did a whole 360 before everyone's eyes, impressing not only them but myself. I was so fucking proud of me. I've been through a lot in these twenty one years, and I've always found a way to beat the odds.

Miraculously however, I felt my pain gradually decreasing. I don't know what was happening externally, but my senses were coming back to me. Movement was tense but easier than once before. Fluttering open my eyes, I was greeted by the worrisome, frightened faces of Dylan and Mario. Chance Moss was back baby.

"Thank God." Dylan said with a sigh of relief. "For a moment I thought you were gone big dawg. I wouldn't have been able to handle that shit man."

"Ain't that the truth." Mario agreed. "You scared the shit outta us man."

A small smirk released from me, and I glanced appreciatively at Dylan and Mario for their concern. Thank God is right, for I was truly blessed. My time on this earth wasn't up yet, and this situation was just another hurdle in my path that I had to jump over.