The Sophomore || Tori Kelly

Hospitalized

continued

Tori laid on her couch strumming along with AJ's random singing while they waited for Mateus to get back with the pizza. "You and the star point guard," AJ smirked. Tori rolled her eyes at the mention of her boyfriend.

"Yeah, me and him. What about us?" She asked, feeling like her buzz was wearing off. AJ shrugged and continued to play around on his keyboard.

"Nothing. It looks like y'all are going strong. And I know he got a new place. You trying to move in with him?" AJ asked. Tori shook her head and grabbed a sip of her litmonade.

"Nope. We are supposed to be doing this right. If I can't sleep with him, I definitely can't live with him. That's too much temptation," Tori said. AJ hummed, glancing at his friends open bedroom to see André's stuff clearly all over the room.

"But, there's no temptation now. Right," he laughed. Tori lightly punched his arm with a small smile on her face.

"Yup. In there, he sleeps on the floor on his air mattress. In his house, he'd expect me to sleep in his bed. And in his bed, there is not enough space between us for the devil not to pull us together, so that one thing can lead to another. Ya know?" She slightly slurred, but not enough to sound crazy. AJ nodded and took a a sip of his water.

"I feel. That's cool that you guys are waiting," he smiled. Tori shrugged. She was sort of over waiting, but she promised her parents they had nothing to worry about. So, her promise was sort of legally binding. Which meant no one was getting anything except for a DNA test, which they were waiting to be sent back.

Everyday, Tori was reminded that her boyfriend could be the father of someone else's kid and it shook her. She never in a million years thought that her boyfriend wouldn't be a virgin let alone possibly a father. This school year was a whirlwind for Tori with her very second EP in production, her first year in an apartment with her friends, and her first true love after high school. At one point everything felt like it was coming together. Now, they are spiraling around her and she can't seem to catch her breath. Her EP wasn't sounding the way she had intended, her boyfriend knew about a rape that she endured, but couldn't explain, and now she felt like she couldn't walk around without a drink in her system just to feel comfortable in her own skin.

Quietly, Tori got up from her couch with her drink, dropped her acoustic on the couch, and headed to her room. AJ jumped as the door slammed, forcing him out of his seat. "Tori, you—" AJ stopped, not sure what to say. "I'm just gonna go okay!" AJ called, before grabbing his things and leaving.

On the other side of the door, Tori sat in her window, looking out over the bluff. She sipped her drink as she glanced down to the ground 4 floors below. André would miss her, but he'd get over it. Her friends might make a half assed Facebook page and forget about her 3 years later. Her parents would have Noah and less drama. And eventually everything would even out and she wouldn't have to feel this constant pain. Tori swung her left leg out the window and laid her head on her right knee. Tears ran down her face to her leg. It's okay, Tori. Just calm down. Dré will be home any moment. Just calm down. Tori thought. Her breathing hitched. Her heart rate skyrocketing. The background blurred around her and all she knew was the she had to get out. The ground came fast and before Tori knew it, she was out like a light.

5 PM

"Allwyn Kelly?"

"This is he,"

"It's your daughter,"

7 PM

"I wasn't there!"

"You just left her alone?"

"What was I supposed to do? I had practice! She was fine when I left her!"

"Does this look fine to you?"

8 PM

The bland room somberly slept. Harsh lights, pushed through the darkness as Doctor Lang came in. "Hey, guys," he happily smiled. Laura's blood shot eyes searched for a reason to be happy without avail. Her husband and daughters boyfriend were at odds. Her son was failing. And her daughter was laid up in a hospital bed. "You're daughter is very lucky this young man found her when he did. Your daughter has over seven different drugs in her system not including the alcohol. Had he brought her in any later, she wouldn't have made it," the doctor informed. Laura's knee's buckled, causing her to drop to the couch. André's hand immediately clasped over his mouth. Where did she even— his bag. Upon realization, André started to shake his head. "We had to pump her stomach, and she's gonna be sore, but I'm gonna have a nurse come in and take out the tube," he said as a young woman came in with a cart.

"What does this mean? When can she come home?" Allwyn asked, as the nurse got set up. They watched the doctor shift uncomfortably.

"Well, under normal circumstances, I would send her up to psych, but she seems to have a good support system, so we're gonna hold her for 12 hours and in the morning, you can take her home. But, I don't recommend her going back to school just yet," he replied. Everyone took turns passing looks between one another before all of their eyes landed on the girl in the hospital bed, who passed out on the floor from a drug induced panic attack. And poor André, he thought that was the scariest moment of his life. If only.

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To Be Continued...