Bass Case

Chapter 26: Aftermath

The sun seeps through the blinds, coating the room in beams of light. One of the beams strikes my face, causing me to groggily wake from my slumber. I shift my head that has been resting within my folded arms. My hunched over back and neck crack as I suddenly stretch out my figure, pulling away all the knots. My back feels stiff; every movement causes another jolt of pain to lurch through my body. I groan, rubbing the back of my neck as I lazily open my eyes. The world comes into a blurry mesh as the watery shield over my eyes tries to adjust to the impending light. I frown as I see Sarah, still in the exact same position I had left her. Mindlessly dreaming into nothingness. Sometimes I wonder if she resides in her dreams as a way to escape this hellish reality. I don't blame her. I sometimes wish that I could do the same. Because even though we thwarted Mr. Forte's sinful plans, life without Sarah is hard for me to live through.

I place a gentle hand on her cheek, the same that I do every morning. Then I lean forward and plant a kiss upon her head. I stroke her cheek with my thumb, feeling the tenderness of her skin. She's thinner than she use to be. Not being able to eat anything really but fluids, and even then most of the nutrients don't come from actual food. It's been a week since Mr. Forte was arrested. How long are you going to sleep? It's safe now Sarah. "Please," I whisper, "come back to me. I miss you."

I hear the pitter patter of footsteps approaching from the hallways. I turn around knowingly that Angelica is arriving. She enters solemnly, taking a seat across from me on the other side of the bed. She grabs her sisters tan hand and holds it tightly within both hands, cradling it as though something would take it away. Angelica looks up at me, her eyes filled with sorrow. "You stayed here all night again?"

"Yeah..." I mumble.

Angelica pats her sisters hand, curling in her lips in thought as she does so. "So you really do love her, huh?"

"Are you just figuring that out? Of course I do." I smirk, stroking Sarah's other hand with my thumb. Angelica continues to stare at me in deep thought. It looks as though there is something she wants to say, but something is holding her back. "Hey, are you alright?"

Another minute of silence passes until finally she utters, "This is my fault." Tears flush to the edges of her eyelids, creating a glossy coat over her eyes.

"Angelica, it's not—"

"Yeah. Daniel. It is. All for a selfish reason, too." She states, gulping down some bile as she contemplates once again about what she is about to say. I wait, staring at her curiously. I open my mouth to speak but then retract myself before I can alter her course of action. Finally, she submits. "Do you remember Cafield High School?"

I narrow my eyes at her questionably. "Yes, that's my high school, but...I never told you."

"I know. You didn't have to. You probably don't remember me from that time, but we went to the same school, the three of us." I raise my head, fully tuned into the conversation. "There was a guy at the school. He kept bullying me. I...never told Sarah about it at the time. She had her own stuff to deal with ahah. Everyone just ignored the incidents, but not you. You actually stood up for me way back then. I was and still am very grateful." She says with a sad smile.

    "Wait. For reals? That was you! You look so, so...different."

    "Yeah. I changed a lot. Tried to be prettier. Tried to seem more attractive to people. It worked to an extent. Got left alone more, but still I think the real reason I did that was not so that I could stop being messed with, but...but rather so that I could seem more attractive to you...." She looks up at me, her eyes filled with curiosity and fear. A light tint of red dusts her cheeks.