Stay With Me - A KathNiel Story

Chapter 16

"I didn't wanna be a burden." Kath breathed as Miles sat on the bed by her feet and DJ stood behind the chair, holding onto the back of it. Richard sighed, standing at the foot of the bed and Amanda stayed by Miles.

"You were never a burden, Kath," Miles said and Kath had to blink back tears as she slowly looked over at DJ.

"I heard you on the phone... talking about how Miles will get into really big trouble if they find me here, but she doesn't care... I-I care." Kath said and DJ shook his head, sighing.

"Nobody is ever gonna find out, though, so you're fine. You're safe here! You always have been and you always will be." Miles promised and Kath slowly nodded, a few tears running down her face.

"We'll make sure of it," DJ added.

"So, you heard what DJ said on the phone and you ran away?" Amanda asked and Kath nodded slowly. Her muscles and joints were starting to ache painfully and Richard could tell she was uncomfortable, so he walked to the medical bag that they always kept on Miles's desk for easy access.

"I waited for him to leave first... I can't remember what happened after that." Kath admitted, trying to hold back more tears but they could all tell she was getting increasingly weaker - she needed more rest. Richard and Amanda knew she'd be sleeping a lot even though the sepsis was gone, it was a side effect of the infection, for her to be so fatigued and achy.

"We found you outside by the side of the building - it looked like you were trying to make it to the woods out back." DJ said and Kath looked down at her own hand that the IV was dripping into.

"S-Sounds like something I'd do." She mumbled.

"You had a knife wound, Kath... that was what was causing the sepsis - the infection in the wound spreading to your bloodstream. Why didn't you tell us about the wound?" Amanda asked and Kath's eyes widened.

"Th-There was a knife wound?" She looked down at herself, tears falling faster down her face when she finally noticed that all she had to cover her chest was her bra, the duvet up to her waist but what caught her eye the most was the gauze that was packed thickly over her side and she could feel it all the way around to the middle of her back.

"You didn't know it was there? You had a shower, sweetie." Miles reminded her softly, but Kath shook her head.

"I d-don't like looking at myself... n-not since I became homeless. I hate that I can see my ribs and that my spine is visible... so I don't look... those guys were all beating me at once, everything was hurting... I-I didn't notice." Kath gasped with pain as she tried to move, arching her back ever so slightly off of the bed and DJ rushed to hold her hand, which took Kath by surprise but she curled her fingers around his the best she could.

"It's okay, Kath, breathe as deeply as you can - this is all normal post-sepsis." Richard assured her, coming back over with a needle full of a clear liquid. Kath's eyes were tight shut, the pain in her joints and muscles getting worse to the point she wanted nothing more than to scream, but she knew that would bring attention to the dorm room so she stayed completely silent.

"Squeeze my hand, Kath... take it all out on me." DJ said softly, running his thumb across the back of her hand the best he could because of her cannula as she squeezed his hand slightly, unable to do much more because the needles in her hand would start to pull and tug painfully too.

"This is morphine, okay? I'm gonna give you this for at least today and tomorrow - it's very strong and it'll help you get the sleep I know you're desperate for. You can take oral tablets too, now that you're awake so when the bag closest to you is empty, we can take that one off for good... but because this is morphine, you need to be totally honest with me - are you an addict?" He asked, his tone serious but soft. Kath forced her eyes open, locking them on his.

"I've never touched drugs. Never had a drink... and I don't plan to. Ever." Kath choked out and Richard knew she was telling the truth.

"I'm gonna inject it right into your arm, okay? It'll be quicker than the IV, you'll feel better almost right away." He promised, Kath watching as he tightened a tourniquet around her arm to bring out her veins and then pushed the needle into her skin, forcing the morphine into her system before taking the needle out and he covered the hole with a cotton ball, applying pressure for a moment before the bleeding stopped. "That better?" He asked and Kath slowly nodded her head, only realizing as the pain numbed how exhausted she felt still.

"Sleep, Kath... we'll all still be here when you wake up." DJ said softly, keeping his eyes on her as she almost immediately fell asleep - she was still holding onto his hand.