Under Pressure

Chapter 12

MEL POV
It took about a week for Chris to regain his strength. I could have never imagined him being hurt as badly as he was. It was mostly internal healing, but you could see his injuries just as much on the outside.

One night he woke up, suddenly, shaking himself awake, screaming. I woke at his commotion as well. I stood immediately and ran to his side. I saw Chris clenching his side. He continued to scream and scream, but I had no idea what to do. I sprinted to the hallway looking around for some help, but no one was near.

"Melissa! The ice! The ice!" He yelled louder as he pointed in the direct of the bucket of ice as best he could. I ran over there snatching a bag full of ice and running back over to him. He slowly removed his hand and lifted his shirt from his side.

The shirt uncovers massive amounts of bruising with different shades of blue, green, black, and purple. Each shade darkens as it went up his side. I stood there in shock for a second taking in this bruising, but after a minute of his continued groaning, I tuned into what I was doing.

I rested the ice on his side and felt my eyes widen as I turned to him, desperately hoping it was helping. After a couple of minutes, he had calmed down and he looked back at me as I stared down at the bruising. I could feel his gaze on me, but I couldn't look away. I stared at the bruises that looked as if they weren't healing.

I finally found the courage to look back up at him. He seemed peaceful, but I couldn't hold back my questions any longer. I released the bit of my lip that kept me silent.

"What happened Chris?" I asked softly. I saw his whole face shift from happy to serious all to quickly. He looked down at his lap and took a hold of his hand. His head shot up and he looked into my stare.

Chris POV

"I was just lying in bed. It wasn't too long after you left that I heard a sound coming from the stairs. I assumed you had forgotten something, so I got out of the bed and was about to exit the room to greet when people came at me." I paused recalling all that had happened, "The four of them pinned me to the ground, while another three started kicking me. I saw out the corner of my eye one of them get out a knife. I was fine with the beating, but when I saw the knife I started resisting even more." I locked my lips momentarily and I let my eyes meet Melissa's, "I couldn't die, I told myself. But it was me, one man, fighting seven others that were stronger and bigger."

I recalled what happened next, "The one ended up stabbing me in the chest, and went to do more damage, but was catch off guard when he heard Mr. Harrington's voice coming from our front door. They all scattered running out of the room and I assumed out of the house." I took a deep breath remembering these horrifying moments of pain, "I took the last amount of energy I had left, since I knew Mr. Harrington wouldn't make it up the stairs soon enough and I called you." I looked up at her, but the tears in her eyes kept her from seeing me.

She kept wiping them away as if I hadn't seen them. "I knew you would know what to do, and I just hoped you would get here in time... and you did." She wiped more away and showed her a small smile. I hoped she knew that even though it was painfully, I was okay now. I wanted to reach her and hug her in my arms, but I was stuck.

"Chris....." She couldn't get out her words. I could she still felt so guilty and upset, but I hoped she wouldn't leave me, not this time. I was afraid she'd blame it all on herself again, so I had to tell her again.

"Melissa, it's not your fault. You know that, don't you?" she shook my head unable to say anything. I smiled again and she gave me a small one back. I kept my eyes on her. She sat back down and rested her head on my arm. I wanted to tell her how I felt. I wanted to comfort her.

"You should get some sleep." She whispered. I felt her cool breath go down my arm. "I'll be right here." She assured me. I felt my head fall and turn away from her as I got comfortable. After about 5 minutes I felt myself finally feeling fatigued, but then I heard a whisper.

"I's sorry, Chris." She whispered again. I was about to turn and tell her that she couldn't blame this on herself anymore, but I stopped my thoughts immediately when I heard her mumbled something even quieter. "I love you."