In The Blood

The Morning After

(Tim)

"Stop, stop, stop, I'll get it," Chance told me as we all stood up with our trays of food. Scott had already re-spilled his coffee and Kirstie was shoving more napkins at him as Kevin righted the cup and Avi tried to save the bacon again. It was Scott's own fault, really. Everyone knows you eat your bacon first. The rest of us had eaten ours. Chance took the tray that was teetering in my shaking hands.

"Privacy ends when you threaten others," Sawyer said loudly.

"Threaten? This is an actual threat?" Mitch's voice was getting squeakier and squeakier.

"Forget food," Austin declared, looking about ready to burst into tears as he patted at his pocket.

"Smith, get them back into the chapel," Rupert yelled, though he was already running towards us with a banana obscenely stuck in his mouth. "Got another set of dumbasses, this time with a verbalized threat on Tim."

Smith yelling, I froze in place, anxiousness and nervousness giving way to actual fear, my breath coming shorter. Panic later, Tim, when you're in the chapel. Not now. Not when I'm out here in the open, in plain view, an easy target. Yet I couldn't make my legs move, tears staring down my face again.

"Under no context is threatening Tim acceptable!" Rupert shouted.

"Just don't say his name," Chance groaned, looking sick to his stomach.

"Both of you, get away!" Sawyer snapped.

Adam put his hands on me, one on my back and one on my right shoulder. "Come on, Tim, chapel. Move, OK?"

"I—I—I—," I stuttered, staring at feet that didn't even look like my own, still in just socks. Boots. Avi still had my boots.

"Walk," Austin instructed, reaching back to help me along as Adam gave me a gentle push to urge me along. He wasn't watching where that hand pushed though and ended up pushing an already sore shoulder.

"Ow!" I screamed, actually seeing a flash of light in the ensuing pain Adam had inadvertently caused. "Fuck it, my shoulder!"

Adam's hands immediately fell to his sides. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. Tim, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, can't begin to say I'm sorry enough."

I clutched at my shoulder, the pain enough to snap me out of inaction, and started to run forward with the others only to slip a little in my stockinged feet on the linoleum floor. Kevin instinctively reached out to help me but grabbed my sore shoulder by accident.

"Ohhh!" I groaned, throwing my good hand out to steady myself using a chair. Kevin was apologizing but was still reaching for my shoulder. "Stop it already!" I blew out a long breath. "Sorry, didn't mean to yell. I know you're trying to help but you're not really. Sorry."

"I'm sorry too," Kevin apologized, wringing his hands as Chance and Austin put hands on my right shoulder and left hip to help me stay upright. I still managed to slide in my haste and finally just sat down.

"Tim!" Chris said frantically.

"This isn't working." I lifted my left foot up and pulled off its sock. I was removing the right one when Sawyer demanded loudly, "Why, so you can kick Tim's ass too?"

Yay, two people who wanted to kick my ass. Let's just have a Tim-ass-kicking party, me as the sacrifice. Chance now crying, I stood up in bare feet and darted off into the chapel easily.

"Avi!" I gasped out, the door closing behind my wanted ass. "Avi! My boots! You got my boots?"

Wordlessly, Avi lifted his hand and pointed back into the waiting room. Great. Boots in the waiting room, feet in the chapel, one sock in my hand, and the other lost in transit. I sank onto the couch playing with my one sock. My feet were now cold from their jaunt across the chilly floor. The right foot was the coldest, so I slid it into my lone sock, the others watching me.