Stay

Chapter 63

"She's the type of flower that can still grow after a forest fire."
~Acrewss

Annalise

Pain.

Blackness.

Sirens.

Blackness.

White lights.

Blackness.

Beeping.

Blackness.

Somewhere in between all that, I heard Mia screaming, James shouting for help, Mark praying, and Everly crying. The Stewarts, Wallaces, and Griffiths voices periodically floated around me. I swear I even heard Will a few times. But I could never see them, and I couldn't seem to wake up from this bizarre fever dream.

As the dream progressed, I started seeing blurred shapes of bodies moving around me, but I could never discern who it was. A faint light always remained to my left and a black square in the upper right. Part of me wondered if I was in a hospital, but why would I be? Why would I-

The image of a glinting gun and a hooded figure flashed before me, and my eyes flew open.

I lay there, paralyzed, terrified whatever I'd just seen was still here, waiting for me. Slowly, I moved my eyes around, scanning my surroundings, careful not to move.

A lamp emitted a comforting glow to my left, a TV was mounted on the wall across from me, a heart monitor beeped steadily on my right, and beside it sat-

"James?" I croaked. My voice sounded alien to me, and I frowned. Swallowing, I mustered up as much strength as I could and said more firmly, "James."

My voice still sounded strange, but it was better than before, and it got my friend's attention. His head lifted up from his hand, and he looked around in bewilderment. It took a few moments before James locked eyes with me. It took another few moments for it to register with him that I was awake.

"Anna!" James exclaimed. "Hey!"

"Where's Mia? Where am I?" I asked, my voice once again weak.

"Mia's here. She fell asleep," James replied, appearing sheepish.

"I can't see her."

"She fell asleep on my lap..."

"What?" Still not able to comprehend what he was saying, I tried propping myself up.

Huge mistake.

I screamed in agony, clutching my stomach, followed by a startled cry when a stabbing sensation ripped through my shoulder. I squeezed my eyes shut as I tried to reign in my pain, to stop myself from either blacking out or throwing up. One or the other would happen if this pain didn't fade soon.

"Anna!" Mia exclaimed. "Anna, look at me."

I forced my eyes open and found my sister standing over me, eyes wide with worry. She smiled in relief and said, "I'm so glad to see you awake."

"What do you mean?"

Mia hesitated, biting her lip. "What do you remember?"

"About what?" I countered. She and James shared a concerned look, silently discussing something. Disliking not being included, I demanded, "What's going on?"

"I've got it," James said, seeing the forlorn expression on my sister's face. Mia nodded, sitting back down. "Someone broke into your apartment and shot you."