𝚍𝚊𝚢𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 • 𝚐𝚕𝚎𝚎

𝚅

Right after we heard it, we all dropped to the floor. I crawled as fast as I could over to the wall and leant against the wall. Blaine sat across from me and Sam was next to me. I grabbed my phone from my pocket and dialed the first number on my phone. It went straight to voice-mail.

"Damn it." I whispered as I threw my head back onto the wall. "What's wrong?" I held up the phone. "Finn's in New York and his phone's dead. Sam...his phone's dead." I felt the tears coming on. He grabbed me and held me in a hug.

"I don't even remember the last words I said to him...I don't remember our last conversation.."

"It's fine. Because, guess what, you're gonna get out of here and then you're gonna call Finn and then on Friday, me and you are gonna be on a plane to New York." I sighed and looked at him. "Sunday's your birthday, right?" I nodded. "So then, let's take a trip to New York and celebrate seventeen the right way."

"Sam...I can't do this. I can't. I need to talk to him...I'm calling Lexie." I picked my phone up from the place I laid it and dialed her number. It took a while before she answered the phone.

"A.J? Is everything okay?"

I sighed. "Lexie...is Finn with you?" I heard someone talking in the background before Lexie came back. "Yeah. Yeah. He's here.."

I sighed once more. "Lexie, can you put him on the phone?"

"What? Why?"

"Lexie, just put him on the god damn phone."

I heard some shuffling around before Finn answered the phone. "Hey...it's me. What's wrong?" I sighed. "Finn, I need you to listen to me very carefully, okay?" He made an mhm sound before I started talking again. "In my room, there's a drawer in my nightstand. It's the locked one. The key to it is in the third drawer of my jewelry box. In the drawer, there are four journals. One is my diary, one is everything I've wanted to accomplish, and two are very short stories that I've written. I need you to grab them. Take one for you. Give one to mom. Give the other two to Lexie and Scarlett. I don't care which ones you give to anyone. Just please...make sure they get out. Can you do that for me?"

"Yeah...but why are you asking me to do all this? Why are you telling me all this? A.J, what's wrong?"

"Finn, we heard a gunshot in the school. I'm fine. I'm in the choir room and Sam is making sure that nothing is happening to me. But Finn, if something does happen to me. Please...make sure all that gets done."

"Put Sam on the phone, A.J."

I sucked the tears back and handed Sam the phone. I knew what Finn was saying to him. That if anything happened to me he was responsible. "Yeah, Finn...I'll do that. I'll make sure she's okay."

He handed the phone back to me. "A.J, when all of this is over. Call me. I'm gonna charge my phone right now. Lexie, can you plug my phone in?" I felt the tears come harder. "Okay...I'll do that."

"Hey. I love you, little sister."

I gasped through the tears. "I love you, big brother." Lexie took the phone back. "Hey, stay alive, while you?" I chuckled a little. "Yeah.."

She hung up the phone. Then, the door handles jiggle. "Sam.." he grabbed me and hugged me again. "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

That's when I let the tears come on. I cried. I cried like I have never cried before. He rubbed my back, trying to calm me down.

"Guys..do you wanna say something?" Artie asked, turning his camera towards Sam and I. I turned to him. "Artie, get the damn camera out of my face." I said, pushing it away and turning back to Sam.

"What if I never see Finn again?"

"You will. Okay? You will. You aren't going to let yourself leave him. I know you. Just...we can do this. We can make it out of here alive."

I sighed. And we sat there for what felt like hours.

**

When it was over and all the lights came back on, I reached for my phone. I dialed the first number I saw and waited. "Hello?"

"Hey..it's me."

"You're alive?" I smiled and chuckled a little. "I'm alive. Listen, tomorrow, Sam and I are gonna get on the plane and we are gonna go to New York. You and I are gonna celebrate my birthday like we did when I was little. We're gonna order pizza and watch Back to the Future. Okay?"

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey...I love you, big brother."

"I love you, little sister."