Chapter 21

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"Riiinnnnaaaa!"

I hear my best friend sing out like the banshee she is. I glance up and see Zaria walk in, twirling like a ballerina on drugs. Zeke walks in behind her, looking nervous.

"Hey Rina," he mutters. "Daniel here?"

I smile and shake my head. "Nope. You're clear." I try to shove the butterflies in my stomach down.

"Okay," Zeke says. He pulls up a chair next to my bed.

Zaria just sits on the edge. "How are you feeling?"

I scoff. "Never better. Just splendid. Serendipity. Perfect. I'm just fantabulous-"

"Shut up," Zaria says. "How are you really?"

"You just told me to shut up," I say sullenly.

"Well I'm revoking my previous comment," Zaria says. "How are you really?"

I sigh. "Numb. Paralyzed. Kind of helpless."

"Helpless?" Zeke asks. "What are you talking about?"

"I can't do anything on my own," I snap. "I can't go to the bathroom. I can't get into bed or go anywhere. I can't even sit up on my own. Gee, I wonder what I'm talking about."

"Stop it!" Zaria snaps. "Listen, Rina. It's okay to be upset. It's okay to not like this. It's okay to complain even. No one would like this. But Rina, you don't have a choice. So stop yelling at us, alright?"

I sigh. "Right. Sorry."

"I'm sorry this is what you have to go through," Zeke says quietly.

I shrug. "It's not like I have much of a choice."

I place my hands on either side of my body and try to press my body upward. It only takes a few seconds for me to tire out and stop.

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I have physical therapy tomorrow. Two hours. I'm kind of excited. I really want to gain function back. Or at least learn how to do things for myself."

"You will," Zaria assured me. "I know you will."

"Me too," Zeke said, his voice strong. "You'll get there, Rina."

My best friend was sitting right next to me, encouraging me. My crush was sitting next to her, telling me that I could overcome this.

So then why did I feel so alone?

*Daniel POV*

I held Gemma's hand tight. Her eyes were fearful as she clung to my arm. She sat next to me, leaning against me. I could feel her trembling a little. My parents and Joanna's parents had prepared a place to talk over Joanna's drunk driving, and how to handle everything. My parents had decided a civil talk with her parents would be best.

On the other hand, they had already hired one of the best lawyers and had made a list of the charges they had planned for Joanna and her parents. Joanna was already set for juvie and several penalties against the law.

My parents had let Gemma stay with me, so we would have a witness that wasn't part of our family, just in case things got ugly.

"Hi," My mother says kindly, opening the door.

Joanna's mother has bags under her eyes and her blonde hair is frizzy, like she forgot to brush it. She looks like she hasn't slept in days. "Hi," she says, her voice weary.

"Thank you so much for talking with us before we do all of that law stuff," Joanna's dad says.

Gemma pushes herself to a sitting position next to me, rolling her shoulders backward. Her eyes are sharp, surveying every little detail. I can tell she's trying to pull herself together. For the most part, on the outside, she does look the part.

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