The Major Lift. Rewrite one.

Febem in Extremis

Blake hadn't said exactly what was going on with her new friend. But given all the things she'd observed thus far, she couldn't help but picture the very worst. Gladstone overpass was too far to walk and so Chris had phoned a cab as soon as she'd hung up, she headed out the door to the street corner to meet it. She'd instructed Blake to stay with her on the overpass though and knew that she world. The cab met her after about a minute of two and Chris gratefully got in and blurted out the address. The cabbie shot her a raised eyebrow and drove.
When Chris arrived, she recognised the van she and Blake used to cart their music equipment around, headlights ablaze and Blake himself leaning on the passenger side with his arms crossed and his umbrella sticking up from them like a signpost.
"Here's fine. Thanks, loads" Chris muttered to the driver, handing him a twenty. "Keep the change".
"You don't want me to stick around?" He asked, unsure.
Chris shook her head. "No, thanks," she said, noting that the additional car stopped in the left-most lane would only slow traffic to a glacial pace, or at worst cause an accident. He shrugged and carried on, leaving Chris to take in the unsettling scene on the narrow sidewalk.

Blake held his umbrella in the steady rain, leaning on the car looking from her to Aurora who stood on the banisters, legs levering against the top most rail like she were about to jump. The image made Chris' heart jump into her throat.
That overpass ferried cars over water which had to be freezing at this time of year. Her knees were the only thing stopping her from toppling over the edge. Yet there she stood, staring out over the water, her body shivering visibly. She was soaked through, her hair dripping over her face and her sopping overcoat was whipping in the wind. The backpack and guitar case sat abandoned beside her. Her fists clenched and unclenched, shaking. She appeared to be breathing erratically, and by the streetlamp Chris could see how pale she really was. The whole picture was so alarming Chris whipped out her phone and ran toward Blake.
"Dude! We gotto call the ..."
"No. We don't. Aro said she doesn't want us to. But she okayed me calling you" Blake muttered as loudly as he could over the noise of the traffic, putting his hand on Chris' hands which clutched her phone and pushing them down. Chris looked from him to her new friend and back again, incredulous.
"What the fuck?" she muttered.
"Like I said. If you want, I can phone the cops, but what are they going to do. Ambos too ... Maybe better, but still ... she's vetoed the idea. Said I'm not to escalate or come closer. So we've been talking like this. Go talk to her Chris. Get her down" he commanded, jerking his head toward the railing. Chris looked at his face and saw lines of worry decorating his brow and true fear dancing behind his eyes. She approached Aurora, as quickly as she dared.

"Aro? It's Chris ... what are you doing here?" she asked as she came to a slow standstill beside Aurora.
Silence. Over the rain, she could hear Aurora catching her breath. Looking up at her, she could see her face tying itself in anguished knots behind a composed mask that was quickly tearing itself apart.
"You don't look like you're okay, Aro. And that's fine. We can talk about it. Come back with us. You can warm up. Have something to eat ..."
Aurora was shaking her head, her eyes resolutely horizon-bound.
"You'd prefer to stay up here, wet and shivering, wounded and in danger of falling?"
"If I fell, you'd have to let me go!" Yelled Aurora over the steady thundering of the rain and the roar of traffic. Her words confirmed Chris' very worst fears.
"I'd never let you go!" Chris assured, lurching forward and edging a hand up to take hold of a fist full of sopping overcoat. "What's going on, Aro?" She persisted.
"Can't" Aurora squeaked, barely audible over the noise.
"You can step back. Just step back and I'm here to catch you. On the sidewalk" urged Chris, gently. Her other hand gripped the top rail as she held the back of Auroras coat.
"Let me go, Chris!" Yelled Aurora, voice disappearing in places. Chris saw her chest heave as she fought to present a façade of calm, even poised to jump to her own watery, cold death as it looked.
"Can you let go of the rails, Aro? Then maybe I can let go of you. Then I can know you're safe. I won't let you end your life, Aro! Not now, not ever. I've got your back. Like it or not!" Chris said, catching herself aback with the ease with which her words came. "Just step back!" She added, inching her hand up Auroras back as far as she could reach from her place on the sidewalk. The minutes ticked by and Aurora remained exactly where she was. Chris wondered how long this could continue before either of them disregarded Auroras wishes and phoned an in. Aurora appeared to be slipping though, both physically and mentally. She trembled and then swallowed hard. She looked down at Chris, but wobbled alarmingly causing Chris to redouble her grip. Auroras gaze snapped back to the horizon.
"I'm .. I'm ... out!" Aurora said, hiccupping. The sentence should have been straight forward, but Chris had to think about it for a moment. Did she mean she's out as in done? Or did she mean she's been outed? Had someone outed Aurora from the closet Chris knew deep in her gut she lived in? Chris shuddered at the thought. Outing someone before they decide to out themselves to anyone, as far as horrible things to do to others go is up there with generalised treachery and 'back-stabery'. You don't out someone if you want to remain their friend, family or other significant person. Never.
"Out?" She asked, but deep down she was sure she already knew what this meant.
"I can't go back" she heard Aurora say, choking out a sob.
"Back where? Back home?"
Aurora nodded, the muscles of her neck sucking in air and swallowing mouthfuls of it as if trying to drink the world.
"You can't stay here!" Chris said, inching her other hand up Auroras leg. She could feel the muscles there shaking. "Just step back. I got you. Come on" She urged.
Finally, as though it cost her every spare ounce of energy, Aurora removed one of her legs from the rail and a second latter, she was stumbling backward. Blake appeared out of nowhere with his umbrella and together they caught Aurora between them as her legs appeared to give way. Chris was startled at how light she was, despite Blake taking on some of her weight.
"Hey! Aro. Come on! Stay awake, help me out. Walk with me!" She ordered, or rather snapped as together they guided Aurora to the van.
As they did so, Chris noticed two things that alarmed her still further, as if Auroras apparent suicide attempt wasn't alarming enough. One was that the person now rapidly descending into a panic attack between them was running a high fever, and the other was that she was leaning most of her weight on the pair of them, not really walking but rather being carried. Her eyes were closing, showing off slivers of white between their lids. Her head lulled sickeningly between them as they deposited her in their passenger seat of their van.
"Blake, could you please go round the back and grab a towel? It's the one I usually use during rehearsals" Chris asked, perching herself on the edge of the seat backwards the better to see what she was doing. She was trying to role up Auroras left sleeve. As she yanked it up, itching to get a look at Auroras wound, suspecting it could be part of the overall problem, Aurora gasped in pain and paled even further.
"Aro. It's okay. But I need to look at the arm" said Chris as Blake came back with the small towel. Chris took it and used it to quickly dry Auroras face before peeling back the sleeve to show off a sopping wet crude dressing of dozens of band aids and sports tape. It was coming away to reveal a wound that looked so infected, it turned Chris' stomach. A substance like treacle oozed from it and the skin around it was so swollen and inflamed it made Chris' heart ache. She dried her hands and pressed one of them to Auroras forehead and swore.
Aurora was very feverish. She was breathing rapidly and shallowly and her eyes were fluttering open.
Chris' heart leaped, "Hey! Aro! Hey! Look at me!" She urged, gripping and giving Auroras right shoulder a gentle shake. Aurora drew her arms close and shivered violently.
"Chris" she rasped, blinking and glassy-eyed.
"Hey! You passed out for a moment. This arm looks horrendous, we should get you to a hospital" At the mention of hospital, Aurora recoiled, face tightening in distain and shook her head.
"Mmhh'no. No. Wonn'go" she mumbled, swallowing thickly and letting her eyes close. Her breathing was quickening again rapidly. Chris felt her own heartrate quicken and she used the towel to dry some more of Auroras face and head.
"Hey. Aro! Listen to me. Slow it down. Slow your breathing down" Chris was urging but to no avail. Aurora sucked in lungfuls of air like a fish out of water, gasping and heaving.
"Can't ... can't ... g ... go back!" She sobbed, leaning forward in the car seat and using her good hand to cover her mouth. She was alarmingly pale and sweaty. Even in the minute or so since drying her face, Auroras skin had developed a feverish sheen to it, as if having been rained on all over again.
"Honey, you don't have to. Not today. But we have got to have this seen to" Chris repeated, looking down at Auroas arm which still rested limply in her lap. But Aurora steadfastly refused.