Playing The Game

Playing The Game - Chapter 24

Chapter 24

As I lay in the hospital bed and stared at the ceiling, a million thoughts spun around and collided with each other in my mind. Each one scared the hell out of me.

Allie had left me to worry alone, but not before explaining the seriousness of Branden’s injuries. Apparently when Joel shot him the bullet had miraculously missed all of his major organs, but it still caused quite a bit of damage and a lot of blood-loss. He was also pretty bruised, like me, but had less broken bones; just his nose and a few of fingers were broken. His body had shut down and gone into a coma while it healed. There was nothing that the doctors could do but wait until he woke up—if he ever woke up at all.

That thought scared me. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if he died because of Joel—because of me. If Branden dies it would be my fault. He only knew Joel because of me, and he got shot because of me, because I made Joel mad. Because I was stupid enough to be with Joel in the first place.

I couldn’t believe that Joel would go that far. That he would try to kill me. I never thought he would do something like that.

I guess I never really knew him as well as I thought I did.

* * *

A few days in the hospital turned into a couple of weeks, but eventually my ribs were healed enough for me to walk around on crutches, and I was allowed to go home.

I went to see Branden, and as soon as I saw him tears welled up in my eyes. I sat down in the chair next to his bed, leaning the crutches against the wall and taking his hand gently. It was cold and felt scarily lifeless.

“Branden…” I didn’t know what to say. Seeing him like that scared me so much, and I wasn’t sure if I could bear it. I took a deep breath. “Branden, please wake up. I’m so, so sorry that this happened. It’s all my fault and I’m so sorry. But I need you to wake up. Please, Branden, please. I need you.” I was sobbing by this point, but I kept going. “Branden, I love you. And if you leave me… I don’t know what I’ll do. I can’t be without you. I can’t…”

I stared at him, willing his eyes to open, but they didn’t. They stayed closed, and he didn’t move at all. The only signs of him actually being alive were the steady rise and fall of his chest and the beeping of the heart monitor beside his bed.

The tears kept falling as I swiftly stood up and grabbed my crutches, hobbling out of the room as fast as I could.

* * *

I visited Branden several times in the next two weeks, but each time it was the same: I would beg him to wake up, not knowing if he could even hear me, but he didn’t wake. It broke my heart every time.

* * *

Joel was sentenced to jail for 3 years for attempted murder and abuse. I was so relieved that he was being put away, and glad that he couldn’t hurt me, or Branden, or anyone else anymore.

* * *

Mandy visited me after she’d gotten settled with her new baby girl. We were on slightly better terms now, but I still couldn’t trust her or be friends with her like I used to.

Her baby was called Ella, and she was the most adorable thing I had ever seen. She was beautiful and looked so much like her mum. In fact, all of her features were clearly inherited from Mandy, except for one thing—her eyes. They were flawless emerald green, and shone and sparkled in the light. Just like Joel’s used to—before he went all psychopathic on us.

It was painful to see, and I knew that it hurt Mandy too.

“Do you regret it?” I asked her as I held Ella in my arms. “Sleeping with him?”