~My Teacher Hits Me~ (Book 1) [Rewritten]

Chapter 18: C is for Coma

Dani bursts out of the elevator and onto the intensive care floor with Tuck in tow. She searches frantically for the waiting room and Cas. It takes Tuck and her a moment, but finally they spot him around the next corner. Dani slows down when she recognizes his demeanor. She worries even more about Rylan's condition.

She has never seen Cas like this before. When his sister died, Cas struggled to keep it together, but this is different. His eyes are rimmed in red as consequence of his tears and he looks exhausted, like he hasn't slept in days despite his only being here a few hours. Tuck walks beside her silently, his hands fisted in his pockets. When they're close enough he reaches out and hugs Cas who, after a moment's hesitation, clings to Tuck with all his strength.

"Mr. Amsden." Dani acknowledges Cas's dad.

"Hello, Danielle. I'm glad you came."

"Of course."

She glances at Cas and Tuck still locked in their embrace, then back to Mr. Amsden.

"Is she alright?" Dani asks as she tries hard to keep her lips from trembling. "How bad is it?"

"She's stable, but they were worried she may have a concussion... About an hour ago she had a seizure and slipped into a coma."

Dani gasps and covers her mouth with her hand.

"What does that mean?" Tuck asks as he pulls away from Cas.

"It means what it means. She could wake up fifteen minutes from now; she could wake up a month from now. These things aren't exact science. It's all up to Rylan and her body."

Dani reaches back to grip Tuck's hand. Tuck squeezes her hand comfortingly although he doesn't feel as reassured as his squeeze does.

"What happened?" Dani asks.

She doesn't really want to know the answer, but she doesn't want to leave the conversation with talk of how Rylan may not wake up for a really long time. Mr. Amsden looks at Cas.

"I'm going to get some coffee. Anyone want anything?"

They all shake their heads.

"No, thank you." Dani says.

Mr. Amsden exits the room.

Dani and Tuck turn to Cas.

"Cas... what happened?" Dani asks again.

Cas shrugs. "I don't know. One moment she was fine—she said she would be right out. We were waiting to give her a ride home, but the minutes wore on and still she hadn't come out. Next thing I know, the entire school goes dark. So I went up to check the doors and they were locked. I kept calling Rylan's phone, but she didn't answer. Dad had to find someone to open the doors.

"We finally got in and Rylan's backpack was sitting on the floor in front of the doors, but she was nowhere in sight."

Cas pauses as if remembering something. Dani places her hand on Cas's shoulder. It startles him and he breaks down

"She was just lying there. I thought she was dead." Cas sobs, hunching over and covering his eyes with his hand. His body shakes with the sobs.

Dani pulls Cas tightly into her embrace. "Shhh. She's okay now. Rylan will be fine." Dani soothes.

"Do you know who did it?" Tuck asks.

"It had to be either Blake or Mr. Quinn. I can't think of anyone else who would do this." Cas sniffles.

Mr. Amsden comes walking back into the waiting room with his cup of coffee and Mr. Winchester. Officer Daniels and Officer Romero follow them. Cas straightens up and dries his eyes.