Red Eyes and Roses

Chapter 5

The embrace we held was not nearly enough before we were ripped apart. With no say in this decision from me, I feel my body being shoved behind someone else's. Someone else's who I recognize from the back of his shirt.

My punch on his back is not a gentle one. "Cole! You let me go right this instant!" Anger drips from him, but rage explodes from me. I know I'm small. I know I've gone through hell and back. But I am not weak. From my six inches below his head, I kick in the back of his knees. I am not weak. His body falls forward, the blow enough to knock him off his feet. My body stands above his own which is on the ground thanks to me. "I do not need protecting. Especially not from Luke. Especially not from the boy who saved my life." I enunciate 'life,' making sure he realizes he messed up. Slowly, my words click in his head. A pained look crosses his features before he looks up towards Luke.

Cole stands up off the ground carefully, keeping a nice distance between myself and him. I know I got through to him as he sticks his hand out towards Luke. "I'm sorry, bro," his voice comes out apologetic, "You saved my girls life and I pulled her away. I was just jealous." My head snaps to Cole. Jealous? My girl? For some reason, I'm mad. He needs to be apologizing to Luke, not claiming me as his. I am not property. I am not something to be claimed.

A scoff breaks my chain of thought. Luke's unnaturally red eyes turned darker as he stares back in the face of my best friend. "Your girl? She wasn't behaving like a taken woman when-" My hand slamming over his mouth stops his word vomit. That kiss is not the business of my best friend who thinks he can stake a claim over me.

The principal's voice breaks us out of our tense gathering. Frantic students and teachers come rushing towards us as the sound of sirens get closer from in the distance. I'm yanked away from my center stance and pulled into the arms of the principal. He leads me towards the benches on property and begins examining my face. Lights shine in my eyes and condolences are offered from behind. I watch as the ambulances and police vehicles pull up onto the campus. Paramedics rush over to us, shouting for people to move. Soon, the school grounds become hectic. There are police speaking with the driver, paramedics in my face. Jocelyn comes rushing towards me from my right, all to be held back by an officer. To me, I'm watching this from outside of myself.

I watch as my body is picked up and carried over to the ambulance. I watch as I'm sat on the table inside. I watch as Cole and Luke remain in a standoff. The doors closing on the vehicle snap me back into the real world. EMTs and paramedics begin to examine me. Checking vitals, shining lights in my eyes, searching me for bumps and bruises. All of this, I go through alone.

"Ma'am, you are very lucky. If that boy wasn't there to pull you out of the way, you would have died on impact." One of the paramedics decide to snap me out of my daze with a reminder on how lucky I am. The sound of the engine starting up front forces confusion through my body. I can feel a panic begin in my chest. I'm all alone, in an ambulance, headed for the hospital. No one is here to hold my hand.

The medical crew around me begins to panic as I fall back onto the bed. An IV is shoved into my arm and an oxygen mask is strapped over my nose and mouth. The sound of a door opening crosses my path, but I don't look up. It takes all of my strength to keep breathing. That is until someone holds my hand. Warm fingers wrap around my own and squeeze. The hand holding mine keeps up a steady pulse of squeezing and releasing my fingers. Slowly my breathing regulates. Warmth pulses through my body and my eyes open on their own accord.

I feel a hand grasp my chin and turn me gently. My eyes meet with ones I have become all too familiar with in the past twenty-four hours. There's a tight smile on his lips, panic clear behind it. "You didn't think I would leave you again, did you?" His voice ignites a spark of happiness inside of me. The panic fully recedes as he places a gentle kiss on my forehead. "I promise I'll be here for you."