The Way The World Ends ✓

Chapter 23. Indigo

~

The hope only

Of empty men.

~

A part of me wanted Nate to beat the hell out of Andrew for what he did to me, but at the same time, I knew that he wouldn't stand a chance. Nate was fast, but he couldn't fight. He was tall and skinny, not big like Andrew and Zane. I also didn't want him to give in to his impulses. I wanted him to fight it. He had been doing so well recently controlling his ADHD, but I knew that this might cause him to backslide. I knew I would.

I started to worry after Nate was gone for more than thirty seconds, but he reemerged from the locker room unscathed. He shook his head.

"He left." Nate crouched in front of me and gently tucked my hair behind my ear. "Who did this?" He whispered, most of the anger in his eyes now replaced with concern. "What--" He gripped his other hand into a fist but forced himself to release it. "What did he do?" He asked quietly, afraid of the answer.

"A-Andrew. D-d-d-didn't finish it. Kicked h-him." I stuttered, my teeth chattering.

"Jesus." He said, stroking my face. "I should have been there. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have started this. I'm so sorry. I can't believe you got away from him. I'm so glad you did, but he still..." He didn't finish. He looked like he was about to cry as well, but he held it in for my benefit.

I shook my head violently, trying to distinguish the action from the trembling coursing through my entire body already. "Not your fault." I managed, trying to choke back the sobs. Everything was starting to sink in as the pure shock of the moment wore away slowly. I started to hurt. My sides felt sore, my head hurt where he slammed me against the lockers, my throat stung with every sharp intake of breath.

"I'm so sorry, Indie." He whispered again, squeezing my knee in comfort.

He let me cry for a few minutes while he patiently soothed me, careful not to touch me too much. I didn't even think about what happened, I just cried. There was so much fuel for my sobs that I couldn't distinguish one thought from the next. I just panicked. But he stayed with me. He was here.

When some of the shakings finally slowed, he took my face in his hands and said softly, "I want to take you to the hospital. You don't look very good. Can you get up?"

"No hospital." I insisted, some of the shaking returning at the thought.

"No hospital if you don't want to." He promised. "But Nurse, please." I reluctantly nodded. I pushed his jacket off of me and tried to button up my shirt, but my fingers weren't working properly. "Do you want me to do it?" He asked, gently. "I promise I won't look at you."

I nodded, and he buttoned my shirt up as well as my pants. To his credit, he didn't linger or stare. He did it swiftly, but his hands were shaking some as well. He helped me to my feet and draped his jacket around my shoulders before picking my bag up off the floor where I dropped it when-- I stopped my thoughts.

His arm encircled my waist and I flinched from the pain as well as the memory of the hands that were there last. A few more tears slid down my cheeks as we made our way down the hall to the nurse's office, and I hoped she was still there. I really didn't want to go to the hospital and make a big deal out of this. I couldn't handle it.

"What happened?" The nurse demanded when Nate sat me down on the side of the bed in the small office. He opened his mouth to speak, but I shook my head vigorously. I didn't want to talk about it. I couldn't talk about it. I didn't know if I ever would, but right then I definitely was not going to right now. Nate shut his mouth.