Smash!

•F O R T Y S E V E N•

Riley's POV

"Jamie?"

"Yeah?"

"Here," I whisper back, gently dropping my cellphone in her small freckled hand. The two of us stare down the door of the third floor, and on the otherside is hopefully Robin. Holding onto each other's shaking hands tightly, not one of us dares to bring up about how badly they're shaking. All I can hear is the blood pounding in my ears and my too heavy breathing. "Call your brother. Or text him. Just... I want you to talk to him one more time."

"Okay," A part of me can't stand how Jamie instantly gives in. I wanted her to wave it off, assure me that she wouldn't need to say I love you to her brother one last time, because we'd be okay. Instead, she types a phone number that she remembers by heart, the glow of my IPhone cutting through dark to illuminate each and every single one of her freckles, also the tears she's blinking back, and the lump her throat she's trying to swallow.

"You should call your brother." She offers my phone back to me, her face choked up. "Or maybe your parents—even though I know how much you hate them—"

"I would call you." Jamie nearly drops the phone when my forehead softly lands against hers, the green of her eyes everything I see. She's so close, every inch of her brushing across me...

"You're my somebody I would call." Right here, right now facing down Nate and hell on the other side of this door, everything crashes down and feels so meaningless. I've wasted so much time with Jamie. Every little difference, every let down flashes before my eyes. When I just up and bailed for New York. Or how every night I stayed out till the sun came up, and shut her out. Now all I want is more time with her. Nate be damn, I should have cherished every time she looked at me. I could done things differently. I could have done better by her. I even want this small moment to last forever. Just her and I in a dark little corner forever.

"Riley," It feels so cold when Jamie breaks away, "every minute we stall, the longer Robin is trapped with Nate." Her hands clasps around the doorknob with her one good hand, but her green eyes won't let mine go.

"Let's go get her." I whisper. Just like earlier, Jamie presses her ear against the door to listen for any sign of trouble on the other side. When there's no sign of life, Jamie carefully lowers herself down to prop herself up on her elbows to peak at the crack under the door for movement. That action proves she grew up with siblings.

"I think the coast is clear," she breathes while strengthening up. "Let's be quick. In and out."

"We'll be a hot minute." I assure her, white hot anxiety seeping into my muscles.

"On three?" She suggests quietly.

"One." I start the count down.

"Two."

"Three." Jamie tentatively opens the door inch by inch to steal a glance out.

"Robin!" The door almost slams into me when Jamie uncharacteristically loses composures when she swings the door open to take off running. More now than ever, I thought Jamie would be more cautious than any moment in her life, but she pulled a me and just ran straight into it. I grab after her, but she runs pass my out stretched fingertips.

Poking my head in, I take a hard look around. Unlike the top floor where Jamie and I first came in, the third floor are a few rooms surrounding one massive room that are all filled up with packed up boxes. Stealthy placed amongst the boxes of sealed cardboard of old equipment are Nate's own boxes filled with his product. Hidden in plain sight. It's fucking brilliant.

You can tell Nate was just here by the empty beer cans and cigarette butts littering the dusty ground. One particular pathetically twisted butt is still smoking. Then I spot her and my heart stops altogether. As if carelessly dumped, Robin's unconscious body is abandoned on the sea of boxes, her limbs tangled up like her hair that is all over the place.