The Guarded One ✔

Chapter Seventeen

On monday morning, I walk down the hallway. Immediately, I notice the eyes on me. I haven't had so many people stare at me since Duncan's car accident. That makes me nervous.

"Hey" Tyler greets emotionlessly as approaching me.

"Hey" I furrow my brows, "any idea what all this is about?" I look over to groups of people staring at me.

Tyler opens his mouth to respond. "Uh-"

"Guys! Have you heard the latest tea?" Duncan cries as running up to Tyler and I. "Hayden's been suspended"

That explains the staring.

"Yeah" Tyler sighs as looking over to me.

"Wait, what? Why?" My eyes widen in confusion.

Suspensions aren't something that I take lightly. It can mean the difference between us graduating together or Hayden repeating senior year.

"I don't know" Duncan admits.

"And you knew about this?" I look over to Tyler. 

He nods as the bell rings. "To be continued," I tell them as walking in the opposite direction.

When I enter Bio, Ayla is sitting at the desk, tapping her fingertips against the table top. "I heard about Hayden" is the first thing she says to me.

"You got any idea why?" I raise a brow  while taking a seat beside her.

"Nope," she admits. "And neither do you or the others?"

I shake my head. "I should call her, right? Or not...if she wanted me to know she would tell me"

"Yeah but isn't that your thing...taking care of people? Duncan makes it sound like you're the glue holding your group together"

I nod slowly "the glue, huh? He's exaggerating as always..."

"I don't think he is" Ayla half-smiles. "...Duncan loves you, you know...he would literally take a bullet for you"

I look down, clenching my jaw in fear. "That's what I'm afraid of" I mutter under my breath while my mind goes back to Jimmy and the night of Duncan's accident. 

"What are-" my eyes widened in fear.

"I'm sorry, Jason" Duncan whispered as driving towards the thick steel poll. 

"Duncan, look out!" Hayden screamed at the top of her lungs as the car collided with the poll.

I still resent Duncan for what he did that night. He not only tried to end his own life but he also risked me and Hayden's.

And he doesn't remember any of it.

***

"Then Doris said 'what a bloody muppet' I almost died, I'm telling you Jas" Aunt Laura laughs.

"Doris is a riot" I smile.

Doris is a friend of Aunt Laura's from when she was in her early twenties. Her real name is Dianne Galton. They were neighbours back in New York City.

My mum and dad were both born here in San Franciso but moved to The Bronx, New York when they got married. Aunt Laura followed them not long later where she lived for a while. 

"What about you, how was your day?" Aunt Laura asks. 

"Well, Tyler didn't have to take any time off school but Jess is absent for who knows how long" I explain, "oh and Hayden got herself suspended for a week," I tell her as taking another bite from my slice of pepperoni pizza.

"for what?" She asks.

I shrug "no one seems to know"

Aunt Laura sighs "what a shame" suddenly her eyes widen in excitement, "I almost forgot, Doris, gave me a late birthday present to give to you"

"She didn't have to" I smile.

"Well you know Doris" she laughs as standing up. "She wrapped it up and everything"

Aunt Laura walks towards her handbag that sits on the kitchen counter beside the coffee machine. I take another bite of my pizza slice when I hear fumbling. 

"You okay?" I ask.

That's when I hear a bang. I look over my shoulder to find my aunt on the floor. I jump out of my seat and run to her side, where she lays seizing on the kitchen floor. Arms and legs jerking rapidly with her eyes closed.

Not again.

I pull out my cell and call 911. "You have reached 911, do you need police, fire, or ambulance?"

"Ambulance" I beg.

"Okay and how can we assist you?" The woman asks.

"My aunt is having a seizure on the kitchen floor and I think she hit her head" I explain as she continues to seize.

"Okay, how old is your aunt?" She questions calmly. 

"Uh, thirty-seven" I respond. 

"Is she under the influence of alcohol or any drugs?" She asks. "Or taking any medication?"

"Just her epilepsy medication" I explain as running my fingers through my hair.

"Epilepsy? Okay, when was her last seizure?"

"I don't know, six months ago...maybe more" I sigh. 

"Okay, what are you and your aunt's name?" The woman questions. 

"I'm Jason Sanders and her name is Laura Miller" I inform.

"Okay, Jason, the paramedics should arrive shortly"

"Thank you" I sigh as dropping my gaze to my aunt fearfully.

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Hi all,

Epilepsy is a brain disorder in which the nerve cell activity in the brain is disturbed. This is caused by clusters of nerve cells, or neurons, in the brain sometimes signal abnormally.

People with Epilepsy may experience strange sensations, emotions, and behaviour or sometimes convulsions, muscle spasms, and loss of consciousness.

Symptoms include fainting or fatigue, rhythmic muscle contractions or muscle spasms, aura or pins and needles, seizures, amnesia, anxiety, depression, headache, sleepiness, staring spells, or temporary paralysis after a seizure.

Keep in mind that the experience of the character in this book may be different from your own experience or the experience of someone that you may know.

Please VOTE if you enjoyed this chapter.

Thank you

Happy reading!