Limelight

Chapter Twenty-Six

~~I Hear You~~

"Thanks for letting me stay here," Aaliyah said tiredly stepping into Xavier's apartment as he opened it up for her, gesturing for her to step in first. She blinked at him in surprise before obliging wondering when he gained a sense of chivalry, but she chose not to comment on it, for the sake of not ruining it.

          "That wasn't a "thank you"  I heard from the Lia Garcia, was it?" Xavier replied sarcastically as he stepped in after she shut the door behind him. The thought occurred to her that this was the second time she was in Xavier's house.

Despite herself and the most sobering drive back from the hospital, she'd probably ever take in her life, she couldn't fight her smile, as she whirled and gasped in dismay. "I say "thank you" to people," She argued vehemently, "I am the fucking queen of mannerism."

          Xavier rolled his eyes. "I don't think I have ever heard you say thank you once to me." He retorted, cracking a slight smile in her direction, "Also take your shoes off, just because you're high doesn't mean you forget protocol."

          "Well alright, Sergeant Adams." She mocked waving her hands tauntingly, before she plopped herself on the wooden floors, hurting her butt a little. She pouted and rubbed her behind soothingly. "Ouch."

          Xavier shook his head, appalled. "You're such a child."

          She scowled at him and rolled her eyes. "I am not a child," She replied in a low voice, "A child wouldn't have to finish like three packs of potato chips just so she could soberly explain to her friend and her parents what their son was doing in a hospital at eleven PM." She pointed out, as she pulled off her sneaker, pausing to stare at her toes in her socks. After Xavier suggested they leave the hospital, Aaliyah had done her best to put the whole ordeal at the back of her mind. Christian had thrown up outside the hospital once Xavier had pulled up on the street, which was only reassurance that he was at least still alive. The entire drive, Aaliyah sat in the back seat with Christian, trying to make sure she could still hear his ragged breaths against her neck.

They had been in the waiting room when Sol burst through the doors looking like a bat out of hell, in pajamas and her bonnet, though wisps of her blue hair escaped it. Her parents came after her looking equally as concerned. Aaliyah got up instantly, waving for Solana to see her, when she did, she didn't even acknowledge the receptionist calling for her to come back. Her parents stopped at the desk to provide their details. Sol didn't seem to be paying attention to anything else except her and Xavier. "What the fuck happened?" She exclaimed, her breath escaping her, "What did he take?"

Aaliyah swallowed meeting her gaze. "I'm so sorry, Solana," She started, barely able to keep her thoughts from scattering. Since they got to the hospital and Xavier explained what happened to the nearest attending, before they took him away to get his stomach pumped, Aaliyah could only focus on what she was going to say to Sol. She was her friend, and even though Solana wasn't the warmest person, she knew that she cared about Christian, despite their misgivings. Having to explain this to Sol felt like having to tell a parent that they lost their child, "He was smoking and some dude at Blair's party gave him lean. He came to me completely out of it. He's in the ward right now, he's been out ever since we got here—"

Solana didn't wait for Aaliyah to finish her explanation before she pushed past the curtains separating them from where Christian lay unconscious on the bed. Soon her parents came over and Xavier directed them to where Christian and Solana were. Aaliyah could see them all through the space between the curtains, Sol was leaning over Christian's unconscious body, pushing his hair out of his face murmuring something she couldn't hear. Their parents were at the foot of his bed, his father a ghastly look on his face, as his wife held his hand tightly. Aaliyah felt her heart break at the sight and the only thing she could do was sink into her seat staring widely at the curtains separating a broken family from her and Xavier.