My Best Friend's Brother

It All Went Black

Liam

I see Emilie and Sarah across the room pointing at a few guys from West Heights. I see her eyes wander over to me, but before I can meet her gaze, a short brunette wraps her arms around my neck. I play along, knowing Emilie is watching.

I push her hair behind her shoulders, and laugh at what she is saying. I watch Emilie walk right past me, and I push the girl off of me. She mumbles but walks away.

"Liam!" Grant is standing in the middle of the room rolling for the group of guys playing beer pong.

He waves me over, "What, Grant?"

"You want?" He holds a blunt up in the air.

"God, no." I glance back over my shoulder looking for her, but I don't see her. I turn back around trying to find Sarah, but I don't see her either. My heart starts racing.

"Grant, have you seen Sarah?"

He points behind him to a hallway. I push people out of the way and half jog to the hallway. The first room on the left was occupied, and it wasn't Sarah or Emilie.

I hear a high pitched scream and the hair stands up on the back of my neck. I close my eyes trying to figure out where it came from. The hallway was still full, I pushed more people to the side, and bust open the door directly across from the kitchen.

My chest blows. One of the West Heights guys had Emilie pinned to the wall and was pulling her pants down.

"Get the fuck off of her!" My hands wraps around his neck pulling him off of her. She falls to the ground in tears. She starts to scream.

The West Heights guy turns to face me and lands a punch across my jaw. It stings. I draw my fist back and land it across his cheek bone.

Emilie continues to scream for help, this time louder than before, but the punches keep connecting from both sides.

I feel someone try to pull me off of him, but my arms don't stop swinging. Suddenly the room is crowded with several of the partiers.

"Stop!" Grant pulls me by my shirt, and another guy grabs my arm helping him hold me back. After several punches with no contact, my arms begin to hurt.

I finally give in, and my body is thrown against the floor.

I hear Emilie scream for Sarah, and moments later her crying is muffled. Sarah pulls her to her chest and holds her on the floor.

"Liam! Are you okay? Oh my god. Liam!" Sarah yells out to me.

"What the hell, White? Someone is calling the cops. You have to go." Grant kicked my rib cage and yelled for everyone to go home.

The West Heights boy lands one last punch straight to my right cheekbone as I lay on the ground. The room became empty except for me..Sarah.. and Emilie.

Emilie crawls across the floor to me, "Are you okay.."

I look in her direction, with blurry vision, "Are you okay.."

She tries to smile, "I asked you first."

"YOU HAVE TO GO!" Grant enters the room and pulls me up to my feet. Sarah and Emilie each prop me up by an arm around their shoulder.

"I can get him to the car." Grant picked me up over his shoulder.

It all went black.

I open my eyes to nothing but blur.
Bright blur.

I feel around with my hands, I can't tell where I am.

"Liam?"

I knew that voice. I could pick that voice in a line up.

"Em?"

"It's me." I feel her hand wrap around mine. After several blinks, I began to see clearer. Her face.

My face was sore, but I forced it to smile. 

She smiled back, "Thank you."

I squeeze her hand.

"Is he awake?" My eyes make their way to Sarah standing in the doorway.

"You didn't get that lucky. I'm still around."

She sat on the edge of my bed, "You are my hero."

I swallowed hard, and felt the sting in my face, neck and chest, "It wasn't a big deal."

"Let's give him some time to rest." Sarah put her hand on Emilies shoulder and left the room.

Emilie stood from the bed, but I held her hand tight, "Em."

She sat back down, "Yes?"

"I'm sorry I didn't get to you faster."

A tear fell from her eye, "Stop."

"I want to kill him."

She grazed her finger across my lip, "Stop, you saved me."

"I should have paid more attention."

Her single tear turned into many, "Liam-," she squeezed my hand, "You saved me."

"I would never let anything happen to you."

We both hold each other's hand in silence, and I begin to think about the last time I kissed her. It all makes me remember, she isn't mine. She loves someone else. She kisses someone else. She dreams about someone else, yet I saved her. It was me. I should be the one kissing her, I should be the one she dreams about, I should be the one she loves. My chest starts to tighten as my heart beat speeds to a rapid pace.

"Why are you with him?"

She looked at me confused, "What?"

I felt a cough rise in my chest, and it hurt like hell, "Jackson."

Her face fell. She wouldn't look me in the eyes, and her grip loosened from my hand, "Sarah is going to come looking for me-"

"Answer me, Em. I deserve that."

She raised her eyes to mine, "I'm sorry."

She let go of my hand, and left me alone. Alone to my thoughts and my pain. And I really have to pee.