Clarity ~ m.c.

•Chapter 39•

Playlist:

These Are The Lies- The Cab

Jet Pack Blues- Fall Out Boy

Not About Angels- Birdy

Fourth of July- Fall Out Boy

*****

***Lauren's POV***

I was standing in the middle of Arlington National Cemetery in Washington D.C. when suddenly shots from guns started going off. I flinched at the noise as I turned around to realize that the shots were blanks from a gun at a military funeral. I knew because I saw myself sitting in a metal chair clinging onto a folded American flag for dear life as my dad sat to my left and Emily and Andrew sat to my right. I watched myself looking blankly at my mom's casket questioning life it's self. However, that's when I realized that the scene was frozen after the third round of gun shots.

"Lauren." I heard a low echoing whisper as I frantically started turning every different direction trying to find the source of the whispering as they kept continuing.

"Who's there?" I called out.

"Keep fighting." The whispered echoed, fighting being the key word.

"Keep fight?" I questioned why this voice was saying this.

"Strong. . . You are strong." The whisper continued as a flashing blurry image of my mom quickly appeared and then vanished right before my eyes. That's when I made the connection, this was my mom trying to speak to me some way.

"No I'm not." I called out. "And I'm tired of pretending that I am."

"You're a fighter." She echoed back. "I've seen you do it."

"How would you know, you're gone you can't feel the pain I've felt, I can't go on like this." I cried out into the oblivion.

"Yes you can." The echoes continued.

"How?"

"Gymnastics." She whispered. "The boy."

"The boy?" I repeated thinking who in fresh hell she was refusing too, that's when I got the person.

"Michael?" I asked.

"Yes." Her voice hissed.

"N-no." I stutured. "He hurt me, he's part of the reason I'm not strong enough anymore, he broke me." I stated. "When your strong people think it's okay to hurt you. I've been hurt to many times and I'm not letting it continue on."

"Lauren!" The voice was sharp and harsh. "You can do it! You will realize!"

I was starting to get very confused. She wasn't making scence, what did Michael have to do with anything? What did she mean?

"I don't understand." I said confused.

"You will." She whispered as the scenery started to fade away.

"No mom!" I cried. "Don't leave! What will I understand? What will I realize?"

"Fight Lauren. Be strong." Was the last thing she said as everything completely faded away and there was nothing but blackness.

**

"Lauren." I could heard someone calling my name again. "Lauren." It repeated as light shakes reminisced through my body as my eye lids started to crack open and blinding light made its way into my eyes causing me to squint.

People were standing to either side of the bed I was in as someone continued to call my name. The source of light was coming from a miny, pocket sized flash light that was being waved across my face directly in my eyes. Gaining my eye sight back, I ended up gasping for air not realizing that I was holding my breath for some reason, but then ultimately whining in pain.

Coming too, the people surrounding me started backing away as I heard sighs spread across the room. Looking around the room, it was over crowded with a doctor standing above me as I laid in a hospital bed. My aunt and uncle were standing to my left, thanking the lord that I had finally woken up, Emily and Andrew were on the other side of them down toward the end of the bed, then looking over to my right, Michael was right there beside me holding my hand as he stood behind the doctor, along with Luke, Ashton and Calum and their families along with Brendan standing in the room as well.

What were the guys doing here? I thought they were still on tour? A million questions started running through my head, but I was snapped out of my thoughts by the doctor asking me questions.

"What?" I asked, not hearing a word he said.

"How are you feeling?" He asked me.

"Like shit or better yet, like I've been hit by a truck." I confessed, but sounded really agitated.

"You have three fractured rib bones, a Brocken nose and countless deep bruises all over your body, so it's understandable." The doctor said to me. He then turned to everyone else in the room and said,

"Alright unless your immediate family everyone in hear needs to leave." The doctor instructed.

"No." I abruptly said using as much of the strength I had to speak. "I want to talk to Michael first."

***

***Michael's POV***

As everyone left the room, nurses helped Lauren try to sit up a little before leaving the room as well. I could feel my nerves eating me alive. What did she want to say to me?

"You have five minutes, and then I need to take her to get X-rays." The doctor told me and then was the last to leave the room.

I sat on the edge of her bed looking at her, waiting for her to talk.

"Why are you here?" she asked quietly.

"For you of course. Liz called us the night it happened, we flew out that night." I explained to her.

"Why?" she practically gasped. "Why would you want to come see me after all I did to you?"

"Just because it was over doesn't mean I don't care about you or your wellbeing." I told her and it grew uncomfortably quiet between us.

"I'm a terrible person." She said pulling her knees to her chest and she shuddered in pain, but didn't seem to care how much it hurt. "I deserved this."

"What are you talking about Lauren, you don't deserve any of this. Why would you think that? No one deserves this." I tried telling her but she didn't say anything back. I could tell time was ticking away; I needed her to keep talking.

"Lauren who did this to you?" I asked her, trying to get her to talk again. I could see she was trying to hold back the tears.

"No don't cry." I said quietly taking her in my arms as she started to cry into my shirt. "Lauren talk to me." I begged her.

"My dad." She sobbed.

As soon as she said those words, the nurses and doctor came back in. Knowing my time was up, I let her go but she clung onto my shirt.

"I'm sorry." She whispered in my ear. "For everything I did to you." She added, letting go as the nurses readjusted her to lie back down and got me off the bed as they pushed her bed out of the room.