When I opened my eyes, I didn't know where I was for a few minutes. I was staring at a ceiling, but it was angled strangely. Shifting, I realized I was on my back, the floor beneath me hard. Slowly, I flipped onto my stomach and lifted myself up. The hallway I was in was small, but I could hear everything. I heard the shouting, the screaming, and finally, the gunshot.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡViFsF4ZOKo
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFToMZ0pVW
Silence filled my head and for a moment I thought I had gone deaf. My entire body stopped working, because the fear took over, and my brain told me who it was who had gotten shot. I squeezed my eyes shut and my knees gave out. I was back on the floor and I didn't move, didn't see, under someone touched my face with trembling hands.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU8J77aipNS
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxvEuB3bK5l
"Kendall, we have to call the police, and an ambulance or he isn't going to make it."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1E5hmWTEhe
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8P2ur7QSsF
At these words, I opened my eyes, and looked into a pair of hazel ones. Christian sat crouched in front of me, his entire face etched with worry and panic. He kept glancing behind him at the bedroom, his lips forming a thin line.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡInLph204uH
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3b4a7F1Q1H
"You're alive," I whispered. Then I threw myself at him, kissing him like I hadn't seen him in years. He returned the gesture and held me tightly. "God, I thought you got shot."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV1XsMLGbAI
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡprs9OVDoRQ
He stopped kissing me, then, seeming to remember why he came out here. Gently he drew away from me and touched my face, his eyes searching mine, and then he spoke.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLp3usTEZ93
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC4kzTfEbwd
"Kendall, it's Jude."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaZKDZWXuay
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7LPJAMfMUw
My eyes widened at his words, then I noticed his clothes, and the red specks on the fabric. It was blood. Jude's blood.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqkoaSWCTNO
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgFQzrbQFZh
"He saved me," Christian explained, bringing me to my feet. "But not without getting shot. Seth got him right in the chest. I'll call for help and you watch him."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvfT0YTmy3
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaxZ4PBftgg
My legs shook and I gripped the wall for support. "Seth," I muttered. "Where is he?"584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMqnJZ46pTF
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkc2DagGXNo
"He's not here," Christian said angrily. "The fucking coward jumped out the window."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgBsKbdDRC
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFrr3dX4xbw
I nodded, starting toward the door. I didn't even have to go all the way into the room to smell the blood. It was so strong that I nearly gagged. The first thing I saw was a shoe, then I heard a muffled cry. I saw Jude laying there, his chest covered in blood from the wound, and his eyes, those forest-green eyes, were staring at me.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ715Y9epHCP
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs90SnHGavt
I dropped to my knees beside him and automatically grasped his hand. "It's going to be okay," I said, trying hard not to cry. "Christian's calling for help."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzZvmzjOjU
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLf7ID6e9jQ
Jude's eyes, for the first time, looked full of terror. His breathing was erratic and his body trembled. Then he opened his mouth.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFJC13RZGPC
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ21arGjIF24
"I'll be with Abbie," he whispered, a smile on his lips. "I'll get to see her soon. It's what I always wanted."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPqwnXVY85a
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtuRYHIONbh
"No," I said, shaking my head. When I looked at him, his eyes mirrored mine with tears. "You're not going to die, Jude. It's not happening. We're going to get you to the hospital and you're going to be okay."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2FTEMr2ODm
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMQZx7WpdaM
I heard the sirens, and then all I remembered was them taking Jude away, while I sat outside wrapped in a blanket. Christian sat beside me, our hands linked, and for the first time in my life, I prayed.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOz3Oii1JmS
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfR4TFZsMM
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrrccgP36hh
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡifzxIhOMEK
Whether or not Jude went to the other side at all during the operation to remove the bullet, I didn't know. When we were finally able to see him, he was still asleep. Christian went to get some sort of food for us and when he got back he explained what he could. Seth had taken him from his own yard, drugged and carried him to his car, and just before the unconscious settled down on Christian, he remembered being stuffed into a tight space. Then he woke up in a bedroom with Seth touching him.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4NNGeXJrhc
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9yj7Aue3Ro
I was sitting in a cushioned chair, my knees pulled up to my chest, when the hospital room door opened and one of the nurse's came in. She shook her head. "He's very lucky to be alive," she said to us. Then she looked at me. "Someone is here to see you, Kendall."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnR0WBrZNIB
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCLOY5rRgwC
"Who?" I asked suspiciously.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqQ6ht78c87
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡziwXdTC5AF
"Your mother."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAoXYHHSEuw
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoLrWnQ9USq
I blinked at the nurse a few times, glanced at Christian, and stood up. I followed her out the door and down the hall. There was a figure standing near the automatic doors. She burst into tears when she saw me.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3r4xlqQOmw
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOb4QeNjTHy
We didn't exchange words. She cried, hugging me. She smelled minty and she didn't seem to be stumbling. She was, for the first time in two years, completely sober. When I hugged her back, her little intake of breath told me that she wasn't expecting that at all. When she asked me what happened, I just told her that my friend got shot. She surprised me by asking if it was my boyfriend.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnGetzbS0PC
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4WqUssunVI
When I returned to Jude's room with my mom, Christian stood, his eyes narrowed. When my mom saw him, she frowned.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRbJ70WrBS7
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGXvxILfIBJ
"Please don't be mad," she said softly. "I know what I did and said was wrong. You can forgive me if you want later."584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClzi3Qzwr2
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLETRcccUjx
Christian's mouth opened slightly in disbelief. I went over to him and tapped his chin with my finger. He shook his head and looked at me, reaching for my hand. We sat and waited for Jude to wake up while my mom announced she was going into rehab.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXiKb4lHVV
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFkMvAsE489
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ29OrtGBuuh
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd7ZVi7zQpL
After Jude had woken up at some during the night, I cried against him and thanked him for saving Christian. He laughed at me and told me to stop being so dramatic, then to my surprise, he shook Christian's hand.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVvsSvGt9G5
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZcBXnypv0
I couldn't wait to sleep. I was exhausted. We dropped Christian off and headed home, neither of us speaking. My mom unlocked the door without saying anything to me, then went to her room. I went into the living room to fall asleep with the TV on. When I flicked on the light, a terrible scream escaped my throat.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4PBpMSc5vl
584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSN5XP9Opy3
Seth was staring at me with a crooked smile and amused golden eyes.584Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL3DZcRxQyr