Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2014 1:23:45 GMT
Blaring sirens filled my ears as I came around. Sobbed words bled into the shrieks as my senses returned. I tried to open my eyes and shut them instantly, blinded by the glare of ambulance lights. My mind was swimming numbness. My body was weightless. My chest was tingling.
I opened my eyes the tiniest amount and kept them open. Through the blur I saw a man in gray and a blood stained girl saying things she probably wouldn’t if she knew I was awake.
“-stay with me, stay with me, stay with me please. Travis, please, say something. I can’t lose you. I can't let you go without you knowing. I might've been wrong and.... and.....I'm sorry..... Please Travis-“
Darkness.
Seeing ambulance lights comforted me. Not because the paramedics could save me but because of the certainty. My greatest fear in life was to die obscure. Getting chopped up by the Mafia and fed into a sewage pipe, leaving behind the people who loved me to torture themselves over the truth was the worst thing I could think of. Having at least two people by my side to confirm my death to those who meant the most to me made me much more accepting of what might happen. Having someone at my side who meant that much to me was even better.
If this was it for me, I had no complaints. Twenty three years on this earth had given me a college degree, an astounding wrestling career, incredible relationships with friends and girls, an army of die-hards to chant my name and the chance to come alive on the television screen. Could I ask for more than that?
Well, I guess I could die a better death. Dying over your refusal to get junk food delivered won’t appear in ’7 Most Heroic Celebrity Deaths You’ve Never Heard About’ any time soon. Assuring someone dear to me that everything would be fine despite their protests didn't help much either. Still, at least I didn’t drown in my own vomit or die of cirrhosis of the liver like everyone thought I would. That I could be proud of. Plus who knows? Maybe my death will lead to a renaissance in Logan Heights, an end to gang warfare in the wake of the death of their biggest celebrity. A dying man can dream.
Every inch of my body screamed. Air scratched through my windpipe. I hacked and spluttered but nothing came up. Something crushed my hand.
“He’s waking,” someone said as I opened my eyes. White walls and whiter lights shone into the pupils. “Someone call the nurse. He’s waking.”
Jules was set next to me. I looked down and saw both her hands clamping mine. When Jules saw me looking at her hands she yanked them back to her lap, lowering her glance and biting her bottom lip.
“Mr. Black, can you hear me?”
I rolled left to follow the voice. A large nurse with eyes that changed colour glanced at me then at her chart, not blinking once.
“What the fuck happened?” I wheezed.
I tried to sit up straight but my body wouldn't allow me and as soon as my shoulders twitched the nurse pushed me back down. “Mr. Black, you've been through an extremely traumatic incident. We want you to awaken calmly and slowly”
My fingers quivered, clawing the covers into bunched fists. “Tell me what the fuck happened.”
The nurse crossed her arms, shaking her head at me. “You were shot Mr. Black. Another man was found dead ten yards down from you riddled with bullets. Police suspect it was a stray bullet that got you. Luckily, your girlfriend heard the shots and called for us. If not, you might not have made it.”
Both eyebrows flared up. “Girlfriend?” I turned to Jules, staring at the floor again. “What happened to Billy?”
“We don’t know. Ms. Fischer was the only other person there” the nurse said, scowling at Jules, “she ignored our advice to stay inside.”
“Wow,” I wheezed.
The nurse shook her head but didn't press the point, just kept her eyes on the page.
“How bad is the damage?” I asked.
She flipped over to the next page on the chart and skim read the top box. “You’re very lucky. The bullet went into your solar plexus. We performed emergency surgery and got all the lead out. There was nothing in your lungs or your heart. Just a clean break right down the middle.”
“So I’m gonna’ be OK?”
“All things considered, it could be a lot worse. The pizza boxes you were carrying didn’t do much to stop the shot but they slowed it down a fraction. If the wound doesn’t get infected you will make a full recovery,” she said. You'd think she was talking about filling out a tax return.
The pager strapped to the nurses hip bleeted. “Excuse me, I’ve got an emergency to attend to. Just hit the buzzer if you need anything,” she said, strolling off the ward.
When the coast was clear, Jules sighed. “I’m sorry, it, I-, I was worried. They wouldn’t let me come with you unless I told them I was your girlfriend,“ she said, refusing to look me in the eye.
I wasn't sure if it was my stomach tightening up or the words I was about to say that made my throat catch itself. “I heard what you said in the back of the ambulance.”
She pulled a face like she was the one that got shot. “Oh God. That’s embarrassing. I was hysterical. I didn’t want my boss man TB to die. I-“
I reached over, took her hand in mine and squeezed. Her eyes grew the size of our destroyed pizzas, telling me she understood.
She flapped but she didn't let go. “Travis, you've been shot. You don't know what's happening. You-”
I put my fingers to my lips. “Shh,” I whispered, “don’t make it gay.”
I brought my hand up to her as she smiled at the ground. She looked at me and put her lips to my knuckles, turning a different shade of red to my t-shirt. I could've stayed like this for hours but even after cheating Death, I still couldn't escape the people. My cell phone buzzed on the counter. “Jules, can you get that?”
She reached across with her free hand and grabbed the cell phone. I don't remember teaching her my pass code but she knew it, meaning I'd have to change it soon. She pulled up the message and showed me the screen but I couldn't make out the words.
“Who's it from? What does it say?”
“It's from your Cousin Herb,” she said.
“What does it say?”
“Yo TB, I need a favor.”
End.
I opened my eyes the tiniest amount and kept them open. Through the blur I saw a man in gray and a blood stained girl saying things she probably wouldn’t if she knew I was awake.
“-stay with me, stay with me, stay with me please. Travis, please, say something. I can’t lose you. I can't let you go without you knowing. I might've been wrong and.... and.....I'm sorry..... Please Travis-“
Darkness.
Seeing ambulance lights comforted me. Not because the paramedics could save me but because of the certainty. My greatest fear in life was to die obscure. Getting chopped up by the Mafia and fed into a sewage pipe, leaving behind the people who loved me to torture themselves over the truth was the worst thing I could think of. Having at least two people by my side to confirm my death to those who meant the most to me made me much more accepting of what might happen. Having someone at my side who meant that much to me was even better.
If this was it for me, I had no complaints. Twenty three years on this earth had given me a college degree, an astounding wrestling career, incredible relationships with friends and girls, an army of die-hards to chant my name and the chance to come alive on the television screen. Could I ask for more than that?
Well, I guess I could die a better death. Dying over your refusal to get junk food delivered won’t appear in ’7 Most Heroic Celebrity Deaths You’ve Never Heard About’ any time soon. Assuring someone dear to me that everything would be fine despite their protests didn't help much either. Still, at least I didn’t drown in my own vomit or die of cirrhosis of the liver like everyone thought I would. That I could be proud of. Plus who knows? Maybe my death will lead to a renaissance in Logan Heights, an end to gang warfare in the wake of the death of their biggest celebrity. A dying man can dream.
Every inch of my body screamed. Air scratched through my windpipe. I hacked and spluttered but nothing came up. Something crushed my hand.
“He’s waking,” someone said as I opened my eyes. White walls and whiter lights shone into the pupils. “Someone call the nurse. He’s waking.”
Jules was set next to me. I looked down and saw both her hands clamping mine. When Jules saw me looking at her hands she yanked them back to her lap, lowering her glance and biting her bottom lip.
“Mr. Black, can you hear me?”
I rolled left to follow the voice. A large nurse with eyes that changed colour glanced at me then at her chart, not blinking once.
“What the fuck happened?” I wheezed.
I tried to sit up straight but my body wouldn't allow me and as soon as my shoulders twitched the nurse pushed me back down. “Mr. Black, you've been through an extremely traumatic incident. We want you to awaken calmly and slowly”
My fingers quivered, clawing the covers into bunched fists. “Tell me what the fuck happened.”
The nurse crossed her arms, shaking her head at me. “You were shot Mr. Black. Another man was found dead ten yards down from you riddled with bullets. Police suspect it was a stray bullet that got you. Luckily, your girlfriend heard the shots and called for us. If not, you might not have made it.”
Both eyebrows flared up. “Girlfriend?” I turned to Jules, staring at the floor again. “What happened to Billy?”
“We don’t know. Ms. Fischer was the only other person there” the nurse said, scowling at Jules, “she ignored our advice to stay inside.”
“Wow,” I wheezed.
The nurse shook her head but didn't press the point, just kept her eyes on the page.
“How bad is the damage?” I asked.
She flipped over to the next page on the chart and skim read the top box. “You’re very lucky. The bullet went into your solar plexus. We performed emergency surgery and got all the lead out. There was nothing in your lungs or your heart. Just a clean break right down the middle.”
“So I’m gonna’ be OK?”
“All things considered, it could be a lot worse. The pizza boxes you were carrying didn’t do much to stop the shot but they slowed it down a fraction. If the wound doesn’t get infected you will make a full recovery,” she said. You'd think she was talking about filling out a tax return.
The pager strapped to the nurses hip bleeted. “Excuse me, I’ve got an emergency to attend to. Just hit the buzzer if you need anything,” she said, strolling off the ward.
When the coast was clear, Jules sighed. “I’m sorry, it, I-, I was worried. They wouldn’t let me come with you unless I told them I was your girlfriend,“ she said, refusing to look me in the eye.
I wasn't sure if it was my stomach tightening up or the words I was about to say that made my throat catch itself. “I heard what you said in the back of the ambulance.”
She pulled a face like she was the one that got shot. “Oh God. That’s embarrassing. I was hysterical. I didn’t want my boss man TB to die. I-“
I reached over, took her hand in mine and squeezed. Her eyes grew the size of our destroyed pizzas, telling me she understood.
She flapped but she didn't let go. “Travis, you've been shot. You don't know what's happening. You-”
I put my fingers to my lips. “Shh,” I whispered, “don’t make it gay.”
I brought my hand up to her as she smiled at the ground. She looked at me and put her lips to my knuckles, turning a different shade of red to my t-shirt. I could've stayed like this for hours but even after cheating Death, I still couldn't escape the people. My cell phone buzzed on the counter. “Jules, can you get that?”
She reached across with her free hand and grabbed the cell phone. I don't remember teaching her my pass code but she knew it, meaning I'd have to change it soon. She pulled up the message and showed me the screen but I couldn't make out the words.
“Who's it from? What does it say?”
“It's from your Cousin Herb,” she said.
“What does it say?”
“Yo TB, I need a favor.”
End.
