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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYvMQuE7KtZ
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnugl1qEKW
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt2eaKttJN4
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8Ok5xFnO1
"Kendall, we have to call the police, and an ambulance or he isn't going to make it."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2gwiV3CRj
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYaP2wzJW8h
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQUzsO1Wnfc
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvXH1IVEoOV
"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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCDRU8Vkh7
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9DY4tLOJi
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uaQcKldku
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNEIXSQq6Ka
"Kendall, it's Jude."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYUUGFCDEIM
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGQf2iDlD1C
My eyes widened at his words, then I noticed his clothes, and the red specks on the fabric. It was blood. Jude's blood.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwgbR9NF6l
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE7x7SBq3SR
"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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHIJt5isisI
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCnQILoIIBu
My legs shook and I gripped the wall for support. "Seth," I muttered. "Where is he?"572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTxNZdYAKfI
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQob8lQuxYc
"He's not here," Christian said angrily. "The fucking coward jumped out the window."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUaNcy2OwXf
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJCI87K5xOC
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYxwVLSFzHi
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNervLW0lI
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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0WdzprQyav
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSu6cjK7dlT
Jude's eyes, for the first time, looked full of terror. His breathing was erratic and his body trembled. Then he opened his mouth.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUeskj3P0Fe
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhHcfGU9A8D
"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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXUa3vAtg5
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnRshRgKgxu
"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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiZSV1EXDYl
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY15IdTtBL6
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrzyatOCkJ3
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMxW8r4bmg
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ266CmhclnS
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD5daHRC5YM
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfB6QiZhvY0
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCXBvB86Ki
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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuU0Ebk33rh
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrxG6Nz8qN0
"Who?" I asked suspiciously.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVO9Rxu0N6f
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnMWrHaeENA
"Your mother."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡodbpkPh1Jd
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwbDjL3mSbN
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGaVNfdHJp3
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZILzjwLXYV
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsnwYI3bU7P
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡac09KnNbUd
When I returned to Jude's room with my mom, Christian stood, his eyes narrowed. When my mom saw him, she frowned.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwBtSBaHQzD
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDGtQekEtj0
"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."572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRx3QHOH9Gd
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt90h8rrap2
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBsfwZ7IC74
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzvfsW9D4Xz
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd3dDbGjZVi
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGPYnyHw8a
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpjU8b4XP4m
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQW0BqZwYCV
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.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw14JrK3tAC
572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwTaCSYXeG
Seth was staring at me with a crooked smile and amused golden eyes.572Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqHddDmraJ