Low
Lyrics to the song 'Low' by Kelly Clarkson are italicized.
Everybody's talking
But they don't say a thing
They look at me with sad eyes
But I don't want the sympathy
Andrew writhed in pain as the constructors tore off another piece of the cement off his flesh. They had been at it for hours, and he still felt as worse as when he came in hours previously. The doctors had been whispering to each other as they worked. Whispering and working. That's all they had been doing. They would occasionally look up at him and smile through their sad eyes and tell him that everything would be okay, but they were sure that they thought he was insane. He jumped into a pit of cement for a girl. But she was more than just a girl, she was Lola Kirks. She had perfect almond-shaped eyes, full lips and a slim figure, and he loved her with all of his heart. But he was sure that she didn't return his affection—he wasn't good-looking enough for her liking. However, he was fine with that. As long as he had the privilege to see her beautiful face, he would be content.
It's cool you didn't want me
Sometimes you can't go back
Why'd you have to go and make a mess like that
His mind slipped off to earlier that day, when he jumped into the cement…
He was walking on the side of the road to the 7-Eleven, when a loud voice met his ears.
"Hey, you! Andrew!"
Andrew turned around to see three people leaning up against the wire mesh that separated the sidewalk from a construction site. Tony, Josh, and Lola. His breath caught in his throat as he looked at the beautiful girl feet away from him. She looked stunning; her jeans and dark pink shirt looked beautiful on her. She was beautiful. She had always been beautiful to Andrew.
"Stop fawning over Lola and get your ass over here!" Tony called. Eagerly, Andrew hurried over to them and stood with his hands in his pockets.
"H-hi, guys," Andrew said, his voice hinted with nervousness. "How are you?" he asked politely.
They ignored his question, and Josh started talking. "We were having a bit of a game, and we said that whoever jumped into that cement-" He signaled his head over to where the boatload of cement was on the other side of the construction site, "First, gets to plant a big one on Lola here."
Andrew's eyes widened in excitement. "For real?" he asked tentatively.
They nodded. "For real," he said. "Now you better get in that cement if you want to go kiss Lola."
He nodded, shaking his head feverently. As he walked up to the boatload of cement, a war raged in his head.
Don't you dare jump in that cement, Andrew.
Why not?
Because, stupid, you're going to kill yourself! The cement will stick to you and you'll DIE.
I'm not going to die. It's only cement for god's sake.
ONLY cement?!
Yeah, doesn't matter. I'll get out of there fine.
NO. GO AWAY FROM THAT CEMENT, ANDREW. YOU ARE GOING TO KILL YOURSELF. THOSE PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO KILL YOU!
No, they're not! Besides, I get to kiss Lola. Everything will be fine. You see.
I just have to say
Before I let go…
Andrew was now at the steps of the pool of cement. Looking back at the three people at the other side of the construction site, they gave him the thumbs up, then starting laughing to themselves. He then fell back as if to do a belly flop on his back, and he was immediately doused in hot, sticky cement.
"Holy fuck," one of the boys yelled, "He actually did it! The crazy bastard!"
He tried to wriggle himself out of the cement, but couldn't. He tried again, but it didn't work. Panicking, he yelled, "Guys? Guys, please help! I- I'm stuck!"
They only laughed, but then he heard a voice, Lola's voice, say, "Go help him! He's stuck!"
The boys only laughed. "What's wrong with you? What, you got a crush on him or something?" Josh teased.
Lola's cheeks burned a light crimson color. "That's not the problem! Go help him, you bastards!" she screamed. Tony took her by the collar of her shirt and fisted it, pulling her up slightly from the ground.
"You say one more word," he whispered, his voice a scary low tone, "And I will make sure that you suffer for it."
She swallowed her fear, narrowing her eyes at him. "I don't care. Help him NOW."
He laughed again. "No." As she looked back at him, he added, "If you try to rescue him, you'll kill yourself. You'll get stuck in with him, and you two lovers-" he accented the word lovers, "Will die together." They rounded on her. "So, what's it going to be, Lola? Humiliation trying to save your friend, or having everything the same as before?"
Tony's eyes were taunting, as if he were enjoying torturing her like this. What was she to do?
Without a word, she stomped childishly over a tree near the construction site and sat down, her arms folded.
Nearly an hour had passed, and Andrew was writhing in pain. Hot tears came to his eyes, stinging his open wounds, and he forced them away; it was only going to make things worse. He had stopped calling for help a long time ago, for he knew that they wouldn't get help for him. He was angry. He thought that Lola was his friend, and even if she wouldn't, that she would at least call for help. But no, she didn't. She had let him down. Why had he been so stupid as to jump in a pit of cement for a girl? It was stupid, but he knew that he would do the same again. He was irrevocably in love, and it would never end. Not even after this.
Have you ever been low?
Have you ever had a friend that let you down so
When the truth came out
Were you the last to know?
Were you left out in the cold
'Cause what you did was low…
ANDREW LARSON
B: June 25th, 1989
D: May 13th, 2008
WILL BE LOVED AND MISSED FOREVER.
Lola Kirks looked down upon the headstone in front of her, dressed somberly in a plain black dress. She remembered Andrew as a sweet guy, one who understood her and listened to her, but what she remembered him most for was that she was in love with him, and that she had nearly left him to die. In the end, it had been just as bad as if she had left him to die; she betrayed him.
Lola hadn't gone to Andrew's funeral; she had been too ashamed. His family would have probably not liked it either if she came, after all, she was one of the reasons why he died. She had left him alone while he endured the painful procedure of taking the cement off his body, and she was so naïve that she didn't even get to say goodbye.
No, I don't need your number
There's nothing left to say
Except I never thought it'd hurt this much to be safe
She closed her eyes momentarily, remembering.
Tony had put one of his iPod earphones in her ear, cranking up the music so loud that it nearly blew her eardrums. She bopped her head to the beat of the music, laughing as he started mimicking an air guitar.
Suddenly, a full-figured female doctor came into the waiting room and stood a few feet away from Lola.
"Hi, Lola?" she said, approaching Lola. "May I talk to you for a moment, please?"
Reluctantly, Lola got off the chair and trudged over to Callie, her hands in her pockets. "Yeah?" she said. "Is he okay?"
"No, of course not. He jumped into a pit of cement. Why would he be okay?" she asked irritably.
Lola's eyes softened, and she bit her lip, looking down at the ground. A few moments later, she said softly to Callie, "Look. I know that I said that he's not my friend, but he is. He's my friend."
Callie surveyed her face, and said, "I think he's more than a friend." As Lola was about to retort, she said, "Andrew is in a really rough shape, and he needs somebody to hold his hand," she explained. "And he keeps talking about you, and I think he'd like for you to come in and hold his hand."
Lola looked back at her friends, and Callie came closer to her face and her expression hardened at the boys. "Screw what they think. Your friend is dying, and I know that you like him. You're too proud to admit it to your friends, and even to yourself."
My friends are outside waiting
I've gotta go
Josh and Tony started in a chant of 'Lola and Andrew, sitting in a tree… K-I-S-S-I-N-G!' and Lola looked back at Callie, shaking her head. "I'm sorry, but I can't. No."
Callie scoffed, eyeing the girl standing in front of her. "You're going to hate yourself for this later," she told her before walking away.
You're going to hate yourself for this later. The words repeated in Lola's head like a broken record. Even though she hated to admit it, the doctor was right. She had many regrets, but this was the one that she knew would haunt her for the rest of her life. She hated herself, she felt as if there were a burning in her heart, a hole that would never fill. But even worse than that, she had let him down. She had left him in the cold, left him to suffer a painful death alone.
Have you ever been low
Have you ever had a friend that let you down so
When the truth came out
Were you the last to know
Were you left out in the cold
'Cause what you did was low
She fell to her knees, clutching the headstone as if her life depended on it. Tears sprung to her eyes, leaving small droplets on the headstone as she cried. Her body shook as her tears became heartbroken sobs. Images of Andrew appeared in front of her eyes, making the tears only heavier. She kissed the headstone, bits of it crumbling beneath her lips.
And I go with a clear conscience
We both know that you can't say that
Here's to show
For all the time I loved you so…
"I love you, Andrew," she whispered, hoping and praying that somehow he could hear her. "I'm so sorry… I love you…"
What you did was low
Have you ever been low?
Have you ever had a friend that let you down so?
'Cause what you did was low…
Fin.