Chapter
1
The
moon shone down through the treetops, illuminating every dark corner.
I sat underneath an old oak, gazing at everything around me. Then,
for a moment, I was brought back to reality and checked the time on
my phone. It was about midnight. My friends probably hadn't even
noticed I'd left yet.
A
few hours ago I had been at party, supposedly the biggest party of
the year. But no one had noticed me, so i left. I liked it better
here, it was calming here in the forest.
Of
course, the party was only down the street. So I could still hear the
pounding music. It didn't help that that wasn't the only party
tonight. The other party was the biggest by far.
It
was a party for all the Decaydance bands. Many kids tried to sneak in
but there was very heavy security patrolling the area.
And
so here I sat, alone and cut out of both parties.
I
sighed, wasn't high school wonderful? At least I was graduating this
year.
There
was a rustle of the bushes in front of me. I sat completely still,
waiting. A humanoid figure burst out and stumbled towards me. The
person was clumsy and tripped often.
It
was a man with chocolate, puppy-dog eyes. He had soft, brown hair
that shone in the moonlight. I knew this man but what was he doing
here?
His
skin was slightly green and a thin sheen of sweat on his brow. The
man looked at me warily and then his eyes rolled back into his head.
There was a muffled thunk as he fell to the ground.
I
sat dumbstruck for a moment, unsure of what to do. But he needed my
help, something was wrong with him. I rose and approached him slowly.
I
patted all his pockets until I found a sleek, black phone. I scrolled
through the contacts until I found a promising number.
He
picked up on the first ring.
"Brendon?
Where are you? We've been looking everywhere!"
"Uh,
this is Ella. I'm with Brendon now, in the forest next to the
Decaydance party. I'm guessing you are there right now..."
"Yeah!"
he shouted over the music. "Is Brendon okay?"
I
examined Brendon quickly. He reeked of beer and when I checked his
pulse, it felt a little slow.
"I
think he had an alcohol overdose."
Ryan
gasped. "We're on our way. Wait there, okay?"
"Yes,"
I said.
"Oh,
and, Ella?"
"Hmm?"
I mumbled.
"Thank
you." The line disconnected.
I
closed the cell and put it in my sweater's pocket. I watched Brendon
adoringly. He was the lead singer of my favorite band. In fact, I was
wearing their shirt now.
He
groaned and his eyes fluttered open.
"Who
are you?" he moaned.
"I-i..."
I mumbled like an idiot. "I'm Ella. How are you feeling?"
Brendon
watched me warily for a moment and then his hand shot to his mouth.
"Excuse
me!" He jumped up and scrambled away. He put his hands on his
knees and threw up. I politely looked away. He sat down again and
leaned against the tree I had been sitting against moments ago. He
took some deep breaths and wiped his mouth.
"Sorry,"
he said. I noticed his words were slurred. He hiccupped.
Man,
how much did he drink?
"Your
friends are coming for you," I told him.
"Who?"
"Your
friends. I called Ryan and told him where you were."
"Who
do you know me?"
I
laughed under my breath. "You mean why? You're famous. A lot of
people know you, Brendon."
He
nodded slowly like he had forgotten and was letting it sink in. Then
he moaned.
"I
feel horrible!" he whined. "I wanna go!"
"We'll
get you to a hospital soon. It's okay," I reassured him.
We
sat quietly for a while. He threw up two more times before Ryan and
everyone else came. He arrived with four other people. He didn't need
to tell me their names. I knew them already: Spencer, Jon, William,
and Gabe. They all rushed up to us. Spencer and Jon grabbed Brendon
by his arms and legs and began to haul him out of the forest, towards
the road.
I
sat there speechlessly. This was a once in a lifetime chance but I
couldn't ask for an autograph or anything, that would be wrong.
"Ella.
Can you come with us?" Ryan asked me.
"Why
should I?" It sounded wrong when it came out of my mouth. "I
mean, I'd like to but I mean...why do you want me to?"
"I
think Brendon would like to meet his savior once he's better,"
said William.
Once
again, I couldn't speak. "Sure..." I managed.
