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Love The Way You Lie
CLARE
"D-Dallas? Can I-um, do you have a second?"
Strike!
"Instead of wasting time talking this little problem out, I misewell settle it now. All the cards are on the table Clare, you got me. How does it feel to be the bigger person?
Strike!
"Stuttering is a weakness. You don't show weakness in front of your enemy. It's weak! You're weak! And I'll show you just how weak you are!"
Strike!
ELI
"All she has been doing is muttering words and tossing and turning for the past six hours! What the hell do you mean, everything is fine?" The doctor skimmed through the sheets on his clipboard, before looking up at me, "Mr. Goldsworthy, I've already told you this once...do I need to tell you again? She has four badly bruised ribs and a concussion. Every victim to this source of treatment responds differently, and we must wait until Clare is fully conscious to see how bad the damage is."
"That's my point! All you've done is tie her wrists down to the bed like she's a mental patient and watch her like a lab rat! No on is doing anything!" My blood was boiling inside me, the lid of the pot no longer on, but lying somewhere in a metaphorical ditch.
"Mr. Goldsworthy, we've restricted her arms and legs so she doesn't fall off the bed. We have also wrapped her torso tightly, but the internal bleeding is getting worse. She's still sleeping, and moving around unconsciously, so I hope you understand what we're doing for her is for her best route to recovery," I swallowed the pulsating lump in my throat, tears streaming down my face.
"Son, take a seat, get a coffee or something. Her parents are more stable than you are," I closed my eyes, muttering lowly, "That's because they don't love her like I do."
"A problem for another day. What Clare needs you to do is remain calm, and what I need you to do is stop jumping down my throat every time I pass her room. We're doing the best we can," his tone was promising, and very confident-just like a doctor should be. But the thought of my Clare, lying in a hospital bed connected to wires all battered and bruised was making me sick.
I couldn't get the image of a broken Clare out of my mind.
It felt like hours, hours and hours and hours of staring at Clare through the hospital room window. She was turning each way she could, struggling in the restraints. Her wrists were becoming red from the constant tugging, and her contorted expressions on her beautiful face was making my stomach churn.
I was wrong, she wouldn't feel better after talking to Dallas.
But what I will be right about, is Dallas will pay for what he did; he'll regret ever looking in Clare's direction.
JAKE
Knock!
Knock!
Knock!
My fist pounded repeatedly against the Torres' door, my heart racing a mile a minute with adrenaline. I knew Adam and Drew were home, as well as Dallas, so this constant waiting was unnecessary.
When the door flung open, Adam inched outside, closing the door behind him, "W-What's wrong Jake? Why aren't you at the hospital with Clare?"
"I don't know, maybe because I tried to sit there with Eli in the waiting room and I nearly drove myself insane! Do you understand how much pain this has caused all of us? Dallas needs to pay for what he did," I spat, pointing to the house, "I want to talk to him Adam. Tell him to come out."
"Dude, no. My mom is home-," my nostrils flared with anger, "I don't care! Do you really think the 'Clare fell down the steps in school' story is going to work since she has a concussion and four bruised ribs? That's too much damage for being a klutz and missing a goddamn step! He either needs to learn to lie better or not do anything at all! Don't you feel anything? She's your friend too! How can you stick up for that asshole?"
"I'm not sticking up for him! I punched him after he knocked Clare out-hence the black eye," he pointed to the dark color underneath his eyes, "I love Clare, as a friend, and I defended her."
"Wait, so then who punched-," I paused, interrupting myself, "Dallas even punched you? What did Drew do in all of this?"
"He's the one who called the police and carried Clare out of the way. If Drew wasn't there, Dallas might have continued what he was doing and finished off the job."
The look Adam had on his face confused me, but I knew he cared about Clare enough to step in front of Dallas before he could hit her even more.
"Listen Jake, you're a good guy...you don't want to get involved with Dallas," I laughed, shoving Adam as lightly as I could out of the way without hurting him, charging through the door, "It's too late. I've been involved ever since Dallas said his first word to Clare."
CLARE
Beep
Beep
Beep
I felt like a part of the bed beneath me. My body was permanently sunken into the mattress, the sheets absorbing my skin. I've never been associated with the feeling of my head being heavier than my entire body.
The fabrics of the sheets were rough, which meant I wasn't at home.
Where was I?
My eyes were greeted with the blinding light above me. It was like staring up at the sun for ten minutes straight on a one hundred degree day. An itching feel developed on the right side of my face, but when I needed my fingers to apply the task, I couldn't move my hands.
I nervously looked down at either sides of my body, eyeing the tight restraints keeping me from scratching my face. My lips trembled at the sight, immediately sending panic into my chest.
"C-Clare?"
"Clare it's Eli...it's Eli. How're you feeling?"
I watched him, from his tears rolling down his puffed cheeks, getting stuck between his tight lips, to his shaking feet. I didn't know what to think, how to feel, or what to say.
"Hello Miss Edwards, I'm Doctor Chris. I'm here to ask you a few questions, is that alright?"
He stood beside me, flipping through pages of the file in his hands. I nodded hesitantly, and couldn't help but feel under pressure with Eli's green eyes piercing through my soul.
"What's your full name?"
"Um...uh."
My throat was burning, sending an uncomfortable tingle throughout my body.
"Clare Diane Edwards."
"That's good Clare, now, what's today's date?"
My eyelids flickered, before replying, "It's February twenty third..."
"What year?"
"2012."
The longer I was awake, with each second passing by, it was easier to remember. Just when he was about to ask another question, I tried to scratch the itch on my face, and whimpered, realizing that I can't relieve the pain.
"W-Why are these on me?"
I watched Eli sink into his chair, looking up at the doctor, "During your sleep, you were tossing and turning. We'll send a nurse in here to take them off. We needed to keep you stabilized. Do you remember what happened to you?"
Eli flashed me a worried look, reaching out for my hand. The moment he slipped his fingers through the slits of mine, I felt bile creeping up my throat-everything clicked.
Dallas happened.
END OF CHAPTER 4
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Cliffhanger Girl
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