"What?"
"Oh my god."
"Ally, I'm so sorry."
The words just drained in her head. She wasn't sure who said what. She wasn't sure where she was, or who she was with. The word just echoed in her head. Dead. Her dad. She wouldn't see him again. This…no. This couldn't be happening. He was fine the last time she saw him. He was alive. He was breathing. This wasn't happening. Not to her.
"Ally. Ally. Ally."
She heard her name being said, but she didn't respond. She just wanted to see her dad. For him to hug her, tell her it was okay, and they could go home. To their home. With each other. They'd be a family again, and everything would be okay.
"Als, please say something."
She tried to speak. Words wouldn't come out. She had nothing to say. Everything was hitting her at once. It finally sunk in. There was no home anymore. There was no family. He was dead. It's all gone. She was alone.
"Ally, look at me."
She couldn't. Her eyes weren't working. All she could see was the image of her and her father. Him lying on the bed. She couldn't see anything going on. She saw him, and only him.
"Come on, Ally, please, talk to me."
She wanted to. She wanted to cry. She wanted to break down, scream, tell herself it wasn't real. She wanted to wake up from a nightmare, and be calmed by her dad. That wasn't going to happen, she reminded herself. He's gone. You're alone. You have no one. The world stopped spinning. She looked up to see Austin, Trish, and Dez staring at her.
"I'm sorry," she said, barely keeping her balance. "I'm sorry!" she said, and she ran off. Austin called out after her, but she didn't listen. She just kept running. She didn't know what she was running from, she just wanted to run. To get away from everything.
Austin paced back and forth in his room. For the fifth time in an hour, he called Trish.
"Did you find her?"
"No, we're looking though."
He hung up, and set the phone on his desk. "Dammit."
"Dammit, Ally. Wherever you are, please come home."
He felt sorry for her. It all hit her at once. She's too scared to break down. He just wished he knew how to help her.
She just wanted to scream. To yell, to fight, to wake up. To say it wasn't real. But it was real. And it was thick. She couldn't think about anything else. All she felt was pain. Pure pain in the center of her heart, slicing her like a dagger. She felt the grass beneath her. She gripped onto it, feeling the blades on the palm of her hands. When she was little, her dad used to take her here. He said to hold onto the grass. It kept you on earth, and it wouldn't take you to the skies. He let go. He let go of the grass. She gripped onto the grass tighter. She thought back to the first night she spent at Austin's house. What he said. The words echoed in her head, playing back like a tape. 'You are safe, you are loved, and you are wise.' She said them out loud, her wary voice being the only real sound she's heard in close to four hours. Safe. Loved. Wise.
She looked at the water. It moved, waves crashing into each other, over lapping. They fell, and again they arose. She wished her dad was like a wave.
She heard footsteps, and she let go. She waited for a second in silence. She was still here. She turned her head. Austin. She just sat there, on the grass, waiting for him to say something. He stood with his arms folded, waiting for her.
"Ally…I love you to death, but swear to God, if you ever run away like that again, I will kill you," he said, gritting his teeth. He slowly walked to her, and sat by her in the grass. He pulled her into his arms. "I was so scared. Don't ever do that again."
She nodded, not saying anything. She wrapped her arms around him, and they laid on the grass.
"Austin," she said, slow and sadly.
"Yes, Ally?"
"Please don't let go of the grass," she said, with tears in her eyes.
"I won't. Not without you."
"Remember that lullaby you sang to me when we were in the hospital?"
"Yeah."
"Can you sing it for me?"
He smiled softly, and rested his chin on her head.
Deep in the meadow, under the willow
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow
Lay down your head, and close your eyes
And when they open, the sun will rise
She hummed along, listening to his voice. It was peaceful.
Here it's safe, and here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet
And tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.
She smiled, laying her head on his chest.
Deep in the meadow, hidden far away
A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray
Forget your woes and let your troubles lay
And when again it's morning, they'll wash away
Her eyelids fluttered shut, but she kept humming. She snuggled into Austin. He was warm.
Here it's safe, and here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet
and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you.
He looked down at Ally. She was asleep on his chest.
Here is the place where I love you.
A/N: No, I do not own the lullaby. Don't sue me, fan fiction. It's Rue's lullaby from The Hunger Games. Yes, I'm a Panemaneac/Tribute.
Reviews are lovely ^^
~Rebel