Chapter Ten

I sat down in the kitchen, watching Hal and Tom play football in the front yard. Hal was wearing his suit, and insisted that despite the warm September weather that he wouldn't get hot. Nina chastised him, but let him go outside anyways. George was still asleep, tired after work. It was a Saturday morning, anyways. We all should have been sleeping in.

Nina was watching TV and didn't look up when Mitchell came downstairs. He pecked me in the cheek and smiled. "Good morning."

I turned to him with a wide smile. "Morning."

He went to the fridge and made himself a break feast of cereal. Nina, Mitchell, and I chatted about everything under the sun except my recent rough days. George came down, groggily. "What day is it?"

"Today is the fifteenth of September." Tom was coming inside. Hal followed him into the kitchen. We all crowded around the table when I felt myself blink.

"What?" My voice sounded strangled. "Today is the fifteenth?"

"Yes," Hal said. Everyone was looking at me. "What about it?"

I blinked again, harder. I felt confused. Hadn't Owen-

I pictured myself in the front lawn. I started cursing rapidly under my breath, having to sit down. Owen had killed me today.

I blinked and teleported into the kitchen, on the floor. I went quiet and felt everyone shuffle awkwardly. "Annie?" Mitchell asked.

"I-I, um." I couldn't breathe. I could already hear Owen's voice in my ears. "I need to go." I stood up, already swaying. I died today. I could feel it in every cell of my body. I needed to grab my coat from upstairs, but I didn't want to go anywhere near the stairs.

George grabbed me by the arm when I walked toward the front door. "Annie, what is it?"

I pulled away from him, already remembering the way it felt when Owen pushed me. I was still falling! I couldn't breathe. I couldn't grab onto anything.

"Annie?" Nina asked. She looked me up and down. She stood up. "What's happening? You're fading in and out."

"Annie, stop!" Hal shouted. I gasped when I realized that I was seeing doubles of everything.

"What?" George was watching us with wide eyes. Everyone's gaze was trained on me. "What is it?"

"This is the day Owen killed me." I gasped, feeling sick. "Let me go, I can-can't breathe."

Mitchell stood up, grabbing me by the hand, pulling me from George. "I'll help you then."

I pulled away. "I don't need help."

We were at the bottom of the stairs, and Mitchell raised his foot to take the first step, but I pictured us in my room.

"Annie, it's okay." Mitchell stroked my hair when I sat on the bed. He sat down next to me, grabbing my face in his warm hands. "It's over now."

He leaned in to kiss me gently and I sighed. I had to get over it, but the feelings of Owen pushing me were so strong.

Mitchell didn't go any farther than that, kissing me softly. We lied back on the bed, side by side. Mitchell was stroking the hair from my face and beginning to play with it when the door was flung open by Tom.

He looked at us. "Don't let me interrupt anything." He grinned at us and began to close to the door back.

Mitchell stopped him. "It's all right. We weren't doing anything."

"Ah," Tom sighed. "But you might if I close the door." He almost looked disappointed. Was he rooting us on? To couple? Were the others rooting for us too?

I got up, rubbing my head. "I'm hungry, though." I laughed.

Mitchell grinned and led the way out. Tom was already downstairs.

We rounded the corner and I felt my mind cloud.

"Mitchell?" Nina called.

"Yeah?" Mitchell picked up the pace.

"Have you seen my camera? I think you might want to look at the picture of Hal."

"One second!" Mitchell was at the edge of the stairs.

I stumbled and I tripped as I tried to follow Mitchell. I fell into him and we tumbled down the stairs. The shock of falling again made my heart skip a beat. I felt it.

For a moment, the house was deathly quiet.

Then everyone exploded.

"Annie! Mitchell!" Nina was standing over us. George pulled Mitchell to his feet. Mitchell was woozy and couldn't stand. He doubled over, clutching his side with one hand, his eyes on me. Mitchell gasped my name and tried to pull me up with his free hand.

Every hair on my body was alive and tingling with shock. I felt a dampness spreading from my head down to my back. What was happening? I was dazed and confused while my body seemed to know what was happening.

"Call 911! She's bleeding from her head." George yelled. I heard Tom begin speaking into the phone.

"My friend, she's fallen down the stairs and she's bleeding really bad." He spoke urgently.

I felt my eyes wheel over to Mitchell and Hal. Hal's eyes flashed black a few times, and he didn't seem to be breathing. Mitchell didn't even seem to feel the blood lust; he was too busy trying to get my attention.

My eyes were on Mitchell, but I couldn't see him. I was looking right through him. I tried to figure out exactly how I had fallen. I felt my body position and realized that I had fallen the exact way I had the first time when Owen had pushed me.

Nina was shouting my name while George was holding Mitchell back. Maybe he thought Mitchell was trying to feed from me.

Nina's voice grew more urgent and nervous. "Annie? Annie! Can you hear me?"

I tried to concentrate. I felt cold, and nothing really hurt. I probably could get up. "I'm c-cold." It was uncomfortable being cold and on the floor. Since when were the floors always so cold? Hal found a blanket and covered my lower body with it.

When Tom hung up the phone and announced that the ambulance was on the way, the whole room relaxed a little bit. I started shivering and felt my skin pale. George finally let Mitchell go and everyone crowded around me.

I looked at them with weary eyes. "You act like I'm going to die." I tried to smile but my face wouldn't move.

Nina tried to put on a brave face. "You're going to be fine."

I felt tears wet my eyes. "Of course I am. I'm going to watch Eve grow up."

Hal left my small tunnel vision and I felt my head being lifted, then put down gently. A towel pushed my head up.

I looked at George and Nina with blurry eyes. "I could get back up. I can't feel any pain."

I tried to sit up when they all protested. Tom tried to hold my arms down. It didn't matter though. When I tried to move, I fell back down with a scream as agony flashed through the top of my head to my fingertips and toes. I could barely hear myself gasping, "It hurts, it hurts."

The agony didn't go away, and eventually everything started to dim. My friends' voices became buzzes as they tried to keep me awake.

"Annie!" Mitchell was yelling. His voice slowly became a whisper and I realized that I was sinking. "Annie, look at me!"

My eyes were on him, but I couldn't see him. I had gone quiet. My eyes closed when the door burst open when the paramedics arrived.

I felt them look at me, and heard one yelp, "Oh my God."

Then everything went dark as the agony disappeared.

For a long while, I couldn't hear myself breathe. Only think sleepily, This is a long nap. I hoped Mitchell or Nina or Hal or George or Tom would wake me up. It felt wrong somehow. Almost like I wasn't supposed to be asleep.

Something was touching my chest. I almost pulled away then realized that I was deep underwater. Let them do what they like. I frowned mentally. But they better not pinch anything.

I opened my eyes and realized that I was standing up. I looked around in puzzlement.

I was standing in a solid gray room, at a doctor's office. People were shouting orders and I could hear Nina crying. I looked up to see her doing compressions on my chest. Wait, what?

My body was under Nina's hands. There were wires and tubes in my wrists and I could see that bloody lumps of gauze on the floor. I looked around and saw George, Tom, Mitchell, and Hal watching Nina behind a large glass window. Their eyes were trained on her that they didn't even notice me.

Nina's gasped words filled my ears, "Breathe, Annie." I realized that there was a loud drone sounding nearby and it was saying that my heart wasn't beating.

A doctor held panels in his hands. "Clear!"

The three nurses, Nina included, jumped back. My body jolted and I blinked when the drone started to a beep, but then went back to a drone.

I wasn't breathing. My heart wasn't beating! I walked to my body and touched my cheek, hoping for movement. Nina saw the movement and she looked up with wide eyes. Tears streamed down my cheek and I breathed, "Did I die?"

I looked over at the guys by the window and saw their dazed expressions when their eyes focused on me. I grabbed Nina by the hand and pulled her out. The other nurses looked at her with confused eyes, but saw her upset face and realized that she had been my friend. One started sniffling and dabbed at her eyes.

When we were out in the hallway, Tom walked us out to the back door. He let us all pass through before closing it. I turned to them with wide eyes. Tears stained my face. "Did I die?"

They looked at me with dazed eyes. I couldn't believe it. I died?

"I can't die!" I felt myself scream. "I just got back, and got used to the feelings and emotions! I started to understand it. I can't die now!"

Mitchell walked forward to kiss me, and I almost felt his lips. I pulled away when the others looked at us with inquiry. "Did you feel her, Mitchell?" George asked numbly, his eyes dull.

Mitchell shook his head, tears streaming from his eyes. Nina and I started sobbing.

I felt my body jolt suddenly and I blinked as the strange sensation went throughout my body. The others looked at me. "Annie?" Hal's voice was dead.

The jolt happened again and I felt myself fall backwards. I moaned the words, "Something's happening."

I saw them all run back inside when my eyes closed. I didn't even hit the floor.

I woke up somewhere dark. I felt small pinches of pain in my wrists and I struggled to open my eyes.

An unfamiliar voice helped me wake up. "Annie, are you awake?"

I could make out the blurry form of a nurse. She sounded aged, and confident. She looked at me with fond eyes. "You awake, sweetie?"

"Where am I?" I asked, my voice hoarse. Annie?

"You're at the hospital." She stroked my cheek with clammy fingers. "You had a very bad fall down the stairs. Your friends-"

I struggled to sit up, ignoring the flame of agony that exploded through my head. "Are they here? Are they okay? Do they know I'm awake?"

She eased me back down. "They're fine. They're all eating in the café. I'll have someone page them to come, okay?"

I nodded vigorously, feeling my head throb. "How long have I been out?"

"A while. You've been unconscious for a few days. We had to give you a blood infusion, not from any of your friends though. They weren't the right blood type."

Blood.

I breathed in relief, ignoring a strange burning in my throat. "Thank you. Please send them up." She smiled warmly.

"I'll send a nurse to change your bandage, okay?"

"Is my hair still there?" I tried to feel the back of my head but my hands felt numb. "They didn't cut any away, did they?"

She shook her head.

I sighed and drifted into a doze when she left. The burn subsided when she left the room.

I woke up to someone stroking my hand. "What?" I was groggy and couldn't concentrate too much. My head was throbbing fiercely. "Ow."

I opened my eyes to see my friends are crowding around the bed. "Oh hi, guys." I said nonchalantly.

Hal grinned. "Annie, you sure know how to scare people."

I blinked. "Yeah, um. Sure?" Why were they calling me Annie?

Nina was eyeing the IV and the tubes. I looked at the tubes and needles with a disgusted expression. She looked up at me. "Anything hurt?"

"My head, but it's manageable." I shouldn't have lied. She sent Tom to get a nurse. "I don't need medicine." I protested.

George gazed at me. "Oh really, Annie?"

"I just tripped in the," I felt my mind blank. I knew I had fallen, but how? And where? I grimaced. "How did I fall?"

"You don't remember?" Hal asked me, his eyes taking in my face.

I shook my head, stifling a wince. "I fell, and then. . .Wait, my name isn't Annie."

The others looked at me. "You're silly." Tom chuckled nervously. His eyes gazed at the others.

"I mean, I forgot my name. But that's because I fell right?" I shook my head. "I doubt I'm Annie though."

The nurse walked in, closing the door behind her. She was holding a tray of medicine. "How's she doing?"

"She's forgotten her name." Mitchell blustered.

"It's a bit common with head injuries. She did hit her head pretty hard." The nurse amended. She pulled out a syringe and I blanched.

"No needles." I gasped, already trying to sit up and pull away. Mitchell and Nina tried to calm me but I muttered, "I hate needles; they're too close to bites." My friends would understand what I meant.

"It's okay. It only goes in the IV, sweetie." The nurse rubbed my arm soothingly. I felt my heart slow down, mindful of an annoying beeping close by.

I watched with wide eyes when she inserted the needle in the IV. It was very fast; I felt drowsiness entered my blood stream quickly. I looked at the empty syringe and watched her leave the room. I felt my eyelids droop.

Tom and Hal looked at me with worried eyes. "Annie?"

I decided to humor them. "What?"

"You okay now?" Hal eyed me. He patted my knee through the covers. Mitchell was sitting on the bed, watching me while Nina and George were looking at the monitors.

I nodded, and the motion didn't hurt this time. "I think I'm okay." I looked at them with blurry eyes. "Don't go anywhere."

"We've got to go to work, we've spent days off." Tom said apologetically.

I felt my eyes close and tried to say one more thing. "Stay safe and don't. . ." I sunk into sleep. I meant to say, Don't feel bad. I fell this time.