Ryan jumped and dodged as best as she could, but it wasn't any use. There was no way out. She'd tried going for the fire escape, but Harley wasn't making it easy. Ryan had already taken a hammer to the skull and everything was turning fuzzy.
Harley jumped on Ryan's back and the smaller girl tried to get away, but it was no use. By then, the needle was already in her arm. Harley laughed and tossed Ryan away. Ryan struggled to get onto her hands and knees, but her body was going numb. It was getting harder and harder to even conceive a straight thought, let alone get her body to obey her brain and run.
Harley kicked Ryan hard in the ribs, forcing the girl to roll onto her back. A massive smile on her face, Harley straddled Ryan's hips and started laughing manically. "You don't know what that is, do you?"
The only reply Harley got was a pained moan. Harley grabbed the front of Ryan's shirt and pulled her face close. "Let's just say you're either going to die very painfully and slowly or you'll die even more painfully and slowly."
Ryan blinked in reply, trying to focus her eyes on her attacker. Harley's grin widened. "Don't understand? Let me explain, little girl."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Helga stared blankly at the wall, one of her arms wrapped around Arnold's waist as she rested her head against his leg. Arnold didn't take his eyes off of her as he combed his fingers though her hair, letting her tresses cascade from his grasp and back onto her back. Helga had finally stopped crying after a good three hours. Caylee and Barbra had gone home that morning, being unwilling to have any time in front of the cameras.
Helga wouldn't have minded going home either, but she wasn't an idiot. She couldn't legally leave without a parent and her parents were the last people she wanted to see. Miriam would be so hopped up on Xanax and booze to even remember that Helga had been missing for months and Big Bob would yell at her, probably for not mentioning Big Bob's Beepers when she was caught on camera. No, she was better off here, with Arnold.
She couldn't help but feel bad for Sid. He hadn't spoken a word, eaten a bite, or even taken a sip of water since Ryan's body was found. He just sat on the floor, elbows resting on his knees and his face cupped in his hands. The last thing he'd said to Helga was a tearful and heartfelt apology about how Ryan's death was his fault and if he hadn't upset her then she never would have left.
Helga could see where he was coming from, but she hated that he was blaming himself. The only one who was to blame for Ryan's death was Harley. Sid looked up at her briefly and she forced a small smile. He looked away, gaze burrowing back into the floor.
She exhaled a sigh and moved out of Arnold's lap, asking if she could lean on his chest instead. Arnold only smiled and wiggled into a laying position. He had been more sweet and understanding than Helga could have ever hoped for. They hadn't gone any deeper into their whole love confession and Arnold hadn't tried to make any moves on her. Helga couldn't have been happier because it was too much for her to handle at the moment. Those feelings would always be there. The feeling of despair becoming a black hole in the pit of her stomach wouldn't, at least she hoped. She needed to deal with her rage and pain now. Romance could wait. She was just glad he saw that. Helga melted into his side and rested her head on his chest. By the time he kissed her brow, she was already half asleep.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Helga sank the ball into the goal, whooping victoriously as the sphere traveled to her side of the foosball table. Ryan shouted viciously as well and the girls slapped each other's hands high in the air.
"Boy howdy, Gerald!" Sid exclaimed from the sidelines. "I thought you said you and Arnold were undefeated at this game."
Gerald's eyes narrowed in Sid's direction. "We were undefeated in this game. We could probably win if it weren't for Pataki."
Phoebe laughed from the seat next to Sid's. "It's just a good thing I didn't play. Even I would find a way to mess it up."
"We have money on the line, guys!" Sid almost whined. "Pull it together."
"Why'd you even make the bet if you're going to get so upset about losing?" Arnold said to Gerald and Sid.
"Because they're girls man." Gerald growled.
Helga crossed her arms over her chest. "That's sexist, Gerald-o."
"In all fairness, they probably would win if you weren't playing." Ryan said with a smirk.
Helga grinned, almost proudly. "Yeah, well they shouldn't assume that girls can't do anything."
"By which you mean you." Ryan replied playfully.
"You've got it sister." Helga said proudly, crossing her arms over her chest.
"From another mister." Ryan grinned when she got a chuckle out of her friend.
Gerald glared at them from across the table. "So when you hens are done cluckin'."
Helga dropped the ball into the court and in a matter of seconds she'd scored the winning goal.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Terry, of all the things you're good at your job is the most impressive. Why haven't you already given me her cause of death?" commissioner Ragan bellowed as he entered the morgue.
Terry was bent over Ryan's body, shining a light in her eyes and he jumped when the commissioner entered. Terry raised his hands defensively. "Now commissioner, just give me a chance to explain."
"Have you done anything with this girl?" the commissioner snarled. "There are other cases I need to take care of you know."
Terry narrowed his eyes at the commissioner. "How much do you know about dead people?"
"I don't have time for this Terry."
"Answer the question, commissioner." Terry glared at the taller man.
"All I know about dead people is that they're stiff and I'm not ready to be one of them." the commissioner snarled.
Terry lifted Ryan's arm at the wrist and her hand drooped over his grasp. "If you're referring to rigor mortis, she never had it."
The commissioner stared skeptically at Terry. "Go on."
"I know no one likes when I talk about these things, but there are rumors of a vaccine called juliasommeil, or Juliet's serum." Terry began.
Commissioner Ragan rolled his eyes, "More of your stupid conspiracy theories?"
Terry continued as if he hadn't heard the commissioner. "Ryan doesn't have any qualities matching a corpse. I've never seen a case this odd in my life."
"So you're suggesting that she'll just rise from the dead in a few days?" The commissioner jeered.
"Juliasommeil, if that's what we're dealing with, would be an extremely dangerous drug to work with. Something that you shouldn't trifle with unless you're willing to take the chance of actually dying because of it. There is a procedure I'd like to try."
"And if this procedure is a flop?" The commissioner challenged.
"If it doesn't work then she's dead anyway. Juliet's serum slows the heart and breathing to the point that even machines can't trace it."
"Things don't just die and come back." The commissioner scoffed.
Terry shook his head, "Actually, there are quite a few fish that freeze in the winter and literally die. Then, when the water is warm enough again, they come back to life."
"Shut up and do what you will with the girl. Don't let any of this get out. The last thing we need is her friends and family getting false hope."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
It had been thirty-two hours since Ryan's dead body had been found on the fire escape. Still no rigor mortis or swelling of the tongue. No organs had burst, no blisters forming on her skin. It was all so strange.
Her nervously fiddled with the syringe in his hand and said a quick prayer. He wasn't exactly religious, but it couldn't hurt to ask for the help of a higher power.
In an instant, he drove the needle into her heart and released the adrenaline.
He removed the needle and waited. It felt like eons, but his eyes kept flitting to the clock, revealing that it had been less than a minute still.
Two minutes.
Theree minutes.
Five minutes.
Terry sighed and sat down at the side of the table she was on. It was no use. She was dead. Gone with the wind. Had kicked the bucket. Dead as a doornail.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of heaving as stomach acid flew in his face. He looked up and wiped the yellow stuff away and saw a very pale dead girl on her side, covering her mouth with a very shaky hand.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Well I must say Terry…I'm impressed." The commissioner stated as he observed the undead girl getting a check up on her table. She had explained that the 48 l- she had carved into her arm was actually intended to say 48 hours. She'd been hoping someone would understand and wait that long before performing an autopsy. Terry had been right. She was trying to reach him.
Terry shrugged, trying to hide the pride he had. He normally wasn't any good to anyone until they were dead. Now, instead of observing the lives of the past, he'd managed to bring one to the present.
"I recommend you get a lot of rest, drink plenty of water, and eat all the food you can get your hands on. Healthy food, understand?" the nurse observing Ryan chided. Ryan only noddedback.
"Can I go back with my friends?" She asked weakly, those words being the first she'd spoken since waking up. That is if you don't count her saying she was sick and felt like she'd been hit by a bus.
The commissioner looked confused. "You're sure you don't want to go to the hospital?"
She nodded and the commissioner looked at the nurse, who said, "She'll be fine with sleep and food. Really."
"Alright then. I suppose it can't hurt." The commissioner finally said.
Ryan thanked him weakly and slid off the table, her legs buckling and almost giving way with her weight. Eventually, the commissioner had to escort her to the car and then up the stairs to where Sid, Arnold, and Helga were. It was nearly four AM so they were all soundly sleeping. Ryan waved the commissioner away gently and shuffled into the room, smiling slightly when she saw Arnold and Helga nestled tightly together.
Then she saw Sid.
She remembered everything.
It was hard to not realize how stupid a person could be after having died. It's even harder to do so when that person is you. She sat on the side of his bed, just staring at him for a few moments. Sid was a lot of things, but none of them reminded her of her father. He was sweet and paranoid and loyal to the end. She knew him. The didn't know why she had pushed him away the way she had. Now it just seemed juvinille and imbecilic. She slid into the curve of his arm and whispered that she was sorry before falling asleep.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
"SID WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO?" Helga screamed the second she was awake and realized what was going on.
Sid woke with a start and that was when he realized he had his arms around Ryan. He screamed and scrambled away. "OH MY GOD WHAT THE FUCK DID I DO?"
Arnold looked up from his place in bed and shot up onto his feet. "HOW DID YOU GET HER OUT?" Arnold was bellowing too.
"I DON'T KNOW!" Sid bellowed back, "I MUST HAVE BEEN SLEEP WALKING OR SOMETHING!"
"SLEEPWALKING DOESN'T MAKE YOU STEAL DEAD BODIES!" Helga bellowed back.
"SHUT IT!"
Everyone gasped and Helga almost fell over, only keeping her balance when Arnold grabbed her arm and pulled her upright. Sid's face went pale and Arnold looked as if he'd seen a ghost. "My head is killing me. The least you could do is be a little QUIET!" Ryan picked up a pillow and fell back onto the bed.
An officer burst into the room. "What the hell is going on in here."
"Ask. Them." Ryan said muffled as she buried her face in her pillow.
The officer motioned for Helga, Arnold, and Sid to leave the room, and they did. "Ryan was never dead." The officer began.
"What?" The three asked in unison.
"That's impossible. She didn't have a pulse or anything. This is all a weird dream, isn't it?" Helga challenged.
"You can go and meet with the coroner and he can answer your questions if you like." The officer offered, "I'm honestly really bamboozled by all this. All I know is that she," he motioned to the room where Ryan was already asleep again. "Needs lots of food and water once she's had enough rest."
"Then we're talking to the coroner." Helga decided for all of them. "Soon something really weird is gunna happen and we'll all just wake up and realize this is a fucked up dream."
The officer smirked, "I take you to Terry Winst."
You didn't honestly think I was gunna let Ryan die, did you? Or maybe it's all a dream. Let me know what you think and I'll let you know what it is. I know it's not the most realistic, but fantasy is more fun half the time anyway. Don't forget to rate and review. Love ya!