A/N: I am so sorry that it has taken me so long to post. I've been
whaving to work like every night and wake up to go to school the next
morning. Plus, yesterday I just had my senior prom, so that was keeping me
busy for a while. Anyway, this chapter is pretty long, and I already have
the next one written, just not typed up yet, so it shouldn't be too long.
Well, enough talk, on with the story! Oh, and as always, thanks so much
for the reviews! Later! ^_^
Heather ran. She knew she was fast, and she had great endurance, so she wasn't exactly worried about being caught. After all, before she got kicked off the track team, she had held the district record for the mile, half mile, and the 400-meter. (And too her knowledge, she still held it. No one around where she used to live had been faster than her.) She wasn't even that worried about the woods, she loved the outdoors, and she knew navigating techniques. What she was concerned about was that the last thing she had to eat was dinner last night, before she had ended up passed out in her room. And even that dinner had ended up flushed down the toilet. Plus the fact that she had cut, and lost a lot of blood. Top all that with the drugs and alcohol, well, needless to say she didn't exactly have much energy to go on.
So after about 20 minutes of sprinting, it wasn't exactly a surprise that she started to get dizzy. She didn't want to stop, she couldn't, because she knew that by now Peter or someone would be trying to catch her. So she kept going. Kept going while her vision darkened. Kept going while her arms went numb from lack of oxygen. Kept going while she was so dizzy that the woods were spinning. Kept going even though she knew she was falling. She kept going until she lost consciousness.
~Peter's POV~
Peter was getting worried. He had been running for about 30 minutes now, and he still hadn't caught sight of his new student. 'Man, she's fast' he thought. He was always able to catch his run away students. Apparently, that was about to change. But just as he was going to call Sophie to get the search parties together, he spotted a splash of red amongst all the browns and greens. Then that splash of red became a shirt of red, and that shirt became his student, lying face down on the forest floor.
Peter ran over to his fallen student and turned her over.
"Heather! Heather! Can you hear me? Wake up, Heather! Come on!" he said, shaking her. Still, he got no response.
"Sophie, come in Sophie!" Peter screamed frantically into his walkie- talkie.
"What? What is it? What's wrong, Peter? Did you find her?"
"Yes, but she is unconscious, and completely unresponsive. I don't know whether it is just heat exhaustion, or something else. But judging on her skill as a runner, I'm guessing it's not simple exhaustion."
"Where are you?"
"I'm about 3 miles away from the school."
"Wow. She got that far, running in those baggy jeans, through woods, in 30 minutes?!"
"Yea, I know. She's really quick. Probably an athlete. I'm going to start to carry her back. If she wakes up, I'll call you, tell you how she is, and if she can walk on her own. If not, well, just go ahead and get the infirmary ready, and call in the doctor. Oh, and notify the hospital, just in case. It could be more serious then simple fainting."
"Roger Peter. Keep me informed. Oh, and Peter, hurry." Sophie said, concern apparent in her voice.
"Will do. Over and Out."
~*~*~*~*~
About and hour later, Sophie was still waiting to hear from Peter, or to at least see him come out of the woods.
Just as she looked to the woods for what had to be her 100th time, however, her fiancee came into view, carrying a still unconscious Heather. She ran to meet them.
"Peter, how is she, has there been any change?"
"I'm afraid not. She's still not responsive. We have to get her to the infirmary."
"Okay, the doctor's already there, waiting, and the hospital is alerted, waiting for your call if an ambulence is needed. They said it could be here in about 20 minutes."
"That's great Sophie. Well done. Okay, let's go."
Once in the infirmary, Heather's limp body was laid on the examination table. The doctor rushed over, not really wanting to believe that the girl who laid there was the same lively, I'll be it, very angry, girl he had just tried to give a physical to not 2 hours ago.
"Man, oh man. This is all my fault. She didn't have to change into a gown, we could have worked around that."
"No, Dr. Burke," Peter said, "It wasn't your fault at all, you were just doing your job."
"Oh well, at least I can help her now." And with that, he told Peter and Sophie to step outside so he could get to work.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
About 30 minutes later, Peter and Sophie were still outside, pacing in front of the door. Just then, Dr. Burke came out.
"How is she, Dr. Burke? Do I need to call the hospital? What about her parents? And." Peter had been saying all this in one breath, and probably would have continued if Dr. Burke hadn't interupted him.
"Peter, she'll be fine. But I did find out why she didn't want to change, and why she lost consciousness."
"Really? Tell me, please."
"I will, but I wager it will be very difficult for her, knowing that you know, judging by how hard she tried to hide it. So I ask you, don't approach her, wait until she tells you."
"Very well. Now, please, tell us what is wrong."
"Okay, here goes. She didn't want to change most likely to the fact that she has scars and bruises all over her body. She had many bruises all over her, some new, some old, and significant bruising in the vaginal area, suggesting either long term sexual abuse, or at least a rape within the last 2 weeks, and long term physical abuse. The scars were mostly self- inflicted. Judging by color, fading, and number, I would say she has been cutting, and even burning herself, for at least 4 years. They are all over her body; stomach, ankles, shoulders, upper thigh, and even the breasts, but the majority of them are on her wrists and arms, suggesting either suicide attempts, or at least a need to see excess amounts of blood. There is evidence of stitches in her wrists, leading me to assume that she has slit her veins at least once already. Total, from what I could find, I counted 300+ scars, at least 50 of these done in the last 2 days. Some of the new ones could have used stitches, but it is too late for that, so I tried to seal them with butterfly bandaids." At this, he paused, and looked at Peter and Sophie. Sophie looked like she was going to be sick, and Peter, although trying to maintain a professional appearance, was obviously unnerved.
"Okay doctor, now tell us why she fainted." Peter said, with a somewhat shaky voice.
"Okay, well, a large part of that was the blood loss from the cutting. She has about 2/3 of the normal blood level in her system. Bu add to that the fact that she had multiple drugs in her system, and alcohol, and the fact that she is about 30 pounds underweight for her size and had no food or even drink in her system, well, it's not surprising at all that she passed out."
"What, so you're saying that she is a self-mutilating, abused, possibly suicidal, druggie with anorexia?" Sophie said, slightly disbelieving and highly shocked and overwhelmed.
"No," Dr. Burke began, all seriousness in his voice, "I'm saying that she is a self-mutilation, abused, possibly suicidal, druggie with bulimia. I found bile in her throat and it was swollen, proving the fact that she had been throwing up a lot in the last week or so, and add her underweight factor, and bulimia is the only logical explaination."
"Oh boy." Peter said, "it's a mix of Daisy, Shelby, Jules, Ezra, and Scott. I gotta sit down."
"Why do you say that Peter? I see Daisy and Juliette, but he others..?" Sophie said with concern apperent in her eyes.
"Well, Daisy because of the clothes, which, by the way Sophie, reminds me, make sure all her make up and possibly dangerous jewelry is taken away. And any safety pins or anything that are I her clothes. Also, ask her when she wakes up if her hair color can be washed out. If not, you'll need to take her into town to get it died back to normal."
"Sure thing, but go on about the students, you stopped at Daisy."
"Oh right, anyway, Juliette because of the self-mutilation and bulimia, oh, and also her politeness, but I'm beginning to pick on that just being one of her walls that she gives herself. She's like Shelby in the sense of the abuse, Ezra because of the suicide, and Scott, the drugs and sports. Not to mention we don't even know about her parents yet."
"Well Peter," Sophie began, "You might see this as discouraging, but I, on the other hand, find this to be wonderful news!"
"You what?! Sophie, are you feeling okay, baby?"
"Yes, I'm fine, and seriously Peter. I mean, look at how far the others have come, and if Heather is just multiple parts of them, then, well, we're set!"
"Sophie, I hope you're right. But either way, we definitly have our work cut out for us."
After that was said, Dr. Burke, who had been quietly listening in, went to check on his patient. A few seconds later, he came back with a smile on his face.
"Peter, Sophie, your student is awake."
Heather ran. She knew she was fast, and she had great endurance, so she wasn't exactly worried about being caught. After all, before she got kicked off the track team, she had held the district record for the mile, half mile, and the 400-meter. (And too her knowledge, she still held it. No one around where she used to live had been faster than her.) She wasn't even that worried about the woods, she loved the outdoors, and she knew navigating techniques. What she was concerned about was that the last thing she had to eat was dinner last night, before she had ended up passed out in her room. And even that dinner had ended up flushed down the toilet. Plus the fact that she had cut, and lost a lot of blood. Top all that with the drugs and alcohol, well, needless to say she didn't exactly have much energy to go on.
So after about 20 minutes of sprinting, it wasn't exactly a surprise that she started to get dizzy. She didn't want to stop, she couldn't, because she knew that by now Peter or someone would be trying to catch her. So she kept going. Kept going while her vision darkened. Kept going while her arms went numb from lack of oxygen. Kept going while she was so dizzy that the woods were spinning. Kept going even though she knew she was falling. She kept going until she lost consciousness.
~Peter's POV~
Peter was getting worried. He had been running for about 30 minutes now, and he still hadn't caught sight of his new student. 'Man, she's fast' he thought. He was always able to catch his run away students. Apparently, that was about to change. But just as he was going to call Sophie to get the search parties together, he spotted a splash of red amongst all the browns and greens. Then that splash of red became a shirt of red, and that shirt became his student, lying face down on the forest floor.
Peter ran over to his fallen student and turned her over.
"Heather! Heather! Can you hear me? Wake up, Heather! Come on!" he said, shaking her. Still, he got no response.
"Sophie, come in Sophie!" Peter screamed frantically into his walkie- talkie.
"What? What is it? What's wrong, Peter? Did you find her?"
"Yes, but she is unconscious, and completely unresponsive. I don't know whether it is just heat exhaustion, or something else. But judging on her skill as a runner, I'm guessing it's not simple exhaustion."
"Where are you?"
"I'm about 3 miles away from the school."
"Wow. She got that far, running in those baggy jeans, through woods, in 30 minutes?!"
"Yea, I know. She's really quick. Probably an athlete. I'm going to start to carry her back. If she wakes up, I'll call you, tell you how she is, and if she can walk on her own. If not, well, just go ahead and get the infirmary ready, and call in the doctor. Oh, and notify the hospital, just in case. It could be more serious then simple fainting."
"Roger Peter. Keep me informed. Oh, and Peter, hurry." Sophie said, concern apparent in her voice.
"Will do. Over and Out."
~*~*~*~*~
About and hour later, Sophie was still waiting to hear from Peter, or to at least see him come out of the woods.
Just as she looked to the woods for what had to be her 100th time, however, her fiancee came into view, carrying a still unconscious Heather. She ran to meet them.
"Peter, how is she, has there been any change?"
"I'm afraid not. She's still not responsive. We have to get her to the infirmary."
"Okay, the doctor's already there, waiting, and the hospital is alerted, waiting for your call if an ambulence is needed. They said it could be here in about 20 minutes."
"That's great Sophie. Well done. Okay, let's go."
Once in the infirmary, Heather's limp body was laid on the examination table. The doctor rushed over, not really wanting to believe that the girl who laid there was the same lively, I'll be it, very angry, girl he had just tried to give a physical to not 2 hours ago.
"Man, oh man. This is all my fault. She didn't have to change into a gown, we could have worked around that."
"No, Dr. Burke," Peter said, "It wasn't your fault at all, you were just doing your job."
"Oh well, at least I can help her now." And with that, he told Peter and Sophie to step outside so he could get to work.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
About 30 minutes later, Peter and Sophie were still outside, pacing in front of the door. Just then, Dr. Burke came out.
"How is she, Dr. Burke? Do I need to call the hospital? What about her parents? And." Peter had been saying all this in one breath, and probably would have continued if Dr. Burke hadn't interupted him.
"Peter, she'll be fine. But I did find out why she didn't want to change, and why she lost consciousness."
"Really? Tell me, please."
"I will, but I wager it will be very difficult for her, knowing that you know, judging by how hard she tried to hide it. So I ask you, don't approach her, wait until she tells you."
"Very well. Now, please, tell us what is wrong."
"Okay, here goes. She didn't want to change most likely to the fact that she has scars and bruises all over her body. She had many bruises all over her, some new, some old, and significant bruising in the vaginal area, suggesting either long term sexual abuse, or at least a rape within the last 2 weeks, and long term physical abuse. The scars were mostly self- inflicted. Judging by color, fading, and number, I would say she has been cutting, and even burning herself, for at least 4 years. They are all over her body; stomach, ankles, shoulders, upper thigh, and even the breasts, but the majority of them are on her wrists and arms, suggesting either suicide attempts, or at least a need to see excess amounts of blood. There is evidence of stitches in her wrists, leading me to assume that she has slit her veins at least once already. Total, from what I could find, I counted 300+ scars, at least 50 of these done in the last 2 days. Some of the new ones could have used stitches, but it is too late for that, so I tried to seal them with butterfly bandaids." At this, he paused, and looked at Peter and Sophie. Sophie looked like she was going to be sick, and Peter, although trying to maintain a professional appearance, was obviously unnerved.
"Okay doctor, now tell us why she fainted." Peter said, with a somewhat shaky voice.
"Okay, well, a large part of that was the blood loss from the cutting. She has about 2/3 of the normal blood level in her system. Bu add to that the fact that she had multiple drugs in her system, and alcohol, and the fact that she is about 30 pounds underweight for her size and had no food or even drink in her system, well, it's not surprising at all that she passed out."
"What, so you're saying that she is a self-mutilating, abused, possibly suicidal, druggie with anorexia?" Sophie said, slightly disbelieving and highly shocked and overwhelmed.
"No," Dr. Burke began, all seriousness in his voice, "I'm saying that she is a self-mutilation, abused, possibly suicidal, druggie with bulimia. I found bile in her throat and it was swollen, proving the fact that she had been throwing up a lot in the last week or so, and add her underweight factor, and bulimia is the only logical explaination."
"Oh boy." Peter said, "it's a mix of Daisy, Shelby, Jules, Ezra, and Scott. I gotta sit down."
"Why do you say that Peter? I see Daisy and Juliette, but he others..?" Sophie said with concern apperent in her eyes.
"Well, Daisy because of the clothes, which, by the way Sophie, reminds me, make sure all her make up and possibly dangerous jewelry is taken away. And any safety pins or anything that are I her clothes. Also, ask her when she wakes up if her hair color can be washed out. If not, you'll need to take her into town to get it died back to normal."
"Sure thing, but go on about the students, you stopped at Daisy."
"Oh right, anyway, Juliette because of the self-mutilation and bulimia, oh, and also her politeness, but I'm beginning to pick on that just being one of her walls that she gives herself. She's like Shelby in the sense of the abuse, Ezra because of the suicide, and Scott, the drugs and sports. Not to mention we don't even know about her parents yet."
"Well Peter," Sophie began, "You might see this as discouraging, but I, on the other hand, find this to be wonderful news!"
"You what?! Sophie, are you feeling okay, baby?"
"Yes, I'm fine, and seriously Peter. I mean, look at how far the others have come, and if Heather is just multiple parts of them, then, well, we're set!"
"Sophie, I hope you're right. But either way, we definitly have our work cut out for us."
After that was said, Dr. Burke, who had been quietly listening in, went to check on his patient. A few seconds later, he came back with a smile on his face.
"Peter, Sophie, your student is awake."
