Hey everyone. Not much to say this week but Happy Labour Day weekend to all American readers, and Happy Father's Day to Australian readers. Have fun and don't forget to stay safe.
Enjoy this chapter, and comment or review what you think will happen next.
Tenderly, he brushes her hair. His gentle fingers running through the thick dark locks, twisting it left and right until she pokes him, a sign for him to stop playing around with her hair and start actually styling it.
He complies with her requests, taking the strands closest to her face and pulling it back. Twisting it, he adds more hair as he goes along, working down her hairline, and taking his time to make sure no hair was out of place. Eventually, she gets restless, eager to get up and play.
"Are you done yet, Bell?" Octavia asks impatiently from her spot on his lap, her own knee bouncing as she fidgets.
"Almost, O." He smiles into her hair. His sister has never been one to be patient. "Just two more minutes."
"Two whole minutes?" Octavia groans, letting herself fall backwards into her brother before he pushes her back upright.
"Even longer if you keep moving around and making me mess it up." He chides her.
At that, her back straightens, trying her best not to move a muscle so Bellamy could be done quicker. Said teenager just laughs, knowing this posture would not last for more than a minute at best, but is grateful to have a less wriggly sister just for a moment.
"And, done." He announces as he ties it off with her favourite red ribbon. The ribbon is beginning to wear, the edges starting to fray as the red loses it's luster. Still, she insists on wearing it despite them having bought her new hair ribbons in a range of different colours and patterns.
"Thanks, Bell." She kisses him on the cheek before jumping off his lap.
He watches her fondly as she twirls around the living room, letting her loose hair swing behind her. Most of her hair is in a delicate braided crown, the red ribbon entwined in the braid and tying it off, while the remaining hair falls freely behind her back.
"How about you go play with Hope while I wait down here for Echo, then we can all go to the park?"
"Park!" Octavia yells, delighted, before dashing up the stairs to find her older sister.
Seeing that she was safely up the stairs, he sits back on the couch, smiling to himself at the memory of Clarke teaching him how to braid her hair.
He'd been seven when they met, and she six. He's not exactly sure what had attracted her to him, the new lonely kid who entered school a month after the school year began, but she stuck onto him like a leech.
Ok, that was unfair. He stuck onto her too, the pair of them becoming inseparable almost instantly, so when they found out they were neighbours, both their parents suddenly found themselves with another child.
From the minute they woke up till their bedtime, if one was there, the other was sure to be nearby. It was futile trying to pull them apart even for meal times, so the families eventually resorted to taking turns in preparing dinner, and all of them would eat together.
Their houses were always full, the two kids running around and between houses in a game of tag or hide and seek. There was never a dull moment.
Then one day in third grade, Clarke saw a bunch of girls doing each other's hair at recess. She had wanted to join in but the girls wouldn't let her, telling her they don't want to catch cooties from her because she spends all her time with a boy.
Clarke came home crying that day, and didn't stop until Bellamy told her that he'll learn how to braid hair so he can do her hair for her. She immediately jumped on him and gave him a hug, proclaiming him to be the "bestest best friend ever".
She then sat down in front of her vanity - her mother had insisted on getting one the moment she found out she was going to have a daughter - and began explaining that he had to divide the hair in three equal parts for a basic braid.
Eventually, she taught him even more complex styles, and the days he did her hair for her were the days the other girls were filled with envy. He had mastered some of the fancier hairdos, leaving them jealous and wanting 'pretty hair like Clarke's'.
They asked him to do their hair while the boys teased him mercilessly for doing something so girly, but he ignored them and assured Clarke that she's the only girl he'll ever do her hair for.
Clarke responded by styling his curly hair into tiny braids while he took a nap.
He smiles fondly at the memory, wondering for a moment where his best friend could be, when the doorbell rings.
"Echo!" He ushers her in before taking her jacket and hanging it beside his. "Welcome to my home."
The tall teen walks in, admiring the house, as Bellamy watches her with lovestruck eyes.
He'd met her a week ago on the first day of the new school year; it was his first day of high school, and her first day at a new school. They had both been lost, their companions having long since found their own classrooms, leaving them to fend for themselves.
They hopelessly tried to help the other find their respective classrooms, but it was to no avail. They had probably wandered around for about 15 minutes after the homeroom bell had rung when Mr. Titus found them, and led them to their classrooms, which were ironically right next to each other.
After homeroom, they met each other outside their classes, and the rest was history. They'd meet each other before and after homeroom, and once school ended for the day. It didn't even take a week before they began dating, and today was the day he'd introduce her to O.
He'd already introduced her to Clarke, who for some reason or other didn't like her, so he decided the best way to introduce her to Octavia, and for the girl to accept her, was for them to spend the day together at the park.
He leads her towards the living room, before telling her of his plans for the day. He's in the middle of explaining one of Octavia's favourite games, when he hears the soft pitter patter of her feet coming down the stairs.
"Bell!" Two heads turn to her.
Octavia stumbles as her stare goes blank.
They hear her breath catching in her throat. They watch as her tiny hands fumble for the railing. They see her miss the step and begin to tumble down.
His feet move on their own accord, rushing to catch her before she could fall.
He almost misses her, catching her a fraction of a second before her head could hit the ground. His relief is short-lived however as she begins to shake.
Her tiny frame jerks back and forth, her eyes rolling to the back of her head as her limbs flail uncontrollably.
He's not sure what to do. He doesn't know what's happening. Somewhere in his head, someone is shouting that she's having a seizure, but he knows nothing about it, aside from those medical shows Clarke makes him watch.
Clarke! He needs Clarke.
"Hey, Bell. Mom told me..." She stops short, seeing the pair near the landing and Hope frozen at the top.
"Hope. Get my mom." She instructs the girl, sparing her a glance as she rushes down the stairs and out the door, before turning to Octavia. All the colour has drained from her face, her fingers twitching, as her tongue slips out of her mouth.
"Give me your shirt." She tells Bellamy as she places a hand beneath her head. "We need to protect her head, make sure she doesn't hit it against the tiles." Taking the shirt and bundling it up with her free hand, she replaces her hand with the shirt.
"Turn her over to her side." Bellamy quickly complies. "We need to make sure she can breathe properly and won't choke on her own spit."
"How long has this gone on for?" She asks urgently, keeping the makeshift pillow in place.
"I don't know. Maybe a minute or so before you came?" Bellamy's frantic, his hands gently supporting his sister as her body continues to spasm.
"Ok. So about two minutes, now-"
"Bellamy! Clarke!" Abby rushes in, kneeling beside the girl. "What happened?"
"She just fell and started seizing." Tears start to pool in Bellamy's eyes. "I caught her... I don't think she hit her head..."
"You did good, kids." She praises them, watching as the girl slowly stops seizing.
"Ok. Baby. Ok, honey." Abby gently rubs the girl's back. She's not exactly sure if she's assuring her or them or herself, but she continues her gentle ministrations until she's sure the girl is safe to pick up. "You're ok."
"Bell. I'm going to take her to the hospital. You kids can come with me or wait for Diyoza or Marcus-"
"There's no way I'm leaving her. I'm coming with you." The boy wipes the tears from his eyes as Hope and Clarke nod silently.
"Ok then. I'm going to get the car ready." She tells the trio. "Bell, pick her up slowly and make sure to support her neck. Tell me if she wakes up, or looks like she's going to, or anything. Clarke, you know which documents we'll need. Help Hope get them. They should be in Marcus' room."
The group nods and leave to do their tasks. It is only as he makes his way to the door between the two houses that he notices Echo standing awkwardly to the side.
"I'm sorry Echo." He apologises hurriedly. "It's an emergency. I can't leave my baby sister right now. She's all I have."
Echo can only watch as he hurries by, taking that as her cue to leave. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she can't help but think that the little girl seems familiar.
Brief flashes of memories play through her head. She remembers pain; the feel of the glass piercing through her skin, the painful scream that tore itself from her throat before she could do anything. She remembers hearing a dull thump as her head knocks on the glass, before rolling over the roof and onto the ground.
It aches. Everything hurts. And the monotone beeping isn't helping a bit. She feels sore all over. She wants her mama. She wants her daddy. She wants Hope. She wants her Bell.
She blinks, her eyes opening for the briefest moment before closing shut once again. It's too bright.
She tries lifting her hand to shield her eyes from the light, but someone's holding her arm down. She wants to push them off, but she feels so weak, so tired. She just wants to cry.
Tears begin to pool in her eyes.
"Don't cry, O." She hears a voice, 'Bellamy' another voice reminds her, whisper by her ear. "It's ok, O. Everything will be ok. We're here now." He gently strokes her arm, running a finger up and down its short length to comfort her.
The lights dim and slowly, she's able to fully open her eyes.
"You gave us quite a scare there, Octavia." Abby walks towards her, her lab coat missing but a clipboard in hand. "How are you feeling?"
"Everything's all achy." She cries. "I wanna go home."
"You just had a seizure, Octavia." Abby informs her softly, trying to keep her as calm as possible. "We need to run a few tests first to make sure you're ok."
"But... but I wanna go home. I don't wanna stay here again. Please don't make me stay here." Her heart rate begins to spike. "Mama. Daddy. Please."
She tries to get off the bed but Bellamy holds onto her firmly.
"It's only for a few days, O." Bellamy promises. "And once you're out, we can go to the park."
Park... The word repeats itself in her mind as the flashes from earlier return. Snow. Snowball fight. Car. Crash. Pain. The girl in the car...
"Octavia?" Hope calls out just as the monitor begins to beep rapidly, and the girl starts to convulse.
She twists on the bed, her body jerking left and right as the IV is yanked out of her arm, blood spurting out of the open wound.
"Kids, out." She ushers them as nurses rush in.
It takes five whole minutes before she stabilises, and another five before the group is welcomed back in.
"We'll schedule her for an MRI first thing tomorrow. We're not sure if this will be a regular thing or what causes it, but it may be a side effect of her head injury."
"But it's been months, doc." Diyoza carefully brushes the stray strands of hair away, her daughter's hair having come out of its elaborate hairdo some few hours ago.
"Head injuries are tricky. They're complex and we only know so much about the brain, Diyoza." She pats her friend. "All we can do now is wait for her to wake up and hope for the best."
The group nods solemnly, only to look on in shock as a small voice echoes throughout the room.
"Daddy. Why did you lie?" Octavia turns towards said man, looking at him sternly with teary eyes.
"What did I lie about, sweetheart?" He asks her softly, wanting to understand what exactly she was talking about while trying not to frighten her.
"I remember, daddy." She tells him softly as she stretches her arms out for him. He carefully picks her up and settles her into his lap, mindful of the newly replaced IV. "I remember the accident."
The entire room freezes, unsure what to say next.
"Why did you tell me I fell out of a tree if I got hit by a car?" She asks him curiously. "Why didn't you just tell me the truth?"
"I'm sorry, baby." He gently strokes her hair. "I just didn't want to scare you. We were so scared you wouldn't wake up and I wasn't thinking straight. And I only want you safe, O."
She hugs him, her little arms moving around his neck. "I forgive you, daddy." She smiles at him. "Promise me you won't lie to me again?"
She holds out her little pinky and he turns to the rest of the room's occupants, trying to gauge their reactions. Only she didn't know of the biggest secret of all, the half lie she was currently living. In the grand scale of things, this little lie was nothing compared to the full truth.
Taking a deep breath, he hooks his little finger with hers. "I promise."
"Good." She giggles, before her face turns solemn. "Daddy, I think I know who drove the car."
The room goes silent, everyone waiting for what the girl would say next. This was something they had been trying to figure out for the past few months, but now that the truth is about to be revealed, they're not sure if they're ready for it.
"It was Bell's friend. She drove the car."
And this has been an AngelFanfics productions.