As promised, here's the next chapter. Sorry if this was took a while. I've been busy with work. Hope you're all enjoying the story so far though.
WARNING: This chapter contains some strong language and sexual themes.
DISCLAIMER: All Life is Strange characters belong to DONTNOD Entertainment. I own my OC Ben Ferris.
Chapter 6: Faith Restored
As Kate's eyes began to open, she looked around the white hospital room to see that it was now a bright and sunny Wednesday morning. There were some flowers sitting on a nightstand and a couple of balloons with the words "Get Well" on them tied around her bed. As she was beginning to wake up, she had thought back to everything that had occurred after coming down from the roof.
Kate remembered being escorted by the two paramedics to an ambulance after walking down to the first floor of the dormitory building with Ben. They had both sat her down inside of the vehicle, questioning and inspecting her to see if she had any signs of trauma, before driving her to the hospital. Once she had arrived, she got to change into her favorite pair of pajamas, the white top with the flowery design on the center, and the turquoise bottoms. Her face was also clean of any makeup that she usually wore and her eyes no longer looked puffy. She had shown her natural beauty. After she was settled into her room and tried to make herself comfortable in the hospital bed, a doctor had walked into the room Kate was in. She was a young woman, most likely in her late 20s, with dark brunette hair that was tied back into a bun that was smaller than Kate's, and wore a white coat over her scrubs. She was there to ask Kate a couple of questions to understand the incident that occurred at Blackwell and see how Kate currently felt. She sat down in a chair near Kate's bed and smiled at her before introducing herself.
"Hi, Kate. My name is Dr. Young. But you can me Penny. I'm one of the Clinical Psychologists here at Arcadia Bay General. I'd just like to ask you some questions for an assessment and by the time you know it, I'll be gone to let you get some rest." The young doctor stated.
"Hi, Penny. That sounds great." Kate replied as she smiled back at her.
"Perfect! How about we start with who you are by giving me a brief introduction of yourself." Penny instructed.
"Okay. My name is Kate Marsh, I'm 18 years old, and I'm an Art student at Blackwell Academy." Kate politely told Penny.
"And are you involved in any extracurricular activities at Blackwell, Kate?" Penny asked next as she began writing down information on a document attached to her clipboard.
"Yes. I'm in charge of the Meals on Wheels program at my school, which is a volunteer organization that provides warm food to the homeless. I also lead the Bible Study Group, which is part of Blackwell's different religious studies groups. On my free time I like to draw animals and cartoon characters, play the violin, and spend time with my pet rabbit, Alice." Kate answered.
"Meals on Wheels. Actually, I think I once saw you on the channel 7 news about that. I thought you looked familiar. And I'm sure you must enjoy Bible Study. I myself am a practicing Christian too." Penny had mentioned.
"So it's good to know that you're very busy outside of class. Do you think you can tell me what had caused you to climb up to the roof of your dorm today?" Penny then asked.
Kate began to look down at her hands, feeling reluctant to give an answer.
"It's okay. Nothing that you tell me will leave this room." She promised.
"Well, since the school year started, some of the other students at Blackwell would bully me in class and in my dorm because I'm still a virgin and I practice abstinence. I even advocate a small abstinence campaign and some of the other students vandalized the posters that I would make." Kate shared with the doctor. "And just last weekend, I went to a party for the first time, and after I had one sip of wine, I didn't remember anything that had happened. The next thing I knew, I was on a viral video that showed me kissing several people I never met before. People kept talking about the video and bullying me for it and that was what led me to go on the roof and try to..." Kate didn't feel comfortable finishing her sentence. She almost felt like crying again but she felt like she had cried so much in the past several days that her body barely had any water left to produce tears.
"I'm so sorry to hear that. I hope that officials at your school are addressing the situation with the video." Penny said to Kate sincerely.
"And I just want you to know that there's nothing wrong with practicing abstinence, and don't let those bullies tell you otherwise." She said encouragingly to Kate, pointing her pen at her.
"I also made the pledge to stay abstinent when I was a little girl, and people at school always made fun of me for it too, even when I was in college. But now, God blessed me with being engaged to a wonderful man, and I'll be getting married in the spring. So don't worry, your time will come too." She proudly told Kate, as she showed her the engagement ring on her left hand.
"I heard from one of the EMTs that you did have some friends who looked out for you though." Penny brought up.
"Oh, yes. My friend Max erased all of the mean things that people wrote on my room slate, including the link to that video which someone wrote on the girls' bathroom mirror. She even talked to me on the phone earlier today which made me feel better." Kate mentioned.
"Well, that was very nice of her." Penny expressed, knowing that Kate had someone who cared for her.
"And Ben was the one who talked to me on the roof and convinced me to come down with him." Kate stated happily as she sat in her bed with her hands clasped.
"I actually just saw a news article about that. That was so kind and noble of him." Penny commented.
"Is he also your friend?" She asked with interest.
"Oh. Yes... I mean, not really but... I actually just met him yesterday." Kate answered.
"Oh. Really?" Penny asked with a slight smirk on her face as she jotted down more notes.
"Yes. Why, what's wrong?" Kate asked unsure of what the young doctor's response to her answer was for.
"Oh, Nothing." Penny simply replied. "Well, that basically wraps up the assessment, Kate. I noticed how you said that you couldn't remember anything the night of the party, so I think we should have you take a drug test to see if we find a sample of anything in your system." She explained as she stood up and started to walk over to the door.
"And Kate, promise me that you'll stay away from alcohol, please. I know I'm not a cop, but you are still under aged after all. And please make sure that you'll talk to someone in the future if you ever feel depressed or have suicidal thoughts. Promise me that too, okay?" She stressed to Kate.
"I promise. Thank you, Penny!" Kate replied as she smiled at the kind and caring doctor.
"Great. Now why don't I talk to one of the nurses to see if they can get some pen and paper for you to do some drawings?" Penny mentioned, remembering that Kate said how she loved to draw.
"Yes please." Kate replied. She smiled as Penny had closed the door to Kate's room. She looked out of the window and admired the view of the sunset as she began to slowly close her eyes and fall asleep.
That was the most sleep that Kate had gotten in the past few days. She was feeling so much better after her conversation on the phone with Max, trusting Ben to come down from the roof, and talking with Penny yesterday. Those three people had helped restore her faith. And for the first time this week, she truly felt blessed.
One of the nurses came to Kate's room to bring her breakfast, a plate with scrambled eggs, two slices of bacon, and home fries, along with a slice of toast, a bowl of diced fruit, and a cup of yogurt. After she had eaten, she decided to get out of her bed and create some drawings with the colored pens and paper she had been given. She felt that some of her doodles were a bit too macabre at first. She was most likely still processing thoughts from the past few days that were in her head. Just a couple of moments later, Kate was met by her first two visitors that walked in with a nurse.
"You've got some visitors here to see you, sweetie." The nurse told Kate as she opened the door to let in Stella and Alyssa, two of Kate's best friends inside the room.
"Hey, Kate." The two girls both said as they greeted their friend who they were happy to see.
"Stella, Alyssa." Kate shouted in excitement as she ran over to hug the two.
"How are you? We all miss you." Alyssa spoke.
"I'm feeling so much better, I still kinda feel silly about how I reacted yesterday." Kate shared, sounding embarrassed.
"Don't. We all should have done more to help you. What matters now is that you're still here and smiling again." Stella expressed.
"Thanks, Stella. How are things at Blackwell?" Kate asked.
"A lot of people are really talking about you. They all feel like their to blame for what happened. Even Victoria feels guilty about everything." Alyssa replied.
"Yeah, I heard that Ben Ferris tore her apart in the hallway after everything that happened yesterday." Stella added.
"I was there when it happened. Ben's actually an easy going guy, but watching him put Victoria in her place like that was awesome and scary at the same time. I wish you could have seen it Kate." Alyssa mentioned.
"I guess so. But maybe Victoria didn't really deserve that. What she did to me was mean of her, but I forgive her for what she's done." Kate affirmed.
"Don't ever change Kate. By the way, we also came by to drop off your homework and notes that you missed in Mr. Jefferson's class yesterday. And your copy of The October Country for your book report. We have to go soon so we're not late for class." Stella replied.
"Thanks, you guys." Kate acknowledged.
"Oh, wait!" Kate shouted before her two friends left the room.
"Do either of you happen to have Ben's number? He hasn't visited yet, but I wanted to thank him for what he did for me yesterday." She mentioned.
"Yeah, I actually do. I still have it from when I worked on a group project with him." Alyssa stated.
"Thanks, Alyssa." Kate said.
"Good idea, Kate. I think Ben would really appreciate you thanking him." Stella said. "Plus, he's kind of cute." She added, almost trying to give Kate a hint.
"What's that supposed to mean? I just wanted thank him." Kate thought to herself. She started to feel a blush develop on both of her cheeks from Stella's remark, but neither of her two friends noticed as they were both leaving the room.
"Kate! No!" Ben had shouted in his sleep.
He then woke up, only to see that his entire upper body was clammy as he slept with all of his covers since it was a chilly night. But then why was he so sweaty? It came to his realization that he had just had a bad dream, most likely from what he experienced on the roof yesterday. He didn't even feel like he was tired anymore and rolled out his bed to see that it was only 7:00 AM, three more hours before classes would even start. Walking over to his desk, still wearing his athletic shorts that he slept in, he sat down and turned on his laptop. He was actually willing to check his social media this time, to see all of the praise he was getting from his peers. He decided to log onto his Facebook first, to see what exactly everyone had written on his wall yesterday.
As he clicked on his profile, Ben first saw his profile picture at the top of his page. It was a photo of him standing right next to his mom with his arm around her. She was a middle aged woman that appeared to be of Native American descent and had long, straight, raven hair. The two were standing on a hill and smiling together with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. They took that picture together the day before Ben was moving back to Arcadia Bay to live with his dad for the summer and start his school year at Blackwell. It made him think back of the memories he had made in San Francisco. He also remembered that his profile's banner was a picture of him standing in the bleachers of Levi's Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers, his favorite football team in the NFL. Ben then scrolled down to see all of the acknowledgements people posted on his wall.
Warren Graham- BEN 10! YOU ROCK!
Max Caulfield- Keep being awesome Ben! Blackwell needs more people like you.
Brooke Scott- Watching you walk down with Kate from that roof was the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life. Thank you.
Dana Ward- You're a real hero Ben. Thank you.
Evan Harris- You actually made me proud to be at Blackwell. Bravo, Ben. Bravo.
Daniel DaCosta- Tu eres el hombre
Luke Parker- Thanks for helping out Kate, Brother Ben!
Hayden Jones- Epic.
Juliet Watson- Way to make the headlines, Ben!
The list could go on. But Ben felt that he didn't deserve any of this. All he wanted to do yesterday was save someone's life before it was too late. He never asked for any of this recognition. He decided to check Kate's Facebook next. He hadn't heard anything from her since she was taken to the hospital yesterday, so he thought that he would have a better idea of how she was doing if she had updated a status. He began to scroll through his list of friends to find her name.
"Kate Beverly Marsh", was the name that he found upon scrolling down and clicked on. Even though they had only met each other for the first time on Monday, Ben and Kate had become friends on Facebook a few weeks back. He saw that her profile picture was a selfie that she had taken with another blonde haired girl, who was wearing glasses and standing next to her. The two were both smiling together and seemed to share a few facial similarities, so Ben figured that the other girl must have been one of Kate's sisters that she mentioned. Her profile's banner showed a drawing of three different cartoonish characters. Her signature was next to one of them, meaning that it was her drawing. Ben scrolled down to see if there was any kind of post from indicating that she was okay, only to see a series of heartfelt messages left by students and other individuals that Kate knew.
Taylor Christensen- Get well soon. U R in our hearts.
Evan Harris- Thinking of u.
Max Caulfield- Always here for you Kate.
Alyssa Anderson- We're all behind you.
Father Lamont- Psalm 34:18 "The lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit."
Victoria Maribeth Chase- Sending love to you Kate.
Mark Brewington- WE LOVE YOU KATE COME BACK TO CHURCH SOON.
Courtney Wagner- I hope you feel better.
Zach Riggins- Blackwell Bigfoots PROMISE to win the next game for YOU!
'It's good that she has more people looking out for her. I hope they actually mean what they say and treat her better when she comes back.' Ben thought to himself as he noticed that one post from Victoria and some of Kate's other tormentors. Ben couldn't find any kind of updates from Kate's social media so he stopped looking. Still wide awake, he decided to go through his emails and saw that one was sent from Principal Wells.
Dear Benjamin,
Once again, I'd like to personally thank you for going out of your way to help Miss Marsh from being in a terrible situation yesterday. I'm sending this email to inform you that the entire Blackwell senior class will be having a mandatory assembly today during the second block of classes. The class President was intended to give an address to all of the students, but considering Mr. Prescott's recent suspension, I would like to ask you to speak to your fellow classmates as acting class President. Don't stress about it, I'm sure you'll do great.
Best,
Ray Wells
"I get to give a speech that I haven't even prepared, in front all of my friends. What a great way to start the day." Ben said sarcastically to himself. He then walked over to his mini-fridge, opened the freezer door and pulled out the ice pack that Dana lent him yesterday. He began to ice his black eye as he sat at his desk, mentally preparing his speech.
The day started off as usual. Ben had his Drama class first, where Sarah had been teaching students the importance of choosing tactics when completing a character's objective in acting. Things felt different today as Ben wasn't as energetic in the class as usual. During their warm ups Sarah had at one point encouraged Ben to show some more commitment to his actions, something she really never had to tell him to do. The class went by fast as students would always have fun playing warm up games and reading scenes with each other. The bell eventually rang, dismissing the students and directing them to go to their next class. As Ben grabbed his back pack from his seat and was ready to leave the auditorium, he heard Sarah call for him.
"Ben, a word please?" Sarah asked politely in her natural soft spoken voice.
"Hi, Sarah." Ben greeted as he tried to give a light smile.
"I just noticed that you weren't as lively and vocal today as you usual are in class. Is everything alright?" She asked with concern.
"Um, yeah, sorry about that. I guess I'm still kinda zoned out by everything from yesterday." Ben answered.
"Oh, I understand." She said. "You did so much for Kate yesterday. Not only did I see you walk down from the roof with her, but I also saw you taking down all of those vulgar pictures of her around campus in the morning and I even heard about you defending her from Mr. Madsen. You've been through a lot yesterday, so maybe you should consider seeing one of the school's counselors and talking to them." She suggested.
"I guess so. Thanks for listening, Sarah." Ben replied.
"Any time, Ben. Take care of yourself." She told him.
Ben then sat in his Video Production class. He and the rest of the students had begun working on a project that Mr. Jefferson assigned them, in which they had to create a 60 second Public Service Announcement. The students were allowed to choose any kind issue of their choice for the project; smoking, texting and driving, drug abuse, saving the environment, etc. Ben sat there putting together an outline for his video, but after the events of the last two days, all he could think of for his topic of choice was bullying. He knew that it was a dark subject, especially after everything Kate had just gone through, but he felt that he needed to get his point across when making this PSA. People needed to see this, and not just everyone at Blackwell. Ben knew deep down that out there in the world, there were other people just like Kate. But sometimes, that didn't mean that there was always a Ben Ferris to save them. All of a sudden, the school's PA system had just turned on, as the voice of Principal Wells had interrupted teachers giving their lectures and students presenting their projects.
"Good morning Blackwell Academy, this is Principal Wells. Will all students and teachers please report to the auditorium at this time? Thank you."
"You heard the man everyone. Let's go." Mr. Jefferson spoke as he urged his students to get up from their computers and head down to the auditorium.
Ben was the last one to leave the classroom as he made contact with Mr. Jefferson before he closed the classroom door after him.
"How you doing, Ben?" He asked him with a warm smile on his face.
"Just trying to make it through this week." Ben answered.
"I know yesterday was rough, but you should know that Kate really appreciates what you did. I went to visit her this morning to drop off a 'get well' card for her. She even asked about you." Mr. Jefferson mentioned.
"She did?" Ben questioned
"Of course she did. You saved her life. She could never forget that." Jefferson reassured him as the two walked down the hallway. "Are you planning to visit her anytime soon?" He then asked Ben.
"I definitely want to. I've just been kind of swamped this week with homework and football. Plus today's also our first day meeting together for my independent study." Ben explained.
"The independent study can wait, you've got all year to do that. Right now, Kate needs support and friendly faces while she's still in the hospital. How about we reschedule a time to meet for the independent study instead?" He insisted.
"That would be awesome. Thank you so much Mr. Jefferson." Ben replied happily.
"No problem. Now if I'm not mistaken, you have a speech to give to everyone today." Jefferson mentioned.
"Yeah. How did you know about that anyway?" He asked.
"Well, news does travel fast between the faculty." He simply answered.
Ben didn't think too much of this explanation. It probably explained how Mr. Jefferson had found out about the confrontation between him and David which involved Kate. As the students began to walk through the doors of the auditorium, Ben made his way up towards the stage, where he saw Principal Wells standing in front of a podium.
"Good morning, Ben. Ready to make you're grand address to all of your royal subjects?" Wells joked.
"Yeah, ready as I'll ever be." Ben said, lacking enthusiasm in his voice.
"Alright then. I'll just welcome everyone once there all settled in, and then I'll turn things over to you." He said.
As Ben talked with Principal Wells, he could smell a small whiff of what seemed to be whisky off of the man's breath. Ben was completely caught off guard by this. Had he been drinking before he got here? This seemed a bit odd. Principal Wells then showed Ben to a set of fold-up chairs on the stage, accompanied by Victoria, Taylor, Courtney, and Hayden the entire student class executive board, minus Nathan. Ben had sat at the empty chair which was next to Victoria, who gave him a dirty look, most likely for what he had said to her yesterday. Once all the students were seated in the auditorium, Principal Wells brought the microphone close to his face and began to address the entire class.
"Good morning, everyone." Principal Wells stated to the entire audience. "I know it's still early for some of you and you'd all like to resume your studies as soon as possible, but due to yesterday's happenings that occurred, I strongly felt that the entire student body needed to be brought together. What happened yesterday should never take place at a prestigious institution like Blackwell. However, Kate Marsh is in good health and currently being treated at Arcadia Bay General. And while I am still investigating who was responsible for Miss Marsh's suicide attempt as well as the viral video that was posted, there has already been action taken to address the students who appeared in the video." He stated.
As Ben sat in the chair he had felt his phone vibrate and decided to quickly check to see what it was for. As he pulled out his phone from his pocket, he saw that he had received a message from an unknown number. He then opened up his phone and tried to read it quickly before being caught by someone.
Unknown:
Hi Ben, this is Kate Marsh. I wanted to thank you from my heart for reaching out to me on the roof yesterday. We only just met since Monday and already, you were the only one besides Max who was there for me at school, the only one who truly cared. I have to believe you were sent to give me hope. You did so much more than that. My father is grateful as well. You'll always be in our prayers.
Love and Blessings,
Kate
Ben didn't know what to say. He was so glad to finally hear from Kate for the first time today, knowing that she was okay. Reading her kind words had suddenly given him a sense of confidence to speak to everyone in the audience. He replied to her quickly before putting his phone away.
Ben:
Hey Kate, I'm so happy to hear that you're ok. I promise I'll come visit you as soon as I can. Hope you feel better!
As Principal Wells continued to speak to the entire students as a whole. Ben began to whisper to Victoria, sitting next to him on his left, to get her attention and talk to her.
"Hey, listen. I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about what I said to you yesterday. I overreacted and it was way out of line." Ben whispered.
"No. You had every right to be mad at me. What I did to Kate was so fucked up. And now, I'm not even sure if she'll ever forgive me." Victoria whispered back as she had a feeling of remorse in her voice.
"That's all in the past. What matters now is letting her know that you're sorry and that you care about her." Ben stated.
"You always are wise. That's why I'm glad that we're friends. Thanks!" Victoria quietly replied.
"Of course. Just remind me to never get on your bad side, cause you've got a mean right hook." Ben joked, referring to how hard she smacked him yesterday. The two friends then chuckled together.
"And now, I'd like to turn things over to our class president, for the time being, who will be giving an address to all of you. Ben Ferris." The Principal said welcoming Ben to the Podium. Ben shook his hand and could once again smell the scent of whisky on the man's breath, just before he went to sit down. Ben was greeted by the loud applause of the students still treating him like a hero.
"Yeah, Big Ben!"
"We love you, Super-Ben!"
"Brother Ben!"
"Thank you, Principal Wells." Ben said. "Good morning my fellow members of the Blackwell Community. Today, I was hoping to give you a speech that would help lift everyone's spirits and bring us back to positivity. I guess you could even say that this was supposed to be a really funny speech given by a funny person like me. But instead that's not going to happen, because I'm not happy at all. Instead, I'm upset about the behavior of some of my peers sitting in front of me right now. Over the past few days, there was a certain viral video, involving a fellow friend and classmate, which had attracted attention among everyone here. Many of you sitting in this auditorium right now only responded to that video in a very immature way, and it made me wonder how some of you would feel, had that been you on the receiving end of this incident. I'm speaking about this issue right now because the fact that it was so blown out of proportion, caused Kate Marsh to attempt to take her own her life yesterday. All I have to say is that I am disappointed in each and every one of you who decided to watch that repulsive video. I am even more disgusted in anyone who even went to the lengths to share the link to the video on social media." Ben angrily spoke out.
"Now for those of you, who paid close attention to my words, you may have noticed that I used one word in particular. 'Community'. This is what we as students here at Blackwell should strive to create. But how can we create a community if we choose to bully our fellow classmates or ridicule them for their own beliefs? It's never too late for us to make a difference, guys. Start being kind to one another and helping someone when you see them struggling. Yesterday only proved that life can be so short, and sometimes if we chose not to step up and help someone, we might not get the chance to see them again." Ben expressed. He could see the looks of people's faces in the audience. Some of them moved by Ben's chilling words, some of them even crying, feeling awful for how they had treated Kate.
"This morning, it came to me that if we want to make Blackwell a community, then we shouldn't be partying like there's no tomorrow when one of our fellow peers attempted suicide just yesterday. That's why as your acting class president, I've decided to cancel the End of the World Party on tomorrow night hosted by the Vortex Club, and instead we'll be putting together a rally in support of Kate Marsh. Thanks for listening guys. Now let's go make a difference here at Blackwell."
The entire section of students cheered loudly as they were heavily inspired by Ben's message. He refrained from calling out a single person and everyone all got the message that they needed to be kinder to Kate and help her get through this nightmare that she went through. Ben was surprised himself by the speech he had given. He was even more shocked to see that many people were in favor of replacing the anticipated End of the World Party with a rally for Kate. However, he only had until tomorrow night to have everything organized for this event. He also wanted to make sure that it would be successful for when Kate returned to Blackwell tomorrow evening. As he walked to his locker, Ben was then greeted by Max and Warren who wanted to give him props on delivering such a powerful speech.
"That was literally the most epic speech I've heard in my entire life." Warren stated. "You should definitely consider running for office one day." He then brought his fist to Ben to get a knuckle pound from him.
"Thanks Warren, but politics kind of bore me." Ben replied.
"Great idea with wanting to put together a rally for Kate." Max said "You've only been class president for not even a day and you're starting to make more of a difference than Nathan when he got elected last month." She remarked.
"Aw, Thanks, Max. I know I helped her when she was on the roof and all, but you were also there for her when you answered her phone call and erased all that crap off her room slate. That technically kinda makes you my sidekick." Ben stated.
"I could go with that." Max said accepting Ben's compliment.
"Check it out everyone!" Zach shouted to his friends pointing at Ben. "Big Ben? More like King Benjamin after that speech bro. You shook the entire room." He said praising his best friend.
"Wanna grab lunch with us Ben?" Warren asked.
"You guys can go without me. I just have to stop at the little boys' room real quick. I'll meet you there though." He said as he walked over to the bathroom.
As Ben was finishing up in the bathroom, he began to wash his hands and heard the sound of a toilet flush and one of the stall doors open. He then looked up and stared in the mirror, only to see a face of someone he hoped he wouldn't see for a while walk right out of the stall.
"I have to say, that was quite the speech you gave today 'Benny-Boy'. I guess you're not a typical meathead football player after all." Nathan said jokingly as he walked over to Ben by the sink.
"I thought you were suspended." Ben spoke as he didn't even look at Nathan.
"Oh I am, thanks to you." Nathan rudely remarked. "It was pretty easy for me to sneak into the building with everybody being in the auditorium to listen to your bullshit speech. And when Officer David Dickhead is busy writing parking tickets." Nathan explained to Ben.
"So what do you want then? To get back at me for getting you suspended?" Ben questioned. Nathan simply laughed at what Ben had asked.
"You know, Ferris, getting your own friend suspended was a pretty dumb move on your part. But canceling my End of the World Party just moved you all the way to the top of my shit list." Nathan calmly spoke. "I mean, what's a backstabbing prick like you even doing here at a place like Blackwell anyway? Don't even answer that. We both know you only got accepted here because of your dad, who's the football coach. Maybe the reason why you wanted to join the Vortex Club so bad is because deep down inside, you're just some loser with Daddy issues. I mean, does he actually think someone like you can lead the team to the state championships?" Nathan taunted.
Ben began to have a tight grip on the end of the sink with his left hand and his right hand balled into a fist. His fist was balled up tightly to the point that his fingernails were digging into the palm of his hand. Ben had to try to contain himself though. He couldn't risk being reported for another fight a second day in a row.
"You're really something you know that, Ben. Turning on your own friends like me and Victoria yesterday, just to defend poor Kate Marsh. And now you're putting together some gay little rally for her? That's pathetic." Nathan commented. "You wanna know what I thought about your speech today, Ben? I think every single word you said was all a lie. You're probably a hypocrite for shaming everyone for watching that video. I bet you saw it more than once and got off to watching Kate go wild. Hell, you probably saw it all go down at the party that night with your own eyes and got a hard on just watching her. I bet the only reason you stepped up for her in the student lounge and talked to her on that roof yesterday was because you pitied her. You thought she was pathetic, like everyone else thought, and that if she killed herself, we wouldn't have any one else to make fun of for being a virgin. You're a Drama student anyway, so you were probably just acting like you cared." Nathan commented as he grinned the entire time.
"Shut up, Nathan!" Ben warned as he gritted his teeth and stared deeply at Nathan. He hated that stupid smirk Nathan had on his face when he always knew he would get away with something.
"Actually, now that Kate's in the hospital, maybe I should pay her a little visit. She probably gave up on her religion after everything she's been through anyway. Which means she's probably ready to show someone like me what she's like in bed..." Nathan expressed.
"Shut your fucking mouth!" Ben shouted, shoving Nathan into the bathroom wall before he could even finish his sentence. He had his left arm pressed down against Nathan's throat with all his force, making sure he couldn't breathe or move.
"If you even go to that hospital and set foot in her room, I'll kill you." Ben threatened as he stared into Nathan's slightly scared eyes. Ben had stood at five feet and ten inches tall and weighed 165 pounds, complete with his athletic build. Nathan was probably no taller than five feet and six inches and was just a scrawny punk compared to him. Ben was ready to beat him down if he had to. But all of a sudden, Ben had heard a clicking sound from below. He had looked down to see that Nathan was pointing a handgun right at Ben's abdomen, with the safety off. He believed what both Chloe and Max had told him, but now he had seen the gun with his very own eyes.
"Get the fuck off me!" Nathan growled, as he was trying to breathe.
Ben released him and took several steps back as Nathan caught his breath and still pointed the gun at him.
"I'm so tempted to pull the trigger right now and watch you bleed to death. But you're not worth my time. You're not worth anybody's time." Nathan scoffed at Ben. "Plus, the last thing you even deserve right now is a funeral. Because unlike Kate, people would actually show up to your funeral." He remarked. Nathan put the gun back into the inner pocket of his red bomber jacket and turned around to leave the boys' bathroom. Before he opened the door, he turned his head to face Ben and address him one last time.
"By the way, if you ever touch me again. I'm gonna smash your perfect teeth in." He threatened just before walking out of the door.
Ben had a series of emotions flowing through his mind. Those remarks Nathan made about Ben's speech and the way he thought he could talk about him, Kate, and even Ben's own father like that. Ben screamed as loud as he could and punched one of the bathroom mirrors as a result of all the rage he had just built up. The mirror had cracked and Ben noticed that he had a cut on his knuckles. He left the bathroom and went to the student lounge to be alone instead, while everyone else was at lunch. He didn't even feel hungry anymore after what had just happened. He thought back to when he had become friends with Nathan on the first weekend and the two began to bond over the next several weeks. He was even his next door neighbor in his dorm. But since yesterday, Ben began to hate him for so many reasons, and today only gave him another reason.
Ben sat in his last class of the day, just waiting for it to be over. He just wanted to forget about everything that had happened today, his friends who wrote the messages on his wall, his speech he gave, and especially his run-in with Nathan. His hand had still hurt from when he punched the mirror and he noticed how he had dried blood on his knuckles. Since his independent study after class today with Mr. Jefferson was canceled, he thought about visiting Kate at the hospital to see how she was doing. He had two hours of free time to himself anyway before football practice started. As the bell finally rang, Ben grabbed his things from his locker and left the school building. He didn't even say a single word to any of his friends in the hallway. As we walked outside, he saw that it was still sunny out but starting to get chilly. He walked back to his dorm room and grabbed a navy blue cardigan from his closet to put on. He stopped at the bathroom to wash the dried blood off of his hand before he left.
As Ben walked through the student parking lot, he made his way over to his car, a red 1967 Ford Mustang, complete with a black two-striped paint job on the hood of the car. Ben only had it for a little over three months now. It was the birthday gift that his Dad got for him. He knew how much Ben loved old styled cars, and felt that it was the perfect first car for him to own. Ben even cherished it so much too. He would wake up early on Saturday mornings, even if he was hungover, to wax it and make sure it still had a brand new gleam on it. As he pulled out of his parking spot, he turned on the radio to help him take his mind off things. He cruised down the streets of Arcadia Bay with his right hand on the steering wheel and his left hand hanging outside the window while listening to Crosses by Jose Gonzalez play on the radio. He gazed at the sights of the shore and the numerous shops, restaurants, and gas stations that he passed. He eventually began to pass the town's more significant landmarks, such as the lighthouse and lumber mill. Just as Ben was halfway through another song that played on the radio, he saw that he had finally arrived at the hospital. He found an empty parking spot further down from the main entrance. As he walked into the hospital, he could see that the interior of the building all looked so familiar to him. He was reminded of a visit he had made here with both of his parents when he was only four years-old and he had swallowed a nickel due to his little curiosity that he had. And since he was a native of Arcadia Bay after all, this was the exact same hospital that he was born in. He walked over to the information desk in the hospital's foyer and approached one of the nurses sitting at the desk who smiled at him as he walked over.
"Hi, I'm here to visit a friend." Ben stated.
"Sure, what's the patient's name?" the nurse asked Ben so she could search it into the computer in front of her.
"Kate Marsh." Ben answered.
"Okay, she's on the third floor, room 310. Feel free to use the elevator down that hall on your left." She politely told Ben as she pointed to the hallway.
"Thank you." Ben said as he walked down the hall.
As Ben walked down the hallway of the third floor, he started to feel somewhat anxious, but he didn't know why. The last time he saw Kate was yesterday and he had only heard from her this morning from her text message. He didn't even say a single word to her after walking down from the roof with her. He wasn't even sure what he would say to her now. He could still picture her face in his head. Her eyes puffy, the makeup on her face running from the rain and her tears, and even her neatly tied up hair soaked from the rain. He wasn't exactly sure what she would have even looked like now. She had only been here for one night and one day so far and who knew if she was feeling better already. As Ben was still in deep thought, he could see that he was now standing in front of a door that had the numbers "310" right on it. He was here and had gotten this far. To turn around and go all the way back to Blackwell and visit her another time would have been foolish as well a waste of gas at this point. Ben took a deep breath and grabbed the door knob with his left hand, slowly turning it and walking inside.
As he entered the room, Ben began to look around to see that there were several framed paintings hanging up on the wall, two windows with curtains, and a bed with several balloons tied to it, as well as a night stand with a vase on top of it, filled with yellow flowers in it. There were also four chairs placed around the room and in one of the chairs that was next to the bed, sat a blonde haired girl, dressed in a pair of pajamas instead of a hospital gown, who was drawing. As she heard the door open and close, she looked up to see that it was Ben, revealing that she had no make-up on and had her hair tied in her typical bun. She greeted him with a warm smile as she recognized his face.
"Hi, Kate." Ben addressed in a soft voice, as he couldn't help but smile when he saw her.
"Ben!" Kate shouted his in name in joy as she got up from her seat and walked over to hug him.
"It's good to see you again." Ben stated as he opened up his arms to hug her back.
"I thought I'd never see you or anyone ever again. I feel so ridiculous... I'm so sorry." Kate said to him, sounding somewhat remorseful for what she did yesterday.
"Hey, listen. What happened up there yesterday wasn't your fault. It's everyone else's." Ben reassured Kate as he looked into her hazel eyes while he held both of her arms. "I really am happy to see you though. You look great." He complimented as he noticed he was still smiling at her.
"Thanks, so do you. As in... Your eye looks better than it did yesterday." Kate brought up nervously as she began to look down at the floor.
"So, how are you holding up?" Ben asked as he placed his hand on the back of his head.
"Now that you're here, I'm doing even better... because... you're visiting me right now of course." Kate said coyly as she tried to rephrase her sentence, which seemed a bit flirty to her. Ben had noticed a slight blush on Kate's cheeks. He thought nothing of it though. "I'm so grateful to you for coming up to the roof to talk me down."
"It was nothing really. You needed help and I wanted to be there for you." He replied.
"Ben, I felt so lost and alone...but when I saw how much you cared, how hard you were trying to save me, you made me realize I wasn't alone. Thank you." Kate confessed to him.
"Kate, you're never alone. You have your friends and your family. Those are the kinds of people in your life that will always love you and go out of their way to help you no matter what." Ben convinced her.
"I know. You should see all the letters and postcards I got. I gave most of the flowers to the other patients here because they need them more than me. I'm keeping the balloons, though. And one of the nurses gave me some pen and paper so I could do some drawings." Kate shared with Ben.
'Wow, you actually gave all of the flowers to other patients who you felt needed them more. You are too cute Kate! Wait, cute?' Ben thought to himself as his mind had slightly lingered.
As Kate sat back down in her chair and resumed to her drawings, Ben looked at the one she was currently working on, along with the ones hanging on the wall.
"These are some sick drawings you've got here." Ben complimented as he thoroughly observed each of Kate's sketches.
"The one you did of Hawt Dawg man is definitely my favorite. I used to play the video games and watch the cartoon." Ben mentioned as Kate's drawing of an anthropomorphic hot dog had reminded him of his childhood.
"Thanks! They got kind of dark there for a while," Kate explained as she pointed at a paper on a table that showed a bit more disturbing doodles. "But I have an idea for a new children's book about bullying." She mentioned.
"Good for you, Kate! That's awesome. You know, I'm actually kind of a writer myself." Ben brought up.
"Oh, was that supposed to be a subtle hint, Ben Ferris? I guess we'll have to work on a children's book together some time in the future." Kate teased. Ben couldn't even hide the bashful smile on his face when Kate brought up the idea.
"Have you heard yet? We're putting together a rally for you at Blackwell tomorrow night for when you come back." Ben stated, changing the subject.
"Principal Wells sent me an email about that. That's so sweet of everyone. Unfortunately, I'm going to be here for another two days until my family comes out to visit." Kate told him.
"How have they been treating you anyway?" Ben asked.
"Like they need to protect me forever. They're so upset, and I know they feel guilty even though they didn't do anything." Kate admitted. "But I was surprised by how many people from Blackwell wrote to me though. Daniel, Mr. Jefferson... Even Victoria wrote me a very sweet note...and I believe she was being real." She mentioned.
"That makes two of us. I'm glad that you haven't lost your faith, Kate." Ben expressed as he sat down in a chair across from Kate.
"I'm working on it, Ben. I just pray I can get this drawing right..." Kate mentioned as she was working hard on her current drawing.
Ben was glad to see Kate like this. She gave off a complete aurora of innocence as he watched her sitting down drawing. She had looked so peaceful for the first time this entire week. He may have only met her just two days ago, but he felt so rejoiced to have helped her in her personal battle.
"I'm really glad that we got to meet each other." Ben brought up to Kate as he smiled.
"Ben, I owe you so much for everything you've done. You look like you have something on your mind." Kate expressed as she noticed how he looked like he was in deep thought.
"You don't owe me anything at all." Ben said modestly. "You mentioned that you got a note from Victoria. Are you cool with that after everything that's happened between you two?" He asked her with concern.
"Ben, I know Victoria can be a...a...not nice. But, I do believe in forgiveness and redemption. I might be naive, but...I feel her struggle." Kate stated as she sat in her chair with her legs crossed.
"I wasn't so nice to her yesterday when I called her out on everything she did to you." He confessed as he looked down at the floor.
"It's okay, Ben, we all have our moments. Why do you think she acts so mean?" She wondered.
"I've been friends with her since the school year started. She's nothing if not insecure. When you're confident in yourself, then you don't need to act like everyone else is beneath you." Ben explained.
"Victoria doesn't look like she has much to be insecure about." Kate claimed.
"Believe me, once you get to know her, it all makes sense." Ben laughed.
"I think I'll take your word for it." She presumed.
"Oh, I thought I should let you know that I got Nathan Prescott suspended for you." He added.
"You did? But weren't the two of you friends?" She then questioned.
"We used to be." Ben answered. All Ben could think of were Nathan's derogatory remarks he made towards him and Kate, from their encounter in the bathroom today. He just wanted to forget about that entire experience.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Kate expressed sincerely. "Did it have something to do with me?" She asked.
"Not at all. He's just jealous of how I took his place as class president after he got suspended is all. Boys will be boys, you know?" He said nonchalantly as he sat back in the chair. He didn't want Kate to feel bad knowing that she had a part in Nathan's suspension.
"Ben, I'm not that naive. You've been a good friend to me, so you can at least tell me what's wrong." She said as she pouted at Ben and folded her arms, wanting him to be honest with her.
"Alright! Nathan's pissed at me because I told Principal Wells that he roofied you at the last Vortex Club Party. And now, he practically want's my head on a pike after I replaced his End of the World Party with your rally for tomorrow night." Ben explained.
"Oh no, this is all my fault. I hope things won't get worse between you two when he comes back." Kate sadly expressed.
"It's not your fault, Kate. And him coming after me is bound to happen. I think it's just best if I... we watch our backs for the next few days when he does come back from being suspended." Ben suggested.
"Ben, Nathan Prescott doesn't deserve to torment you or me after what he did. So if we stick together, he better watch out for both us." Kate stated as she began to flex her arm to show her muscles, making Ben giggle.
"You sound so persuasive. But Nathan can wait. What's more important right now is that you're safe and better than ever." Ben shared. He looked at the clock in Kate's room to see that he needed to have enough time to drive back to school and get changed in his football gear for practice. He felt bad that he would have to leave Kate though. He actually enjoyed getting to sit down with her and have an actual conversation.
"I wish I could stay longer, but I have to head back to Blackwell for practice." Ben told her.
"Aw, I was really enjoying our talk." Kate said as she smiled.
"Maybe we could hang out together sometime with Max and even Warren when you come back to school?" He suggested.
"Is that even a question? Of course we should." She replied as she was surprised to find out that Ben also knew Max and Warren.
"See ya, Kate!" He said as he walked out of the door.
"Bye Ben! It was good to see you." She replied as she smiled at him again before he closed her door.
Ben walked down the hallway and made his way back to the hospital entrance to walk back to his car. As we walked back, he noticed that he felt different from when he first arrived to visit Kate. As he drove to the hospital, he remembered how he had felt completely angry and regretted that he ever knew Nathan. He almost wished he didn't even attend Blackwell because of him. But there was a sudden change in his emotions when he walked into that room and saw Kate again. He felt calm, relaxed, and most of all, happy. He didn't know exactly why he felt all those ways around her and he pondered on it on the drive back to Blackwell. To Ben, Kate Marsh was clearly an absolute gem, and one that he hoped to spend more time with in the near future.
Hope you guys enjoyed the mood of this chapter. It seemed like a good direction to take after the events of the last chapter, but then again, you really do see how Nathan can ruin anything. I did have fun writing the hospital scene with Ben and Kate as we got to see some subtle flirting between the two which was awkward for both of them. Also, for anyone who paid close attention or just so happened to catch on while reading this chapter, Dr. Penny Young, the psychologist who sees Kate in this chapter is a reference to the psychiatrist who bares the same name in Batman: Arkham Asylum, one of my favorite video game series. Also if you read the encounter between Ben and Nathan closely, you may have noticed that Nathan didn't even wash his hands before he left the bathroom. He truly is a horrible human being :P