Chapter 5
Annie gasped as suddenly light exploded around her and she sat up quickly, gasping for air and trying to focus on her surroundings. She became aware of someone beside her, touching her, and she looked wildly into the face of Jeff. Her Jeff. Immediately she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder as she breathed in the warm scent of his skin. His arms held her tightly and Annie felt her panic begin to subside and her shivering stop as she soaked in warmth from his body.
"Annie? Oh my god, Annie, are you okay? Is anything broken? I don't think you're supposed to be mov – "
She silenced him by grabbing his face and kissing him. Jeff froze but after a moment returned her kiss with matching intensity, burying his hands in her hair as her tongue plunged into his mouth. She was practically in his lap, her hands gripping the front of his tee shirt until her lungs screamed for air. Only then did she pull back, his lips instinctively trying to follow hers. He opened his eyes and looked at her, confused for a moment, then concerned when his fingers found a bump on the back of her head and she hissed in pain.
"Annie, you should probably lie back down. We already called for an ambulance, they should be here in a few minutes. The others are out in the parking lot to flag them down." He tried to shift her, but she refused to move from his lap, still clutching his shirt.
"What happened?" Annie asked, her head beginning to ache as she looked around, surprised by the normal green foliage around them.
"You fell down an old trapping pit. We heard you scream and thought you had seen a bear or something. Then…then I found you and you were unconscious and looked so pale that I thought…" his voice trailed off as she felt his arms tighten their hold around her.
"You care about me," she said quietly, smiling softly as she placed her hand on his cheek, her thumb rubbing over the stubble on his jaw. Once again he froze at her touch but then relaxed, tilting his head toward her hand.
"Of course I care about you, Annie. I know I'm not great at telling people how I feel about them, but, even if I don't always want to, I care about you."
"Jeffrey! The paramedics are here!" Shirley called and Annie could hear people trampling through the forest.
"She's okay!" Jeff yelled and Annie grimaced again as her head throbbed. He winced in apology and spoke more quietly. "Do you want to try standing up?" She nodded and he slowly helped her to her feet. The world began to spin and she clung to him, closing her eyes and resting her forehead on his chest as a wave of nausea passed through her.
"Miss? Are you sure you're all right to stand?" an unfamiliar male voice asked and Annie turned to look up at him, offering a weak smile.
"Just a minor head wound. You should probably check for a concussion though."
The paramedics eyed her warily, but seemed to accept that they wouldn't have been able to get her out of the seven-foot pit on a back board anyway, so they gave instructions to Jeff to lift her as they took her arms and pulled her from the pit. The rest of her friends were standing clumped by the edge of the pit, looking visibly relieved as she emerged unharmed.
"Hi guys," she said with a small wave, and immediately all four began talking at once.
"Oh pumpkin! When we heard you scream – "
"Annie, we were so worried! And then Jeff took off – "
"He just dove in the pit like a super hero, but you weren't moving – "
"Do you think you're psychic now? Sometimes people with head trauma will say - "
She smiled at them as the paramedics began to check her over, sitting her on a fallen tree. "I'm okay, guys, really. It's just a bump on the head. I couldn't have been unconscious for very long."
"Actually it's a very large bump on your head and even if you were only out of a few seconds we really need to take you in for a thorough exam. Just to be safe," the older and, Annie assumed, senior paramedic spoke, looking at her gravely.
Annie nodded, her face falling a little as the throbbing in her head became more severe. "I don't think that's a bad idea. Could you leave the siren's off though?"
"Yeah, we can do that," the paramedic said with a chuckle as he motioned for his partner to bring over the stretcher.
Annie let herself be strapped down, even accepting the neck brace, all while trying to smile encouragingly at her worried friends. As they carried her away she let her eyes close, fatigue weighing on her like a blanket as she felt the memories of her unconscious delusions slip away like a dream. The image of Jeff with bunny ears floated in her mind and Annie suddenly started, her eyes flying open.
"Guys, where's Jeff?" she called to the friends that were following the paramedics out of the woods in a line. They stopped and looked at each other before they turned back and looked toward the pit. Troy and Abed immediately ran back as Britta grimaced.
"I knew we were forgetting something," she muttered as they made it to the ambulance in the parking lot.
They were just strapping Annie in when she saw an irritated Jeff climb into the back with her, her purse in hand, taking a seat and fastening his seatbelt. Her mouth parted but she couldn't voice her surprise as he set down her purse and took her hand.
"Would you rather someone else – "
"No," she interrupted, blushing slightly.
"Good. Because even though I may not be a lawyer anymore, I know people that can make you very rich if you need to file a malpractice suit, and I definitely know one when I see one." He sent a warning glare to the paramedics, who were too busy packing up to pay him heed.
He squeezed her hand as the squad rumbled to life and began its journey to the hospital. Annie let her eyes fall closed and a small smile lifted the corners of her lips as she gripped Jeff's hand tighter, satisfied that he was really there.
Maybe some things do just have to happen after all. And maybe…maybe we can be more than just friends.
