I apologize for the delayed updating. I had sunburn. You're probably laughing at that but it was very serious sunburn! I started to swell. I had sunscreen on too! It was SPF 45. Curse you false advertising!
Schuyler took a cab across New York to the hospital where she had spent most of her childhood days. She still wore her white tea dress and gloves. Her ivy garland was askew in her long hair. Everything passed her in a blur. Getting to the hospital was the easy part; seeing her mother lying still, unawake and unresponsive was the hard part.
Schuyler stood outside her mother's room, looking through the ajar door. Allegra was still. Her long blonde hair was fanned out upon her pillow. Her porcelain faced looked as though it hadn't aged a day since she was nineteen. Aside from the hair color difference, both Schuyler and her mother looked identical.
The television in the room was turned on and some talk show was playing. Schuyler rested her hand on the door handle, hesitant upon entering. She jumped when a nurse she had known since she was young spoke.
"You can go right in Schuyler."
Schuyler merely smiled in response.
"She would be very proud of you, you know," The nurse said referring to Schuyler's graduation.
Schuyler nodded, opened the door and sat down in a chair beside the bed. She studied her mother's face for any change in emotion. Nothing. Still unchanging.
"Mom..." Schuyler said as softly. She took a deep breath and then let it out. "I graduated today."
A lump was forming in her throat. "I was accepted to three Ivy Leagues and a bunch of other reputable universities. I didn't chose one because I don't know what I want to do."
Schuyler looked at her mother. "I graduated and... I don't know what to do. I feel so... lost. I don't know what I want to do with my life. Everything is just so messed up.
A while ago I knew exactly what I wanted to be and where I was going. Now, I don't know anything at all," Her voice began to break.
"Jack is going to be bonded to Mimi soon. I know being with him is going to hurt me in the long run but something in my brain just shuts that out when I see him. I forget that he will never really be mine. He says there is a way but I know there isn't. He will always belong to Mimi. The people in my life never get to stay for long," She wiped away the tears that were now steadily falling.
"I'm hurting Oliver too. I am hurting him so, so much. I don't mean to but I can't be what he wants us to be. I just can't," Schuyler began to sob as she looked at her mother's unmoving face.
"Mom, please. You have to wake up. Please," Schuyler knelt down by the hospital bed still holding Allegra's hand. "You need to wake up mom, please. Wake up for me."
Schuyler began to sob uncontrollably. She needed her mom more than anything. Everything was just so screwed up and out of control. It was like she was stuck in a forest with a broken compass.
"Mom, wake up," Schuyler managed to choke out. "Please. I just... I just..."
Schuyler started to sob again. She pushed herself back to the chair, let go of her mother's hand and brought her knees up to her chest. Her body shook violently with sobs.
"Mom, please," She whispered. "Just wake up."
Schuyler waited until she had cried herself dry and stood up. She went over to her mother's bed and kissed her forehead. She made her way towards the door but turned around to face her mother again.
"I was accepted to three Ivy Leagues and a bunch of other reputable universities. I didn't chose one because I don't know what I want to do."
"I know you're proud of me," Schuyler whispered. "I just hope that one day you'll get to see what I've done."
Schuyler shut the door to the room and leaned back against it. She had promised when she was around seven years old that she was just going to have to accept the fact that her mother was never going to wake up. Schuyler then realized she never kept that promise along with many others.
Bliss hid around the corner of the building. She checked the iphone that was given to her for the time. It was close now. She just needed a text message from the leader, and it would be mayhem. Bliss smirked as she watched the people passing by. She paid close attention to a young girl getting into a cab. Yes, everything was going completely according to plan. Perfect.
Bliss quickly whipped out her phone and the boy who was to start things at Duchesne. She then went back to watching the cabs race by.
"Take me on the floor, I can't take it anymore. I want you; I want you to show me love." Bliss' iphone sang.
She glanced down at the screen and smirked. She opened the text message and read through it, making sure to delete it when she had finished. Now it was only a matter of time.
Jack stood in the Duchesne hallways with all his fellow classmates and their parents. Everyone was busy snacking on freshly cut exotic fruit and a variety of fancy deserts. People were socializing and laughing with each other; catching up on old memories from the past. Others were taking self guided tours around the antique school hallways. Jack was interested in doing any of that though. He was too preoccupied in watching Tanner.
Tanner was pacing back and forth in the front foyer of the school. He kept looking down and checking his cell phone every five seconds. He looked anxious and nervous. Jack could see him sweating and he knew it wasn't from the heat outside.
Suddenly Tanner's phone erupted in a loud beep, nearly causing him to throw it into the air. His hands were shaking as he pressed the buttons on his phone. Jack's green eyes narrowed. Tanner looked up at something on the balcony and nodded sharply and went back to his phone. Jack followed where Tanner had been looking and noticed someone wedged between the empty space between the lockers and the balcony. Jack couldn't tell who it was; all he saw was the glint of the blade of the knife the stranger was holding. Jack looked back to the front entrance but Tanner wasn't there.
"Jack! Have you – "Mimi called out breathlessly but was cut off by the sound of a gunshot.
The school exploded into pandemonium. People everywhere began screaming and running every which way.
Where is Charles? Jack sent to Mimi
I don't know. I can't find Schuyler either.
"You what!?" Jack shouted.
"I lost track of her in the garden. I don't know why Dad is being so uptight about this whole thing either," Mimi shouted back.
"Mimi, she is freaking royalty! If the silver bloods get a hold of her we are screwed! They will have the power to kill every single blue blood if they take the throne."
Pssh. Yeah right. Mimi muttered.
They can do anything if they control a whole country! Especially since that country is crawling with blue bloods!
Mimi found herself being pushed along with the panicked crowd trying to exit the building. There were gunshots ringing and echoing throughout the school. Jack pushed his way through the crowd calling out for Schuyler. Where could she have gone?
Mimi stumbled down the steps of Duchesne. She had been forced out of the building due to the massive mob of people trying to push their way out. She stumbled into Tanner who was standing over by the garden.
"Sorry," Mimi said sourly.
Tanner whipped around to face Mimi and jabbed a gun into her arm.
"Come with me," He said grabbing her arm.
"Whoa, slow down there buddy. I'm not going anywhere with you." Mimi said twisting out of his grip.
Tanner pointed the gun at her.
"As if." Mimi muttered. In a second flat Mimi had the gun taken out of Tanner's hand and flat on the ground. Mimi jabbed one of her stilettos into his stomach and he howled with pain.
"Now. You tell me what is going on."
Tanner remained tight lipped. Mimi pointed the gun at him and raised her eyebrows.
"How 'bout now?" She said angelically, still digging her heel into his stomach.
"Silver bloods are looking for Schuyler." He said with difficulty. "Can you take your shoe out of my stomach please?"
"That's not a good enough answer. Are you a silver blood?"
"Yes."
The gun clicked in Mimi's hand. She looked at Tanner closely and noticed that he did indeed have silver pupils. She didn't recall ever seeing him at committee meetings though.
"Who do you work for?" She said narrowing her eyes.
"Don't shoot!" Tanner shouted covering his face with his hands.
"Get up."
Tanner stood up and Mimi jabbed the gun into his back.
"Call off the attack." She commanded.
No response.
"Call it off, or else." She hissed.
Tanner reached into his pocket and typed something into his phone. He put it back in his pocket and rested his hands on his head. The gunfire immediately stopped.
Jack came dashing out of the school, he noticed Mimi standing with a gun against Tanner's back and raised an eyebrow.
"He is a silver blood." Mimi said answering his thought.
Jack looked at Tanner in disbelief and Tanner shrugged.
"Hands on your head!" Mimi shouted.
Schuyler's at the townhouse. I'm going to check on her. She was on her way back here but luckily I caught her thoughts and told her to go home. Jack sent to Mimi.
Mimi rolled her eyes in response.
"That is freaky, y'know. You guys always look like you are having little psychic conversations. It creeps me out," Tanner said turning towards Mimi.
"Shut up," Mimi said kicking Tanner in the back of the knee causing him to fall forward.
Jack chuckled and got into the town car that had arrived for him.
"Jack!" He heard someone call his name just as he was about to shut the door. It was Charles."Is she safe?"
"Yes, I am on my way home to watch her."
Charles nodded and shut the door.
Schuyler was flopped down upon her bed. After her encounter with her mother, she had attempted to make her way back to the graduation party but Jack had invaded her thoughts and told her to get home as quickly as possible. There had been another silver blood attack. Schuyler's phone buzzed on the night stand. She reached over for it and opened the text message she received from Oliver.
Sky, u o.k.? i didn't see you get out.
I'm fine. I left early. Glad I did. U o.k.? She sent back.
Yeah. Oliver's response came almost immediately.
Schuyler rested her phone back down on the night stand. She sighed. Her white gloves were still on her hands, as was the white dress and ivy garland. She was sure that her eyeliner and mascara had run all over her face as well.
She heard the front door open and then shut again. She heard footsteps come down the hallway and a shadow filled her doorway. She turned her head and saw Jack standing there. He tie was undone and his shirt tails were hanging out. His blazer was folded up around his arm. His sea green eyes gazed at her.
"Where did you go?" He asked quietly.
"To see my mother," Schuyler looked back up at the ceiling. "She is never going to wake up."
The bed shifted as Jack stretched out next to her. She felt her eyes filling up with tears again and a lump forming in her throat.
"That is the hardest thing to realize; to realize that she isn't ever going to wake up. Never," Schuyler whispered.
Jack pulled her into his chest and she began to cry again. His shirt was getting tear stained and soaked with her tears but he didn't mind. He just went on holding her until she couldn't cry anymore.
Wow. Looong chapter. Or at least for me it was. It took a while to write. Review please and thank you. =)
