Well, well, well. We're finally at the end. And urgh, good job, too! I've ummed and ahhed about putting this chapter up -it's horribly cliche- but I really don't have time to revise it again. So on a very rushed note, enjoy!
Numbing shock clawed at Kelly's mind. She sat stock still for a moment, watching Annabelle walk steadily away from her, not quite able to comprehend the last few moments of their conversation. Annabelle had snapped, big time. It was a first for the younger girl; she might be a leader but she always played Kelly's puppy, forgiving and shy and maybe even a little scared of her. So the harsh words and back-turning had left the dark-haired senior at a complete loss. She rose to her feet quickly in an attempt to turn the situation around,
"Belle, wait!"
Had she really just made a mistake? Had Kelly's plan failed? She shook her head Duh. That's a given. For goodness sake, stop her!
When Annabelle didn't immediately stop and apologize, Kelly was concerned. She worried her bottom lip as she strode after her friend, cursing her awful slip-up.
Why couldn't I have left her to come out with it herself? What's this obsession with…control?
The walk turned into a power-walk, then into a jog. She saw the curls ahead of her bounce as their owner forced herself into a sprint, which Kelly matched.
I can catch her, easy.
The park flashed by and was behind her in an instant, and she felt the concrete pavement under her shoes.
Almost…
There was a sudden blaring in her ears, which startled her enough to turn her head in curiosity.
The bang made Annabelle start. She could hear the beating wings of birds taking off around her, and shivered, clutching at her side. Her muscles ached at the forced activity in the cold weather, her eyes stung from the mixture of tears and wind, and her heart pounded away in chest. There was no way she could force her body to keep going.
I guess it's time to face the music.
She turned around, expecting Kelly's lithe form to sprint up to her with eyes ablaze.
But she wasn't sprinting. She wasn't moving. She was curled up in a heap on the road in front of Annabelle. Her eyes weren't angry and full of fire. They were closed, clenched in agony for a brief moment, before relaxing, long eyelashes licking towards the tarmac. Time slowed. A man was shouting. Annabelle swayed on her feet, dazed, confused. She closed her eyes and rubbed at them, forced them open once more, praying it would go away. It didn't. Every time she looked it was still Kelly –her Kelly- that was lying in her own blood. There was a squealing noise that she didn't even notice was coming from her own lungs.
Reality kicked in, and Annabelle ran to where her friend lay, tears running free again, hands grabbing aimlessly at her clothes.
"Oh, god, oh, dear lord, no, no!" Panic rose, "Not…not you…Kelly"
A man standing near her desperately tried to explain how he wasn't to blame, about how she came out of nowhere, but Annabelle was past caring. She needed to get help…
"Miss?"
Tick, tock. Tick, tock.
"Excuse me, miss?"
Annabelle looked up drearily,
"Oh…sorry"
A nurse stood above her, hands on hips, "Can I get you a drink?"
"No, thankyou" She replied dryly, sinking further into her chair. "Um… How is Kelly?"
"It's a bit early to tell. She needs rest, but everything looks fine at the moment" The nurse gave a sympathetic half-smile and pattered away down the tiled hall, the sound causing an empty, resounding echo. She sighed and let her muscles relax a little.
It had only been a few hours. The ambulance had come screeching up the road with sirens blazing, taking Kelly and, reluctantly, Annabelle, to the hospital. Annabelle tried to cheer herself up, thinking about how outraged and embarrassed Kelly would be, waking up on the white linen sheets… but it didn't work, it only worried her more. She felt sick to the pit of her stomach, unable to follow as her friend was wheeled away, and had taken refuge in a chair from which she hadn't moved from since she sat there in the first place. Every five minutes her eyes would wander up to the clock, then back down to her restless fingers that writhed in her lap. It was all she could do to stop herself from breaking down right there.
"Annabelle?"
"…I don't want a drink" She huffed, not looking up.
"I know" She heard a soft thump as someone sat next to her, "How are you doing?"
There was no mistaking Roxy's unique voice, "I'm…fine"
"I came as soon as you called," Roxy muttered, "I'm so sorry, 'Belle"
"Don't be" Annabelle whispered, remembering her frantic phone call to Roxy after arriving, "It's my fault. If I hadn't been such a bitch, she wouldn't have had to run after me. She wouldn't have been…" She paused and bit her lip.
"Don't be ridiculous" Her successor chastised softly, "It's no-one's fault. These things… are unpredictable"
"…You know the worst part?" Annabelle continued, ignoring her, "I love her, Rox. I really do. I was going to tell her, but… It didn't seem like such a good idea after I'd started. I got angry at her when she brought it up again… If we do remain friends after this… I'll never be able to tell her."
"That's not as bad as you think, y'know. So, she doesn't know. What matters is that you know, and you can sort yourself out from there"
"You think so?"
"I know so"
Annabelle gave a slight smile, "Good. Thankyou, Rox."
"Anytime"
They sat together in silence for what felt like an age. Annabelle was relieved to have some dependable company, and the report on Kelly was looking good. As long as she could sort herself out afterwards… Everything would be fine.
The silence was shattered by a doctor bursting through the doors, carrying multiple files in his arms. The two St Trinian's stood up to attention,
"How's Kelly?" They asked in unison. The doctor's gaze flickered between the two of them before answering, and Annabelle swore she saw a flash of intimidation in his eyes; oh, it was good to be back.
"Well… She's lost more blood than we initially thought. It also looks like her wounds may have become infected. If it gets any worse than this, we may have to take more drastic measures." Silence met his answer. He took a few wary steps back, "I'm sorry"
"D-drastic?" Annabelle stuttered, fear pulsing in her system again.
"We could perform surgery to remove the infection, but she's already looking quite weak."
Annabelle and Roxy shared a worried and fearful look. The doctor left hurriedly, checking over his shoulder as he pushed the double doors open. Neither of them moved.
"Annabelle…" Roxy started, reaching out a hand, but she knocked it carelessly away.
"It's ok… Kelly's strong" She sniffled, sitting back in the chair, "She'll do fine"
They glanced at eachother out of the corner of their eyes. Both knew what the other was too afraid to voice.
It was dark outside. Annabelle had seen through the blinds of the window across the hall some time ago. It was evening and the restless winter night was setting in. There hadn't been word of Kelly in a while. Roxy had taken the lull as an opportunity to report back to the school, teachers and pupils alike. Annabelle had, in all truth, forgotten about them. Although school was out, the dorms still buzzed with the life of many children who could not make it home this holiday, as well as the teachers to supervise them. They probably thought they were off on some wild excursion, causing a riot somewhere, just like old times. She had refused to leave the hospital since the minute they had arrived. Her poor heart had fretted away in its cage, her mind not at ease for so much as a second, until they both wore themselves out, letting her body slip into a troubled and light sleep.
Ding~Dong! Ding~Dong!
The clock ringing brought her rushing from her slumber. Weary eyes rose to the clock. Half nine; exactly 12 hours she had been here. What was happening? She rose unsteadily to her feet and tapped the nearest doctor on the shoulder,
"Excuse me, Kelly…?"
"We started surgery some time ago. She's weak and we don't know what is going to happen yet. Let the experts do their job; it's all you can do now. I'm sorry."
The brunette sobbed audibly; she really couldn't take any more of this emotional rollercoaster she was stuck on. In a frantic fury, she turned away from the doctor and ran through the halls, desperate to get some fresh air into her lungs.
It had turned much colder since the last time she stood outside. The icy air pricked at Annabelle's skin, and she snuggled into the scarf Kelly had given her, inhaling its scent. Knotting it between her fingers, she silently prayed for Kelly to be ok, for everything to go as planned and trying to ignore the growing paranoia in her stomach.
"Annabelle? What are you doing out here?" Roxy clambered out of her car, locking it swiftly and hurrying over to her dejected looking friend. Annabelle raised her head; her skin was white and streaked with red, and her eyes were surrounded by dark circles.
"They're operating" She gulped, "Oh, Rox… What if… What if…" She collapsed into the other girl, her fists balling up against her collarbone.
Roxy wrapped an arm around Annabelle and tried to console her, "Don't 'what if' yet, Annabelle. She's strong. You said so yourself."
The near-defeated just whimpered into her neck, "I can't believe this happened…"
"Let's get inside, before we freeze" Roxy cooed gently, and Annabelle couldn't muster the strength to protest.
"I'll get you a drink. Stay here, I won't be long"
Left by herself again, Annabelle leant against the walls of the hall, one leg bent at the knee and the flat of her foot also against the wall, steadying herself against her own dizziness. Her mind couldn't think anymore, her body would barely respond, she was just too tired. All she wanted was for Kelly to invite her to lie next to her again. No, she would settle with Kelly being absolutely fine but walking away with complete amnesia; just the knowledge of her safety would be enough.
I swear I'll never take you for granted again, Kelly.
"You're Annabelle Fritton, yes?"
She turned her head to see a nervous looking nurse stood beside her, shifting on her feet.
"Yes… That's me"
"Um, I have some bad news"
No…Stop.
"The surgery didn't go to plan…"
Stop, please!
"Kelly Jones… She's dead."
Annabelle felt the last of the colour drain from her face. She felt sick.
"…W-what…?" She stammered, lost in shock.
"I'm so sorry" The nurse kept her gaze at the floor and didn't stop shifting uncomfortably. Annabelle saw Roxy's faint outline behind the nurse, her form just a mere, out-of-focus blur. The rock-chick bowed her head and wordlessly walked past Annabelle, presumably to relay the news to the school.
"Where… is she now?"
"Down the hall, room 154. It's on your right."
She gave a slight nod and brushed past the young nurse, unstable on her feet and unable to feel the floor; she felt like she was floating. Her head spun, her mind refused to believe what she'd been told. There's no way. There's just no way.
She pushed down on the door handle to room 154, holding her breath. The girl tucked in the covers of the hospital bed was undeniably Kelly. Her black hair, no matter how blood-matted and tousled, was still unmistakable.
The computer at her side was silent.
A choking sob erupted from Annabelle's throat as she stumbled into the room carelessly, falling to her knees at the bedside,
"Oh, Kelly…Kelly! Oh god…" She whispered, tears flowing once more, but at a much heavier rate. Brushing the knotted hair from her face, she ran a finger down her cheek. She looked so… gentle. Gentler than Annabelle had ever seen Kelly look before.
"Kelly, what am I going to do now?" She wailed, "You… left so early. This is my entire fault, Kel! I'm so sorry I called you back to England. You should be on a beach tanning yourself right now!" The hysterical sobbing continued as she picked up Kelly's hand and nuzzled it, "Or, at least I shouldn't have been so harsh at you. Please forgive me, Kel. Don't leave me on bad terms with you forever!" Her apology poured from her mouth, "And… I'm sorry I refused to tell you. I did promise you." Her voice lowered in pitch and she tried to restrain the crying with a long set of sniffles, "I wanted to tell you that… I love you, Kelly Jones. Not just as a friend… My feelings… I'm sure they ran deeper than that. Ever since that day you welcomed me to the school, I've had eyes only for you. I wanted to protect you… But when you need me I failed you. I'm so…sorry…It's too late for anything now…" She trailed off, bawling again into Kelly's hand, her hair cascading down her shoulders and back.
Mhmmhmmm!
Annabelle fell silent for a second, unwilling to move. She thought she had heard something, and looked around the room, then towards the door, expecting to see Roxy, or the twins, or Miss Fritton, or someone. But there was no-one there. She turned around, about to write it off, when she heard it again, clearer.
Hahahaha~!
She hadn't noticed it before, but… Was that a pulse in Kelly's wrist? She checked again, and was sure she felt a tiny beating. She looked up at her friend's body, and was shocked to see her chest convulsing with barely-constrained laughter. She looked at the computer screen fearfully; it was still dead and showed no sign of a heartbeat from Kelly's body. Was she imagining it? Or was it a dream? Had this all been a dream? Perhaps it was still morning, and she had rolled out of bed and remained asleep and Kelly was chortling at her antics. The stupefied brunette pinched her arm experimentally; no, it wasn't a dream. She looked back at her friend and dearly hoped she wouldn't have to come to the conclusion that she was being haunted.
Kelly's deep brown eyes burst open and she stopped trying to conceal her laughter, letting it shake her entire form.
"Oh, Annabelle! You can stop looking like that; it's your girlfriend, alive and laughing!"
Annabelle blinked a pair of wet eyes, "…Alive? Girlfriend? What's going on?" She asked meekly in a hoarse voice.
"The surgery went fine! Everything turned out ok!"
"But… The nurse told me… I thought…"
"Well, when I woke up, I asked her if she could tell you I was dead. Just to see your reaction. Blackmail works wonders. Oh, and your expression! God, I wish I had time for secret cameras."
Annabelle's cheeks flared up at the realisation that she had been brutally tricked, "You mean, this was all just a ploy to see how I would react? What about Roxy?"
"Oh, she was in on the little 'secret', she popped in just before you did."
"Whu…Wha…" Annabelle opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish, thoroughly confused and annoyed.
"By the way…" Kelly grabbed Annabelle's hand and yanked her up onto the bed, "Sure, it takes me tonnes of steel hurtling into me for me to realise, but…" She gave a perfect smile, "I love you, too" Dragging the still-dazed Annabelle forward, she raised her head off the pillow and pressed her lips against those of the girl she was sure she was crazy about. Clumsily and hesitatingly Annabelle reacted, feeling her heart beat like a drum as her lips slid over Kelly's in response. She really should be angry… but that can wait until later. She pushed her free hand into Kelly's bob, curling her fingers into her hair, taken up in the instict of the moment.
"Oh, dear. Is this a bad time?"
The two pulled apart quickly to see Roxy stood in the doorway, Tania and Tara each holding one of her hands, Miss Fritton peering over her shoulder and a small assortment of other St Trinian's girls hovering nearby.
"Oh my gosh, Kelly and Annabelle are in lurrve!" Tara chortled, giving her sister a high-five.
"Uh…" Kelly gave Annabelle a guilty look, "Explanations first, kissing later?"
"Whatever" Annabelle shrugged, All I really want to do right now is sleep...
And there you have it, people. I know, you can shoot me now xD Anyway TECHNICALLY it's not done yet, I still have an epilogue to put up later in the week. It's just something small to tie a few ends together. And wowzers, I've actually, honest-to-goodness finished a story! First time for everything, no? I have all you reviewers to thank, especially the ones who reviewed regularly, like pinkcheesy, WednesdaysGirl, AbstractRainbow and the rest of youu. And extra extra special-y thanks to Valvox! Yayyy =)
Now, I better go before Kanye interrupts me. Diolch yn fawr/ Hwyl fawr!