Ha-ha! Another chapter! And it was only, like, a week or something!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Beck's POV

My heart was racing as I went numb. I felt as if I was underwater; everything was going in slow motion and seemed to be blurred around the edges. Voices and noises all garbled into one gigantic cacophony of sound, only a few actually making it to my ears, but most making no sense what so ever.

Sirens and bright lights wafted in from a nearby window, the early morning light seeming all too bright for such a treacherous time, and the white, bright, florescent light shining down from above seemed almost cruel.

Jade was dead… No… She couldn't be. I just saw her a few hours ago. She can't be dead. She cannot be dead.

I repeated this over and over in my head: it becoming almost a mantra. The tears I was trying so hard to conceal leaked out over my eyelids and ran down my face, blurring my vision even more. Two petite arms wrapped around my waist, the redhead they belonged to sobbing into my chest.

I held her close; I couldn't let another one of my friends get hurt. This was my fault; I should have known that the two stalkers would strike again. As I squeezed her shoulder, one noise in particular caught my attention. Turning away from Cat, I blinked away the tears from my eyes, my sight improving a little more.

Andre was sitting in his chair, hunched forward with his elbows on his knees, and his head leaning against clasped hands. He was murmuring words I couldn't understand, except the occasional, "oh, Lord," "Hail Mary, full of grace," and "please God."

I wasn't religious, and I knew Andre wasn't that religious either. But I knew that every Saturday, he woke up early, put on nice clothes, and gathered with his entire family, including his grandma, at The Second Baptist Church of Los Angeles. So it didn't entirely surprise me that he was praying; if I knew any prayers, I'd probably be praying right now too.

Behind me, Cat's sobs turned into hiccups as she collapsed to the linoleum floor, leaning back against her chair. I wiped my eyes furiously before taking a seat next to her and enveloping her in a hug. I'd messed it up with Jade and Tori, but I wouldn't mess it up with Cat. I tried to calm her down, but whenever she got close, hers sobs would return, and we would be back at step one. Everyone in the waiting room would look at us with sympathetic eyes, assuming that the crying was for our friend in the hospital.

"Ssh, Cat. It's going to be okay," I murmured. Big mistake. Cat pushed me away from her and was on her feet before I even knew what was happening. Her tiny body shook with fury as her brown eyes pierced through me, glaring straight at my soul.

"How could you say that, Beck?" Her voice was dangerously low, and now everyone, doctors, nurses, patients and their family, were staring at us. "Jade is dead, Tori almost died, and you're telling me everything's going to be okay. But it's not!" She escalated into a shout and started beating me on the chest, sobs wracking her body.

I just closed my eyes and took the beating. If it made Cat feel better, it was worth it.

Robbie's POV

I drove home and back as quickly as possible, not wanting to miss anything. I hopped out of my mom's red 2008 Toyota Prius and flew into the kitchen, grabbing my special glucose-free cereal, "Frootie O's," changed into a new shirt and pants, and ran back to the car. I shoved my keys into the ignition and the engine rumble to life. And then it died.

"Oh, jiminy!" I yelled, getting out of the car and kicking one of the wheels. I stepped back into the car, a little bit calmer, and tried again. Finally, on my fourth try, the car started. I sighed in relief and sped off towards the hospital, breaking at least 10 driving rules on my way.

When I rounded the corner and entered the waiting room, I was faced with a depressing sight. Andre was sitting in his chair, his leg jittering, praying. Beyond him, I could see Beck hugging Cat, who was crying her heart out, tears staining Beck's shirt.

My heart broke and I dropped my cereal to run to her side.

"Cat! Cat! What's wrong?" She tried to speak, but no words formed. Beck looked up at me, his eyes portraying his every emotion. I couldn't stand to see Beck so depressed; he was usually so happy. Seeing him like this would depress anyone.

"Tori didn't die or anything, right?" I joked, trying to lighten the mood, but looking at their reactions, it was not an appropriate thing to say..

Beck looked down, a grim smile on his face as he shook his head. "Not Tori, Rob. Jade."

I froze. Jade was one of those people who you never expect anything to happen to. She was so headstrong that you expected her to scare off death. Out of everyone in my group of friends, I would have thought she would be the last to die.

"But she can't be dead!" I shouted. Cat stood up, her sobs subsiding.

"Robbie," her voice was raspy from crying for so long, "It's true."

"I-I" now it was my turn to be speechless. Cat hugged me around the waist and I returned the hug, resting my chin on the top of her head. We just stood like that for what seemed to be hours.

Beck's POV

After Robbie returned, Cat seemed to calm down. Maybe knowing that all her friends were inside the same building helped. I sat down in a chair on the opposite side of the room from everyone else. I turned on my pearphone, hoping for a distraction when I saw that I head an email from Jade.

Curious, I opened it. She was alive! My heart soared, and I let out a dry laugh. Everyone turned to me, and Cat glared at me. I shook my head. "She's alive!"

They rushed to me, each taking a turn reading the message on the screen. I picked up Cat and spun her around, Andre and Robbie laughing wryly. I sent a reply, and the waiting room went back to its previous mood.

When Jade didn't show up in 20 minutes, I went looking for her. Perhaps she was just lost. I arrived down in the Emergency Room just in time to see a girl enter and collapse. Doctors and nurses rushed to her side. They took off the girl's hat, sunglasses, and hood, but I didn't have a clear view. I shook it off and kept on searching, checking the chairs. But when a couple of doctors moved, I saw the girl's face.

"Jade!" I yelled, sprinting across the room towards her.

What did you think? Read and Review! And why don't you check out my other story while you're at it? (Yes, I'm shamelessly advertising it here, but if not here, where?) Now I have a question for you guys. I have a trailer for both of my stories. Should I upload them?

-Building Castles