*Warning* This chapter should not conflict with the T rating currently given but it does mention/show the theme of suicide. Viewer/reader discretion is advised. *Warning*
Tuesday, 12th of February
Walking inside her house that afternoon it was dark and quiet. Her mother being out of town working, leaving Gabriella home alone. Shutting the front door, she placed her backpack on the kitchen counter before sitting down at the table. Collecting herself after the long day Gabriella started on the mountain of homework that had been piling up since Monday.
Finally, at six o'clock she put down the pencil and closed her Biology book putting the papers inside. Walking inside the living room, sitting down on the sofa, the events of the day overcame her and she broke down sobbing.
After managing to compose herself, all she wanted was to end her misery. Never could she be alone with her boyfriend without hearing the comments, the bullying, the name calling and all of the notes.
She looked around downstairs before she walked into the kitchen grabbing a piece of paper and a pen writing a note to Troy and her mother. Folding the paper neatly she wrote the name of her boyfriend on the front before taking the letter with her and made her way upstairs. Placing the letter on her bed, she found her phone, camera and charger. Deciding to make one last entry she turned the camera on and pointed it towards herself.
"Dear diary," she started taking a deep breath trying to compose herself.
"For the past weeks I have thought about this decision and it pains me that this is the solution but I haven't found another. It was a hard decision but I'm tired of living like this… I love you all and I want you Troy, to remember what I said in the letter. I love you and I think I have since the day we meet. I made these diaries to show my kids one day when they turned eighteen," I said and smiled a little giving a small laugh. "And to be honest after we got together, I hoped that we could show it to our kids but that will not be the case now. If anyone wants to keep these diaries as a memory, please do but move on. Troy I love you and I want you to be happy again. Since you are most likely the first to see this can you tell everyone how much they meant to me? I love you forever Wildcat, and I'm sorry for doing this. I'll watch over you all," Gabriella finished as tears were streaming down her cheeks for a couple of seconds before she turned off the camera.
With a heavy heart and lump in her throat she placed it on her bed along with the other items. Knowing where to find what she needed she walked inside her mother's bedroom, opening her medicine cabinet taking out the bottle of sleeping pills. Inside her own medicine cabinet, she found a box of Advil and took out several pills from both of the containers. She looked around the room and quickly swallowed the pills. As her senses quickly disoriented she felt panic set in. She managed to grab her phone and dialled the number.
Troy was sitting in the living room doing some reading to pass one class back home thinking back to the day. He had barely seen Gabriella since that morning, because of how different their schedules were. His phone was ringing and he saw that it was Kelsi.
"Hello," Troy said answering his phone. "Hey Troy, it's Kelsi. I was just wondering if you have talked to Gabriella today?" she asked and he frowned a little.
"Um not since English. What about it?" he asked and Kelsi took a deep breath.
"Not that it concerns me or anything, but I think you should call her. She looked pretty upset when I last talked to her. Besides I heard from Martha that Brittney and Alexa had done something. I don't know what though," Kelsi told Troy.
"Thanks Kelsi. I will give her a call. See you tomorrow?"
"Yes, see you," she said ending the call.
He had just hung up on Kelsi when his phone lit up again. "Hey Brie," Troy said but there was silence.
His heart started beating hard inside his chest.
"Troy," she hiccupped and all Troy heard were her cries and his own heart thumping inside his chest. "I made a huge mistake. Please come now," she begged and Troy heard in her voice that she was starting to slur.
"Brie what happened?" he questioned panicked as he hurried to pick up a hoodie before he ran down the stairs, taking two at a time.
"I made a mistake and mom isn't home. Just come," she begged through tears. "I am on my way," he told her bolting out the door before the line went dead. "Brie," he said before he looked at the phone and saw that she had hung up.
Running the whole way towards her house, the hoodie he had grabbed were not necessary as he was more than warm enough. Thoughts were spinning through his head. "Mom isn't home…" she had stated, did that mean she were working late two days in row? He started doubting that and feared that Marie were on yet another business trip.
Troy feet were pounding against the pavement as he saw her house in the distance. Getting closer he could not see any lights lit downstairs which worried him even more. Reaching the front door, he pushed the tab down before entering the house and the door closed behind him.
"Brie!" he yelled out in the dark downstairs. His heart thumped in his ears but otherwise it was completely quiet. "Brie! Gabriella!" he called out again but received the same eerie silence. He hurried to look inside the living room and kitchen but they looked untouched. All he found was her backpack placed on the table.
Walking back into the hallway he took the stairs two at the times before calling her name again. "Brie!"
He pushed open her bedroom door seeing gleams of light streaming through the small opening as the door was slightly ajar.
Walking inside he stopped dead in his tracks at the sight that meet him.
It was like a hard punch in the gut.
Just in front of her bed Gabriella laid passed out on the floor, her phone barely 10cm from her open palm.
"Brie," he said and rushed beside her dropping to his knees. "Brie can you hear me?" he questioned tapping her cheek to see if he could get a response. As she didn't budge he used his index and middle finger placing them on her neck feeling for a pulse.
Feeling the steady thumping underneath his fingers, he immediately let out a huge sigh of relief.
Reaching into his pocket he took out his phone and dialled 911.
"911 what's your emergency?" the lady questioned.
"My girlfriend. I found her unconscious. I don't know what happened," Troy said feeling the panic set in. "All right we'll send an ambulance right away. What's the address?" the dispatcher questioned and Troy told her the address. "All right what is your name?" she questioned.
"Troy," he answered his eyes looking down at Gabriella. "Good Troy, the ambulance is on their way. What is the name of your girlfriend?" she questioned.
"Gabriella Montez. I checked her pulse. It was steady but faint," he reported still having his fingers on her neck.
"Good Troy. Do you know what happened?" "She called me earlier. Said she made a bad decision and when I came here I found her unconscious," Troy reported his eyes looking down her body, observing for any other injuries.
"So you don't know if she has taken anything?" the lady questioned. "No I am sorry. She does not appear to have any other injuries," Troy reported and he heard the tapping on a keyboard.
"Good, you're doing a great job. Can you tell me her age and date of birth?" "She is 17. Her birthday is the 14th of July 1990," Troy told her. "Is there anyone else home? Any of her parents or guardians?" she questioned.
"Her mother is out of town working I believe. I don't know where, but I think I know how to contact her," Troy informed. "Good I will write that down. All you're telling me now we're sending directly to the ambulance," she explained and Troy nodded to himself. "Can you see or hear an ambulance?" she questioned Troy just as he heard faint sirens in the distance.
"I think I hear them," Troy reported as blue lights lit up the garden and the sound grew louder and louder. "Are you able to go down and meet them?" she questioned kindly and Troy looked back at Gabriella.
"Yeah," Troy said and got up walking down the stairs. He opened the door just as they stopped and a paramedic opened the door walking round to the back to take out the stretcher.
"They are here now," Troy said as the two paramedics rushed towards him.
"All right she is in good hands now Troy. I am going to hang up all right," she said. "Thank you." "I am just doing my job. Goodbye," she said as she hung up.
"She is upstairs," Troy directed the two paramedics leading them upstairs towards her room. He walked around her but his feet pushed into something. Looking down he picked the item up studying it.
It was a clear orange bottle. He turned it and read the label as he sat down on the bed. Looking up he watched as the two paramedics were working on her taking vitals and such. "Hey there. Heard you were the one who called?" he questioned and Troy nodded. "Do you know what happened?" he questioned Troy giving him his full attention.
"I am sorry I don't. I suspect she might have swallowed this, but I didn't see anything," he told the paramedic and handed him the bottle. "You know how many she took?" "I don't. I wish I saw the signs about what was to happen," Troy said and the paramedic gave him a sympathetic smile.
"You did all the right things so now it's our time to do the rest," he explained. "Ready for transport," the other one said. "All right," the first one said and they expertly moved her onto the lowered stretcher.
It was then, when he looked away, that he noticed the folded piece of paper with his name written on it. Reaching forwards, he took it and placed it into his pocket for later.
"Would you like to ride with us to the hospital and possibly answer some more questions?" the paramedic questioned as they had now raised the stretcher. "Yes please," Troy said as he followed them out to the ambulance forgetting her phone on the bed.
Before he knew it she was rolled away at the hospital and he found himself un-able to follow her. Instead he was asked to fill out what he could on the form and give it back to one of the nurses at the nurse station. Looking down at the form it was the basics such as birthday, name, name of parents/guardians, social security etc. He filled out what he knew before turning it in to the nurse.
As he sat down again he remembered the letter and reached into his pocket and unfolded it.
Dear Troy!
When I first meet you, I had no idea would mean this much to me, or become so important to me. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, but by the time you read this it will be to late…. Please know that I want you to be happy again because I know that you are sad at this point, and I never wanted you to feel the grief and sadness you are feeling now, but it has all became too much. On my darkest days you have been there to lighten them up but now it wasn't enough. As much as you have done to help me, you are also a part of my problems… There have been all these rumours around school that you probably know by now and then they started targeting me. I couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't take it anymore. Please tell everyone that I am sorry but I want you all to move forward and be happy. Take the time you need to grieve because I know it's painful, but after that, move forwards and be happy.
I will forever love you and know that I will protect you from above.
Yours forever Gabriella xoxo
Reading the letter, he was in shock. How could it have become this bad? He felt guilty that he hadn't noticed anything and been there to help her. Now she had ended up trying to kill herself.
Feeling alone he opened his phone before dialling a familiar number.
"Hello Troy. Is this urgent? I am just on my way to attend a meeting," she told her son briefly and Troy felt a lump in his throat.
"Sort of but it is okay. It can wait if you are in a hurry," he said but the sadness in his voice gave it all away.
"By the sound of it, you are not ok," Lucille observed and Troy nodded to himself.
"It's Gabriella," he started almost losing his voice already, "she um…" he started getting chocked up. He took a breath before he continued, "tried to kill herself," he hurried to say at the verge of tears.
"Oh sweetheart. Is she all right?" Lucille questioned him worried and Troy could hear her fast strides.
"I don't know ma. I haven't heard anything. She called me saying she had made a bad decision and once I told her I were on my way she hung up. Once I reached her house I found her on the floor. She was passed out and she wouldn't respond to anything," he said and as the image of her haunted him, he started to cry silently.
Lucille had only heard her son cry a handful of times, and that mostly being when he got hurt as a child. She knew it was bad if he started crying now.
"Oh sweetheart, hang on a minute," she said and there were some noises. "Summer, can you re-schedule the meeting? Tell them there is a family emergency, thank you."
"A family emergency?" he heard the faint voice of his father. "Is Troy all right?" his father voiced concerned.
"Troy is not harmed, there is something else. It is Gabriella I will tell you later," Lucille reassure Jack and returned to the phone call with her son. "I am sure she is going to be all right," she tried to reassure him.
"I do not know what to believe now," he told his mother honestly sniffling a little. "Have you heard anything?" she questioned.
"No."
"If you don't hear anything I suggest you go home and try and get some sleep before returning in the morning. I suspect they might have some rules about when to visit?" she questioned.
"They do," Troy confirmed wiping away the tear that were lingering in his eye.
"Do you want me to come pay you a visit?" she suggested once he didn't say anything.
"I don't know. I feel so lost right now. I don't know what I will do if anything happens to her," he confessed drying away the continues tears that ran down his cheek.
"Miss Montez?" a doctor questioned and Troy stood up. "You were the one who brought her in?" he questioned and Troy nodded.
"Well I'm afraid there is not much I can say at the moment, other than that they are going to keep a close eye on her. Because of her attempted suicide and a possible depression, we, along with the hospital's psychiatrist, have decided to restrain her at the moment but only until we know more," he explained to the young teenager.
"Is she awake?" Troy questioned. "No I am afraid not. We don't expect her to wake up until later. When is hard to tell," the doctor informed Troy.
"Am I able to see her? Her mom is out of town working and I don't know any way to contact her," Troy told the doctor and he thought for a minute.
"Well visiting hours isn't over for another half an hour so I guess I can allow that. She is in room 214. The elevator is over there. Once you are on the second floor make a right down the hallway before taking a left," the doctor explained. "If there should be anything just tell the nurses," he finished.
"Thank you so much," Troy smiled before making his way towards the elevators. Following the doctor's directions, he found room number 214. He gave a soft knock before he opened the door with a shaky hand.
Walking inside the room it was plain white and quite sterile looking. The blinds were shut but it didn't matter as it was already dark outside. Moving his eyes to the only bed in the room there Gabriella laid peacefully. A machine was measuring her heart rate while an IV were attached to her right hand. What caught Troy's attention were the small white cuffs that were on either of her wrists and restrained her to the bed.
He walked forward and sat down in the plastic chair beside her bed. He took her left hand and squeezed it ever so gently. "I am here Brie. I love you," he told her using his right hand to stroke it through her hair.
He was sitting there in silence not knowing what to say to her. All he could do was to comfort her even though he didn't know if she heard him.
Just as he was debating if he should leave he felt her squeeze his hand. "Brie," Troy said standing up looking at her face. "I am here Brie. You're not alone," he told her using his thumb to stroke her cheek. Slowly her eyes fluttered open and her eyes locked with her boyfriends.
"Troy," she whispered softly. "Hey Brie," Troy said his voice choked up and tears pooling in his eyes.
"You saved me," she stated and tried to move her left arm. "What?" she questioned confused as she tried to move her right arm. "Troy," she said fearfully looking at him.
"It's all right," he soothed taking both of her hands. "I am going to get a doctor or something and then I promise I will be back," he told her and she nodded slowly. "All right," he said and leaned forward to kiss her forehead before walking out of the room.
After quickly explaining to one of the nurse what had happened they soon paged a doctor and together they walked into her room. "Hello miss Montez I am doctor Smith," the doctor greeted her. "We are going to do some test is that ok?" Dr Smith questioned and Gabriella nodded. "Unfortunately your boyfriend has to leave since it's past visiting hours," the doctor gently explained.
"Can't he stay?" Gabriella begged the doctor but Troy interrupted. "It's all right Brie I will be here in the morning."
"Okay," she said her voice shakily. "I love you," he said stepping forward to kiss her forehead. "I love you too," she said before he walked out of the room and headed home.
As he finally reached his house he felt completely exhausted. The emotions and events overcame him as he collapsed on the couch falling asleep.
"Hello Lucille is this a good time?" Adrianna questioned looking out the kitchen window as she heard her sister pick up. "Hello Adrianna it's nice to hear from you. Yes, I have time," Lucille said with a smile as she looked at her son asleep on the couch.
"I have a meeting in Iwaki in a couple of days and I were wondering if you wanted to meet and catch up. I hardly see you anymore," Adrianna told her sister smiling as Makayla entered the kitchen finding something in the fridge.
As she closed the door Makayla frowned at her mother questioning who she was on the phone with. "Lucille," Adrianna mouthed silently to her daughter who made a face and turned to walk back into the living room.
"I would have loved to see you again and I do agree that we hardly see each other anymore but I am sorry I can't make it. I flew to America earlier today. There was something that happened and Troy needed me to come," Lucille explained not getting into much detail still knowing her sister would ask.
"America?" Adrianna questioned baffled. "Is Troy all right?" Adrianna questioned concerned.
"Yes I think he is all right at the moment. He doesn't know I am here yet." "But what happened? Obviously there had to be something if he asked you to come," Adrianna questioned confused turning her back towards the kitchen door.
"It involves Gabriella. He called me after he had been over at her house and he didn't share all the details but apparently she tried to commit suicide," Lucille said releasing a breath as she remembered the state her son was in hours earlier.
"What?" Adrianna exclaimed shocked. "Suicide?" she repeated more hushed turning her back towards the door.
"I am afraid so…" Lucille trialled off. "He were the one who found her but what I don't get is that she had called him asking him to come over, and when he reached her house he found her passed out or something. He called the paramedics and they brought her in. The last he told me was that he hadn't seen her," Lucille explained to her shocked sister.
"Oh my gosh," Adrianna said sinking down on a chair not seeing her daughter standing in the doorway. "How are Troy coping?" Adrianna questioned concerned and Lucille were silent for a second while she was thinking.
"I don't know to be honest. He is crushed that something like this happened. If she doesn't make it, it will destroy him. Gabriella were the first one he was serious with. She saw him for Troy and not the title that followed. I understood that once the question about revealing who he was came up. He doesn't really like sharing that aspect of his life and back home he doesn't really have that choice," Lucille shared with her sister, her eyes still fixed on her son.
"I can't even begin to imagine Lucille. I am sending all my thoughts and keep me posted," Adrianna said taking a deep breath.
"I will Adrianna. I will let you know once I get back home but I doubt it will be before you return," Lucille said regretfully. "No don't think about. It would only be natural for you to be there. Take care," Adrianna said as they bid their goodbyes.
"Mom?" Makayla questioned her mother timidly as she stood at the entrance of the kitchen, tears glimmering in her eyes. "You heard everything?" she questioned and Makayla nodded swallowing hard.
She moved towards her mother who opened her arms hugging her close. "Is Troy all right?" she questioned fearfully, sniffling as the first couple of tears fell. "Oh honey." Adrianna said as she hugged her daughter tightly. "Troy is all right. It was Gabriella. Troy were the one who found her yesterday. She was brought to the hospital and Lucille don't know if Troy got to see her or what he knows. It's early there and he was finally sleeping," Adrianna consoled her daughter and wiped away her tears.
"Why her? She doesn't deserve it," Makayla stated looking at her mother.
I am going to be honest and say that I would be lying to all of you if I say I wasn't nervous about the response I am getting on this chapter. I never wanted to upset anyone of you but I know this is a hard thing to talk about and not something people talk much about these days.
Where I live in Norway there is currently an awareness campaign about overdoses and in a way, this is my contribution to spreading awareness.
I hope you will still read my story and I feel bad for Gabriella but I don't do OC deaths in my stories and I don't plan on starting at the moment. Yes, I will reveal that this will have a happy ending but this story isn't over anytime soon!
Thank you so much to pumkinking5, LabyrinthDavidBowieWildcat30 and Lia for your reviews I love hearing your thoughts and comments. They are always greatly appreciated!
Hopefully, you all will still want to continue reading so until next time!
-FreeFlyingWriter