~Hello everyone and welcome back. Thank you for being patient with me as I have rewritten this chapter about 4 times now. Something didn't seem to flow right when I did it before, but I think I finally got it. So sit back, grab a drink, and enjoy!~

Chapter 4

Meg awoke in the middle of the night, her chest feeling tight. Way tight, tighter than normal. Her breathing was a lot more labored than it usually was. She could only take small shallow breaths as she tried to sit up. Searing pain slammed into her right side as she tried to move. Meg gasped as she was now awake from the pain.

She looked over to the other side of the bed. Connie was still there, sleeping peacefully, her hand now resting by her side.

'Even when sleeping, she is beyond gorgeous' Meg thought to herself as she felt a cold sweat on her skin. She tried to lift her arm but was barely able to. Her skin looked a lot paler than it did before.

'Huh, this is interesting' Meg thought to herself as she turned to the side of the bed. She knew she had to sit up, to try and catch her breath, but she didn't know if she could. She brought her leg from the bed and balanced it to the floor, every move causing immense pain. She gritted her teeth as she pushed her body up and was able to get to a sitting position on the edge, panting as if she had just run a marathon. How she did it was a miracle in itself. Now she had to get to the bathroom.

Meg took in as much breath as she could. She slowly got up, using the wall to help support her as she let out a massive breath, panting as she was barely moving.

'Just got to make it to the bathroom. That's it. You can do it Megan' She thought to herself as she tried to take a few more steps, but not getting very far, her vision becoming blurrier by the second.

"Meg...are you ok?" Connie asked sleepily as she sat up, looking over at Meg. She rubbed her eyes and got a better look at what was going on. Her eyes widened as she saw Meg. Her shirt was soaked, clinging to her body as if it were painted on. Her chest falling and rising rapidly, more so than it was within the last few hours. Her skin, even in the little bit of light, looked paler than it was.

"I'm...okay. Just...need...to get...to the bathro-" Meg collapsed before she could finish speaking. Connie quickly jumped up and ran over to Meg, checking to make sure she was still breathing. She quickly moved and flipped Meg onto her back as she followed her breathing. Connie started to shake but knew she had to get someone there. She quickly grabbed her phone and dialed 911. She explained everything to the dispatcher and followed all the instructions. Within 10 minutes, the ambulance was outside. Quickly she let them in.

"Megan, my name is Charlie, I'm an EMT. Can you tell me where your pain is?" the EMT said. To Meg, it sounded like he was on the other side of the room, but she could still understand him. The whole room started spinning as she pointed to her chest.

"Ri-Rib cracked," Meg said hoarsely as she was finally able to put her finger onto her chest. The EMT lifted her shirt and saw the massive bruise, which had grown and become black, blue, purple, and massively swollen and red.

"Oh shit, not good. She's got a nasty infection going on. Jenny, get the gurney NOW" Charlie said as he quickly got an IV line going and opened it full bore.

"Central this is unit 18," he said into the handset.

"Go ahead 18" the voice came back.

"Be advised we have an 18-year-old female with a massive contusion on her upper left chest. Possible cracked or broken rib". He turned and looked at the monitor that was next to him. "BP is 188 over 139. Be advised we are code red, will be transporting patient by ambulance. ETA 12 minutes," he said into the mic as the gurney came into the room. Connie had already grabbed a pair of shorts and a shirt and threw them on, grabbing her shoes and keys. They quickly loaded Meg and brought her outside, where a small crowd had formed. Connie was worried someone might see her, but that quickly evaporated when Meg screamed out in pain as they locked the gurney into the back of the ambulance. Her heart raced as they told her to meet her at Quahog Hospital. She nodded and hopped in Meg's car, quickly starting up and following behind them as they took off into the night.

Connie followed behind, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. She didn't know what would happen.

'Please don't take her, please don't take her, please don't take her' Connie thought to herself as she reached into the console and stole a cigarette from the pack. She knew Meg wouldn't mind, considering the circumstances. She shakily lit it and took a long puff, exhaling and allowing herself to calm down for a moment as they raced down the road.

~So, you do seem to care about her~ the voice inside her head said out loud.

'SHUT UP. I don't need your shit right now' Connie yelled into her mind as she continued to smoke. She could feel Meg's hand in hers, the soft, yet rough skin lingering on hers.

~Ah, now I see. You want to fight it, but you know it's pointless. Just accept it~ The voice said as it withered away, finally shutting up and allowing Connie to focus on driving. They quickly pulled into the parking lot of Quahog Hospital, the ambulance pulling into the archway that was filled with doctors and nurses. Connie parked and flew out of the car, throwing her cigarette on the ground as she raced in behind them.

Meg's vision had gotten worse, much worse. She could feel herself moving, but the light was getting brighter and brighter.

'So this is it? This is how I go? Am I going to...die?' Meg thought to herself. Her body was shutting down, her heart racing.

'I hope Connie is doing okay. Not much I can do about it now' Meg thought. She felt herself being lifted and set down on another bed as hands started attaching things to her body. Her clothes were cut off, well just her shirt and panties, as that was the only thing she was wearing at the time. The white light grew brighter and brighter in her eyes.

"Call the OR and tell them to prep a room, I want her up there in the next 15 minutes," A voice said from afar as she felt her body relaxing as if all the pain was going away. The light continued to grow. She felt something go down her throat, something long and round in shape.

'This is it. Damn, I didn't think I was gonna go this way' Meg thought as her life played before her eyes. All the anguish, all the hurtful comments. The nonstop bullying from both kids at school and her family. She didn't know what to think. Her mind and body felt like a wave, moving up and down.

"Shit, she's seizing, give me 4 of Ativan," The voice said as the monitor beeped relentlessly.

"She's going into VTAC. PADDLES" Another voice screamed. Within seconds she felt a rush flow through her. Within 20 seconds, another rush. She didn't know what to think or do. Was there anything she could do? the constant beeping was replaced by a solid, long beep. "Asystole" A voice yelled even farther away, almost mumbling to her ears.

'Goodbye, cruel world...it was nice...while it lasted' Meg thought to herself as the light consumed her, and for the first time in her life, she truly felt at peace.

2 Days Later

Meg barely opened her eyes, the beeping of a monitor and the whoosh of a pump filled her ears. It took her eyes a second to adjust to the light. She was able to twitch her hand and felt someone else holding hers. She turned her head slightly and saw Connie. She had laid her head on her arm, resting on the bed, her other hand holding onto Meg's hand. It was an odd angle. Meg wanted to speak but saw she had something in her mouth and down her throat. It was her breathing tube, currently providing sweet, sweet oxygen into her lungs. She squeezed Connie's hand softly, feeling the smooth skin against hers. Connie stirred, not wanting to wake up at first. Meg squeezed it again, a little harder this time. Connie picked up her head and looked at Meg, her eyes going from sleepy to wide open in a second. She jumped up and moved closer to Meg, kissing her hand deeply as tears came out.

"Thank god you're awake Meg. Let me get the doctor" Connie said as she rushed out of the room. Before she left, she kissed the top of Meg's head and ran out. Meg instantly blushed.

'Did Connie just kiss the living shit out of my hand, and then kiss me on the head? Have I died and gone to lesbian heaven? What's going on here?' Meg thought, wondering what had transpired. Within a minute, a team of doctors and nurses came running into the room. They checked over her vitals and checked all her systems.

"Meg, I'm Dr. Maxwell. Do you know where you are?" the doctor asked as he listened to her heart and lungs. Meg could only nod yes. "Okay, squeeze my hand," he said as she followed his instructions. They checked everything. Hands, feet, wiggle everything, try to walk a trapeze, all was good. "Okay Meg, we can take that tube out now. Take a deep breath in for me...and blow it out" the doc said as they pulled the tube out of her throat, causing her to cough uncontrollably. They gave her a minute to collect her breath, giving her some water for her throat.

"What...happened?" Meg said softly.

"You had a shattered rib which not only leaked bone marrow into your bloodstream but had punctured your lung. That's why it was so hard to breathe earlier. It was just a small enough hole, you probably didn't notice it at first, but when you tried to get up, your lung punctured. We almost lost you a few times, but it's good to see you pulled through" Doctor Maxwell said.

"How...long have I been out?" Meg asked.

"Around 2 days now. We had to completely remove the rib, and we saw several other fractures that had healed from previous injuries" Dr. Maxwell said as he showed a picture of her x-ray, showing all the circled healed fractures. Meg could only nod at what she saw. 15 in total, and now she was missing a rib.

"I hate to say this, but a detective is going to come by later to speak with you. with 15 former fractures, this is not an accident, this is abuse. I have no choice but to report it" Dr. Maxwell said.

"I understand doc, my father is the drunken bastard who did this to me...How long do I need to take it easy?" Meg asked as her voice was becoming a little louder with each word.

"We want to keep you one more night for observation, and then I want you on bed rest for at least 2 weeks. After a week, you can start walking slowly" Dr. Maxwell said as she looked over at Connie. "Ms. D'Amico has not left your side, I suggest you keep her," the doctor said with a smile as he held out his hand. Meg shook it.

"Thanks, doc," Meg said as he and his team moved out of the room. She looked up at the ceiling, then over to Connie, smiling at her. Meg patted the side of the bed, wanting Connie...no, needing Connie to sit on the bed. Connie shuffled in and smiled.

"What happened to your place?" Meg asked softly.

"Gone. Burned to ashes. Mom and Dad are sitting in prison right now for inciting a riot, property damage to 4 homes, and several counts of assault. I'll show ya the video when we get out of here" Connie said as she took Meg's hand and let out a sigh of relief.

"What about your stuff? All your clothes and everything, just...gone?" Meg asked.

"I took out an insurance policy for my stuff about 6 months ago when I turned 18. Already turned in the paperwork and everything so...now I'm just waiting" Connie said as she looked down towards the bed, trying not to cry. Meg noticed and picked up on it quickly. She brought her hand out of Connie's and lifted her chin to meet her gaze.

"Thank you...for saving my life. If all of this didn't happen, I wouldn't be here right now" Meg said as she tried to hold back tears. She moved her hand and cupped Connie's cheek. "You're the angel I've been searching for," Meg said softly as Connie gasped, softly putting her hand over Meg's. Meg smiled at her, softly pulling her face close to hers, and kissing her lips softly. Connie was caught off guard but didn't protest. She kissed Meg back, feeling the soft lips she had been begging for. Connie's mind and heart finally relaxed. Her soul was filled with warmth, love, and peace. She knew what it meant. And she was glad for it.

~Well, with that kiss, there's only one thing for you to say~ The voice said with a smile in the air.

'I'm gay...and I'm in love' She thought as she broke the kiss and put her forehead to Meg's, before softly laying her head on Meg's shoulder, and drifting off to sleep.

~Then Ms. D'Amico. I bid you Adieu~ The voice whispered as it faded into the room around them, blanketing Connie as she enjoyed the greatest sleep of her entire life.

~Yea that happened yall. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Sorry, I haven't been on a better schedule for getting these out. I have been super busy with work and I also just got over being sick. But I am going to get better at this as well. I wanted to go a little dark for this chapter and possibly the next few chapters as well. But only time will tell. hope you all enjoyed and I will catch you on the next one!~