JESSICA:

A white light. That was the first thing that I saw when I finally awoke. I could feel the plastic tube running down my mouth, and my throat. I could see my mother and father next to me, looking at me with damp eyes.

My mom looked as if she was crying for weeks. She had red circles around her eyes. And I saw little sis next to her.

"Jessica," she said, hoarsely. And without any more words spoken, she walked over to my gurney, knelt down, and placed her head on my chest in a gentle manner.

Dad was the next to speak as he walked over and rubbed my head with his hand. "How are you feeling, Jess?"

I didn't know how to answer that question. It's been a few days since it all happened. One minute, I was lying down on the bathroom floor, the next on the hospital bed. It was the result of me making a decision - either suffer under Avery Keller's ire or choosing to make all the pain go away by ending my life.

The truth is, I didn't really want to die. I just wanted the pain to leave. I just didn't want to see her again. Having to suffer with her agonizing texts and her ruthless attacks, being pushed around in the halls and being called a bitch every time she runs into me... I just didn't know any way to escape it.

But then, waking up, and seeing my mom and my dad and little Gabby like this... I started feeling a little bit of remorse. My family, the one part of my life that I could lean on, the one part of my life that I could rely on, and I did them dirty like this. There was no other emotion that I felt other than guilt.

"I'm sorry that I did this to you guys," I finally whispered.

"It's okay, hon. It's okay," my mom whispered back. But was it okay? Was it really?

As I sat myself up, I saw another person I wasn't ready to see - Brian. God, poor Brian. His hair looked more shaggier than it was before, as if he hadn't slept for days himself.

Brian formed a slight smile as he walked over to my gurney. "Hi, Jess," he said, weakly.

"What happened?" I asked.

"You were out for a week," he replied. At that point, my mom chimed in, saying, "You don't know how much we worried about you." She retreated back to her seat, and so did Dad.

"Listen, Jess," Brian started. "I think you need to know about this."

"About what?" I asked. I was bracing myself for the worst as Brian shook his head, tears smeared on his cheeks. At last, he drew a sharp breath, and said, "Jess, I had to tell someone."

"Tell what?"

"About the footage."

There was a silence that filled the room afterwards. I made a promise to Brian that I didn't want anyone to see the torment I dealt with. For one thing, I was embarrassed, and I didn't want to impose my own problems on anyone else, and for another, what if they did see it? Then they would tell the principal. And not only that, they would bring in Avery's parents as well. If Avery was the worst thing I encountered in school, I didn't want to stop to imagine how her parents would be like. They'd be just as worse, if not, even worse than Avery.

But now it was out.

Brian told the truth about what had happened between me and Avery, how it ensued for over six months, and how he told my mom and a documentary crew who was filming at my school about it. He told me how everyone grieved over me over the past couple of days, the meeting and the vigil that were held in my honor, and how Avery acted as all of this happened.

Hearing this, I couldn't help but cry. All of this stuff happened because of what I did and I wanted to say I was sorry for putting them through all of this.

Before I could say anything else, however, Dr. Weber walked into my room. "Jessica," he greeted. "How are you feeling?"

Wanting to circumvent a complicated question, I answered, "Hungry... I guess?" A few slight chuckles sprinkle the room from my parents and Brian. Dr. Weber smiled and said, "That's good."

Then his smile went away, which could only mean one thing - he had bad news to impart on me. "Unfortunately, Jessica, I do have some unfortunate information to share and it's regarding your internal organs."

"What's that?"

"The suicide attempt that you carried out damaged your kidneys significantly. Right now, we have you on dialysis at the moment and after you recover and get discharged, you may have to come back here for further dialysis treatment."

Dad spoke up. "Is there any solution for this?"

"If her kidneys didn't have this much damage, the dialysis treatment would be temporary. But since it's significant, it may be lifelong. Now, the only fix for this if you can get Jessica on a list for a kidney transplant."

That was all I heard from that conversation. I shifted my focus over to Brian, who continues stroking my head and hair in a gentle manner. "Jess, you're here now. We couldn't be more happier." And then we both held our hands tightly. Whether I liked it or not, I was here to stay.