Two months had gone by and Jesse and I were inseparable. Every day Andi joined Jesse and I in the gym and we would train for hours. Elena taught me how to properly shoot a gun, while Lacy taught me how to create bombs. Although we almost blew up the kitchen once, we made decent progress. Conner showed me how to work all of the house controls, Luka taught me how to fix and tailor all of the cars in the garage. For once in my life, I felt like I was able to defend myself.
Ever since Jesse and I started dating, I moved the majority of my stuff into Jesse's room. Luka stayed in Becca's room with her. It turned out Becca was pregnant longer than what we thought because it was visible, she was very, very pregnant. Andi and I took Becca to several appointments. Although Luka insisted going with her, Andi knew how to get her way in the hospital. Becca hadn't shut up about how excited she was for the baby. We had gone on several shopping trips to get baby clothes, diapers, and the basic baby necessities. She wanted to wait to find out what gender the baby was, so we had bought unisex clothes. The boys had a rough time trying to build a crib, but it got done with a little motivation. Becca hasn't had a drink since we found out, so I'm proud of her. Andi put Becca on a strict diet, so she and the baby were healthy.
"J?" asked Jesse as he walked into our room. Huh, our room, I like it. "What are you writing?" he said as he jumped on the bed. "Nothing" I laughed, kissing him. I had quite the habit of journaling, so I would spend what little free time I had writing. "Lacy has dinner ready" he said as he stood up. "C'mon". "I'm on my way" I smiled. I closed my journal and set it inside my dresser. As I walked down the hallway, I could tell Lacy had been cooking. Everyone had been in the kitchen but me. "She emerges" Elena laughed. "A slight headache and Jesse won't let me leave the room" I laughed, as I rolled my eyes at Jesse. "I need you in top notch health ma'am" he said, handing me a plate. Andi stood behind me and put her hand on my forehead. "Andi I'm fine" I laughed. "I know you are, I'm doing this to appease the man of the house" she winked. "Hey!" said Luka and Conner in unison. Andi shrugged her shoulders and laughed.
"Can I get a hand over here?" said Becca. She had dropped a bottle of water and couldn't pick it up. Luka jumped up immediately. I truly admired that about Luka and how much he cared for Becca. Luka grabbed Becca's water bottle and refused to give it back unless she kissed him. Becca playfully laughed then kissed Luka. I couldn't help but smile. "Come serve yourselves, I spent all day cooking" Lacy said. I looked at the counter and saw a giant bowl of pasta sitting on the counter along with a gorgeous looking salad. "I'm starving" I said to Lacy. "Thank you Lace". "Of course," she said, smiling.
We sat and enjoyed our dinner. "What's the occasion Lace?" I asked. "Well, it was actually Jesse's idea" he said. "It was?" I said, turning to Jesse. I could tell I caught him off guard because he choked on his water. "I actually wanted to talk to everyone". "Less than a two months until go time" Andi said, confidently. "As I was saying, I have ordered the five of you girls, and suits for the rest of us so we don't have to go out. The less we go out the better chance we'll have of being suspected. "You better have picked something good" said Lacy. "I have a sense of style c'mon" Jesse said, confidently. As if on cue, all of us girls laughed. "Luka and I—" he started. "Before you even go there just know you're digging yourself a deeper hole" laughed Elena, nearly choking on her pasta.
Jesse rolled his eyes. "They're going to be here tomorrow, so if you don't like it you can return it". "I appreciate the thought" I said, smiling at him. Suddenly, Becca grabbed her stomach and groaned. "Becca are you okay?" I said, concerned. "Yeah, I'm fi—" she started, interrupting herself by groaning again. "Becca, I think you should stand up" said Andi. Andi shuffled out of her chair and made her way to Becca. Luka did the same. I stood behind Becca as Luka and Andi helped her up. I glanced down at the leather chair and noticed a puddle of blood. I nodded my head to get Andi's attention, and motioned for her to look at the chair. Andi looked at Jesse and mouthed, "we have to go". Jesse nodded and looked at Conner. Jesse grabbed his car keys and they walked outside. Becca's face was drained, beads of sweat ran down her face.
"Let's go outside B," I said, standing next to her. "Okay" I whispered. Andi and Luka stood to her sides, while I walked next to her. Lacy and Elena followed behind. I opened the door as we all walked out. The sky was dark as rain poured against us. Luka put his jacket over Becca until we reached the car. Luka and Jesse sat in the front seats while Andi, Becca, and I sat in the back seats. Lacy, Elena, and Conner stayed behind. Andi put her fingers on Becca's wrists. "You need to drive Jesse" she said. "Where are we going?" Becca said, weakly. "We're taking you to the hospital B," I said. "I don't need a hosp—" she started. Becca let out a painful groan while clenching her stomach.
"You do Becca, I'm really concerned" Andi said, sincerely. Jesse was flying down the road, running stop signs and red lights. He easily was going almost ninety miles an hour. "Jesse please be careful" I whispered. The pouring rain made it nearly impossible to see in front of the car, even with the windshield wipers going full blast. I held Becca's hand as she began to cry. I caught Andi's attention and mouthed, "What are we going to do?". She said out loud, "everything is going to be fine" as she rubbed Becca's arm. I could tell instantly Andi was lying. Something was seriously wrong.
The car was illuminated by lightning. I never liked thunderstorms, and I especially didn't like them when I was in a car. "ETA Luka?" Andi said. "We're fifteen minutes out" he said, looking at his phone. "Call the hospital and tell them to get a bed ready, tell them Andi Marinos said so if they give you problems" Andi directed. I could tell Jesse was getting nervous. He continued to lean forward to try to improve his vision. I couldn't see anything.
Suddenly, something crashed into the front window. "JESSE!" I shouted, startled. Shattered glass flew all over the inside of the car. Unable to see, he swerved. The front of the car hit something, but then continued to move. "Roll down the windows!!" screamed Andi. I looked out the window and saw a body of water below us. Frozen, I couldn't move. We had gone over a bridge. "Unbuckle your seatbelts" Jesse directed. "Jenny!" he screamed. I looked at him, unaware of what he had said. Andi reached over and slapped me hard enough to get my attention. "Jenny focus!!" she yelled. I scrambled to unbuckle my seatbelt as well as Becca's.
The car suddenly jolted by the crash into the river water. "Deep breath everybody" Luka screamed. The car immediately filled with freezing water. Panicking, I couldn't function. The car was nearly filled to the top with water. I inhaled deep right before the car was fully submerged. Jesse and Luka swam out of the front windows. Immediately, they made their way to the back to make sure we got out too. Andi got out of her window and grabbed Becca's arm. Because of her stomach, Becca didn't fit through the window. Ironically, the back of the car was wedged between two rocks. The doors were pinned shut. I put my hands-on Becca's back and used all of my strength to push her out of the window. I knew I hurt her, but I was desperate. After a big push, Becca finally was able to go through the window. As she made it through the window, Becca let out an unintentional kick, sending me across the car.
A sharp pain surged through the back of my head. I couldn't help but to think, is this how I'm going to go? I couldn't find the silver lining. My lungs began to feel tight as I was slowly running out of air. The first person who came to mind was Jesse. As I looked around, I couldn't see him anywhere. The murky water mixed with the pain in my head made it nearly impossible to see. Jesse always showed up at the right time, but where was he now? I felt around to find the window, but it was no use. The window was nowhere to be found. I was frantic. I felt myself becoming dizzy and lightheaded…
After what felt like forever, I felt someone pull me out of the car. As soon as my body collided with the person, I knew instantly it was Jesse. Quickly, he pulled me to the surface. Instantly I inhaled as hard as I could, gasping for breath. I felt myself hyperventilating as I tried to catch my breath. "Jenny!" Jesse shouted. "You need to breath for me!". "What do you think I'm trying to do!!" I shouted back between coughs. "You guys okay??" shouted Andi, carrying Becca on her shoulder. "Jenny are you alright?" Jesse said, grabbing a hold of me. "I'm fine, where's Luka?" I said, looking around. "Have you seen Luka?" Jesse asked Andi. "I thought he was with you?" she said, frantically. "I can't see him" I said. Suddenly, I saw a bright light flashing at me. "You assholes!!" cried a feminine voice. I put my hand up to my eyes to block the light. On shore stood Elena, Lacy, and Conner. "You were supposed to go to the hospital!! Not the bottom of the drink!!" Elena shouted. Andi pulled Becca out of the water as I followed.
"Where the hell is Luka??" screamed Jesse, still in the water. "He's up here!!!" shouted Elena back. Luka laid sprawled out across the grass. Jesse ran out of the river and knelt down to Luka. "What the hell man!" he shouted. "Don't do that to me!!". Luka let out a few coughs before laughing at Jesse. "I need some help over here!!" screamed Andi. I turned my focus to Andi, and noticed Becca laying on the ground crying. "Oh my God!" I shouted as I ran to her. The entire lower half of Becca's body was covered in blood. Andi had taken off her shirt and placed it over Becca's stomach. "I have an ambulance on the way!" Lacy said, hanging up her phone. Becca let out a painful groan as she winced at Andi's touch. I grabbed Becca's hand and allowed her to squeeze it. "Becca, I need you to relax" said Andi, pushing on the gash on Becca's stomach. "That ambulance needs to hurry" I whispered to Andi. "Why are you whispering??" Becca yelled. "What's wrong??". Everyone gathered around Becca. "Becca the ambulance will be here soon" Andi said. Jesse and Luka hovered over me, as I glanced up, I noticed Luka was green in the face. Andi had removed her shirt quick enough for me to see what was underneath.
Where I had pushed Becca out of the car window, a large portion of skin had peeled back. Revealing the lower inside half of her stomach. Blood was spilling out of her stomach, and there was nothing we could do to stop it. Instantly I was nauseous. I turned around away from Becca and threw up all over the ground. Jesse put his hand on my back and looked as if he and Luka were about to do the same. Lacy and Conner stood on top of the bridge waiting to motion for the ambulance. Elena cried as she put her hand on Becca's arm attempting to console her. I even heard Andi praying. "This is all my fault" I said as I cried. Jesse stood next to me and rubbed my back. "You saved her life Jenny; this isn't your fault". "I pushed her out of the window" I cried. "You didn't have any other options!" he said, helping me stand up.
Suddenly, bright red and blue lights flashed. "Thank God" whispered Andi, as she tucked her head. "Andi, I don't feel so good" Becca said, coughing. "Becca the ambulance is here, you're going to be fine." Andi said. Four paramedics rushed out of the vehicle. "What do we have Marinos?" said one of them. "Several facial lacerations, we need immediate attention to the abdomen, major blood loss. Blood pressure is 90/60" Andi said, letting go of Becca's wrist. "She's pregnant!!" Elena shouted after Andi. Two of the paramedic's carried a gurney down the side of the hill. Luka started to become frantic. "Becca we're going to get you some help". "Luka it hurts" she groaned as she grabbed her stomach. Becca sobbed as she was lifted onto the gurney.
"Please don't leave me" she cried as they lifted her off the ground. "I'm sorry sir but you can't be in the ambulance" the male paramedic said. "Like hell I can't!" Luka shouted. "That's my girl and my kid!". "Luka!!" Becca shouted. "Sir you can follow us to the hospital but if you want us to help her you can't be in the ambulance" the paramedic said. Luka reached in his pocket and grabbed a knife. "LUKA!" I shouted. I released myself from Jesse's arms and grabbed Luka's arm. "You assholes better—" Luka shouted at the men. Andi followed behind the paramedics as they carried Becca up the hill. "Luka you have to calm down!!" I screamed at him. Luka looked down at me and began to cry. Never would I have imagined I'd see Luka break down. "This is all my fault" Luka whispered to me. "It's no ones fault damn it!" Jesse shouted. "I ran us off the bridge!!". "If you people are done with the blame game, I'd like to meet them at the hospital!!" Elena shouted as she jingled her keys.
We raced up the hill and got into Elena's car. The seven of us piled into Elena's car. With Elena and Conner in the front seats, the rest of us sat uncomfortably in the back seat. My adrenaline was so high I could barely sit still. Elena floored the gas pedal making the car speed down the road. We pulled into the hospital shortly after the ambulance. Luka jumped out of the car as Elena rolled to a stop. "Where the hell is she!!" he shouted as he ran to the ambulance. We ran to the door and met Becca and the paramedics inside. Luka was in hysterics. "Dr. Marinos" said an older man walking around the corner. "Dr. Stone" she said, extending her hand. "What kind of trouble are you bringing me today?" he laughed. They embraced each other in a brief hug.
"My friend Becca," Andi began. "We went off the bridge above the Lexington river, the car filled with water and she was pushed out of the car. Her stomach was sliced open, and she hasn't stopped bleeding. She's four months pregnant." She explained. "That's what I was afraid of" he said. "She arrived unconscious" said the woman at the desk. "She what??" Luka screamed. "Where is she!!". Luka jumped across the counter and pointed his knife at the woman. "Luka!!" shouted Jesse as he and Conner attempted to hold him back. "Dr. Marinos you know the rule about my hospital!" Dr. Stone said as he shook his head. "Jesse control him!!" Andi scolded. "My apologies doctor". "We're going to get her into surgery now, I will put you on speed dial. There is a hotel a few miles down the road if you would like to stay close, just give the receptionist my name" said Dr. Stone. "Thank you, Michael," Andi said, hugging him again. "Please don't let me down". "Last time I checked I was the best surgeon in the country, right?" Dr. Stone said. "I'll help her Andi don't worry".
"What do we do know?" I asked Andi as the doctor walked away. "There's nothing we can do" Andi said. "We just have to wait". Luka finally calmed down when we walked out of the hospital. "You need to rest Luka" I said, yawning. "Let's just drive to the hotel" said Lacy. "Fine by me" Elena followed. I tried to keep a straight face for Luka. But the truth was, I was terrified. Becca could get through surgery, right?
As we pulled into the hotel, I didn't realize how quiet the drive was. No one spoke. We got out of the car and walked into the hotel. I was miserable, and I'm sure everyone else felt the same. Our clothes were still soaked as they clung to our bodies. My head was throbbing, I was truly exhausted. Andi and Jesse walked up to the counter while the rest of us sat down. I could hear Andi arguing with the woman behind the counter. Curious, I walked up to the counter and put my hand on Jesse's shoulder to notion I was there. "Dr. Michael Stone sent us" Andi repeated. "Ma'am I'm sorry but your name isn't in the computer" the woman said as she clicked the keys on her computer. "I can call him if you—" she started. "You must not know who I am" Jesse smirked. "I'm afraid I don't" the woman said, annoyed. "That's Jesse and Andi Marinos" I mouthed to her. "Oh shit" the woman whispered to herself. "Here are you room keys… let me know if you need anything at all" she said as she handed us keys. "Good one J" Andi laughed. Jesse and I had our own room, Lacy, Andi and Elena shared, and Conner and Luka were together.
We all had dispersed into our rooms. "I'll let you guys know if I hear anything from Michael" Andi said, poking her head in Jesse and I's door "Thanks Andi" I said, closing our door. "Goodnight" Jesse shouted from the bathroom. As soon as I shut the door, I suddenly felt overwhelmed. Guilt washed over me as I felt me legs let loose from under me. My wet shirt clung to the back of the door as I leaned against it. I could feel the tears welling in my eyes. Becca was in the hospital because of…. me. I did this to her. There had to have been a better way to get her out of the car. I should have just called an ambulance instead of having Jesse drive. This was all my fault.
"J you can use the bathroom I'm—" Jesse started as he walked out of the bathroom. "J what the hell!" he said, running towards me. Jesse grabbed my arms breaking me out of my trance. I looked up at Jesse and said, "this is all my fault". Jesse sighed and pulled me into his arms. "We could have never prepared for this Jenny". I cried in his arms as he gently stroked my hair. "I promise you; this isn't your fault. Becca's going to be fine" he said, rubbing my back. "We're going to have answer's tomorrow". "God I'm so stupid" I whispered. "You're not stupid Jenny" he said. "There had to have been a better way to get her out of the car" I screamed. Jesse calmly put a finger over his mouth, motioning for me to be quiet. "You're exhausted Jenny, let's just get some sleep". "I have to take a shower" I said, trying to gain some composure. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked. I nodded, and Jesse helped me to my feet.
As I got into the shower, I thought up a million scenarios in my head. What could I have done differently? What if the surgery failed? What if I would have called the ambulance instead? Most importantly, what would I do without her? The hot water steamed against my body in an attempt to relax me. My body was weak from being exhausted. The adrenaline had finally crashed. It was safe to say I was ready for bed. As I shut off the shower, I realized I didn't have an extra set of dry clothes. "Great" I muttered to myself. I extended my arm out of the shower to feel for a towel on the bathroom counter. Next to it, I felt an abnormally soft fabric. Poking my head around the shower curtain, I saw a thick white robe laying on the counter. "Thank God" I whispered to myself. I wrapped myself in the thick fabric and walked out of the bathroom. "Well you look gorgeous" Jesse said, lying in bed staring at the television. I smiled and pulled back the covers. "I look tired" I laughed. "That too" he laughed. "I put your clothes in the dryer". "Thank you. Goodnight Jesse" I said as I put my head on his chest. He arched his neck forward and kissed my forehead. "Goodnight J". The sound of the television was like white noise as I drifted off to sleep.
~
"What the—" I whispered as I opened my eyes. Machines whizzed and beeped around me. I could see the outline of people standing over me. "Becca you're in the hospital" said one of the people. "My name is Dr. Stone. How are you feeling?". My mouth was dry, but miraculously I made out words. "Where's Jenny?" I coughed. "They are staying in a hotel for the night. They weren't allowed to stay here" Dr. Stone said. "Sir her blood pressure is spiking" a nurse said. "Becca, I need you to relax" the doctor said. My body was on fire, I could feel sweat beading down my face. "Push 2 milligrams of Clevidipine" said the doctor calmly. The nurse put a needle in the air, and gently flicked it with her finger. My fear of needles took over my body. I began to shift on the hospital bed and began to scream. "Get that away from me!!". "Calm down Becca" the nurse said. Two nurses grabbed each of my arms, pinning me to the bed. "Becca we're going to get you into surgery okay?". There was a sharp pain in my stomach. As I groaned, the nurse put a mask over my face, and I could feel a sharp pain in my arm. The air in the mask became thick, making it hard for me to breathe. My eyes began to get heavy. As I squinted, I could see the doctor picking up a scalpel. Then, it was dark.
~
I turned and looked at the clock and saw it was seven in the morning. As I turned and looked at Jesse, he was still sound asleep. Without trying to wake him up, I tried to scoot out of the bed. Suddenly, I felt a hard jerk on my arm and my body collided with Jesse. He pulled his body against mine and whispered, "five more minutes". I let out a brief laugh and rolled my eyes. "We have to go see Becca today". "Believe me if there was any news Andi would know it before even the nurses. Her and Stone are close" Jesse said. "Don't worry". "How do they know each other?" I asked. "They were best friends in med school" Jesse said. "Did she ever date him?" I questioned, twisting a piece of Jesse's messed up hair. "You know Andi, she doesn't do dates after—" Jesse started, then suddenly stopped. "After what?" I asked. "It's really not my story to tell, but basically undenounced to her, her ex-fiancé was one of the Santoro's spies, and she hasn't dated anyone since" he said, looking down. "Fiancé?" I said, "She was engaged?". "Was" Andi said, standing in the doorway.
"Andi—" I started. "I didn't mean to pry I'm sorry". "Don't worry about it" she smiled. "Wait- how did you get in here?". Andi held up a bobby pin and smiled. "You could have knocked; we could have been busy" Jesse winked. "On that note, I'm going to get a shower. We have to be at the hospital in a half hour" Andi said, walking out. "Wait so is she okay?" I asked. "She made it out of surgery, but she's not awake yet" Andi yelled down the hallway. "Thank God" I huffed. I swung my legs off the bed and flung the covers over Jesse. "Hey!" he shouted between laughs. "We have to get around!" I laughed as I ran to the bathroom.
I pulled my clothes out of the dryer and threw them on as fast as I could. I shook my hair enough to make it look like I tried to fix it. "You look fine" Jesse said. "I don't care how I look we have to go" I laughed. Jesse put both of his hands on my arms, stopping me. "Hey!" I shouted. "Slow down" he said. "Take a breath J, we aren't supposed to be there for a half hour". Annoyed, I inhaled deep. "Good" he said. "Now, let's go to the lobby!" I said, excitedly. "J…" Jesse sighed while he shook his head. "Whatever you want to do". I threw Jesse his clothes from the dryer and he put them on slowly. "Jesse c'mon!" I said, annoyed. "You're being slow on purpose". "You can't prove that. I'm tired" he smirked. "You're an ass" I said. Jesse winked at me as he stood up. "Let's go". "You need to fix your hair" I laughed. His short black hair showed obvious signs of bedhead. I put my hands through his hair attempting to fix it. "It looks fine" Jesse protested. "Jesse, I have to fix it" I pleaded. "Fine, fine, make it snappy" he laughed.
"Are you morons ready?" Andi shouted from behind the door. "We're all waiting". "Coming!!" I shouted as I kissed Jesse on the cheek and ran for the door. "Finally" Elena said as I swung the door open. "Sorry… Jesse had a fashion catastrophe" I said. Jesse rolled his eyes as he trailed behind me. "Luka?" he started. As Luka walked out of his room, I could instantly tell he didn't sleep. "I'm up" Luka said between yawns. "You look like shit" Lacy said. "Love you too sis" Luka said. "Luka didn't sleep" Conner laughed. "I did too" Luka argued. "She and the baby are going to be fine Luka" I insisted. "Becca's a big girl she'll be okay". "I know" Luka huffed. "We should get going" Andi said. "Michael wanted to talk to me before we see her". "What does that mean?" Luka questioned. "Nothing… he just wants to see me…" Andi said. We piled into Elena's car and drove to the hospital.
As we walked through the large double doors at the hospital entrance, I was overwhelmed by the stereotypical 'hospital smell'. The one that made children afraid they were going to get a needle shoved in their arm. That smell. Bleach and sterilized metal. "Miss. Marinos" said the doctor as he walked in the room. I turned around and looked at him. "I'm sorry the other Miss. Marinos" he smiled. "Oh no I'm not—" I started. Jesse snaked his hand around my waist. "C'mon" he said as he pushed me forward. "Where are we going?" I asked. "We're going to sit down over here" he said, sitting me down. Everyone but Andi joined around us. I watched as the doctor and Andi spoke to each other. Suddenly, Andi put both of her hands over her eyes, shook her head, then cupped her mouth. "What are they talking about?" I asked Jesse. "If it's bad she'll tell us" Jesse assured me. "Don't worry". Andi looked nervous. She turned and looked at me and motioned for us to join her. Quickly, I stood up and rushed over to her. "What is it? Is she okay?". "Jenny," she said, concerned. Andi never called me by my full name unless something was wrong. "Damnit Andi tell me!" I shouted. "The baby" she whispered. "What about the baby?" Luka chimed in. "The baby's gone".