PART ONE: PANIC MODE ACTIVATED
Kevin's heart slammed against his ribs.
His breathing came fast and uneven, his throat tightening as his brain tried—and utterly failed—to process what was happening.
There, on his couch, lay a bloodied, unconscious woman.
A stranger.
A beautiful stranger.
But that wasn't the problem.
The blood was.
His couch was soaked with it, dark red spreading across the fabric like a gruesome piece of modern art.
Kevin took a step back.
Then another.
Then—
"WHAT. THE. ACTUAL. HELL?!?"
His voice bounced off the walls, but the woman didn't stir.
Oh, God. Was she dead?!
No, no, no. He wasn't ready for this.
He wasn't some thriller movie protagonist. He was a teacher, for crying out loud! The most dangerous thing he'd faced today was Mr. Hamilton's glare.
And now there was an unconscious, bleeding woman in his house?!
Kevin ran both hands through his curls, his mind racing.
THINK, KEVIN. THINK!
Okay. First things first.
Was she breathing?
He took a hesitant step forward, eyes locked onto her motionless form.
His heart hammered.
Then—
Her chest rose.
Then fell.
Then rose again.
Oh, thank God. She was alive.
Kevin let out a breath he didn't even realize he was holding.
But now what?!
Should he call an ambulance?
NO. BAD IDEA.
It was Monday night. That meant Belville's traffic was basically Hell on Earth.
Even if an ambulance did come, it'd probably take an hour just to crawl down his street.
The cops, then?
Double bad idea.
This was Belville, and Kevin had lived here long enough to know that calling the cops could go very wrong, very fast.
They wouldn't see an innocent man trying to help a wounded woman.
They'd see a suspect.
A black man. Alone in his house. With a bleeding woman.
Yeah. Not happening.
Kevin exhaled sharply, squeezing his eyes shut for a second.
What do I do? What do I do?
Then it hit him.
Josh and Lisa.
His friends.
Fellow teachers.
People who actually had functioning brains (most of the time).
CALLING FOR BACKUP
Kevin snatched his phone off the table and scrolled through his contacts.
JOSH.
Perfect.
He hit dial and pressed the phone to his ear.
One ring.
Two rings.
Three—
Voicemail.
Kevin frowned and called again.
Still nothing.
His pulse quickened. Josh never ignored his calls.
He called a third time.
Still. No. Answer.
"Josh, you absolute waste of human existence," Kevin muttered, gritting his teeth.
Fine. Lisa, then.
He scrolled down and called her.
RING.
RING.
Then—
A burst of loud, thumping music blasted through the speaker.
Kevin winced and jerked the phone away from his ear.
"HELLOOO??"
Lisa's voice came through, cheerful and slightly slurred.
Kevin's eye twitched.
Unbelievable.
"Lisa?" he shouted over the noise.
"KEVIN!!" she screamed back. "YOU NEVER CALL ME AT NIGHT! MISS ME ALREADY?"
Kevin squeezed his eyes shut, praying for patience.
"LISA, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?"
"UH—HOLD ON—"
There was a shuffle. The music faded slightly, and then Lisa's voice returned, clearer this time.
"Sorry. Had to step outside. I'm at The Underground. What's up?"
Kevin groaned.
Of course.
Lisa was a great teacher during the day, but the moment school hours ended, she became a completely different person.
The kind of person who'd lecture students about responsibility at 2 PM and be drunk on tequila by 8 PM.
"What kind of teacher parties at a club after work?" Kevin muttered, rubbing his temples.
Lisa giggled. "The kind who hates her job, Kev. Now, tell me, why are you calling me when I'm in the middle of living my best life?"
Kevin's fingers tightened around his phone.
"Because I'm in serious trouble, Lisa."
Her laughter stopped immediately.
"...Wait. You're not joking?"
"Do I sound like I'm joking?"
Lisa was silent for a second too long.
"Shit. Are you okay?"
"NO. I AM NOT OKAY."
"Whoa, okay! What happened?!"
Kevin took a deep breath, trying to calm the hell down.
"I can't explain over the phone. Just—" he exhaled shakily—"just get over here. NOW."
Lisa hesitated.
Then, her voice turned serious.
"Alright. I'm coming."
"Fast, Lisa."
"I know, I know. Give me fifteen minutes."
She hung up.
Kevin lowered the phone and stared at the unconscious woman on his couch.
Her face was pale. Her breathing was shallow.
Kevin ran a hand over his face.
This was bad.
He had no idea who she was.
He had no idea how she got here.
But one thing was very clear.
He was now involved.
And something told him...
this was only the beginning.
CHAPTER TWO – PART TWO
WHAT THE HELL?!!
Lisa stood frozen at the doorway, her wide eyes locked onto the bloodied woman lying unconscious on Kevin's couch.
Kevin, standing a few feet away, folded his arms and let out a dramatic sigh.
"I know, right? That's exactly what I said."
Lisa shot him an incredulous look. "Kevin, what the hell is going on?! Who is she?!"
Kevin threw his hands in the air. "I don't know! I came home, and boom—there she was, bleeding out on my damn couch like a scene from a mafia movie!"
Lisa took cautious steps forward, eyes scanning the woman's body. Her skin had gone unnaturally pale, and her black bodysuit was soaked with blood. Lisa crouched beside her and, with shaky hands, reached out.
Then she saw it.
"Oh my God!" she gasped. "Kevin—she's been shot!"
Kevin exhaled sharply and rubbed his forehead. "I was hoping I was imagining that part."
Lisa's fingers ghosted over the bullet wound near the woman's ribs. Blood had congealed around it, but it was still oozing slightly.
"We need to stop the bleeding, now!" Lisa snapped, her brain switching to action mode.
Kevin blinked. "Okay, great. How?"
Lisa groaned. "Do you not watch movies? We need—uh, antiseptic, tweezers, bandages—oh, and whiskey!"
Kevin squinted at her. "Whiskey? What, are we throwing a party?"
"No, dumbass! Whiskey disinfects wounds!"
Kevin huffed. "Why not just use, I don't know, actual medicine?"
Lisa scowled. "Because we don't have a damn hospital in your kitchen, KEVIN. Now move!"
Kevin sprinted to his bathroom and kitchen, rummaging through drawers and cabinets. He returned moments later, panting, with a bottle of antiseptic, cotton swabs, tweezers, and some gauze. He set them down on the table, then held up a half-empty bottle of whiskey.
"Only had the cheap stuff," he muttered.
Lisa snatched it from him. "It'll do. Hold her still."
Kevin hesitated. "Hold her still? What if she wakes up and stabs me?"
Lisa glared at him. "If she wakes up, she'll be too weak to stab you. And if we don't do this now, she won't wake up at all!"
Kevin swallowed hard and moved to the woman's side. He gently held her arm while Lisa unzipped the part of her bodysuit covering the wound, exposing her toned stomach. Kevin caught himself staring for a second too long.
"Kevin!"
"What?! I'm helping!" He cleared his throat and looked away. "You better know what you're doing."
Lisa poured whiskey over the wound. The unconscious woman flinched, a low groan escaping her lips.
"Good sign. She's not dead," Lisa murmured.
Kevin grimaced as Lisa used the tweezers to carefully extract the bullet. Every second felt like an eternity.
"This is so messed up," Kevin mumbled, wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans.
"Tell me about it," Lisa muttered. "Hold that gauze. Press it against the wound while I bandage her up."
Kevin did as told, trying not to focus on how delicate the woman felt under his hands. Lisa wrapped the wound tightly, securing the bandage.
Once done, she sat back with a deep sigh.
"Okay, she's stable. But she has a fever."
Kevin's head snapped up. "What?!"
Lisa placed a hand on the woman's forehead. "She's burning up. Probably from blood loss and shock. We need help."
Kevin tensed. "Help? No, no, Lisa. We can't involve anyone else. What if she's, like… an assassin or a fugitive?"
Lisa rolled her eyes. "You watch too many crime shows."
Kevin pointed at the bloodied couch. "Do I?!"
Lisa ignored him and grabbed her phone. "I know someone who can help. A medical student. My flatmate."
Kevin narrowed his eyes. "Lisa, I don't think—"
"Trust me," she cut him off. "I'll bring her here. She won't ask questions."
Kevin sighed. "Fine. But hurry."
Lisa nodded, grabbing her jacket. As she reached the door, she turned back. "Keep an eye on her. If she wakes up, try not to scare her."
Kevin scoffed. "Me? Scare her? Please."
Lisa smirked. "Dude, you screamed when you saw a rat last week."
"THAT RAT WAS HUGE!" Kevin yelled as Lisa disappeared out the door.
He turned back to the unconscious woman.
She looked peaceful now. Too peaceful. Almost like she was just… sleeping.
Kevin sighed and rubbed his temples.
"Who the hell are you?" he muttered.
Silence.
He exhaled sharply, then sat down across from her, watching her slow, steady breathing.
She really was beautiful.
Kevin quickly shook his head. "Oh, come on, Kevin. This is NOT the time for that."
He slapped his own forehead lightly and groaned.
He had a very, VERY bad feeling about this.
And he was almost always right.
CHAPTER TWO
PART THREE
The moment Lisa walked back in with her flatmate, Theresa, the nurse froze at the sight before her.
"What the hell?!" she blurted out, her eyes darting from the unconscious, bloodied woman to Lisa and Kevin.
Without missing a beat, Lisa and Kevin chorused in unison, "Yeah, we know, right? Said the same thing too."
Theresa shot them both an exasperated look. "You two are way too calm about this."
Lisa smirked. "Trust me, we already had our screaming session. Now we're just embracing the chaos."
Kevin let out a dry laugh, running a hand through his hair. "Chaos? Oh yeah, we're basically best friends at this point."
Theresa sighed, already setting down her equipment. "Move. Let me do my job."
She knelt beside the unconscious woman, working with swift efficiency. She checked her pulse, then leaned in to study her pupils.
"She's burning up," Theresa muttered, quickly grabbing her thermometer. "Her body's in distress. She's probably been unconscious for hours. It's a miracle she's even still breathing."
Kevin shifted uncomfortably, watching as Theresa worked. He was still processing the fact that there was a shot, bleeding woman in his house. It felt surreal. Like some twisted crime thriller… except he was the confused side character who had no idea what the hell was going on.
Lisa walked up to him and placed a hand on his arm. "You okay?"
He exhaled. "Oh yeah, just peachy. A random lady got shot and bled all over my floor. I can't wait to explain this in my memoir."
Lisa patted his shoulder. "We'll make it a bestseller."
Kevin snorted. Even in the most ridiculous situations, Lisa had a way of making things feel slightly less overwhelming. They weren't just colleagues. They, along with Josh, had a bond. A chaotic, hilarious, sometimes irresponsible bond—but a bond nonetheless.
Speaking of Josh…
Kevin frowned and pulled out his phone. He tried Josh again.
No answer.
He sighed. "Where the hell is Josh? And why hasn't he returned my calls?"
Lisa shrugged. "Probably stuck in one of his weird deep conversations with some old guy at the bus stop again."
Kevin groaned. "Classic Josh. The city is practically on fire, and that man is out there debating the meaning of life with some retired philosopher."
Theresa suddenly straightened up, wiping her hands on a small towel.
"Alright," she announced. "I've done what I can. Stitched the wound properly, cleaned it up, and stabilized her fever. Now we wait. She should regain consciousness soon."
Kevin released a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding. "Thanks, Theresa. Seriously."
Theresa nodded. "No problem. But you guys should keep an eye on her. If her fever spikes again or she starts having trouble breathing, call me. Immediately."
Lisa nodded. "Got it."
Theresa checked the time. "I have to get back to the hospital for my night shift." She turned to Kevin. "Try not to stress. She'll wake up when her body's ready."
Kevin nodded. "Appreciate it."
Lisa walked Theresa to the door, whispering, "Thanks, girl. I owe you."
Theresa smirked. "Oh, you definitely do."
She waved at Kevin and disappeared into the night.
Lisa turned to Kevin, adjusting her jacket. "Call me the second she wakes up, okay?"
Kevin hesitated. "Wait, you're leaving me alone with her?"
Lisa gave him a look. "You'll be fine. What's the worst that could happen?"
Kevin threw his hands up. "Oh, I don't know, Lisa. Maybe she wakes up, freaks out, pulls a hidden weapon, and stabs me?!"
Lisa grinned. "She's unconscious, Kev. Pretty sure she won't be stabbing anyone anytime soon."
Kevin shot her a glare. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
Lisa smirked. "Immensely."
She opened the door and called over her shoulder, "Call me, Romeo. Try not to fall in love with your mystery guest."
Kevin groaned. "Get out!"
Lisa laughed as she shut the door behind her, leaving Kevin alone with the stranger.
He turned back toward the couch, where the unconscious woman lay.
She looked… peaceful. Her chest rose and fell with slow, steady breaths. Even with all the bruises and dried blood, she was undeniably beautiful.
Kevin exhaled, rubbing his temples. "Oh, come on, man. Don't even start. She was literally bleeding out on your floor two hours ago."
He shook his head and dragged a chair over, settling in beside her.
Staring at her, he muttered
"Who are you?"
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