Chapter 37: Chapter Eighteen-1

Chapter Eighteen Silence. I find that pretty rare for such a crowded hallway, but it is. Everyone is dead silent and they’re all staring at me. The speakers are quiet, turned off after calling my name. It’s like everyone has been expecting me to get in trouble. And now it’s finally happened. “Get into class!” one of the cranky elderly teachers yells, wondering what the commotion is in the hallway. “Detention for anyone who’s still lingering around in thirty seconds!” That’s all that’s needed for everyone to resume what he or she was doing before. It was like I had hit play on my remote control for a movie—my own movie. The hallway quickly went back to shouts and hollers as people shoved everyone—like a bloody world war—to move. I get shoved and I almost stumble to the ground. And then I remember the office is on the opposite wing. As nervous as I am about my calling to the office, trying to go backwards into the moving crowd of high school students is just the same as trying to walk back up a waterfall. I groan. Today is not my day. After I somehow survive making it through all the corridors, I take a deep breath when I stand in front of the door that reads Principal Appleton. Suddenly the door seems to be so dark and towering. Knowing I can’t just stand out here much longer, I slowly twist the doorknob and open the door. Principal Appleton sits in all his old-man-deceiving-act and I sit before him. “Um, you wanted to see me, Mr. Appleton?” I squeak. This is all so nerve-wracking. What have I done in the past weeks? I don’t think I broke any rules—well, I might of punched Peter, but I doubt anyone would rat on me. Principal Appleton pushes his glasses, which are falling off of his almost non-existent nose, and then folds his hands in front of him. “This is very hard for me to do—” “Am I in trouble? I swear, I didn’t mean to punch him that hard.” “No, you’re not—punch who?” he asks, speculating me. His wrinkled forehead creases, getting my attention on his completely white-as-snow hair and beard. He could be mistaken for Santa Claus, I swear. “Oh, never mind,” I say, taking that he doesn’t know about the whole Peter incident yet. I put on a small smile. “Why was I called here, Mr. Appleton?” Mr. Appleton frowns—what a surprise. He squeezes his hands tighter and his face becomes blank. And then I think, Shit shit shit. Am I going to get suspended? “It’s really hard for me to say this considering you’re a good kid and all,” he starts, “but there’s been an accident.” “An accident?” I repeat. And then my mind just swirls. An accident. It’s like when Dad died all over again. Please don’t let it be Mom. Please. I repeat this mantra over and over and over. “W-Who?” *            *               *           *              *               *           * Immediately, I rush to the hospital. I park my car in the parking lot as fast as I can even though my car is completely diagonally parked against the cars around it but I don’t care. The police could give me a fucking parking ticket and I wouldn’t care. Not now. Not when my mother was in the ER. The automatic doors slide open and I rush through to the desk. There is a redheaded nurse there, typing away on her computer. I don’t hesitate when I ask, “Where is my mother?” She looks up into my eyes and says kindly, “Could you please give me your mother’s name, sweetie?” I give her the name and she tells me that she was logged into the ER an hour ago and she’s in surgery. I wait in one of the cold, hard plastic chairs outside with my hand clamped over my phone and tears smeared all over my face. My lip is bleeding from biting too much. My other hand’s nails are disappearing as I chew them down. Mom can’t die. She can’t. She won’t. What would I do without her? How could I ever live? I don’t want to become an orphan. I don’t want to lose both my parents. I’ve already lost so much. I will be alone. Suck it up, I say to myself. I unlock my phone and call Mark. I need to tell someone and Mark’s been a good friend so far. I can trust him. He picks up on the second ring. “Hello?” he says. I bite my nails. “Mark?” “Ivory?” Mark asks. “I’m sorry but I’m really busy at work right now. I would love to call you later for a cup of coffee, okay? How does that—” “My mom…she’s in the ER,” I say. “What?” he asks. I fill him in on how apparently she got into a car accident because she fell asleep on the highway. Her body was in over-drive from exhaustion and just gave out. Unfortunately, her car went spiraling off the road but it only hit a tree instead of other cars. Regret floods in my veins. I should have done something. I could’ve saved her. I knew she was really tired and was working too hard. I knew, but I didn’t stop her. If she dies, it’ll be my fault. “I’ll be right there,” Mark says before hanging up. I’m thankful for such a good friend like Mark. While I wait, I chew my nails all the way down and text Candy—who’s probably in class—before I get a coffee from the hospital cafeteria. I head back up and drink it down before putting my face in my hands. The stress is killing me. Why is it taking so long? If it weren’t serious, it wouldn’t take this long. It’s been over several hours. A pair of black leather shoes appears in my vision. I wonder why Mark took so long but as long as he’s here, I’m happy. “Mark, thanks so much for coming,” I say before looking up. My jaw drops. I stand up, confused and angry at the same time. “Lee?” He hugs me. “I’m so sorry. Is your mom okay?” I push him away. “Don’t touch me.” I stand back. He’s hurt but I don’t really give a damn. “What’re you doing here?” Lee’s in his usual suit, his hair messed up and bags under his eyes. His eyes are bloodshot red. He has a sheepish look on his face. “I heard about your Mom being in the ER, so I came.” “Who told you?” I demand. It couldn’t have been Mark. Last time I checked they weren’t the best of friends. “Nobody told me,” he replies. “I had been following your mother because I thought you were with her since you didn’t take your car today. Then, she got into the accident and I had to sign all the medical bills and talk with the doctors but now I’m here. Are—” “You were following me?!” I yell. “For how long? Why were you following me?! And the only reason I didn’t take my car was because my friend drove me today!” I shove him in the chest. “How dare you keep your men watching me?” I’m aware we’re causing a horrific scene in a busy hospital but my anger is over the roof and I can’t hold it in. “I can explain,” Lee says, trying to block my hand from hitting him. “I was just worried since the last time we talked and just wanted to make sure you were okay. Please understand, Ivory. I didn’t mean to—”