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“Kayleigh. Kayleigh!” He yells. “What’s wrong?” I ignore him, storming out the door of the building and start walking towards my dorm. “Wait up! Talk to me! What happened?”
I stop short, causing Holden to almost walk into me as I spin around. “What happened?! Bianca fucking Vanderlin happened.”
“What?” He looks genuinely confused.
I roll my eyes. “Don’t play dumb, it doesn’t look good on you. I saw a text from her pop up on your phone.”
“No. No, it’s not what it looks like. She’s been texting me for the last couple weeks, but I haven’t answered.”
“Oh great.” I scoff. “So, not only do I have to know what happened between you two, but I also have to deal with her being obsessed with you.”
“You don’t have to deal with anything. I’ll block her, I’ll change my number. Anything you want.”
Shaking my head, I step back. “What I want, is to go back in time and make it so none of this nightmare happened.”
I spin around and go to step out into the street. In my haste to get away, I accidentally step in front of a moving car. Within seconds I hear Holden shout, and I’m yanked out of the way, onto the ground behind me. He groans in pain as he holds his head, blood already leaking out onto his fingers.
“Oh, my god, Holden. I’m so sorry.” I pull my phone from my pocket and quickly call 911, letting them know our location and that we need an ambulance ASAP. When I hang up the phone, he’s looking at me but his eyes are fading – like he’s falling asleep. “You have to stay awake, babe. Come on, stay with me.”
He smiles tiredly, letting his head fall to the side. “You called me babe.”
Tears spring to my eyes as I smile. “Of course, I did, you big doof, but you need to stay awake.” I grasp his hand in mine and look around, mentally willing the ambulance to get here faster.
Chapter 26
The hospital is bleak and dreary. I pace back and forth in the hallway, waiting for someone to come update me on Holden. Thankfully, I was able to keep him awake for the entire ride here. I just hope he’s alright. It’s been over an hour and I haven’t heard anything yet.
“Miss Jacobs?” A man in a white coat approaches me. “I’m Dr. Anderson.”
“Kayleigh.” I shake his hand.
“Mr. Rivers is cleared for visitors and he’s asking for you, so if you’d like to come with me? You can see him and we can go over his injuries.”
I nod and follow the doctor into the emergency room. By the time we reach Holden, I’m visibly shaking, and seeing him in a gown and laying in the bed doesn’t help. Tears build in my eyes, giving me no chance of holding them back before they spill down my cheeks. Holden frowns and reaches for me – I rush to his side.
“Hey, hey.” He consoles me, rubbing my arm and kissing my head as I lean over to hug him. “I’m okay. See? I’m alright.”
“I was so scared.” I admit.
He gives me a small smile and shakes his head. “I’m great. Never been better.”
“I wouldn’t exactly say that.” The doctor chimes in. “You have three staples in the back of your head and a grade two concussion.” Holden groans but I squeeze his hand, letting him know it’s alright.
“What does that mean? Is he going to be okay?”
He nods. “Oh yeah, he’ll make a full recovery. He does need plenty of rest though.” He turns his attention to Holden. “Do you play any sports or work somewhere that requires a lot of physical activity?”
“I play hockey.” Holden answers, sounding far from thrilled.
“Well, you’re going to have to miss the next week. We can do a repeat scan when you come back to have the staples removed.” He explains, and while Holden may not be happy about it, he agrees to listen. “Do you have someone to stay with you tonight? I feel confident in my diagnosis, but just in case new symptoms arise, it’s always good to have someone there.”
Holden stutters, but I don’t hesitate. “I’ll be with him.”
The doctor smiles and tells us that the nurse will be in with his discharge papers shortly. As soon as he leaves, Holden turns his head toward me.
“You really don’t have to do that. There will be plenty of people in the house.”
I give him a knowing look. “Are you saying you don’t want me there?”
