Hell was let loose in school!
The loud noise the falling chairs made and Natalia’s agonizing scream got the attention of a few students at the extreme corridors of the academy.
Yeah.
It was that loud… and painful.
An ambulance was called and the duo were rushed to the hospital. Natalia couldn’t stop crying. She refused treatment until she was assured Arian was gonna survive.
Immediately they arrived at the hospital, the young Argent was rushed into the emergency room. No one wanted to be at the receiving end of Sir de’Argent’s fury.
About a hundred phone calls were made, nurses rushed around to different directions and security was doubled. No one except the doctors and nurses were allowed in.
In fact, everyone switched to panic mode!
Natalia sat on the floor near the double swing doors of the E. R, crying herself insane. She didn’t know how long she sat. She simply cried, feeling the sting of her conscience prick her heart.
The running in and out of the nurses went on, increasing her guilt. If she hadn’t been a coward, if she hadn’t been so weak, she would’ve moved away in time.
But now, her cowardice had put someone else at the brink of death! Her tears increased.
She barely noticed another group of people running over. And she didn’t care to look.
None of them could change anything.
“Natalia, are you alright?!”
“Why isn’t she attended to?”
“Who’s the doctor in charge here?”
“Isn’t this blatant incompetence?!”
“What kind of a hospital is this?”
“Wait… Where’s Arian??”
“How’s he?”
“Nurse! Someone should answer me!” Elva, Nicky, Leonardo, Ricky, Jeffrey and Arian asked simultaneously… No, except Arian.
.
Because he was in there, fighting for his life!
.
The thought alone made Natalia’s tears run down in torrents. She hugged herself and supported her head with her knees.
Ricky squatted beside Elva who was holding Natalia. He gently raised her head and placed a comforting kiss there which always worked for his little sister.
“Hey, Shhh. It’s gonna be alright. He’s gonna be fine, you’ll see. So stop crying.” He comforted.
It only made the Princess choke more on her tears when she tried to stop them. Ricky pulled her into a warm hug and she let him, holding him tighter.
And that was her secret….
She had always been a pathetic cry baby. The Princess pretends to be strong on the outside but on the inside, any little thing hurts her a lot.
“Can you try standing?” Ricky asked after a while.
“I… I can’t move m.. my legs.” Her voice came out choked up, weak and teary.
And truly she couldn’t. They were more stiff and limp like spaghetti.
“Just try, okay? I’m here for you. We all are.” He whispered softly. But Natalia kept nodding. She’ld rather stay on the cold floor and die of guilt if Arian didn’t make it out alive.
She deserved to suffer.
Elva couldn’t stop crying while Leo looked broken, seeing the fragile side of Natalia. Nicky found herself holding Jeffrey’s hand for support. He stared at her then held hers tightly.
Ricky sighed before forcing her up gently. She had no strength left.
“Come seat while we wait.” He pulled her to a hospital chair, still not letting go. Natalia didn’t want to let go either.
“Elva.” She whispered, just noticing her and hugged her. “It’s all my fault! If I wasn’t so scared, he wouldn’t have been hurt. He warned me to move, he kept yelling at me to move but I…..”
“Don’t say that. It’s not your fault. Stop blaming yourself for everything. Arian’s gonna be fine, you’ll see. He’s gonna make it.” She hugged her tighter.
But it was hard for the Princess staying positive, remembering the bloody scene, haunting her memory…
*****
“Listen, bitches! If anyone asks, we did nothing! Do y’all get me?!” Bianca furiously threatened.
News had spread and the pictures and videos of the accident had circulated the school.
“I’ve always said it but you girls wouldn’t listen! Now look! Arian got hurt instead. Do you seriously think your little threat is gonna stop Sir Argent from finding out who’s responsible?! You’ve done it, Bianca! You’ve really done it this time! ” Allison snapped and banged her locker.
“He won’t know unless some snitch spills! I trust the wretched janitor to keep his filthy mouth shut. No one must know what happened. Is that clear?!” She seethed.
The rest of the girls hung around quietly, obviously nervous if they got caught.
Then they left for practice…
******
The visitors waited for hours before the head doctor came out. Immediately, Mom Rose rushed to him in a heartbeat, demanding reports.
Natalia left Leo’s side expectantly and the others stood up.
“The patient is fine and much more stable. He won’t go into shock even though he’s lost a lot of blood. Because of the intense concussion to his head, there’s a slight chance of him having amnesia but hopefully, those chances are slim. He’ll be taken to ICU for further monitoring. Please, ex…”
While the doctor was talking, Natalia’s head felt like a ticking time bomb. Her temperature rose beyond normal and dizziness consumed her. Then the doctor suddenly doubled, then tripled.
“Yikes! Someone catch her she’s gonna fa….” Before anyone could get to her, Natalia lost focus and fell on a table, scattering the contents on the floor before passing out.
Before she totally drifted off, she saw a blurry vision of doctors and nurses gathering around, and someone screaming for her to hang on.
But the problem was that, she didn’t want to. The Princess just wanted to sleep and escape the nightmare she was living.
And she did exactly that, closing her eyes….
******
Elva couldn’t believe all that had happened in just a few hours. Queen Felicia was right to say that it was gonna be the toughest test Natalia had to face to become stronger.
The royal assistant wished the Princess passed it successfully… and not get destroyed on the way.
Sir Argent came over a few hours ago. Security was tripled and only family could see him. Ricky and Jeffrey were in there and even had their family doctors render some assistance.
Natalia was hospitalized too. She was sedated to help her rest. Elva couldn’t fuss about her ill health in order not to expose her identity, so she followed the Queen’s order and depended on the hospital’s healthcare.
Of course, she’d informed the Queen!
“Here. You’ll feel much better.” Ricky mouthed, handing her a cup of coffee.
“Thanks.” Elva whispered and took it. She’d been alone since Leonardo took Nicky home, promising to be back.
Ricky had to force her to go home. Jeffrey and Mom Rose were still in there with Arian.
“How’s he doing?” She sniffed, wiping away her tears. Ricky sat beside her on the hospital bench in the corridor.
“Same thing. Doc said he’s stable. Jus’ waiting for the sedatives to run out so he can wake up.”
Elva nodded and looked down into the cup in her hand before taking a sip. She sighed again.
Ricky gently placed his left hand on her cold ones and entwined their fingers.
“She’s gonna be alright, okay?” He comforted. Elva gently squeezed his warm hand, feeling too tired to reply.
They sat that way in a comfortable silence for a while. His presence was enough comfort…. until Selena came over.
Elva gently removed her hand from his as she got near. She didn’t want to interfere in whatever relationship they both had.
“Hey.” Selena smiled at Elva and sat at Ricky’s right.
Elva forced a smile.
Despite how hard she tried to deny it, she was hurt knowing he was moving on. And with a person she was getting to know better.
“They’re both gonna be fine.” Selena smiled again to comfort her. This time, Elva simply nodded.
“Rick, aunt told me to get some stuffs at home for Arian. Can you drive me?” She pouted and held his arm.
Ricky awkwardly looked at Elva, wanting to come up with some excuse but she beat him to it.
“I’ll go check up on Natalia now. Thanks for coffee.” She murmured and quickly walked away.
She couldn’t slip now. She cautioned her heart.
.
.
.
Not when they were finally over…
Chapter 39