When I opened my eyes, I didn't know where I was for a few minutes. I was staring at a ceiling, but it was angled strangely. Shifting, I realized I was on my back, the floor beneath me hard. Slowly, I flipped onto my stomach and lifted myself up. The hallway I was in was small, but I could hear everything. I heard the shouting, the screaming, and finally, the gunshot.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHn3bldUTzn
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Silence filled my head and for a moment I thought I had gone deaf. My entire body stopped working, because the fear took over, and my brain told me who it was who had gotten shot. I squeezed my eyes shut and my knees gave out. I was back on the floor and I didn't move, didn't see, under someone touched my face with trembling hands.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTc1NIobtdf
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"Kendall, we have to call the police, and an ambulance or he isn't going to make it."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBK5peMYwVz
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At these words, I opened my eyes, and looked into a pair of hazel ones. Christian sat crouched in front of me, his entire face etched with worry and panic. He kept glancing behind him at the bedroom, his lips forming a thin line.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYgfK619vp
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"You're alive," I whispered. Then I threw myself at him, kissing him like I hadn't seen him in years. He returned the gesture and held me tightly. "God, I thought you got shot."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6PlKBQNlBZ
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He stopped kissing me, then, seeming to remember why he came out here. Gently he drew away from me and touched my face, his eyes searching mine, and then he spoke.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOMz6cXXLb
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"Kendall, it's Jude."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHeCiuEIhr5
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My eyes widened at his words, then I noticed his clothes, and the red specks on the fabric. It was blood. Jude's blood.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSEa4nUGigY
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"He saved me," Christian explained, bringing me to my feet. "But not without getting shot. Seth got him right in the chest. I'll call for help and you watch him."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk9CqUYRIqN
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My legs shook and I gripped the wall for support. "Seth," I muttered. "Where is he?"525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLo9Du5sSiv
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"He's not here," Christian said angrily. "The fucking coward jumped out the window."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ7XBtbqVxW
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I nodded, starting toward the door. I didn't even have to go all the way into the room to smell the blood. It was so strong that I nearly gagged. The first thing I saw was a shoe, then I heard a muffled cry. I saw Jude laying there, his chest covered in blood from the wound, and his eyes, those forest-green eyes, were staring at me.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡydbeEzmRes
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I dropped to my knees beside him and automatically grasped his hand. "It's going to be okay," I said, trying hard not to cry. "Christian's calling for help."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgSKlXpKl7P
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Jude's eyes, for the first time, looked full of terror. His breathing was erratic and his body trembled. Then he opened his mouth.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCJenzVkSH7
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"I'll be with Abbie," he whispered, a smile on his lips. "I'll get to see her soon. It's what I always wanted."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxbVULsoxsa
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"No," I said, shaking my head. When I looked at him, his eyes mirrored mine with tears. "You're not going to die, Jude. It's not happening. We're going to get you to the hospital and you're going to be okay."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNd4SfBkHo4
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I heard the sirens, and then all I remembered was them taking Jude away, while I sat outside wrapped in a blanket. Christian sat beside me, our hands linked, and for the first time in my life, I prayed.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9qJ8sK0u7O
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Whether or not Jude went to the other side at all during the operation to remove the bullet, I didn't know. When we were finally able to see him, he was still asleep. Christian went to get some sort of food for us and when he got back he explained what he could. Seth had taken him from his own yard, drugged and carried him to his car, and just before the unconscious settled down on Christian, he remembered being stuffed into a tight space. Then he woke up in a bedroom with Seth touching him.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxGlF6Rm8sk
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I was sitting in a cushioned chair, my knees pulled up to my chest, when the hospital room door opened and one of the nurse's came in. She shook her head. "He's very lucky to be alive," she said to us. Then she looked at me. "Someone is here to see you, Kendall."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1BOvg8b2Oo
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"Who?" I asked suspiciously.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡURFiBd98BD
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"Your mother."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2wADrHEQAa
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I blinked at the nurse a few times, glanced at Christian, and stood up. I followed her out the door and down the hall. There was a figure standing near the automatic doors. She burst into tears when she saw me.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJTZ08sPOeN
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We didn't exchange words. She cried, hugging me. She smelled minty and she didn't seem to be stumbling. She was, for the first time in two years, completely sober. When I hugged her back, her little intake of breath told me that she wasn't expecting that at all. When she asked me what happened, I just told her that my friend got shot. She surprised me by asking if it was my boyfriend.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcQjxKdqjyx
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When I returned to Jude's room with my mom, Christian stood, his eyes narrowed. When my mom saw him, she frowned.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpTdE0GY9Hc
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"Please don't be mad," she said softly. "I know what I did and said was wrong. You can forgive me if you want later."525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE13nP5MBy2
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Christian's mouth opened slightly in disbelief. I went over to him and tapped his chin with my finger. He shook his head and looked at me, reaching for my hand. We sat and waited for Jude to wake up while my mom announced she was going into rehab.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazLkfekLMk
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After Jude had woken up at some during the night, I cried against him and thanked him for saving Christian. He laughed at me and told me to stop being so dramatic, then to my surprise, he shook Christian's hand.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWo1hsmfcnB
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I couldn't wait to sleep. I was exhausted. We dropped Christian off and headed home, neither of us speaking. My mom unlocked the door without saying anything to me, then went to her room. I went into the living room to fall asleep with the TV on. When I flicked on the light, a terrible scream escaped my throat.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsfO5xx31R
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Seth was staring at me with a crooked smile and amused golden eyes.525Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4xqKvXcps0