Manhattan, New York 2614
The fluorescent lights shone down on his sullen face and made him look even worse than he already did. His eyes were closed and he looked peaceful for the first time that day. His cheeks were sunken in, his skin had a waxen complexion to it, his hair was disheveled, but his breathes came calm and evenly.
Scarlett approached his bedside, careful to avoid the IV attached to his arm. She gently ran her fingers through his dark hair, looking upon him with a desperation that she was all too common in her life.
“It’ll be okay, baby,” she whispered to him. “You’re going to be fine.”
“Your brother’s doing better today,” a voice behind her said.
Without looking away from the small boy on the bed, she replied, “How long will he stay like that?”
The doctor came around to the other side of the bed, eyes locked on the bed. “I can’t say for sure,” she said. And then a moment later, “I’m sorry.”
Scarlett was silent for a moment, nothing but the ECG monitor’s steady beeping and her brother’s soft breathing sounding in the room. “I know,” she finally whispered, voice tight. She reached down to squeeze his cold fingers, and whisper, "I love you," before turning toward the exit. She pushed the door open and let it fall shut behind her with a 'clang'.
Once she was out of the room, she strode to the receptionist's counter, ready to take care of today's business as quickly as possible. The woman smiled brightly up at her from her chair, pen frozen in her hand.
"How are you today, Ms. Blaze?"
Scarlett tried to summon a smile, but despite her lips' slight curl, the light remained extinguished in her eyes. "I'm alright," she replied. Thankfully, the receptionist seemed all too familiar with this expression, and as always, seemed content with her answer. Scarlett cleared her throat. "Cash still good?" she asked despite already knowing the answer. She asked this question every time she came. It provided some sort of routine in her life, a question with an answer that would never disappoint her.
"Of course," the receptionist replied cheerily, just as she did every time. She avoided looking directly at her as Scarlett pulled a small bundle of cash from her pocket, the shining plastic of the blue bills unusually bright in her hand. The receptionist's smile faltered the slightest bit as she accepted the money. She typed something into her computer. "I'm sorry," she began hesitantly, "but I have to ask... Has your insurance status changed-"
"No," Scarlett quickly confirmed. "Still nothing."
The receptionist nodded resolutely, tapping a few more keys. "All right!" she finally said, smiling up at Scarlett. "You're all good, Ms. Blaze. See you again next month!"
"Thank you," Scarlett said in response. She hurried out of the hospital as quickly as she could. She could never stay there for long when her brother was asleep. Seeing him so still was sometimes too much for her to handle all at once.
The cool embrace of night brushed against her skin as the doors opened before her. She started to walk, mind occupied with how she would make her next payment. It had been so hard for so long and it was only becoming more difficult. She wasn't sure how much longer this could go on. All she wanted was for her little brother to wake up. Everything would be okay then, she was sure. If nothing else, they would have each other and their health. That was all she wanted.
She turned a corner, following the path she took every day down a quiet road. Suddenly a hand clamped down on her mouth from behind. She was roughly pulled to the side, fingers digging into her waist, arms around her like a steel vise. Scarlett tried to scream as panic flooded through her but the hand around her mouth prevented her from doing so.
"Now! Do it now!" a voice from the side commanded roughly. She couldn't see a thing in the dark. She wasn't sure who was talking, who was holding her, how many of them there were. Scarlett struggled against the grip, attempting to free herself. She jerked around, threw her head back, kicked and scratched and went limp. More hands grabbed her in response, and Scarlett suddenly felt very helpless.
In the next moment, a wet cloth was pressed against her mouth and nose, and her grasp on consciousness slipped away.
Scarlett opened her eyes to see blurred shapes before her. Her hands were tied behind her and she was sitting on the ground with a short wall against her back. She had no idea where she was but as her eyes came into focus, she began to understand what was happening.
"Get up," the man ordered. She didn't know his name but she knew him and, most importantly, she knew why he was pissed. There were two other men with him which made her realize trying to escape was useless. Scarlett did as she was told. Now standing, the wind whipping her hair around and slapping her cheeks with the cold, she could see that she was on top of a very tall roof.
He strode forward and grabbed her arm roughly and she hissed in pain. He forced her up onto the small brick barrier, her back facing the very long fall to the ground that she hoped she wasn't about to experience.
"I needed the money," she explained. "I'm sorry, but I had no other choice!" She was growing desperate. Without looking away from her, the man leveled a black pistol at her, the barrel staring menacingly at her.
"And now I have no other choice," the man responded calmly. "I'll make sure your innocent little brother is also taken care of."
A cold sweat broke out across Scarlett's skin in fear. They couldn't hurt him. She couldn't let that happen. She began to sway with the force of the wind, her head beginning to feel light.
She was going to die.
He was going to kill her.
Her brother wouldn't stand a chance...
The man squeezed the trigger and Scarlett held her breath in anticipation of the bullet to pierce her skin, eyes squeezed tight...but the shot never hit. She opened her eyes after a few seconds, her breaths coming in panicked heaves. The man still had his gun pointed at her but he wasn't moving, nor were any of the others. They were frozen in place. The wind had died and the world was still.
Confused and scared, Scarlett stepped down from the ledge and slowly approached the man with the gun. Still he remained frozen. She circled him, fascinated at what she was seeing. All of them were still, their clothes stuck in place with no movement whatsoever, not even a breath.
She wasn't sure what was happening but she knew this was her moment to change things. Scarlett went up to the man, removing the gun from his hand. She then pushed him forward, his body deadweight in her grasp, until he was sitting upon that very ledge he had made her stand on. She then moved the other two men until they were next to their leader, tilted unsteadily. Scarlett then stepped back from them, leveled the gun at the same man who had threatened her, and took a deep breath.
Time jolted awake suddenly and Scarlett watched as the two mens eyes widened as they lost their balance and fell backwards. She heard their screams as they fell down, down, down...and then silence. Her gun was still pointed at the leader who was now staring at her in shock.
"I have no other choice," Scarlett said. The gun kicked in her hands and the bullet hit the man square in the chest. His eyes widened further, blood darkening his shirt as his hand automatically went to the wound. With his mouth slightly agape, he too fell back but unlike the others, he was silent on his way down.
Scarlett, breathing hard, carefully laid the gun on the ground and stepped back. Her body was numb but her mind was thrumming with adrenaline from what she had just done. She had never known such power. 606Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaiB2nlTbzL
But she had been left with no other choice.
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