AMBROSE ALISTAIR

I didn't tell. I couldn't. I wanted to tell Stella today, but I couldn't. She was ok. She had gotten over the breakup.

When I went to her house this morning she was all dressed up and ready to go to school. I didn't want to spoil it by telling her that her best friend was dating her ex. I thought it was better to keep it a secret until Cassie herself tells Stella.

Now, Stella was unconscious in the hospital. All her color had drained out and she was barely breathing. She looks worse with every passing minute, but I try my best to stay calm.

As soon as I had reached the hospital, Nellie and Harry asked me whether I knew anything about this. I told them I didn't. They asked me whether anything upsetting had happened at school and I had to tell them. I told them that Zach had broken up with Stella.

They were shocked. So, Stella hadn't told them yet. I knew that they thought highly of him because he used to act nice in front them. They didn't say anything, but I could see a strange glow in their eyes—a sort of relief. Did they not like Zach?

When Zach came in a few minutes after, they ignored him. Nellie had asked him to come to the hospital, but she didn't say anything to him, and Zach didn't ask. Doesn't he want to know what had happened? Not that any of us know.  The doctor told us that we could go into the room and stay there quietly. He asked us not to leave and left along with the nurse. He told us that he would be back with the results. What was taking him so long?

I can feel the tension with Stella, Cassie and Zach in one room. Zach didn't look at Cassie, but I could see her eyeing him. The audacity. The least she could do was be respectful enough to break up now. What if Stella did something to herself because of Zach? I tried not to think about the worst case scenarios, but I couldn't help it. What if she never opened her eyes again? It would just be Cassie and I. There's no way that friendship would work.

I can feel my heartbeat and the heat. Nothing got better the way I thought it would. Stella didn't wake up even though it had been an hour since I got here. The doctor didn't come in to tell us that she was just sick and would wake up any minute. Cassie didn't break up with Zach. My parents didn't call up to check in on me. They didn't even notice that I want at home. How could they? They were too busy with their phone calls and for all they know I'm in my room being the happy girl I am. How could I be anything else after they've given me so much green paper?

A few minutes passed with me staring at the floor. I could feel the tears pricking my eyes. I don't want to cry. I want to be the strong one for once. So, I suck it up and straighten my back.

Suddenly, Cassie runs out of the room covering her face. Fake. She isn't crying. She would never cry. A heartless creature like her couldn't produce a tear even if she wanted to. Why did she run out though? There's my answer. Zach pulls out his phone checks something and walks out of the door and I caught that sly smirk on his face. Oh wow in the hospital, really? How low could they get? Never mind, I don't want to know. I swallow back my lunch and focus on Stella.

Should I go check? No. the worst that could happen is that I would see them kissing and that is a scene I didn't want stuck in my head. Maybe, that's not the worst, but her best friend is unconscious so that's just about as low as they'd go right now. I focus on Stella. She matters now. I will deal with Cassie later or maybe I won't. I don't really care about her anymore, but still, Cassie and Stella are my friends. I'm losing Stella. I don't want to lose Cassie too. Sure we're not good friends, but someday out of desperation we could work. Oh who am I kidding? Even if I was left alone with Cassie and the entire planet was wiped out, she wouldn't talk to me the way she talked to Stella.

Nellie's still crying. Seeing your daughter dying cannot be easy, but Henry didn't. He just sat on the chair next to the door and looked down at his hands. Maybe he cried before I came in, but I was better than judging someone based on their ways of grieving

"Maybe you both should sit outside. I'll be here." I suggest.

"No, no that's ok. Stella needs us. We're ok." Nellie attempts to smile but her eyes are teary, and her lips are just twitching.

I nod and turn back to Stella. I wish they would have asked me to go out. I would have accepted the offer. It would help to breathe some air that wasn't contaminated by grief. They didn't, so I stay.

Cassie comes in. Her face was gloomier than it was a while back. Did she just break up with him?

Zach comes in and stands opposite to us. They don't look at each other. Zach's head is as high as ever, but Cassie seems to be fascinated by her torn up shoes.

They broke up. I feel the weight lift off my shoulders. Stella doesn't need to know now. No one has to know.

"Please don't tell her." Cassie leans over and whispers. I look at her and see something that I had never seen in her eyes. The look of pain and fear.

"Don't tell her what?" I ask. She looks at me confused and I give her the same look.

If Stella woke up and came to know that Zach was cheating on her with Cassie then it would be the end of Cassie. I could still be Stella's friend. Cassie would have to leave and it would just be the two of us. It would be nice to have a conversation with Stella without having to end it with a fight with Cassie. If Stella came to know that I knew that Cassie was dating Zach and chose not to tell her, then it would be the end of me too and I didn't want that. Right now, Cassie doesn't know that I know and she is not going to tell anyone else. So, if she keeps her mouth shut it will be all good for everyone.

It's not like I could blame Cassie, though. Every girl in the Amber Academy wanted to date Zach. Why wouldn't they? Getting dumped by him was almost something to be bragged about at this point. It was just something about him that made all the girls go crazy. 

Not me though. Sure he was cute, but other than that he had nothing. He was a heartless person that just went about breaking girls' hearts. Not my type. I don't want my heartbroken. I want a relationship where we both understand each other, care for each other and make plans together. I don't just want some mindless relationship just so that I can brag about having a boyfriend. An unstable relationship is really nothing to brag about.

Zach is the king of unstable, meaningless relationships. Here he is standing right in front of me with his two exes in the same room. He doesn't sweat it though. After he added them to his body count they were just girls that went to the same school as him.

I don't know him and he doesn't know me. I am ok with that. Cassie still looks upset, but she should've known this would happen when she started dating Zach. That's the reason I'm not in this hunt for a boyfriend. You either break up or you get married. I don't see myself getting married any time soon and therefore I'm not going to pretend that I need someone just so that I can get my first kiss. Which is probably exactly what Cassie wanted but, what is done is done. No one will know about Cassie and Zach.

Now that that is cleared from my head I can turn my attention to Stella. Stella is important. What had happened to her though?

-x-

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