Week Three: Junior Year

Jake POV

We were rushed to the hospital. I must have passed out because I woke up and my legs were in casts. My hand was also wrapped in medical tissue. It burned like hell. Luckily my head felt fine.

The nurse came in the room and said I'd been out for hours. She gave me water that I drank down fast. I was thirsty. I held my head as I sat up. I flinched and the nurse gently pushed me back down. "You have fractured both your legs. The boy who took you out of the building said you were at the bottom of the stairs. A kid was laying on top of you. Best guess is you fell down the stairs and the weight of the boy and the strain of your legs fractured the bone. You're lucky it's not too bad. You can still walk after this. Your parents have been contacted, however neither have responded." She said checking off stuff on a clipboard.

"What about Rich?" I asked, "And the fire, do you know how it started?"

"Rich is in the emergency ward, you cannot see him, but the firemen theorize that any number of things could have happened. They found an empty lighter in the ash where your room was. Maybe someone was smoking in there? They also found several cigarettes." The nurse said.

I shook his head and sat up. "I need to see Rich."

"Sir, sit down," she exclaimed.

"You don't understand lady." I said fear creeping into my voice. "Is Rich being watched?"

"He's in a coma, hopefully he can wake up at any time." The nurse said confused.

"Fuck, lady are you insane?" I said getting out of bed and pushing the nurse away when she tried to get me to sit. She pressed the help button and asked for assistance. I was already out of the room. I winced with every step. Dear god I hope the cast is strong.

I waddled to the emergency ward. It was a big room with beds separated with white curtains.

I looked through every one of them until I found Rich.

Rich was in a full body cast. What little of his skin I could see was red and puffy. His face was bandaged and his hair was seared. I gave a little rueful smile at fates funny sense of humor. Rich's red rooster streak was still there. I softly brushed my hand through Rich's hair. "Oh Rich...I'm so sorry..." I sobbed as the heart monitor beeped steady and calm. "Please...please be okay..." I cried until my sobs made me choke and cough.

-----

The nurse and a few security found him asleep in a small stool next to Rich's bed. Rich was awake and looking at him.

They were ushered apart. Jake was released the same day.

-----

The play must go on. Or so Mr. Reyes says frantically as he looks at me. I feel miserable. Tired and annoyed, I don't want to do this. However we don't have an understudy for me, so here I am.

At school, on a weekend my house burned down, working on a play. Really this puts things in perspective. I have crutches and they support me as I move through each seen.

In a way I'm grateful for the distraction. After this I have no where to go. Christine picked me up from the hospital. I apologized to her for being an ass. She thanked me, because now she knew that she was asexual, and she needed me to help her figure it out.

I was thankful for people like Christine.

The unspoken rumor was going around, and I could tell it was everywhere now. Jake Dillinger's house got burned down. It was Rich Goranski's fault.

All these crazy theory's were zooming around. It was practically taking all I had not to say anything. I don't want to make matters worse for when Rich returns.

Rich. The words he said at the party affected me more then ever. I was obsessed with it. It replayed over and over again.

"Fuck you Jake." He spat. "Why don't you go back to sucking face with that whore. It's not like you aren't one." I sighed and held back tears. "I said fuck you Jake. I never want to see you again!"

Rich wasn't himself that night.

Jenna came over to me. She was happy. "Why so sad Jake?" She asked. I sighed, I didn't want to pretend. Jenna was my friend, I could tell her things.

"The party still has me shaken up. That and the odd way that Rich acted...I just...I feel like this is all my fault." I put my head in my hands.

Jenna patted my back. "It's okay Jake. I have something that will make you happy again."

"Y-you do?" I asked, and she nodded and handed me a grey oblong pill.

"Try it, it will make you feel better." She promised handing me some Mountain Dew.

"It it like an anti-depressant?" I asked popping it into my mouth.

"Sort of." She smiled as I drank it down with the Dew. I shivered as my stomach groaned. "It takes a little while for it to talk affect." She said standing. I nodded.

I looked at my hands and Mr. Reyes called us for another rep.

I stood and felt weird. "C-can I go to the bathroom?" I asked and Mr. Reyes dismissed me as he turned to talk to Jeremy, who was playing Lysander in the scene.

I waddled over to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. A pain started bubbling in my skull and I yelled and fell to the floor. After a couple minuets of pain the headache stopped. I shakily stood and looked back into the mirror.

"Hello Jake. Welcome to you Super Quantum Unit Intel Processor." It said.

"Wha-" I shook my head as my mirror image shifted.

"Your S.Q.U.I.P"