Previously

"P-PJ, it's okay. Just c-calm down," I reassure him, "He said he would back off after I confronted him."

"..."

"Everything i-is fine. Don't be mad a-at him," I lower my voice to a soft murmur and cup his cheek, "Everything is okay."

He puts a hand over my mine and slows his speech, "I...I'm sorry I jumped to conclusions..."

"It's okay, it's okay. I will never cheat on you. I promise."

He puts my hand down but is still grasping it firmly, "Me too...I promise I'll never cheat on you. I don't usually make promises...but I'll keep this one. Just for you."

Now

We walk out of the house on the chilly Wednesday morning and are immediately hit with a strong gust of wind. Thankfully, my thick jacket and fleece hoodie can block out the winds.

BP strikes up a random conversation, but I can't listen. Something feels weird...and I can tell that PJ has the same feeling by his uncertainty to speak.

I look up at him worriedly and he gives me this look of understanding.

What is this? It feels like something is draining out of my soul. It's subtle and slow like a snail. I can't put my finger on it.

* * * * * *

The day couldn't be more ordinary.

Well, except for the nagging feeling which is still very much present and getting to the point where it's a bit overwhelming. It has been getting under my skin.

Luckily for PJ, he hasn't had much of an effect yet. But he could sense that something was going on.

During lunch, we agreed to stay cautious for the next few days because we could both sense some negativity lingering in the air.

The feeling is almost taking over by the time I got home. Normally, I would immediately get to homework, but I just couldn't today. I flopped down on my bed and searched through my mindscape for the smallest ounce of motivation. In the end, I had to forcefully drag myself to the desk to work.

I just want to get rid of the dreaded feeling.

* * * * * *

I wake up the next morning, still feeling emotionally drained. It's getting worst by the hour. I spent all of last night tossing and turning, trying to fall asleep. Hours and hours later, at 4 am, I fall into my dreamland.

With only two hours of sleep as opposed to my usual eight or nine, naturally, I am a bit on edge. Sleepless nights always made me paranoid, which is why I usually go to bed early. Looks like I'll have to deal with paranoia along with my current situation that has been tugging at my heartstrings for the past 24 hours.

Mr. Ink and Mr. Error seem to notice that something is off about with me. It's like a dark storm cloud hangs over my head everywhere I go. They ask if I want to stay home, but I have to decline. I can't afford to miss more school days after the last incident at the hospital a few months back.

With that, I go to school with the feeling swallowing me whole. It's difficult to concentrate on the teachers because all my attention is focused on what could go wrong during the day.

The others seem to notice this at lunch when I would constantly float away from the conversation and give one-worded answers or short phrases. When they ask me if anything was wrong, I'd look like the life was drained out of me and give them a blank stare before saying that nothing is wrong.

"Is it the feeling?" PJ leans in and whispers into my ear.

I slowly nod my head and put my head down to try and block out the noises of the cafeteria.

'All I need is some peace and quiet...'

Maybe putting my head down is the right choice, or maybe it isn't. Either way, the bell rings and my head is pounding like someone just swung a baseball bat at my skull. I stand up and shakily use the table to keep myself upright. The room is spinning and my vision is filling up with tiny black specks.

'Why is this suddenly happening...?'

Thank God for PJ because he helps me to drama class. What would I do without him?

* * * * * *

After last period, I walk out of the school with PJ by my side.

"I'm so sorry that you're in so much pain right now..."

"It's not your fault. But, right now, it's the strongest it's ever been all day. Something's going to happen very soon if not no—"

I am cut off by the vibrating of my phone in my hoodie pocket. I stop in my tracks to pull it out of my pocket and stare at the name on my phone, fear running through my veins. I pick up the call and hold the phone to my ear.

"Hello...?" I speak softly.

"Hello, is this (Y/N) (L/N)?"

"Yes, you are speaking to her right now."

"Ms. (Y/N), Laura Avery has suddenly become very ill. You must come down to the hospital immediately."

I pause, "...what?"

'Wait. Wait wait wait! Hold on!!'

"It would be better to speak in person, Miss."

Her words slowly sink in, "O-Of course! I'll be there right away!"

I hang up the phone and without warning, drag PJ to the back of the school where no one was around.

"What happened on the phone?" PJ asks with concern in his voice.

I break down, "We need to get to the hospital! NOW!" I drop my bag on the ground and quickly catch a gust of wind to transform.

In a matter of seconds, PJ and I are already in the sky, flying towards the hospital.

"H-How did this h-happen...? How d-did I LET this happen!? Oh my god, t-this is all too f-fast!" I choke out in between sobs.

"(Y/N), you can't blame yourself for this," PJ makes his best attempt at comforting me.

I sniffle, "I-I'm sorry about the w-waterworks...you shouldn't h-have to go through t-this because of m-me."

"Don't say it like that. It's not wrong for monsters to worry about you."

"B-But the feeling! I had it for t-two days! I could've d-done something!!"

"No one knew and no one could've known. It's not your fault," he repeats calmly.

I continue to quietly weep, thankfully, the wind in my face dries most of my tears.

We approach the hospital in a few minutes and I fly into a tree in the park next to it, making sure not to get spotted by nearby strangers.

I transform back and PJ hands me my backpack. We climb down the tree and quickly rush out of the park gates to the hospital.

We practically burst in through the door and I hurry to the reception desk.

"U-Uh, hi, I'm (Y/N) (L/N) a-and t-the hospital called me e-earlier..."

The receptionist types away on her computer before nodding her head and writing something on a whiteboard.

"Go down the hallway and take a left into the ICU hallway. Then, enter this room number. Someone will be with you shortly," she hands me the board.

PJ puts a hand on my shoulder, "Thank you, miss."

He leads me into the room, which is a well-furnished room with couches and chairs lined up against the wall.

We take off our backpacks and set them on the floor. I tiredly plop down on a chair and rest my head on the crook of PJ's shoulder while he holds my hand.

Soon after, we hear a bit of commotion on the outside of the door.

"Is this the room?" A muffled voice asks on the other side.

"Yeah," the door handle turns and the door slowly creeks open to reveal Mr. Ink and Mr. Error.

They look at me worriedly as I stare back at them with my empty eyes.

Mr. Error sirs next to PJ and Mr. Ink takes a seat next to me. He gives me a side hug to which I pull away from PJ and return the hug.

A few moments of silence pass by before an elderly man with a doctor coat walks in. He has gray hair that's balding, wrinkles all over his face, and kindness in his eyes.

"Hello, everyone, I am Dr. Drew. Pleased to meet all of you," he holds put his hand and shakes each of ours. When he got to me, I reluctantly shake his hand as to not appear to be rude.

"Now, I assume you have all received a phone call from the hospital about the condition of Laura Avery."

We all nod our heads in unison.

"The medical staff team and I, unfortunately, sincerely apologize for what has happened... She passed away a few minutes after the phone calls."

Just when I thought I couldn't possibly produce any more tears, I do. The hot streams slide down my cheeks one more time and onto the back on my hand.

"She was doing so well yesterday, but, today, her health plummeted very suddenly. We are truly sorry for her death," he pauses and takes a deep breath, "But, at least, she died peacefully..."

Silence hangs over the room as the feeling in my soul slowly starts to diminish, leaving me as a hollow shell.

"Would you like to see her?"

Mr. Ink looks at me for an answer and I slowly nod.

PJ and I grab our bags and follow Dr. Drew, Mr. Ink, and Mr. Error out the door. While we walk, I look at the floor the whole way, my hair covering my face.

'No! She's not dead! She can't be...this isn't real! It's all just a nightmare!! A nightmare, I tell you!!' I deny.

We walk through a long hallway and enter a door.

There on the bed. It really is her...

All the wires that were in her last week are disconnected and she is in her normal sky blue hospital gown. Her eyes are closed, but I could tell her expression is relaxed and calm.

Everything finally settles in. She's decreased. No more. And to put it more bluntly, dead.

She was my everything. She was the parent who was there for me when my real parents weren't here. She was who I looked forward to after a long day of school.

And with the snap of a finger and the blink of an eye, she is gone. Just like that.

My emotions threaten to burst. But I keep it in. She wouldn't want to see me like that.

I simply shed a few more tears and tug on Mr. Error's sleeve. I mumble, "C-Can I go h-home...?

Mr. Error puts an arm around my shoulders understandingly, "Of course you can."

"We'll take care of legal formalities, take her home first, PJ," Mr. Ink suggests.

He nods back and leads me out of the hospital. In there, it felt as if I couldn't breathe. I was suffocating.

We exchanged no words during the walk home. What could we possibly talk about? Even PJ knows that no amount of small talk would fix my current crisis.

When we finally get home after around fifteen minutes of walking, PJ immediately wraps me in a tight hug and rests his head on my right shoulder.

"I'm sorry this happened to you..."

In the midst of trying not to burst on him, I could only manage to mumble out a few words, "N-Not your fault.."

He speaks softly into my ear, "As your boyfriend, it is my responsibility to make you as happy as possible. And I know how difficult that is right now. I am always open to talk and help you even in the middle of the night. Just wake me up and I'll talk with you till sunrise if you need that much time."

"T-Thank you..."

He lets me retreat to my room, to where I lock the door and drop my bag on the carpeted ground with a loud thud.

My emotions explode and I lose it.

I throw a pillow across the room.

I cry and bawl and shriek and wail.

I don't care if I'm being loud. I don't care if I break something. I don't care if I disrupt someone.

I.

DON'T.

GIVE.

A.

DAMN.

I just lost the person closest to me.

'How could this happen? I could've done something! Yet, I stood there doing nothing while my only family withers away into nothingness. And now, I pay the consequence...'

I find something to blame.

'Do you hate me this much, world!? Do you want me to suffer!? Do you enjoy my screams of pain!? All you ever do is take, take, take. Do you ever give anymore? You narcissistic sadist..'

I feel the heaviness of my guilt weighing down on my shoulders. In the darker corner of my room, I fall onto my knees and use my hands to try and hold myself upright. They, or rather, my whole body shakes, my breath hitches as I gasp for air, and my hair is sticking onto my face with my tears stains on my cheeks.

My arms give up on me and collapse under the weight of my body. I end up holding myself up with my forearms and then slamming my fist on the ground in anger.

"How could I be so ignorant!? So oblivious to my situation!!?" I shout out loud, the anger continuing to uncontrollably spew out of me.

Minutes of crying goes by before the pain in my hands start to settle in. I curl up into a ball and sob the rest of my tears out. But, soon, I'll run out of tears to cry...

"I'm sorry I couldn't have done better for you..."

~A/N~
Soooooooooooo :T
Yeah...
She died
I did say calm before the storm in the last chapter
I don't know if this is even a storm anymore
It could very possibly be a hurricane
Either way, she's not coming back
Is this enough angst for you guys?
Sorry, I hope you're not too mad at me—

Word count: 2405 words (including A/N)

*nopes out*