HEARING DAMAGE
TEEN NOLA - CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO !

"CAN I HAVE JUST a few minutes alone with her?" Nola stood completely still as though a statue. A shiver racked her body as the freezing cold air nipped harshly at her skin, turning the tip of her nose bright pink and causing her teeth to chatter. Her sudden question caused Natalie to glance up curiously at her. A small grimace formed on Nola's face as she explained. "I know you want to get going but it'll only be a few minutes, I promise."

There was a brief moment when all that could be heard was the wind howling as it travelled through the snow topped trees. It was true that Natalie wanted to get Jackie's body to the plane as soon as possible. She knew it was necessary for them all, to get rid of the very evidence of the worst thing they had done. She contemplated, just for a second, on turning Nola away but she just couldn't once she caught the unmistakable sight of desperation in her friend's eyes.

Pity took the form of a tight-lipped smile as Natalie rose from where she had been kneeling in the snow. "Take all the time you need." The blonde said while placing a comforting hand upon Nola's shoulder.

"Thanks, Nat." Uttered the Rilke girl, gratitude dripping from her every word.

As the Scatorccio girl trudged away towards the cabin to give her some privacy, Nola turned her shaking gaze down to the brown jacket that covered up the collection of bones. "I'm so sorry, Jackie. The way things ended...you didn't deserve that." She breathed out. Her voice sounded hoarse as she knelt down in the snow, ignoring how it melted and soaked her knees. "We were horrible to you, I was horrible to you. You had every right to be upset with us but I was just...so angry that I didn't see it. Not until it was too late."

Flashes of the night that it all went wrong assaulted her mind. Her eyes began to sting as a wave of emotion hit her. "You were honestly one of a kind, Jack. I don't know how I'm gonna go on without you here. Don't get me wrong, you could be a serious pain in the ass but I loved you."

She could remember all those times in the past that Jackie had annoyed her, from when she would take absolutely forever to get ready for school leaving Nola and Shauna waiting outside to when she would tickle Nola like crazy for that entire month back when they were thirteen leaving the Rilke girl utterly breathless that full month.

Tears now leaked down her face, down her neck and seeped into the thick fabric of her varsity jacket. "I still love you. I doubt you share that opinion anymore and y'know, I can't say that I blame you." Nola was practically sobbing at this point. "It fucking sucks that I can't talk to you but maybe in some fucked up way it's a good thing. You got out."

Nola have loved Jackie. They had been best friends since they were kids, had been through so much together, survived a plane crash together and now Nola was the only one still alive. How the fuck was that fair?

"I know Natalie needs to get going so I'm gonna cut this short." Nola croaked out while sniffing and wiping away the snot that had dripped from her nose. When she was done, there was a huge patch of dark yellow along the sleeve of her jacket.

She reached out her hand until the tips of her fingers brushed against the brown fabric that sheltered Jackie's skeleton. "Goodbye, Jackie." She whispered low. Then she slowly and shakily rose back up to her feet, continuing to dry her face as she did then turned to look over at Natalie, who perked up at the sight, ready to get it all over and done with. "She's all yours."

As Natalie stepped forward, she exchanged a brief glance with Nola before grabbing hold of the brown jacket, swung it round her shoulders and set off for the plane leaving the Rilke girl to stew with her own thoughts. After a beat, Nola plastered on a false smile and made her way back into the cabin.

The first thing she was greeted with was a group of smiles aimed up at her from the girls that sat crowded on the floor. "Nola, we're having a baby shower." Mari giddily informed the brunette as she shut the door behind.

"Sounds fun. We might as well do something normal and I guess it's a good way to welcome him into all this craziness." The freezing cold girl commented with a chuckle as she moved further into the room, heading straight for the fire to warm herself up.

Unbeknownst to Nola, deep brown eyes swimming with annoyance followed her as she moved about. Shauna sat by the window festering with vexation. First Lottie had referred to her baby as a 'him' and now Nola?

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

BEFORE LONG MANY OF the cabin's inhabitants had gathered together in the living room, some perched in chairs while others sat cross-legged upon the floor, covered in blankets while their nimble fingers worked on creating their own little presents to gift Shauna at her baby shower.

            The fire cracked and popped through the comfortable silence. Mari had chosen to create her own version of a mobile for the baby out of things she found inside the cabin. It now hung freely in the air as she held it up to check its strength. This allowed Van, who had been looking around the room for more inspiration, to catch sight of the small blade that dangled down.

          This caused Van's lips to curl into an amused smirk. "That's good, Mar. The baby can dream it's being stabbed to death every night." Her words cause everyone to look up from their own work and over at Mari's gift, each of them smiling or chuckling along with the Palmer girl.

Mari simply rolled her eyes. She felt proud of the gift even if it wasn't the most conventional. "Oh whatever. It's abstract." Her expression was one of pride though that quickly faded when her brows knitted together and her smile was replaced by a frown. "Okay, there it is again."

"You guys really don't hear dripping?" She questioned the group in disbelief when they all looked at her confusion. She had been hearing this continuous dripping for quite some time now and each time it made its presence known, she grew more on edge.

The room fell silent once more. It stayed that way until the cabin's door creaked open and a huge gust of wind came rushing in. Coach Scott, who had been off doing god knows what outside had finally returned, his teeth chattering and skin tingling from the cold.

As he shut the door behind him, his attention was captured by Gen who had been the only one of the group close enough to hear the rumble of hunger that echoed from his stomach. "Hungry?" She questioned the man.

Coach Scott almost instantly began to breathe heavily and rush back until his body pressed tightly to the door. His eyes seemed cloudy as he gritted his teeth in what seemed like panic. His strange behaviour was over before it really began as his breathing settled. His head then shot over to look back at Gen who had been staring up at him in confusion. "What?"

Without answering either of her questions, he instead chose to leave the room. With all the upper body strength he could muster, Coach Scott heaved his body forward using his crutches. Gen's eyes trailed after him as she muttered quietly, "What's up with him?"

Stevie, who had been sitting right next to her, watched after the man as he hobbled off. He had been avoiding them ever since they had feasted on Jackie, keeping his distance whenever he could. With a halfhearted shrug, she returned her gaze to her lap where her gift sat half finished. "He's hungry. He hasn't eaten anything in forever. Don't know why he keeps moving about though, he's just wasting energy and making the hunger worse."

Meanwhile up in the attic, Nola had been tasked with distracting Shauna. They had all wanted their gifts to be a surprise and so Shauna had been banished to the attic until further notice and everyone not wanting her to go stir crazy up there alone, had sent Nola marching up the ladder too.

The two girls had been lying down on their sleeping supplies which they had smartly decided to bring along. Shauna lay on her back, her head supported by her pillow and the blanket tugged up to her waist while Nola lay on her side, facing the Shipman girl and caressing her hand over Shauna's baby bump. Every few minutes, as though sensing that its presence was requested, the baby would press its foot against the wall of Shauna's stomach and tap against the palm of Nola's hand. It brought a smile to her lips.

"Do you want your gift now?" She then asked, tearing her eyes away from the bump and towards Shauna, who had been drinking in the sight of an oblivious to her staring Nola.

Shauna shook her head with a gentle smile. "You didn't have to make me anythin—"

She was swiftly silenced when Nola spoke once again. With a shake of the head, Nola explained, "I didn't. It's more...I don't know, a symbol of how much you mean to me." She then removed her hand from Shauna's belly before reaching around to grab something from behind her own back. "Here."

In her hand held Nola's very own version of a security blanket. The small stuffed Dalmatian puppy that she'd had with her as long as she could remember. At first she had decided to make something before figuring that nothing she could make would be as meaningful as this.

Shauna frowned immediately at the sight. "Nola, no. I can't take this. You love this dog. I mean, you took it with you on the plane."

            "I love you more." She really did. A small laugh left her lips all of a sudden. "Plus the baby's gonna need something to play with that isn't made of sticks, not that the other girls gifts won't be nice. Take it, seriously."

Shauna seemed hesitant at first. She didn't want to take this away from Nola but if she was offering then surely she didn't mind. Her lips faintly curled in appreciation while her big brown eyes peeled over at the Rilke girl. "If you're sure." She muttered as she welcomed the gift. Her eyes remained on the stuffed animal as she lowered it to her side, clutching firmly to its fur.

           She could remember the first time she'd seen it. All of those years ago, back when they were kids, just kids without any problems or worries, when she'd stepped foot inside of Nola's bedroom and clasped her gaze upon the little Dalmatian puppy sitting proudly amongst the pillows atop the bed. Once it served as a security blanket for Nola and now, it sat by Shauna's side as a gift for her baby that had been conceived in a moment of anger and sadness.

           Her frown soon returned. "Can I ask you something?" A hum of agreement from the girl beside her caused Shauna to sigh. While keeping her gaze upon the gift, her voice came out quite unsure. "If we actually get out of here, would you—would you wanna raise the baby with me cause there's no one else I'd ever want to do this with."

            "Jeff's the dad, though. As much as it kills me to say it and as much as it makes me want to throw up picturing you two together, he still would deserve to know the baby." Nola uttered honestly despite herself. She hated remembering that she'd been betrayed.

           Just as a look of dejection appeared upon Shauna's face, Nola spoke up again. "But..." a small smile formed as she reached out and tugged Shauna's head up until their eyes met. "...Yes. I would be there for you. No matter what."

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

           "WHAT IS IT?" Shauna questioned in confusion. In her hand held the small gift that had been created for her by Van. Her brows were cinched together as she spun it around curiously in an attempt to figure it out.

           "It's a changing Teepee. To catch the pee, if it's a boy." Van somewhat embarrassingly explained. Her cheeks turned rosy. "I saw one at a Party Emporium once."

Mari too looked confused. Her mouth had fallen agape as she gazed over at the gift. "I don't get it." She voiced the puzzlement she felt.

As if ready to move on, Shauna cleared her throat before sending a small smile of appreciation for the gift towards the redhead. "Uh, no yeah it's good thinking. Thanks, Van."

           There was a brief commotion from Misty and Crystal. They clapped their hands together in celebration for what seemed like themselves just before the curly haired blonde rose to her feet with a bright grin. "For my gift, I would like to perform a monologue from Steel Magnolias."

           "We turned off the machines. Drum left, he couldn't take it. Jackson left. I find it amusing. Men are supposed to be made out of steel or something." She began to dramatically exclaim. Her fists were clenched tightly in excitement down by her sides.

           "I was there when that wonderful creature drifted into my life. And I was there when she drifted out. It was the most precious moment of my life."

            Taissa stared up at the Quigley girl. Her nose was scrunched up while her brows furrowed so deeply that a large crease formed upon her forehead. "Did she really choose a scene about a dead daughter?"

           "Are you surprised?" Natalie quietly laughed.

            Nola also couldn't help but giggle despite the morbid nature of Misty's choice as she darted her gaze back and forth between the bespectacled girl and the girls that sat next to her. "Yeah, it's Misty. She doesn't think before she acts."

          Oddly enough, despite the humour they all felt towards Misty's performance at the beginning faded as they became more enthralled with each word that passed her lips. Her passion was enchanting, her raw emotion captivating. Her voice wailed throughout the cabin as tears began to fall like an avalanche down her cheeks.

          Misty's head shook back and forth as she continued to be choked up. She fixed her glasses haphazardly upon the bridge of her nose, the girl too encompassed by her own performance to care on how she looked. "No, no. It's not supposed to happen this way. I'm—I was supposed to go first. I was always supposed to go first. I don't think I can do this, I just..."

Snot and tears covered her neck. "I wanna hit somebody until they feel as bad as I do. I just—God, I wanna hit them. I wanna hit something, I wanna hit it hard!" She finished with a hard grit of her teeth.

            The joyous sound of applause reverberated off the cabins walls. Cheers left the cracked lips of the rooms inhabitants as the blonde sheepishly smiled and lowered back down in her spot next to a happy faced Crystal, who welcomed her with a celebratory hug.

After a moment, once the cheers had faded away, deciding it was her time to give over her gift, Lottie all but hopped like a bunny to her feet and held out the blanket she had made using random spare scraps of fabric that no one would be using any time soon. "So he doesn't get cold."

"Thank you, Lottie. I love it." Shauna graciously said, shooting the girl a small smile of appreciation.

Natalie, who had returned from ridding them of Jackie's body and had barely survived a dangerous encounter with a white Moose, scoffed in disbelief. "Is this supposed to be funny or something? I-I mean..."

Everyone knew what she was talking about. All day before, the group of girls had caught the briefest of glimpses at the blanket that had been sitting in Lottie's lap as she sowed in the little symbol that had been seen scattered around the woods, carved into the trunks of trees and had littered the attic floor that once housed the dead body of the cabin's owner.

Lottie was taken aback. "What? No."

This reaction from her only caused Natalie's irritation to rise more and more. She was now standing, practically glaring up at the Matthews girl as she snapped, "Then why would you put that creepy symbol on a baby blanket? Or don't you remember how we found it all round a dead guy's fucking corpse?"

The brunette looked confused. There was no harm to what she had done, after all. "Yeah, I remember, but...I think he was using it for protection."

"He died, Lottie." Natalie drawled out.

Lottie's eyes grew wide with desperation. "Just because you don't understand something doesn't mean it's evil."

"Give that!" Natalie exclaimed as she made a grab for the blanket only for her hands to be aggressively batted away by Mari, who pushed the blanket back into Shauna's lap while glaring over at the blonde and saying, "No, Shauna don't. It was a gift."

Wanting to perhaps be the voice of reason in the situation and wanting to calm Natalie down, Misty stepped forward as her arms folded tightly across her chest. "We still don't know exactly what it is."

"And doesn't her baby deserve protection?"

Mari felt the need to continue. "Well, I trust Lottie."

This only caused Natalie to snicker mockingly at the girl. She swung her hands up in the air as she sarcastically bellowed, "Oh, yeah. News flash!"

"So do I." Misty defensively stated, the young girl not wanting to be seen as defacing Lottie and everything she had done for them.

Akilah nodded in agreement. "Me too. She knows things, we've all seen it."

Taissa couldn't help it. "She's not God, you guys." As her voice leapt past her cracked, weathered lips, her brows furrowed with distaste. She hated how they all treated Lottie like the second coming of Jesus Christ.

"No one is saying she is." Van tiredly breathed out. Her fingers pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. Though she hadn't verbally said it, she had found great solace in Lottie and her prayers, whether they did anything or not.

Suddenly, concern overtook control of Misty's face. "Oh my god, Shauna." She worriedly muttered as she started to lean down towards the pregnant girl who had been sitting and watching as the rest of the group fought amongst themselves. Seemingly, unbeknown to the Shipman girl, blood had started to seep from her nose, trickling down her Philtrum and making it's way towards her lips.

Everyone went into worried mode. They hustled closer to the bleeding Shauna as Taissa dove into action and began pressing a handkerchief like fabric up to Shauna's nose to halt the flow.

The sound of rustling from outside caught Nola's attention. It was loud, thunderous in her ears. Her lips formed into a frown at an instant as she stepped away from the bleeding girl and darted her gaze over towards the frosted windows. "There's something outside." She wasn't sure what exactly it was, but whatever it was, it was coming closer, making it's way towards them at a rapid pace.

            And then...Bang!

           Fearful gasps filled the room as everyone jumped from the sudden burst of sound. Their shoulders shook as their breathing grew more intense and their eyes grew wide. What was once only a single crash turned into a rapid series of banging as something, the very thing Nola had heard only moments ago, plowed into the cabin. "What the fuck is that?"

          Slowly and one-by-one, they all cautiously shuffled outside into the snow where they were greeted by the awful sight of a flock of dead birds littered atop the blanket of white. Their little bodies had impressed deep into the snow just after they had slammed hard against the cabin's exterior.

"Holy crap. Did these guys just suicide on our roof?"

"Don't touch them, they might be diseased." Natalie instructed the lot once her eyes landed upon Mari who was approaching one of the bird corpses.

Misty's mind went deep into trying to find some plausible explanation for what had just happened. "We know that there's a lot of iron in the ground, so maybe that messed with the bird's navigation."

          Lottie took in the sight before her. To her, this was a gift that had practically fallen into their lap. They had been hungry for so long and now they were being given the opportunity to satiate said hunger. "We should gather its blessings."

           There was some hesitancy at first. Many of them didn't wish to even graze a single finger along the dead bird bodies but their belief in Lottie had become so much stronger than their own internal unease. Soon the girls who had come to trust the Matthews girl began to shuffle forward and pick up the birds, body by body before laying them at Lottie's feet.

           "Let's get you back inside. It's not healthy for you to stay out here." Nola quietly muttered to the Shipman girl who stood next to her. She reached out and grabbed hold of the now nosebleed free Shauna before steering her away from the birds and towards the cabin. "Come on, Shauna."

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

author's thoughts.
chapter thirty-two. not proofread.
so i thought the little gift was a cute idea. i didn't know right away what i wanted nola to give shauna for the baby especially since we all know what happens but then i landed on the stuffed puppy and knew how meaningful it would be receive something like that. anyway i hoped you enjoyed :)

also I'm gonna need people to stop being ghost readers. it's very disconcerting when I'm putting all this effort into writing and I only get a few comments. I want to know you like the chapter, what you liked about it, whether you find my ocs interesting or if they're annoying. Please comment and motivate me cause I'm losing interest quickly. :)