༺ FIFTY - THREE ༻

"We're way too early," Chuck announces once we've arrived in the hospital. "But I guess that's good. I've got to give Thomas this anyways." He holds up his wooden figure. "I'm pretty sure he has hockey now."

"You can go," I tell him. "I'll wait here. Thomas and I aren't in the best... situation right now."

"Alright. I'll be back!"

It only takes a minute for Chuck to return.

Running.

"He's not there," he says, panting.

"Oh. Well, no need to panic about th—"

"But blood was."

I stare at the kid for what feels like forever, then my eyes start to widen. "What?"

"On the rink! Blood!" He pulls my arm. "Maybe he fell and is having a panic attack! Hurry, hurry."

We make our way to the rink as fast as possible. No one is there. Spats of blood indeed are on the ice. Worried, I check the changing room as Chuck inspects everything around the ring, but there's no sign of anything.

"Wait!" He stops me from walking further. "Here. Look."

On the ground, there's more blood.

Did he manage to get sliced up again? God.

"Follow it," I decide, and so we do.

Sometimes, there's a few feet without blood, then we can see the hints of red in the wood, leading all the way to the stairs.

The ballet attic. Janson might be there, too.

"Stay here," I tell him.

Of course, he doesn't obey and quietly follows me. I notice halfway up the stairs, sigh, and continue walking.

"Shh." I hold my fingers on my lips when the voices are starting to get clearer. We stop walking in the tiny hallway, only a few feet away from the door that leads to the ballet room.

"I've done what you want." That's Thomas's voice. Desperate and pleading. "I've done all of it. So stop this, Janson."

"You stole a serum, and there's another file we need. Give. Them."

"I've given you all the files I have!" There's a cry. It belongs to Thomas, too. "I've obeyed to everything you told me to do!"

"You were using me," an unknown voice. A young one.

"Gally—"

"You texted me only to take the serums over."

"What? No! I was trying to destroy them. Gally, don't listen to this—" Something, or someone, falls. Thomas groans, so I suppose it was him.

"Go back down," I tell Chuck, whispering. "Call an adult to help."

His eyes are big. Almost watery. "I can't leave Thomas alone."

Then, there's a thud. "Janson!" Thomas calls out. "You promised that if I— if I obey, you'd get her safe. I've done it."

"Yes," Janson says. "So I made her safe. But then you show up and start yelling that it's not okay."

"You took the fucking role from her! Of course I can't accept that! You call that keeping someone safe?"

Chuck and I share a glance as a bad feelings floods into my stomach. I should move. Do something, but I can't. I'm frozen in my place.

"You showed up yelling at me for it," Janson says calmly.

"Yes!" He cries out. "That was all I did, and you already decide to ruin my stomach!"

The dots are connecting. Thomas already knew I would no longer dance for Clara. He knew it before me, went up to Janson, who then hurt him.

"Gally, don't get yourself brainwashed," Thomas says. "You're—" He gets cut off by something that sounds like a punch. Do something.

"Janson!" Thomas repeats. "Listen, alright? I'll give up trying to stop you. I won't speak another word about it with anyone. Just stop."

I finally unfreeze, and so does Chuck. Before I even realize it, we've both entered the attic at the same time. Just like that, we both freeze again.

Thomas is on the ground. He's coughing, bruises all over his arms and wounds on his face. The bandages on his stomach are gone and he's bleeding onto the floor.

Janson is standing in front of him, a gun in his hands. A bloody gun. And then there's a boy who I assume is Gally, standing in the corner.

"Oh, no! No, no, no." Even in his state, Thomas gets up and jumps in front of us. "Chuck, Rose, get the hell out of here."

I think my heart just stopped beating for a second. "What— Thomas, what's going on?!"

"Get away," he tells us. "Go."

"Why does he have a—" I flinch when Janson makes the slightest movement. My arm reaches for Chuck, who's behind both Thomas and I now.

"Go ahead then." Janson gives him a smile that's rather evil. "Tell her what a weakling you are."

"Rose, get away," he hisses.

"Not without you now," I tell him. "He's not really going to shoot, right?"

"He's ready to do it," Thomas murmurs. "So go."

"But you—"

"Explain, then," Janson repeats. He moves the gun to Gally. "Or maybe I'll get him."

"No!" Thomas jumps forward. In an attempt to get the gun out of Janson's hands, he pushes the man, who's not too fazed and due to Thomas's injuries can easily get the boy on the ground.

"Stop!" I cry. Janson has his foot between Thomas's shoulder blades, anger consuming in his face. "Let him go." It probably won't work, but always worth a try.

"Oh, don't worry." Janson chuckles. "This isn't the first time Thomas and I have a lovely meeting, is it, Thomas? I'm sure he's used to it by now."

Confused, my eyes flash from Thomas to Janson. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"This piece of shit," I think Janson pushes his shoe further into Thomas's back, because he groans, "was dumb enough to show up every time I asked him to."

Never mind. If I ever want an explanation, it's gonna be from Thomas. Not this man, who's currently planning to kill him.

"Chuck, go." I squeeze the boy's hand, then walk up to Janson and Thomas. "What do I have to do to stop you?" I plead.

Janson laughs. "There's nothing anyone can do. This boy deserves straight death." He removes his shoe and roughly pulls Thomas off the ground by his shirt. Blood is still dropping from his cheek, there's abrasions on his arms, and bruises that have already turned yellow.

Meaning they indeed have been there for a while. But there's also fresh ones... and I'm starting to wonder what exactly Janson meant with 'lovely meeting'.

And if Thomas has been constantly busy since a week before our breakup, how long has this been going on for?

I've definitely been too harsh.

"Gally." Janson makes a movement with his hand toward it. Before I can even move, my hands are twisted behind my back and I can't move at all.

I thought this Gally was supposed to be nice.

"What about that one?" The boy behind me asks. He probably means Chuck, who's got tears dreaming down his cheeks, his eyes big from fear and bottom lip shaking.

"He won't even dare to make a move, will you, Chuck?" Janson takes a step back. I don't know why, but Thomas doesn't flee. He just stands there, accepting his faith.

"No!" But Gally is holding me too tightly to jump forward when Janson's finger moves to the trigger. The screams leaving my mouth are the only things I can do to get help.

Tears and tears and tears flood, while Janson still hasn't moved anything else. When he does, it all happens very fast.

Chuck bumps into Gally and I when he runs forward, so Gally loses control and I'm able to free myself. Both Thomas and Chuck fall to the ground as the gun fires, and I gasp.

Please let them have fallen before Janson hit anyone.

A few seconds of complete silence, then a whimper. It's Thomas, and he sits straight up. "Chuck?" He he stares at his cousin, another cry leaving his mouth.

It's there. A red stain forming on Chuck's shirt.

And then again, it happens fast. Thomas gets so angry that he manages to get Janson on the ground before the man can even resist, and starts throwing out millions of punches.

"Chuck." I kneel down besides him. My chest tightening; I have no idea how to help him but to call an ambulance. So I do that. Take my phone out of the bag I dropped at the door, and make the call as fast as I can. They tell me not to hang up, but I'm too panicked to realize and just throw the device on the ground after they said they're on their way.

"Chuck, hold on." I press my hands on his chest to stop all the blood. Soon, my hands are covered in it. So. Much. Blood. "Keep breathing. Help will be here soon, okay?"

He whimpers in pain. More tears fall from his eyes, and it breaks my heart. "I didn't give it to Thomas yet." With shaking hands, he takes the figure out of his pocket. "Will you keep it— keep it for him in case I... I don't make it?" 

I take the figure, my own tears dropping, but shake my head. "You'll make it, Chuck. You're strong."

"M-maybe we should talk to the one on the phone," he stammers. "Mommy's a nurse, you know? Reminds me— it'll remind me of her."

I nod. Take the phone, immediately covering it with blood. "What do I do?" I beg. "I don't know what to—"

"Press against the wound. Try to wrap a cloth around it. Anything for pressure," the one on the other side tells me.

Sobs leave my mouth as I do so. "Hang on," I keep telling him. I don't know what's happening behind me, but I do know that if Chuck dies, Thomas will be devastated.

After what feels like forever, I hear the sirens of the ambulance. Chuck's breaths have began to slow down, and his eyes are closing, but I tell him to hang on again. That he'll make it.

Then people rush inside the room. Chuck is pulled away from me, leaving me with bloody hands and a pool of redness in front of my eyes. Behind me, there's blurred out yelling and sounds of things falling.

"Kid, come on." I'm getting pulled up. I look over my shoulder, where a man is holding an even bloodier Thomas and a now also bloody Janson, while Gally seems completely frozen.

Then the sight of the attic disappears and I'm brought away.