5. Leksi's Hospital Trip

Final high school picture, I think…

Base: [link]

First day of senior year. The beginning of the end. Leksi felt almost giddy as he packed his things into his backpack. It didn’t matter that the letters had started coming to his house, nor did it matter that he was hiding them from Lamai. One hundred ninety-seven more days until it was over.

Despite his desperate searching, he hadn’t been able to hunt down whoever was sending him the messages. The latest one had been a comment on his MySpace, but once he tracked down the IP address, it turned out to be a computer in a public library.

He raced down the stairs three steps at a time, eager to be on his run. He’d shower and change at the school, of course. A good run to wake him up, coupled with a breakfast sandwich, would be a perfect start to his morning. He left the house, had to double back to give his mother a kiss, and started the five-mile run to the school.

Though his heart was pounding by the end of mile three, the teen felt relaxed. His music kept a steady beat in his ears, and his footsteps matched it. Checking his watch, he affirmed that he would be at the school an hour early, plenty of time to clean up.

Miss Wilkins called out to him from her porch, and despite the fact that he couldn’t quite hear her, he waved. The alarmed look on her face made him stop. Yanking his earbuds out of his ears, he started to speak, but…

But there was a pressure, a force pressing itself up under his shoulder blade. Leksi registered the tip of a blade before the pain blossomed, icy fire deep within his muscles. He struggled to pull away, a faint shout on his lips, but an arm wrapped around his neck. The hot blood rolled down his back, and he fell to his knees as the knife was twisted.

“You’re scum,” a voice growled. “Your noose is in my pocket, you slime.”

Gripping Miss Wilkins’ fence with one hand, he managed to drag himself forward. Leksi felt the arm around his neck tighten, cutting off his air, forcing his hold to slacken. His vision blurred and went black. “Miss Wilkin’s…get…get in…the h-house…”

The pressure on his neck disappeared for mere moments, and he gasped. The precious oxygen was stolen away again as rough rope slipped around his neck. It was pulled tight, and Leksi felt terror constrict his heart. His attacker slammed his head into the pavement, and he felt the blood drip into his eyes.

Escape. It was impossible, but he struggled anyway. The knife dug deeper, until he could feel the handle. His face was smashed into the sidewalk again, something sharp cutting into his skin. Pain, dizzying pain, shot from is skull and down his spine. It was too much, and Leksi knew his wasn’t going to survive.

But damn it if he was going to stay here and let it happen. His hands found purchase on the ground, and he shoved up with all his might. His assailant managed to catch his balance, though that was difficult to discern through his failing vision, and he crashed down again. The noose tightened even further, and as Leksi coughed, he tasted blood.

The knife was destroying him, driving him crazy. He would almost welcome death, just to make it disappear. Whoever held the noose heaved it upwards, and Leksi was forced to a sitting position. Another heave, and the world disappeared.

***

Lamai felt her spirits fall when she realized Leksi wasn’t waiting for her by the office. She hadn’t seen him in over two months, and she was dying to talk to him. Most importantly, she wanted to make sure he hadn’t kissed anyone else while he was in Peru, and then remind him why he didn’t with a kiss of her own.

Disappointed, she found her locker assignment and put her things away. Then she walked to her scheduled first period classroom. She had just walked in the door when Cryssie grabbed hold of her arm, a wide, panicked look in her eyes.

“Lamai, it’s awful. Someone was beaten on Miss Wilkin’s street. He’s being rushed to the hospital right now!”

“But that’s the road Leksi runs to get to school…” Without another word, Lamai squeezed Cryssie’s hand and left. She was sure her friend would come up with an excuse for the teacher, but that was still the least of her worries. Her hands shook as she struggled to unlock her car. “Leksi…Oh, God, Leksi, be okay.”

The drive was nerve-racking. Finally, though, she caught up with the ambulance and followed it to the hospital. She was out of the car almost before it was parked. “lease, Leksi…” She stumbled when she met the paramedics, let tears fall when they refused to look at her, and fell into a chair when she saw Leksi’s battered body.

He was gone again, much too quickly. There was blood…so much blood…Impossible as it sounded, Leksi seemed…ale. His left arm appeared to be…off, wrong, somehow. And his neck…rope was strung around his neck, the knot just getting loosened.

What if he didn’t come back? What if she…What if she lost him?

Because she couldn’t bear the thought, she curled up in the chair and waited. Because she couldn’t stand the thought, she curled up in the chair and sobbed.

***

The lights were much too bright when he opened his eyes. He barely registered the cast on his arm, didn’t notice the bandages covering his torso. His first and only thought was that the lights were murderous.

Then reality struck him again, and he was straining to sit up. Torturous agony forced him to stop almost instantly. He tried to speak but couldn’t. Instead, he took the time to examine his surroundings.

White walls, blue sheets. Metal bed frame, with a clipboard at the end. Hospital. Miss Wilkins must have called the hospital after the attacker left. But why would he leave…? Unless…But that was ridiculous. Whoever it was must have chickened out, plain and simple.

But then Miss Wilkins walked in, her very presence disproved his theory. Her white, wispy hair battled against the bun she wore it in when she gardened. “You’re sure it’s okay for me to be in here?” she whispered. “His parents haven’t even gotten here yet.”

The nurse nodded. “It’s fine. You did call us, remember? Go ahead and sit with him.”

The old woman pulled up a chair next to him and peered at him with her mottled eyes. “Good Lord, boy, is there a part of you that he didn’t hit?” Her fragile fingers traced his cheek as she fluffed his pillow as a mother would for an ill child. She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth several times. “Oh, you poor thing.”

“Missss…M-miss…” His throat was too sore, too dry, and he slammed his fist against the bed in his frustration.

“Hush, dear,” she soothed. The widow carefully lifted his head and gave him some water, which helped immensely. Then she sat down, once again clicking her tongue. “That man….quite a mouth on him, let me tell you. I wish I could say I got my gun quickly enough to help you, but that’s obviously a lie.”

“G-gun? You have a….have a gun?”

Nodding, Miss Wilkins crossed her legs and scooted her chair closer. “My late husband made me promise I’d keep it. It was even left loaded. I didn’t manage to hit him, but I did scare him off.”

His head hurt. He couldn’t think straight. The light was too bright. The bandages were too tight. “Lamai? Where is sh-she?” he managed.

“Relax, dear. Everything will be okay.” She sighed, straightening her shirt as she leaned back in her chair. The woman looked exhausted, and Leksi couldn’t blame her. It had been an eventful morning. “I called the police as soon as that awful man ran off. Your parents should be here soon.”

“But Lamai?”

“I haven’t seen her in weeks…when her mother was bringing me a bit of cake. She’s so thoughtful, dear…”

Leksi groaned inwardly. There was no way for him to find anything out from Miss Wilkins. Instead of trying to pry anything out of her, he forced himself to relax and wait for news.

***

Lamai spent an hour convincing a nurse to tell her where Leksi was. Finally, oh, finally, she was able to track down his room. She found him with Miss Wilkins sitting next to his bed. His eyes were closed, with that sharp twitch he got when he was fed up.

Unable to contain herself, she ran into the room and took one of his hands. She dropped it when he winced and was beside herself. “What happened, Leksi? Oh, God…Someone said that there was a patient dying, and I was so scared it was you, and…”

“Lamai…” he croaked. “-please, stop crying.”

Though she nodded, it took her a full fifteen minutes and soft encouragement from Miss Wilkins to calm herself down. “What happened?” she repeated. She wanted to be held, wanted it more than she wanted to breathe. She wanted life to stop and return to simpler times. She wanted to scream.

Instead, she waited for an answer.

“Someone attacked him while he was running,” Miss Wilkins told her. Lamai wished she could tell the older woman to shut up, to let Leksi speak, but she only nodded. “I shot my gun at him and missed. He ran off. The doctors told us that with plenty of physical therapy he shouldn’t be hindered too much.”

“What does ‘too much’ mean?”

“No one will know until it’s fully healed, dear. They haven’t had someone come in with a stab wound at quite that angle before.” Miss Wilkins stood, smiling in reassurance. “Why don’t I leave you two alone?”

Though she knew she seemed ungrateful, Lamai only nodded. She slouched into her chair when the woman was out of sight. “Will you turn those letters into the police now?” she pleaded. She hated how exhausted she sounded, but she was. Emotionally exhausted, wrung out.

Leksi nodded. “Have to, d-d-don’t I?”

“You should want to, Leksi. You should want to know who did this to you, and that he can’t do it to you or anyone else again.” The tears fell again, but for an entirely different reason. He didn’t understand. When the police had investigated the locker incident, he seemed to shrug it off. Everything he just shrugged off… “I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want to.”

She watched him look away and wanted to die. “Why won’t you listen to me? Do you even realize how hard this is on me? I don’t want to lose you, Leksi! I love you too much.”

“I…know.” He looked at her again, a thin smile on his face. “I love…love you, too. Turning in th-those letters, though…”

She helped him drink water after he finished his coughing fit then waited. He sighed. “Th-they mean I’m…l-less. Inferior.”

“They mean there are cruel people in the world willing to hurt you.” She paused, unwilling to say what she knew would work. “Willing to hurt me.”

His eyes went wide as he struggled to find something to say. Instead, he simply held out his hand to her. He winced when she took it but refused to let go. “I’ll turn them i-in. I promise.”