"Hello," I Lied.

Jack

I've been sitting here for over an hour. They took away my dad, and I haven't heard any new. He was still alive before they strapped him into the stretcher, speeding away to the hospital. Kyle wasn't really badly hurt, the bullet just grazed his upper arm, but the shock of everything made him pass out.

When they tried to check me over for injury, I had screamed and panicked, freaking out a little. They had to hold me down until I could become calm enough to realize there was nothing I could do; I couldn't just storm into the bathroom and grab Nate away from the killer.

"Son," The policeman in charge of negotiation's voice tore me away from the sight of the blinded window, AKA the bathroom. "I think it would be best if you got out of here for awhile. You're not hurt, and we've got this under control." I open my mouth instantly to argue, but he cuts me off. "I understand that you're worried, but we want to avoid any casualties."

I sigh and turn around, pushing past the cops who let me out without so much as a glance. I hit sunlight and hissed. It's too bright, like the world didn't even need to aknoledge the fact of what just happened in there. The police had taped off the street, trying to not only keep the public away, but the media also. It didn't help. Pushing through a group of people surrounding Kyle, I try to ignore the flashes of cameras in my face.

"Hey," I said, trying to hold myself back from punching the guy with the microphone, whose pretty much shoving it into our faces. "I'm sorry, you know..?" I feel bad for him as he lets out a shakey sigh, wrapping his arms around his torso. Nodding, he motions for me to follow him as he walks away from the crowd.

Walking, I really want to say something as the silence grows awkward. I wonder briefly how my dad is doing, trying not to accept the fact that there's a good chance he's already dead. I never got to say goodbye..I never got to tell him, that even though he disapointed me a lot, I still love him. Ashleigh had never got to tell him he's going to be a grandfather. Shivering, I hope that I'm just being melodramatic.

Stopping near someone's mailbox, I note that no one else is around to blurt out blunt questions about what happened in Nate and Kyle's own bedroom. Staring at Kyle, we stand there for a few moments before letting out shaky laughs. I feel slightly bad for laughing in light of the situation, but the fear kind of spills out, and it feels good to do something.

"So," I start out after a few moments of gaining composure, the silence creeping back over us. "What do you want to do?" I really want to just..do something, anything to get Nate back. While everyone else is fine (mostly), Nate's still stuck in that situation, and it seems wrong that we're not doing everything we can to save him. He's still in danger.

He must be thinking along the same lines as me, because he looks towards the house and wads of people and police cars, face darkening. "I have to know what's going on." So we walk briskly back toward the jumble, stepping up to the first policeman we see who looks like he knows what he's doing.

"What's going on?" I ask bluntly as the cop who had told me to leave earlier makes his way over to us.

"The situation is under contr-"

"In details. Now. We deserve to know." Silence, as a glaring battle ensues. Finally, a look of defeat passes over the cops face as he relents.

"Okay, well, the man inside is frustrated because we can't give him what he wants at the moment. He's demanding that another man going to prison for manslaughter be released and all charges dropped. We obviously can't do that unless he's proven innocent."

I nod, taking this all in as he continues. "The negotiation is going nowhere, and now he's threatening Mr. Rivers. The desperation is getting obvious and we're stuck for now."

Suddenly a gunshot rings out through the house, followed with a loud thump. It seems like a frenzy ensues as men in uniform rush past me, bellowing orders and rushing through the door. I stare at the window to the bathroom, feeling as if someone had taken my heart, holding it above a fireplace, threatening to drop it. "Nate.." I whisper.