Shooting Stars and Satellites

A few minutes passed before I was able to drag myself away from Gavin's body, and walk to the car. There was an atrocious pain in my lower region, nearly numbing my legs. I clamped my eyes shut with each step, trying to trick my mind into focusing on everything but the pain. Once I reached the car, I sat down, a scream immediately leaving my mouth. The numbing pain became worse, and I threw my head back, tears cascading down my cheeks. With a shaky hand, I reached for my phone in the backseat. I wrapped my fingers around it, bringing it to my face. I dialed my brother's number, desperately hoping he'd answer.

"Alaska, do you have any idea how fucking much you owe me?!" he practically yelled. I couldn't talk just yet; the only sounds leaving my mouth were sobs. "Alaska, what's wrong?!" he asked, alarmed.

"K - Ke - Kenny," I breathed.

"Alaska, please tell me what's wrong! Did something happen? Did you and Gavin get in a fight?!"

I sniffled, placing my left hand on the steering wheel, gripping it as tight as I could. "He's dead, Kenny. Gavin's dead," I whispered, immediately wanting to throw up as the words left my mouth.

"Wh - what? What do you mean dead?!" I could only cry, breathing heavy. "Alaska, where are you?!"

I looked around, trying to find a sign of any sort. "I don't know, Kenny. I don't know, but I need you to be here! I - I feel like I can't breathe."

I could hear shuffling on his end of the line. "Talk to me, okay? Just keep talking and I'll find you. John and the guys are coming with me." I listened as the sound of doors slamming rang through my ears. "Do you remember which direction you and Gavin went when you left?"

"Right ... We went right," I told him.

"And after that?"

I leaned my head against the headrest, trying to remember the directions Gavin and I had taken. "I - I don't remember."

He sighed. "Is Gavin around? Maybe he'll remember."

I clenched my jaw, feeling fury pulse through my veins. "Did you not fucking hear me the first goddamn time, Kennedy?! He's dead! D-E-A-D!"

He was silent for a moment. "You're serious ... Oh, my God, Alaska! What happened?! Did you get into a wreck?!"

I shook my head, forgetting he couldn't see. "Th - these guys were following us. Gavin asked me to stay in the car while he went to talk to them, but I couldn't do that, Kenny! They were hitting him and I wasn't just going to fucking sit back and not do anything!" I slammed my hand against the wheel. "They shot him! They shot him right in front of my fucking eyes, Kennedy!" I began crying hysterically, not even being able to breathe. "I saw them shoot him!" I repeated.

"Alaska ... I'm so, so sorry," he whispered.

I wiped my eyes. "They just left him there ... They threw his body into the bushes and left him, Kenny. Gavin didn't deserve that! I don't care what you thought of him, Kennedy, he didn't deserve that!"

"He didn't deserve that, Alaska. No one does," he said.

"Ask her if Clime Road sounds familiar," I heard John ask in the background.

The name rung a bell in my head. "Clime Road does sound familiar," I told Kenny.

"She says it sounds familiar ... 'Laska, do you remember passing an open field?"

"Yes," I whispered.

He told John my answer and it became quiet on the line. "Alaska, are you okay?"

"No."

"Wait, I think - Oh, my God ..."

I heard the dial tone and stared at my phone, wondering if I had lost signal. However, not even five seconds later, I heard yelling and shouting. I turned around, seeing my brother, Garrett, John, Pat and Jared running towards the car - towards me. I extended my arm out, and began yelling. "Don't! Don't come over here!"

I heard their footfalls become silent. "Alaska, what the fuck is going on?!" my brother shouted.

I sucked in a breath of air, shaking my head. "Go get Gavin! Please! Just get him from the bushes!"

"Are you-"

"I'm sure, Kenny! Please! Just get him out!"

I heard their footsteps resume, and I looked down at my lap, seeing the blood run down my legs. I placed my hand on my abdomen, trying to get cut the flow off, but it wasn't working.

"Dove?"

I gasped, looking up. "Don't, John! I fucking mean it! Don't come near me!"

"Kennedy asked me," he said. A second later, he came into sight and I held my arms over my chest, looking down in shame. John gasped loudly, before crouching down. "God, Alaska, look at you!" he said, stunned.

"I'll be fine," I told him.

He shook his head, placing his hand on my knee. "You're bleeding so much." He took a scarf from his pocket, attempting to wipe the liquid away, but it was a constant flow - it wasn't stopping. "Where are you-" he stopped talking and looked at me, his eyes as big as saucers. I could see his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. "Did - did they touch you?" I looked away, pressing my lips into a straight line, attempting not to cry. He placed a finger under my chin, making me look him in the eyes. "Did they rape you, Dove?" he asked, his voice barely coming out above a whisper.

I nodded my head, feeling fresh fears roll down my cheeks. "They - they took me in the forest," was all I got out before I began breaking down. John pulled me into his arms, holding me tight.

"I'm so sorry, Dove," he said, rubbing circles on my back. "I'm so, so sorry."

"They took him from me, John."

"They won't get away with it, Alaska. I promise they won't." He stood up and pulled the black Henley shirt he was wearing off, handing it to me. "Put this on while I go get Kenny and the guys, okay?"

I nodded my head and watched him walk off. I carefully slid the shirt on, trying not to cause any more pain to myself. I had barely gotten the shirt over me, when I heard footsteps running towards me. I looked up and saw it was Kennedy; the paleness of his face let me know that John had told him what happened to me.

“Alaska,” he said, tears collecting in his eyes. He wrapped his arms around me, and I cried into his shoulder.

“Ken, Jared’s calling an ambulance,” Garrett informed us.

He nodded his head. “Could you just give us a minute, Garrett?”

“Yeah, of course.” He walked away and Kennedy looked at me.

“I’m sorry they hurt you, Alaska. God, I’m so sorry,” he told me.

“It’s not your fault, Kenny.”

He sighed and wiped his eyes. “I could kill those bastards for doing this to you.”

“That wouldn’t get you anywhere but in jail.”

“I don’t give a shit. No one messes with my sister and gets away with it,” he mumbled.

I tried to give him a smile. “Thanks, Kenny.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, placing a kiss on my forehead. “We, um … we got Gavin from the bushes … There was a lot of blood.”

I nodded my head, trying to stop the trembling of my bottom lip. “There’s not a chance they can save him, is there?”

He sighed, shaking his head. “I’m afraid not, ‘Laska.”

We sat in silence for another five minutes, until the siren of an ambulance sounded. Kenny stood up, and looked at me. “Can you walk?”

“Barely,” I admitted.

He nodded his head, and reached one arm behind my knees, while placing the other on my back. He lifted me up and carried me to the ambulance.

“Where’s the young man?” one paramedic asked.

“I’ll show them,” Jared stated, gesturing for the pair of paramedics to follow him.

“What happened to Alaska?” Pat asked, coming beside Kennedy and I.

Kenny looked at me and I avoided meeting his gaze. “She just got hurt, Pat.”

He frowned and placed his hand over mind. “I’m sorry, ‘Laska.”

“It’s okay, Patty.”

He smiled. “I’ll buy you a new bag of Sour Patches, okay?”

I nodded my head, trying to smile. “Thank you,” I whispered. I saw John standing near the doors of the ambulance with his hands stuffed deep in his pockets, avoiding looking at me.

Two police cars pulled up, and that’s when I realized the full extent of this situation – it wasn’t going to go away for a long time. Gavin was murdered and I was raped. The police were going to get involved and if they caught the guys who did it, I would most likely have to go to court and fight them; make sure the fuckers got what they deserved.

But, more than anything, the pain from Gavin’s death wasn’t going to go away. I just knew it wasn’t.

__________________________________________________________

“Alaska?” I heard a soft voice call my name. “Alaska,” they called again. My eyelids fluttered open and I saw a middle-aged woman hovering over me. She smiled when she saw I was awake. “How’re you feeling?”

I glanced at my surroundings, noticing I was in a hospital room. I looked back at the woman, seeing she was waiting for me to answer. “I … don’t know.”

“Well, I’m Dr. Morrissey and you’re at Phoenix Baptist Hospital. Do you know why you’re here?”

I looked into her grey eyes. “I was raped.”

She nodded her head. “You suffered from third degree vaginal tears, Alaska.”

I blinked, feeling a rush enter my body. “Wh – where’s my brother?”

“He’s out in the waiting room, along with the rest of your family and friends. They’ve been here all night,” she told me.

“All night?”

“You passed out on the way to the hospital, and we had to do a blood transfusion. The cast on your arm was also broken, and we had to restructure the bones, along with putting on a new cast.” I swallowed, wondering just how much my body had been put through. “We also had to stitch the tears close. We’ve applied some medication to the lacerations, and you’ve been receiving Vicodin through your IV to help with the pain. Are you experiencing any pain right now?” she asked.

I shook my head. “I – I don’t think so,” I told her.

She smiled. “Well, that’s good. We want you in the least amount of pain as possible.” She checked my monitors before looking back at me. “Everything is looking just fine, Alaska. You should be able to leave by this afternoon, in fact.”

“What time is it right now?”

She glanced at the black watch on her wrist. “Ten-fifteen.”

“Can I see my family now?”

She nodded her head. “Of course. I’ll go get them,” she told me, before leaving the room.

I swallowed the lump that was in my throat, and tried to mentally prepare myself for seeing my parents – for them having to see me like this. My parents were the first to enter, followed by Kennedy.

“Oh, baby!” my mom cried, before running to my bed, wrapping her arms around me.

I hugged her back, trying to hold in my own tears. “I’m so sorry, mom.”

“You have nothing to apologize for, Alaska. I’m just so glad that you’re okay, honey,” she told me, holding my hand tightly in hers.

My father hugged me as well, and I could see his eyes were red. “How’re you, ‘Laska?”

“I think I’m okay,” I told him.

He smiled. “I knew my babygirl was a fighter.”

I smiled and looked at Kennedy. “I don’t get a hug from you?”

He gave me a sad smile and wrapped his arms around me. “I was so worried,” he whispered.

“Don’t worry about me, Kenny. I’m fine,” I told him.

“Are you hungry? I’m sure we could talk to Dr. Morrissey and have them release you early,” my mother said.

I shook my head. “I’m actually not hungry.” I looked around the room, before glancing at Kenny. “Where’s Gavin?” His eyes went wide and he looked at my parents, who stared back at me. “What?” I asked, confused by the sudden tension in the room.

“A – Alaska, don’t you remember last night?” I nodded my head. He grabbed my hand and looked me in the eyes. “Then you remember that Gavin was … killed?”

My whole body went stiff. I pulled my hand away from his as everything came flooding back to my mind. The fight – the gunshots – Gavin’s dead body lying in the bushes. I began shaking involuntarily and my mom wrapped her arms around me, cooing words into my ear. But it wasn’t helping. My heart plunged to my feet, and I felt the warm tears running down my cheeks. “C – can I go home?”

My father nodded his head. “Of course you can, Alaska. I’ll go talk to the doctor, okay?” I didn’t move or say anything as I watched him walk out of the room.

Kennedy looked at me and sighed. “It’s-“

I shook my head. “Don’t say it, because it’s not going to be okay.”

Nothing would be okay. The boy who’d held my heart for so long, the boy who never ceased to make me laugh or smile, the boy who made me feel on top of the world was gone; never to come back. How could anything be okay?