Dirt

The next time I woke up I was in a hospital room with Erin and Jessi by my bedside. I smiled once my eyes focused enough to see clearly that I was safe and with two of my favorite people in the world. They didn't notice me at first since they were looking at each other, talking quietly.

"Bitches," I mumbled. They both jumped. "Quit talking about me while I'm asleep."

The both reached down at the same time and hugged me gently. I was bombarded by the both of them telling me how glad they were that I was okay, and how worried they were about me. I just smiled at them. "Did you really do the things Matt says you did?" Erin asked me. I was confused as to what she was talking about, and told her so. "Matt says you broke your own thumb with a hammer, so you could slip the handcuff and escape. Is that true?" I nodded at her.

"You are my spirit animal," Jessi said in all seriousness.

"Ow," I told her as I started to laugh. "Don't make me laugh. It hurts my head." They both smiled down at me, clearly relieved that I was okay. I was glad that they were there. It made me feel good that at least there were people in my life that I could trust. Speaking of which, "Where's my dad?"

"Yeah, he's outside, chasing the doctor down, trying to get everyone to stay past visiting hours. We were allowed to stay last night, but I don't think they'll let us stay tonight," Erin explained.

"Wait, I've been here two days? Asleep?"

"Well, you woke up here and there, but you weren't really lucid," Jessi said with a laugh. "There was that one time you woke up to tell us all that dogs were people too, the time you yelled out that the devil is a dick, and at one point you told us that you hate Matt. Why do you hate Matt? He's here, you know. He hasn't left the waiting room since they released him yesterday."

I shook my head. "I don't want to see him." They both gave me confused looks. "Okay, I have to tell you both something, but...this is take this to your grave serious." I hesitated. Both of them were nodding and encouraging me to continue. "Matt was paid to get close to me so he could spy on me and Pop. David Black paid him."

Erin's eyes grew exponentially in size, while Jessi's face darkened. "I'm gonna fucking murder him," she said lowly.

"But..." I could see that Erin couldn't wrap her brain around it. "I don't understand. He told you he loved you. You guys seemed like a real couple. Was everything a lie? I'm so confused. You met his parents for fuck's sake!"

I shrugged. "I don't know what to tell you. I'm just as confused about the whole thing as you are. But there's more. I...I'm kinda scared to tell you guys this. I don't want Pop to know about that part. Matt saved my life, and I don't want him to get out of one hellish situation just to jump into another. So, if you could just not say anything to Pop, I'd appreciate it."

They both promised not to say anything. "So, what do you want to do about Matt?" Jessi asked me.

"I'm not sure. I think I want to leave, you guys."

"Okay," Erin smiled, "as soon as you get released, we'll take you home."

I shook my head. "No, I mean...I think I want to move. I want to go somewhere else. To be completely honest, I can't trust Matt, and I'm just so confused, and pissed off, I don't want to be anywhere near him."

They both just looked at me for a long time. Jessi sighed. "Should we try to get him out of here?"

"If you want. I don't know. I want to leave as soon as possible."

Erin sniffled, and I could see tears forming in her eyes. "I think that's a great idea. You could go work on your music." There was a long pause. "Actually, I think that's the only way I'll let you go. If you don't get your shit together, and start focusing on your music, I'm going to bring you back here and kick your ass. Then I'll keep you trapped here with me forever."

I couldn't stand to see her upset. I never could. I started to choke up as well. "But...I don't know how I'm supposed to leave the two of you!"

Jessi shook her head. "No. It's time. It's past time. You're so talented, and making music is something you've wanted to do for as long as I can remember. You need to do this. If not for yourself, than for us. We want everyone to know how fucking awesome you are, too. And I think I get where you're coming from with this Matt thing. Even though I think he should be murdered, I'll leave it up to you. But if you're looking for the best way to get out of this place as soon as possible without Matt knowing, there's only one person to turn to for this kind of espionage." She paused for dramatic effect while Erin and I waited for her to continue. "Axel Carter!"

I rolled my eyes, but smiled at her. She was right. Pop was the best person for what I was asking. I told the girls to get into the bed with me while we waited for Pop to come back into the room. I wasn't sure how much time I was going to get with them, and I wanted to take advantage of what I had while I could. "I love you guys."

I heard sniffles behind me. Jessi was crying. "We love you too, you whore."

"Listen to you two! It's not like you're going away forever, right?" Erin asked me. I shook my head. "Okay, then. Stop crying. We'll come visit you when we can, and you'll be back. We're best friends for life. Got it? For fucking ever. Life."