Be Together for One More Night

There had been blood. Lots of it. It had seeped through my fingers as I tried to stop Claudia's stomach from bleeding. Her eyelids were closed, her skin slowly turning pale and pasty. Her lips were cracked, and slightly parted, as if she was going to speak. To cry out in pain or to tell us something. Some final words. Kyle had called the ambulance, and they arrived, treating her quickly then carrying her off on a stretcher. The sound of the sirens pierced into the silent night, the blue lights flashing as they took her away.

I turned to Caleb for answers. His expression was horrified. He dropped the cigarette that he'd been holding loosely in between his fingers, waiting to casually light it up. That was before Claudia had been attacked.

"Caleb, what happened?" I asked softly. I tried my hardest to take the terror from my eyes, and the scowl from my eyebrows. Replacing them for a much softer, kinder look. But it was difficult, as we all knew this had something to do with him, and maybe, it had been his fault.

"I-I don't know," he managed to stutter out. He looked at me, desperately wanting me to believe him. Believe his stupid lie, to cover his tracks.

"Save the lies, Turman. We all know that's not true. So, what was it? Drugs?" Kyle questioned, he fixed his dark glare on Caleb's terrified face, and folded his arms across his chest, awaiting Caleb's usually smart answer.

"No. It wasn't like that. She was in on this too, so it's her own stupid fault. I didn't tell them to attack her, did I? If anything, that was the last thing I wanted. I'd rather them hurt me than Claudia," Caleb tried to defend himself. I was seeing a new side to him. He was vulnerable, desperate, scared even.

"Then why didn't you jump in front of that knife?" Kyle's voice was scolding. I wanted to hit his head against something. He wasn't being fair at all.

"Kyle, it's been a shock for everyone, so stop trying to pin the blame on Caleb," I scowled at him, before putting on the softer mask for Caleb and turning to speak to him. "No one blames you. It's not your fault Claudia's hurt, but you need to go to the hospital and explain what happened Caleb. That way they can tell her parents."

"Either way, it's a vicious circle, Isla. I'll still get the blame, because no one gives me a chance. No one listens and no one cares. Me and you aren't so different," Caleb said, suddenly snapping out of his shock and pulling a fresh cigarette from his pocket and setting it alight with his bright green lighter. The fumes were intoxicating.

Kyle scoffed. "Go save your girlfriend, Turman. You two are made for each other." He gently grabbed my arm and pulled me away from Caleb, walking away quickly and heading for the park's exit.

I took one last glance at Caleb to see him stubbing out the cigarette on the wooden bench, leaving a slight burn mark, before looking at me, then turning to walk away.

"Me and Caleb are a lot more alike than you let on, Kyle. I've changed my mind," I said, stopping in my tracks, forcing him to stop with me. He turned around and looked at me desperately. I knew he didn't want to stick around and wait for someone to show up, maybe those guys who'd attacked Claudia. They might shove a knife through us too.

"What do you mean, changed your mind?" He asked, curiously.

"I want to remember. Everything."