The Story In His Picture

Chapter 11

Song – Shallows by Daughter

…/…

I felt Henry was angry at me so I decided to follow him. I ran on the sidewalk. I don’t know how it happened but I think I missed my step and slid into the pool. At that point, the only thing I was trying to remember was how to swim.

I heard screams and, in my mind, I said “Stop fretting humans, I’d be fine”. My senses finally kick in and I find my way to the surface. When I get back to the surface, I realize I had been holding back from screaming due to the throbbing pain on my forehead.

“Oh my gosh!” Van screams. I try to get out of the water with my brothers’ help. ‘We’re gonna get you to the hospital, okay?” Jace says.

I turn my head to see Henry rooted in a spot and my eyes fight to close. “Why am I sleepy?” I ask no one in particular. I notice my body is being lifted and when I look up to see the person carrying me, I see Jay. “Don’t let her close her eyes,” someone that sounded like Elle said.

“I’ll close my eyes if I want to”. The darkness calls me and it’s beautiful. “I’m gonna go” I whisper before I close my eyes and let the darkness invite me.

…/…

Henry’s POV

I couldn’t help but feel like I was sharing her with Chris. I wanted us to have our thing. I was so happy she slipped up that night. Now, I have a valid excuse for giving her a pet name.

Oh! don’t get me wrong, I don’t have feelings for Genny. I just want to be around her all the time, she’s so cool. I know it seems like I like her but I really don’t and I could care less if anyone else did.

I went to the back of the house after brushing my teeth and sit with the guys. Everyone was seated around the table except Genny and Darian. I’ve never liked the way they play. Everyone already thinks she’s a slut because of what the guys do at the beginning of each term, and now both of them are just complicating matters.

As soon as I snap out of my thoughts, I see Gen walking towards all of us, without Darian. And I immediately wonder what made her take long.

We all sit around the table discussing what happened yesterday. I admit I was tipsy yesterday, but I wasn’t drunk. I felt this sense of responsibility for Genny. Not like a father-daughter kind, more like I didn’t want anything to happen to her and I’d not be there for her, it’d kill me.

Tami decides to leave. I like the girl, she’s decent. Luke takes her home because she was saying something about her mum complaining and other stuff.

I look in Genny’s direction and I find her laughing at Darian. I don’t get how he gets her attention effortlessly; I have to observe. She helps him get the whipped cream from the center of the table because he’s squinting.

I don’t blame him though; I know the terrors of a hangover. She kisses his forehead and ruffles his hair before she sits down. “Can you guys just go out already?” Elle says and that just does it. They say they’re not each other’s types but I know that’s what people that tend to like themselves always say. I look in Chris’ direction and I see him smiling, “How does Chris find everything amusing?” I think to myself.

I stand up and say “I have to go; I have a date”. I did have a date but I wasn’t planning on going. I walk stiffly towards the door because I know they’re all staring at my retreating figure and it feels weird.

Not long after I walk through the door, I hear Genny scream and a splash follows. I look through the glass windows to see that she had indeed fallen into the pool. I immediately rush outside and I see that she had already gotten to the surface. Thank God she knows how to swim.

I stop in my tracks when I see the cut on her forehead. I immediately remember when my granny fell and had something like that on her arm. The cut was deep.

Van screams and her brothers try to help her out of the pool. It seems she's not aware of the cut on her forehead. She looked in my direction and it felt like all the air had been sucked out from that space.

“Was she trying to follow me?” I say to myself. “Nah, don’t give yourself too much credit”. I feel really bad and I don’t think I can go to her. “What if she hates me now or doesn’t talk to me again?”.

All these thoughts race through my mind and it immediately occurs to me that I’m still rooted in my place. Jay carries her and Elle says “Don’t let her close her eyes”.

Elle was too late because a few seconds after she said that, Genny’s hand falls limp to her side which meant she had passed out. Jace runs into the house to get his car keys and Jay carries her out of the house.

“I have to stay back but I promise I’d come down to the hospital as soon as I can” Van says to Jay who’s still carrying Genny. Jace parks the car in front of Jay. He comes down to open the door of the backseat for them to keep Genny.

“Elle, ride with Darian. Henry would go with me” Chris says. They nod and we walk to the garage. I enter the car with Chris and I immediately ask “How did it happen?”. “I just hope nothing happens to her,” Chris says with a tone of finality.

I sensed that he didn’t want to talk about it or he was thinking it was my fault. Well, that makes two of us.

…/…

Chris and I get to the hospital in no time and we dash to the reception. I spot Jay and Jace and we walk to them. “What did the doctor say?” Chris asks.

“They just took her in, no one has come to tell us anything yet” Jace answers. “I just hope she’s fine,” Jay adds. “She will be,” I say to reassure them. Chris looks really worried; I want to tell him to calm down but I rethink that because of what happened in the car.

Darian and Elle ask the same thing but this time Chris answers them. The doctor comes out and we all rush towards him.

“Well, the cut is deep but she just has a minor concussion. She’d be fine, she needs time to rest,” The doctor says and we all say thank you to him. Jay and Jace ask if we could see her but he says she’s asleep so we’d have to wait.

“I’d go call Mum and Dad to tell them she’s fine,” Jay says to Jace. I guess their parents were away on another trip. Luke bursts through the doors and asks where she is. He’s a bit rough and it looks like he had run his fingers through his hair a lot.

Chris walks him to another hallway in a bid to try to get him calm.

A nurse comes to tell us she’s awake but we can only go to see her, three persons at a time. Of course, Jay, Jace, and Luke go to see her first. “Hey, I have to go do something for my dad. Please tell Gen I’d be back as soon as I can” Darian says to Chris.

I look ahead to see Jay, Jace, and Luke coming towards us. “She wants to see you guys,” Luke says. We all walk to her room and I hope she doesn’t hate me. “What if she didn’t run to follow you, rather she wanted to get something from the house,” The voice in my mind tells me. Maybe, I'm just having a guilty conscience.

Chris opens the door and Elle rushes in to hug her. I stand rooted in a spot again. She looks pale, and I can’t help but feel even worse. Chris hugs her too and kisses her temple. “Darian had to do something but he said he’d come as soon as he’s done,” Chris says. She nods weakly and stares at me.

Yes, I hadn’t left where I was standing. Hell, I hadn’t even said anything to her. “Can you guys give Henry and me a minute?” She says weakly. They both nod and leave us.

“Hey”.