Nothing But

Lucus took his time, dressing Allicia's wounds. He didn't seem to have any care for getting to his speech on time. Allicia flinched every time Lucus touched her cuts. She didn't know why. How could she have a punch delivered to her face, yet in the face of a small cut, she flinched. The fatigue was also setting in. It was heavy and weighted. With each minute, her muscles ached even further. She felt as though every muscle in her body was slowly melting, and she was unable to move them willingly. The darkness started closing in. It was comforting, though. Sitting there in the perfectly warm bathroom with Lucus. It really was hard to stay awake. She couldn't even fight it. It was warm, wasn't it? Or was she cold? She felt both. Her eyes felt hot too. Maybe she should let them close. It did feel better. Maybe she should just, take a little nap. Allicia's eyes began to flutter shut. The timer on Lucus's phone ticked down. Allicia began to fall asleep.

At first, it wasn't a lot. Still half conscious, but she wasn't thinking straight. Maybe it was the fatigue. Eventually, She fell forward, and her head landed on Lucus's shoulder. He immediately stopped working, and smiled to himself.

"Hey, Allicia." He whispered soothingly, to wake her up, knowing his speech was soon. It did feel a little selfish, but everyone deserves to be a bit selfish sometimes. When Allicia didn't wake up after a few more calls, he touched her head, and tousled her hair. It was warm. Too warm. He slid his hand over to her forehead, and settled her down gently to the floor. He kneeled down next to her. She was burning up. He placed one hand over her mouth and one on her neck to check her pulse. Her breaths were shallow and uneven, and her heart was beating abnormally fast. She was shaking. Not in large sways, more like a shiver, but she didn't feel good. Lucus picked her up. She was light. It was hard to believe such a delicate girl had single handedly beat a bunch of much bigger boys to a bloody pulp. She flinched when he touched her, but Allicia remained asleep. As he stood up with her, she began to murmur something.

"No, no. I'm sorry. Come back, please." Even in her toneless murmur, her words felt heartbreaking. They made Lucus wonder just how much she hid behind her everlasting surplus of joy. But he had made a promise, and Lucus intended to keep it. He spoke in a low whisper back to her in an attempt to subconsciously sooth her.

"It's okay. Nobody's going anywhere. You're safe." Words of encouragement that felt quite melancholy for Lucus to hear. Even from himself. Lucus found himself tearing up, but pushed it back, keeping a hand on Allicia's pulse and listening closely to her scattered breathing. She calmed down a little at Lucus's attempts, but continued to speak.

"Please don't. No. No, no, no. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'll be better." Lucus ignored these words and pushed them away. He refused to comprehend them. It is funny, isn't it, how well we can suppress something we hear or remember. We can hear it but don't comprehend it. Only when we truly want to, however. If you want to know deep down, it will most likely only be partly buried. This was such a case. You never know how deep it's buried. It's always there.

"Shh. It's okay. You're going to be okay. Everything is okay." Lucus was beginning to panic. His alarm was going off. He had to go do his speech. But, Allicia was sick. He couldn't leave her. The words he spoke were not only to Allicia, but to himself. Never had Lucus been faced with a problem he couldn't fix. Not in a long, long time. And that was a memory he tried to suppress. He ran down the stairs, ignoring the whispers until two affirming hands stopped him. It was Ben. Lucus immediately recognised him, and Ben didn't ask questions. He let Lucus speak. "Please, Ben. Allicia's sick or something. She got hurt, and now she fainted. Please help me! We need a doctor." A few wealthy doctors in the crowd turned around, but looked away when they saw who it was, and the blood. Ben looked around, unsure of what to do. "Come on, Ben. Just, take her to the hospital." Lucus didn't know it, but the look in his eyes was pleading. Like his last wish upon the world. Ben sucked in a sharp breath, then whispered to Lucus.

"Okay, umm. Bring Allicia two blocks down and around the corner. I'll join you afterwards and call an ambulance over. You gotta get to your speech. Okay?" Lucus nodded. This was his only option. He dashed out the door, not waiting for any well dressed employees to open it for him. Everyone avoided turning around, but everyone was watching.

Lucus sat on a highly decorated park bench. The whole community seemed rich and gaudy. Allicia was still murmuring under her breath. Her head rested on Lucus's lap, and she was shivering in a tight ball, even though it was warm out. Ben came two minutes later and called the ambulance. He rode with her, looking worried for her, but also about himself. He said something about getting in trouble, but Lucus wasn't listening. He was staring at Allicia's unconscious body, letting the situation sink in. Only when Ben called out to him to run over to his speech, did Lucus run back.

Running away. It felt so wrong, and with every step, Lucus grew more worried, guilty, and in the back of his mind, an unknown emotion he never felt before. The midnight air was warm, but Lucus didn't feel anything. Nothing but the ground beneath his feet. Nothing but his fear setting in. Nothing but Allicia's worrying pulse. Nothing else. Nothing good.