[i]Beep[/i]

[i]Beep[/i]

[i]Beep[/i]

It was so quiet.

[i]Beep[/i]

[i]Beep[/i]

[i]Beep[/i]

Just the beeps. They beat along with her heart. [i]Beep.[/i] Thump. [i]Beep.[/i] Thump. [i]Beep.[/i] Thump.

Her eye fluttered. Light filtered in. Bright light. Brilliant light. Like sunshine on a lake.

She was lying down, looking up at the ceiling. Everything hurt. Everything hurt. It all hurt. Besca was there, she saw. Besca. Why was Besca there? She let her eye slide closed again. Why was she there?

Her thoughts crept through her head like molasses and honey. Besca. Sunlight. Besca. White walls. The interview. They were supposed to go down to the lake soon, weren't they? They were going to meet Besca's friends, right? They were going to see Safie—

[sub][color=green]Safie.[/color][/sub]

[i]bright sunshine off the lake glinting LIKE METAL fishing rods whipping back and forth laughing and water sunshine sunshine smile clear water sweet water melonberry WHY[/i]

[i][color=green]Safie.[/color][/i]

[i]nighttime fire black water black lake bubbling a sun that looked at her the one with the glowy chains there saved her helped her held her up in the water shoulders no head moving away crumpled body crumpled in the fire WHY THEM and the black and the bubbling blood and the bubbling lake and the bubbling moon and WHY NOT HER[/i]

She breathed in halfway before her breath locked itself in her throat.

[b][i][color=red]SAFIE!!!![/color][/i][/b]

Her eye [i]snapped[/i] open, wide and panicked and unseeing. Tears streamed from it. [i]Beep. Beep. Beep beep[/i]

She arched her back. She hurt. She hurt she hurt she [i]hurt[/i]. Everything hurt hurt hurt.

[i]beep beep beepbeep[/i]

She pulled her hands over her head. 

[i]beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep[/i]

Quinnlash [i]screamed,[/i] raw and animal and deep in her throat. When she ran out of breath, she screamed again, and again, and didn't stop until her throat hurt too much, when they dissolved into weak sobs, through which she could only choke out:

[color=ffe63d][i]"...I'm sorry...! I'm sorry...! I'm sorry...!"[/i][/color]