As the sun sank lower and lower into the sky, a few dark clouds still lingered at the horizon. It was hard to tell if they were leftover from the previous storm, or if they foreboded the soon arrival of another one. Knowing Florida's climate, it was reasonable to assume there was another rainstorm on its way.

Thankfully, that wouldn’t be a problem for Landon, as Kaelyn’s dorm building was only a short walk away from his own. He made his way slowly down the sidewalk and took this opportunity and somewhat mental clarity to plan out what he was going to say to her. First and foremost, he decided it’d be best for him not to lose his temper. That would only complicate things. Although, he’d find exceedingly hard to keep himself from shouting because she did singlehandedly ruin his first real relationship. Secondly, he knew he had to make it clear that they were over, completely, one hundred percent. He still had his psych class with her, but he would ignore her existence completely. But Kaelyn was unpredictable. It’s impossible to say if she would ignore him too, which was a definite possibility, or if she’d intentionally pester him by trying to make conversation. He supposed this is why he was going to see her now, to make it clear that he didn’t want to talk to her anymore.

Something inside of him tingled. He was somewhat excited to be free from his brunette burden, but that still wouldn’t erase their story, no matter how much he would try to forget it. He couldn’t forget it. For that reason, he supposed he had some kind of respect for her, albeit little. He sighed out loud. It was for the best.

In a couple of minutes, Landon arrived at her dorm building and climbed up the stairs to her floor. He made his way slowly down the hall and stood for a minute in front of her door. He took a deep breath and reached out to knock on it, but his second knock did not contact the door. It had swung inward slightly at his touch.

“Uh,” he called out awkwardly. “Kaelyn?” 

He peered inside and frowned. The dorm was in shambles. Her bed wasn’t made, clothes and torn photos littered the floor. Oh god. She must’ve had a breakdown.

Ignoring the possible consequences, he pushed the door open completely and stepped inside. He leaned down and picked up a shred of a photo. It was part of his face and Kaelyn’s, both smiling. He couldn’t tell where they were from the little shred, but Landon remembered the picture. They were in front of the Mess Hall. He had the same picture, hidden inside of his luggage.

He continued to investigate. Moving through the clothes and photo shreds, he encountered one that was untouched, but it was creased like it was handled roughly. It was their entire friend group from camp in front of a crackling fire… A wave of nostalgia washed over him so quickly that he had to rip his eyes away from it to avoid being consumed by the past.

He dropped the photo to the ground and took a step back, when he felt something hard underneath his shoe. He stepped out of the way and picked up a white, cylindrical pill off the ground. Giving the room a closer look, he saw they were littered all over the floor.

It sent a shiver down his spine. His heart began to beat faster. He saw an open container against a wall that looked like it had been thrown there. Fearing what he would see, he picked it up and read the label. They were antidepressants, maximum strength, maximum dosage.

His hands shook. “Kaelyn…” he whispered. “What the fuck did you do?”

This was bad. Very bad. “Kaelyn!” he shouted, hoping she was somewhere around. He listened carefully, and heard the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. He ran over and swung the door open. What he saw would haunt him for the rest of his life.

The mirror was steamed up and a blast of hot, wet air came to meet him. The shower was running, but the curtain was wide open. On the ground, slumped over, was Kaelyn’s form. A pool of vomit surrounded the area where her mouth should have been, and her open eyes stared off into oblivion.

“Kaelyn!”

Everything started to become a blur. He remembered dialling 911 and frantically telling the operator about what was in front of him. He remembered following her hasty but firm instructions. He remembered calling her name over and over and over again. He remembered tears streaming from his eyes, the sirens, the men in white coats that rushed in and took her away.

“Please, take me with her!” he pleaded to one of the paramedics.

“I’m sorry, only immediate family is allowed. We need to get her stomach pumped immediately.” There was no emotion in his voice. His eyes were cold.

Then Landon ran. He ran faster than he knew was possible. He got in his car and drove directly to the hospital emergency room.

“I need to see Kaelyn, Kaelyn Skye,” he said hurriedly to the receptionist.

She typed a few times into her keyboard, taking her time. “What is your relationship to Ms. Skye?” she asked, sounding somewhat annoyed.

Landon bit his lip. “I’m her boyfriend,” he said.

The woman frowned. “I’m sorry, I don’t think we can let you in to see her right now.

He gaped at her. “Are you serious?”

“I’m afraid so.”

“Can you at least tell me where she is?” His voice was laden with desperation.

The woman rolled her eyes slightly. “Room 202A, just down the hall, second door on the right. There are some seats outside where you can wait.” Landon was gone when she looked back from her computer screen.

------
Minutes passed. Hours passed. It seemed like Landon was waiting for years in that uncomfortable chair outside of a door labeled “202A - Occupied.” He anxiously tapped his feet and fiddled with his fingers. A few doctors came and left from the room, and none of them would give him any information about her current state. He exhaled in frustration and placed both his hands on his head.

“I can’t believe this…” he whispered. “I just can’t believe this…”

Kaelyn couldn’t remember much of anything. She was conscious in that bathroom, but couldn’t react to anything going on around her. Her body was cold and felt completely lifeless and unresponsive. She didn’t want to die, but she couldn’t move. It was the scariest feeling she had ever felt. All she could remember was the sound of shouting and her name. Then the sirens, everything after that was either black or a simple blur.

Janelle had watched the ambulance come to Kaelyn’s dorm and watched curiously. Her eyes widened in horror to see her pale and seemingly lifeless daughter being wheeled into the vehicle. She had never rushed to a hospital so quickly.

“Hello?” Coach Sanders had answered her phone with that simple reply, but what she heard on the other line made her heart drop. It was the worst news anyone could hear. She shut the phone and sighed deeply, hoping to God that Kaelyn would not die. She picked up her phone again and sent out a text to all the players.

“Kaelyn’s in the hospital. It’s urgent… I want everyone on the team there.”

When Janelle came in through the hospital doors, she rushed to the receptionist.

“Where’s my daughter!?”

The receptionist looked at her. “Name, miss?”

“Skye. Janelle Skye!” She was panicking.

“202A, miss. Right down there.” She said pointing over to the room. Janelle ran down the hall to see the door closed. She noticed Landon sitting by the room with his head in his hands.

“Is she okay? Do you know if my baby is alright?!”

Landon looked up from his hands when he heard someone come down the hall. He was expecting to see a doctor, but instead he was somewhat surprised to see Ms. Skye standing there, asking if her daughter was okay.

“I don’t know,” Landon replied. His voice was small and shaky. “They won’t tell me anything…”

Inside the room, doctors rushed about. Yelling amongst each other, shouting orders. A stomach pump inside they were using in a desperate attempt to save her life.

“We’re losing her! We’re losing her! Come on, come on!” One of the doctors shouted, trying to keep everyone alert in keeping Kaelyn alive. Kaelyn couldn’t make out much of what they were saying. She slipped in and out of consciousness the entire time.

Janelle looked at Landon and simply nodded. She sat beside him.

“This is all my fault…”

Landon shook his head. “No, it isn’t,” he told her truthfully. “Don’t blame yourself for this. It’ll only worsen the pain.”
------
Katrina was sitting on her bed with a box of tissues and a bag of Hershey Kisses, watching [i]Titanic[/i] on Lifetime and trying not to think about Landon. As she reached forward to grab another tissue, she felt her bed vibrate softly as her phone received a new message. Expecting it to be Landon, she eagerly grabbed her phone, but was confused to see it was from Coach Sanders.

“Damn it, I’m probably suspended from the team…” she said. But that wasn’t what the message was about. Her heart sunk and her palms became sweaty.

“Oh my god…” was all she could say.

In a matter of minutes, Katrina was hurrying across the local hospital’s parking lot. She glanced upward to see with the last few rays of sunlight that the gloomy clouds had indeed come and now covered most of the sky.

As she approached the main entrance, she noticed Lacey and Jocelyn were walking together to the same destination.

“Hey! Katrina!” Lacey called out. “Did you get Coach’s text? Is Kaelyn okay?”

Katrina greeted her friends back and shook her head. “I don’t know,” she said.

“What do you think happened?” Jocelyn wondered as Katrina inquired Kaelyn’s room number.

“I don’t know. She was angrier than I’ve ever seen her though,” Lacey whispered back.

“Oh god, you don’t think she tried to… commit suicide, do you?”

Katrina returned to them, having heard the tail end of what Jocelyn had just said. “No,” she said strongly. “No, Kaelyn’s not like that. This must’ve been some kind of accident. She’s in room 202A, just down the hall. Apparently some others have come to see her too.”

They nodded and eventually found their way there. Katrina stopped when she saw Landon sitting there, talking to an older woman who she didn’t recognize. Landon stopped what he was saying to look up at her. Instead of it being awkward, Katrina just rushed forward and hugged him. Lacey and Jocelyn kept a distance from them. They weren’t aware of the breakup yet.

“Is she okay?” she whispered, a few tears coming down her eyes. After all, she was closer with Kaelyn than anyone else on her team. She was her rival.

“I don’t know,” Landon answered. It seemed like he’d been saying it all day.

Katrina pulled away from her hug and sighed. “What happened to her?”

“I was just about to explain to her mom right now,” he said, gesturing to Ms. Skye. “These are Kaelyn’s teammates,” he quickly added for the sake of Kaelyn’s mom. “Anyway, well, I just went over to her dorm to talk to her, and her room was a mess. Clothes everywhere.” He left the part about the pictures out. “Then I saw a bunch of pills scattered on the floor, and I heard the water running and when I came into the bathroom…”

Landon paused, remembering that terrible mental image. “It was like nothing I’ve ever seen before.” He had seen people pass out and get sick before. This was completely different.

Janelle acknowledged the girls. “Hi… I’m Kaelyn’s mother.” She said simply. She just shook her head at what Landon had said and wiped tears from her face. The image of her daughter on that stretcher haunted her.

“... Before I… Before I went into rehab for my addiction. Kaelyn was diagnosed with depression. Like her father. She was very strong with it though… but, those pills that the doctor prescribed her. She can be pretty rough as is when she wants, but those pills; they change her into a completely different person. They’re only really meant for when it gets real real bad… which is rare.”

She sighed and looked at the door of the emergency room.

The shouts had subsided. Kaelyn’s heartbeat had been somewhat regulated, she was now in a much more stable condition. They gave her an anaesthetic to let her rest. The doctors and nurses went over routine checks on her before leaving.

As the nurses exited the room, Landon stood up quickly. “Can we see her?” he pleaded.

The nurses looked around at the small group that was beginning to form now. More and more soccer players arrived and Coach Sanders had finally come as well. “We’re sorry,” one of them said. “Only immediate family can go in. Are any of her relatives around…?”

Janelle stood up. “I’m her mother.” The nurse looked at her and could see the resemblance.

“You may go in, but don’t disturb her much. She’s under an anaesthetic to help her rest. She’s stable and she’ll be fine, I assure you.” The nurse then turned to Landon. “It’s a good thing you got there… If you were a few minutes later… But. She’ll be fine. That’s what matters.” The nurse left with the doctors, and Janelle went into the room.

“Oh, my poor girl… I’m so sorry I did this to you.” She cried as she sat down beside the bed, holding her hand.

The energy outside the room was somewhat relieved now. Everyone seemed to have let out a simultaneous sigh when the nurses informed Ms. Skye that Kaelyn was now stable.

“Thank god…” Landon said, sitting back down in his chair, feeling an immense weight being lifted from his chest.

Katrina was also relieved and she sat down next to Landon. “We were lucky,” she said, looking at the room’s door intently as if she was trying to look through it.

“We sure were,” Landon agreed.

After a while of sitting with Kaelyn and holding her hand, rubbing her hair softly. Janelle heard Kaelyn say something in a faint whisper.

“..L.Landon.” Janelle smiled lightly and got up to move toward the door. She opened it up and came outside.

“Landon… Don’t you want to go see your sister?” She asked, giving him a subtle wink.

Landon was surprised at first but smiled and stood up and followed her into the room. He turned and saw Kaelyn laying on a white, hospital bed. Her dark brown hair was spread around the pillow and her eyes were peacefully closed. A few IV dips were set into her right arm, and a few small tubes went into her mouth and, presumably, into her stomach.

“Kaelyn…” Landon could hardly speak. He was overcome with such relief and sadness he wasn’t sure how to handle all this emotion at once. He came up next to her and held her hand in his. It was warm. He had never thought in a million years that he would be ending up doing this today. In fact, he hadn't such strong feelings for her like this since camp...

“I’m so glad you’re okay…” he whispered, tears rolling down his cheeks.

-------

A few hours had gone by, the team and Coach Sanders had been told they could leave but not a single one of the girls wanted to leave. None of them. They all stayed outside and huddled together and shared light talk and fun memories they had had with Kaelyn in their first year of knowing her.

Katrina did most of the talking. She remembered when they finished a sprint in an almost exact tie and they spent the rest of the day bickering about who had been won. She talked about when Kaelyn and she went to a party together and they both had swarms of guys around them. They spent the rest of the night making them do stupid things for them for the rest of night. She remembered when Kaelyn had driven her to this very hospital when she slipped and twisted her ankle earlier in the season. It’s funny. It always takes a tragic event for you to remember the best memories with someone.

Meanwhile, in the emergency room; nurses and doctors came in and left, removing different equipment one by one. They took away the pump and ultimately the IV’s when she was completely stable. Kaelyn was soon fully stable and just sleeping peacefully. They had left all of them in the room to be alone.

After those many hours had gone by, Kaelyn slowly seemed to regain consciousness. Her hand moved slightly within Landon’s, almost gripping it, but it was very weak. Then, her eyes that were still a bit glazed and bloodshot began to open slightly.

Landon squeezed her hand when he felt it move and couldn’t help but grin when her eyes slowly opened. “Kaelyn,” he said softly. “It’s Landon. I’m here with your mom… The entire soccer team is waiting outside, too. They all came to make sure you’re okay…”

Kaelyn couldn’t see clearly right away, but soon the blurs disappeared as she heard Landon’s voice. She could see him and her mother by her side.

“..How did I get here?” She asked, looking to Janelle. Janelle offered a small smile and looked Landon’s way. Kaelyn understood and looked at Landon. She felt strange. Calm. Not angry at anything or that her mother was here. But, she couldn’t help but feel terrible about how she had treated Landon and Katrina. They were her friends.

“I feel like an idiot…” Kaelyn said bluntly.

Landon almost laughed. “Don’t,” he told her. “Everything’s okay now, Kaelyn…” He squeezed her hand again. “Just… try to relax, okay?”

She just shook her head. “I’m relaxed… but. Everything’s not okay… I almost killed myself, and for what? I’m supposed to be stronger than this…” Kaelyn stopped herself and sighed.

“I did an awful thing to you and Katrina… I’m sorry. If those words even mean anything. I don’t know how to make up for it…”

Landon looked down at her, sensing her genuine contrition. “We… we broke up,” he said. It was kinda obvious that they would, but he just wanted to clarify it. “But, we’re okay, I think. She’s here too, of course. We aren’t mad.”

Kaelyn frowned at Landon’s words. “I’m sorry… You did seem right for each other. How can you not be mad at me? I hurt you. I hurt her. I…”

Janelle grabbed her hand and held it tight. “Stop putting the weight of everything on your shoulders… I know you don’t mean to hurt others…”

Landon nodded. “Your mom is right,” he said. “Why do you always blame yourself for everything? It really isn’t even your fault that you’re here right now.”

Kaelyn sighed. “I don’t know. I guess it just made things easier for me, but…” She looked around the emergency room. “Clearly I was a dumbass.” 

Landon laughed lightheartedly. “Well,” he said, “I can’t say that isn’t true, but… I’m just glad you’re okay. We all are.” He felt exhausted, but extremely relieved.