Rushed (The Rushed Series)

by Gina Robinson

  She walked unevenly, clearly plastered and barely able to walk. Just out of the circle of light, she collapsed in a heap behind a row of parked cars.

  Shit. She wasn't my favorite person right now. But I couldn't leave her passed out in the cold in the alley. How many times had I rescued her ass after a drunken binge at a frat party?

  Before I could move, Dak and a group of guys tumbled out of the house and piled into Dak's car, oblivious to Morgan. Dak slid into the driver's seat. The brake lights came on.

  My pulse sped up. The car was parked with its nose to the building. There was only one direction Dak could go—backward. Over Morgan, who was directly in the path of his car. Collapsed in a heap in the dark where he couldn't see her.

  I waved at him and yelled at him to stop. He didn't see or hear me. The car lights came on. The engine revved. The brake lights went off.

  I was close enough. I didn't think. I raced to her, lunged for her, and grabbed Morgan beneath the arms. I swung her out of the way, tossing her clear of the car. I stood and raced to move out of the way.

  "Zach! No!" I heard Alexis' scream just as Dak's car slammed into me, knocking the air out of me.

  I hit the trunk. The force threw me backward. For a second I felt like I was flying. My head hit the asphalt pavement. I was on the ground, unable to move, smelling exhaust and staring calmly at the wheels of Dak's car as it backed toward me.

  A crazy thought hit me: This doesn't hurt at all.

  I saw my baby sister, all grown up and beautiful. She smiled at me and I knew she'd forgiven me a long time ago.

  "I don't want to die," I told her.

  More than ever, I wanted to live. Alexis made me want to live.

  Alexis

  I ran to the car, waving and screaming. I pounded on the door like a madwoman, begging Dakota to stop. Trying to blot out images of Zach's head crushed beneath the tires. Dakota hit the brakes inches before running over Zach.

  Dakota opened his door. "What the fuck!"

  "You're stinking drunk. You just hit Zach. Didn't you see him? Shut the engine off."

  Dakota turned the ignition off, jumped out of the car, and staggered to the back, swearing.

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket and fell to my knees beside Zach, putting my hand on his chest. "He's breathing."

  Dakota fell on his knees beside me, shaking so badly he could barely speak. "I've killed my best friend."

  "He's alive. You haven't killed him!" Like saying it could make it true. Tears spilled down my cheeks. My fingers shook so badly I misdialed 911 twice before I got it right.

  The others guys had piled out of the car now and stood in a circle around us. A couple of them were on the phone to 911, too.

  I tried to talk to the 911 dispatcher, but I was so upset I could barely make sense of their questions. One of the guys gently took the phone from me and took over, giving details and directions.

  I heard him speaking, but it didn't make sense. It blurred into the background noise. Everything else became hazy as my focus narrowed to Zach and only Zach.

  Blood ran out the back of Zach's head. I reached to cradle Zach's head in my lap.

  One of the Tau Psis stopped me. I hadn't even been aware he was there. "What if his neck is hurt? What if you damage something by moving him? Wait for the paramedics."

  "He's bleeding," I cried.

  I took my sweatshirt off and put it over Zach, not feeling the cold as I pleaded with him. "Don't leave me. You promised. You promised you wouldn't." I begged Zach. I pleaded and bargained with God, promising him anything if he would just let Zach live and be himself again.

  I didn't hear the sirens or see the flashing lights until they appeared at the end of the alley. Everything happened at once.

  Morgan was still passed out. I had forgotten about her until a team of paramedics began examining her.

  I felt a hand on my shoulder. "We'll take over from here."

  Someone helped me up.

  "Don't let him die! Don't let him die." I sobbed and sobbed.

  Someone put his arm around me. "They'll take care of him. Let them do their job. Talk to me—what happened here?"

  It took me a second to realize the guy was a cop.

  I couldn't. I just couldn't. I shook my head, unable to speak. The cop put his arms around me as I soaked the front of his uniform with my tears.

  I heard the paramedics talk as they loaded Morgan into an ambulance. They said something about pumping her stomach.

  I hung on to the cop until I realized the paramedics were loading Zach in an ambulance, too. I tried to break away. He held me firm as I begged the medics. "He's my boyfriend. I have to go with him. Please."

  "I'll drive you to the hospital." The cop led me toward a squad car.

  I looked around for Dakota. He was handcuffed. They were loading him into a squad car. "No! Let him go. It was an accident. Please. Zach's his best friend."

  The cop held me back. "They'll sort it out. Come on. Let's get to the hospital."

  It seemed like the nightmare would never end. On the way to the hospital, I begged, pleaded, cried, and explained what had happened. How no one could have seen Morgan on the ground if they came out of the house and jumped in the car without going behind it. How Zach was trying to save her. I blubbered unintelligible stuff about Dakota.

  The cop took my official statement while I waited in the hospital lobby. "One of the kids at the party said you're the driver's girlfriend? You told me the victim is your boyfriend."

  "It's complicated," I said. "I'm friends with both of them." That, at least, was not a lie.

  After I gave my story to the cops, I called my parents.

  Mom picked up. "Alexis?" She sounded worried. And why shouldn't she be? I was calling her in the middle of the night. I knew I was going to scare her, but I needed to talk to her.

  I started sobbing. "There's been an accident. Dakota ran over Zach."

  Mom gasped. "Oh my God. Zach the houseboy? Is Dakota all right?"

  In a way, her reaction was natural. Like everyone else, she thought I was with Dakota. But it made me mad all the same. "No, he's not all right. The cops hauled him off. But he'll figure a way out of the trouble." I paused as my anger built. "Aren't you going to ask about Zach? He's the one in emergency fighting for his life." I took a deep breath. "He's the one I love, Mom. The houseboy." There. It was out. And it felt good.

  "But I thought…what happened with Dakota? You can still make it right with him."

  I sighed, too frazzled and stressed to get into it now. "Don't. Just don't. I can't explain right now. I'm in love with Zach and always have been. You suspected when you visited. Now you know for sure. I was just with Dakota because everyone wanted me to be. Be as mad as you like. It won't change anything. I'm not going back to Dakota. I'm not giving Zach up." Why hadn't I had the courage to do this before?

  "Baby, I'm sorry," Mom said.

  I didn't know if she meant about Zach and Dakota, or about me being in love with Zach.

  She popped back into mom mode. "What can I do? What do you need? I can hop on a plane and be there with you—"

  "No." As much as I wanted to curl up and just be her little girl, I didn't need her with me being judgmental about Zach. Or trying to talk me out of him again. "Thanks, Mom. I can handle it."

  "If you need me—"

  "I'll call," I said.

  "We'll talk about all this and sort things out later." She used that firm, motherly voice. The one that warned that she was going to lecture me and try to get me to comply with her wishes. Only now was not the right time. Not with what had happened. Not when I was so upset. "After things settle down."

  In my opinion, there was nothing to talk about.

  Before I could reply, Kelly, Em, and a bunch of other girls from the house burst through the emergency room doors.

  Kelly spotted me. "Where is he? How's Zach? Heard anything about Morgan?"

  Em rushed to me and threw her arms around me. She
pulled the phone out of my hand and answered my mom's questions before hanging up. "You're in love with Zach, not Dakota, aren't you? I should have guessed. Why didn't you tell me?" Her eyes sparkled with understanding.

  But I had no words.

  She nodded like she understood and mercifully changed the subject. "Your mom sounded upset. Is it because of Zach?"

  "It's because of everything." I couldn't talk about it. I broke up.

  Em pulled me close and literally let me cry on her shoulder. She didn't ask questions or make judgments. She just let me bawl my eyes out and talk when I felt like it. Eventually, I would tell her everything. But right now, I just couldn't.

  Em sat with me through the long night with her arm around me, handing me tissues and giving me hugs. Kelly was great. She begged nurses for news and got coffee.

  It was touch and go. Zach had a head injury. His brain was swelling. They pumped Morgan's stomach and treated her for alcohol poisoning.

  They moved Zach to ICU and let me sit with him for only a couple of minutes. Hooked up to the machines, he was pale, still, and looked like death. The sight of how bad he was scared me. I whispered in his ear, "Hang on and fight, Zach. You can't leave me now. Don't die on me. Please."

  They had to pry me away from his bed.

  No one tried to talk me into leaving the hospital. Everyone had heard by then about Dakota and Morgan walking in on us. Everyone but Em thought I was cheating on Dakota with Zach. I let them believe it. At that point, I didn't care what anyone thought.

  Early in the morning, just before dawn, a striking woman burst into the waiting room. "Where's my son? My boy's been hurt. Oh, God, someone ran over my boy! Not again. Not again." Tears streamed down her white face.

  A man had his arm around her. They obviously hadn't told her who'd been behind the wheel.

  When I looked into her eyes, I saw Zach's. He looked like her. The realization hit me like a blow. He looked like this woman who didn't love him. I hated her and felt sorry for her at the same time.

  The nurse showed her and the apparent stepdad to Zach's room. It wasn't fair. I loved him and they wouldn't let me stay. She treated him like crap, like a throwaway, and got to sit with him.

  Finally, a doctor came out and assured us that Zach was stable. I didn't want to leave, but the girls and the nurses insisted. The girls took me back to the house. I slept through the homecoming game and the day. My phone ringing woke me. My heart leaped when I saw Zach's number.

  It fell again when I heard the female voice on the other end. "Alexis? This is Zach's mom."

  I tried to read everything in her voice. Was she sad? Relieved? Did I detect grief?

  "Zach gained consciousness. He woke briefly and asked for you," she said. "The doctors think he's going to be okay. Please come. He's very weak. But he'll want to see you when he wakes up again."

  When I got to the hospital, Zach was sitting up in bed. His mom sat beside him.

  "Alexis?" she asked.

  I nodded.

  She got up. "I'll leave you two alone."

  I stood beside his bed and took his hand.

  "Aren't you going to kiss me?" He tugged my hand, trying to pull me toward him.

  I kissed him lightly, then more passionately. I took his mom's seat beside his bed and held his hand like I would never let it go. "You promised me you wouldn't do this. You promised you wouldn't sacrifice yourself."

  "I wasn't trying to die this time, pledge." He gave me a half-grin. "I didn't even think. I reacted on instinct."

  "Is it over now? Have you paid the price by almost sacrificing your life for another? For Morgan?"

  He squeezed my hand. "I didn't even think of that. Until later. I did it for Dak as much as Morgan. Mom said the police arrested him for drunk driving and vehicular assault.

  "I'm going to give them a statement. It wasn't his fault, drunk or not. He didn't see her. He would have run over her and killed her. No one should die young and no one should have to live with the guilt of accidently killing someone. But yeah, it's over now. It was the minute I fell in love with you. You give me a reason to live."

  My smile grew wobbly. I kissed him again, gently.

  "I'm not made of glass." He gave me a weak grin. "Give me a real kiss."

  I leaned down and really kissed him then. "I love you so much."

  He ran his fingers through my hair. "My dad's on his way. He'll be here any time now. I have to go home. The doctors and my parents want to transfer me to a hospital in Seattle. They've ordered an ambulance to take me.

  "After that, I'll have to recover at home for a while. My parents are fighting over who gets to have me while I recover. I become a hero and suddenly everyone wants me. It's crap."

  "Zach—"

  "No, it's okay. They mean well." He sighed. "I think we're going to be okay. We might even get along eventually."

  "Are you dropping out?" I could barely ask.

  "No." He squeezed my hand. "I'll be out on medical leave. Mom says they'll rent me an apartment when I'm ready to come back to school so I don't have to go back to the house or work. My dad was so shaken up, he practically promised me the moon. Guilt is a bitch." He laughed and winced. "Shit, Alexis. I'm going to miss you. But I'll be back. As soon as I can. I promise."

  Epilogue

  One Month Later

  Alexis

  Zach was coming back! Coming back to me. October had crawled into November. Time crept by excruciatingly slowly without him. The month he'd been gone felt like a year. A year of gossip, rumors, and accusations.

  He was coming back to his own apartment. We could be together. Despite all the bad stuff, like the rumors about me and Dakota. Like being in deep trouble with my parents. Like having to make nice with Morgan. Everything was working out. Because I loved Zach, he was all that mattered.

  After Zach left, I was called before a secret, closed-door meeting of the five-member standards board.

  Victoria, the no-nonsense VP of the standards board was surprisingly gentle with me as she handed down my punishment. "We've all messed up and lost our heart to the wrong guy. I'm living proof of that." She gave me a gentle, encouraging smile. "Zach is hard to resist. Most of us have crushed on him a time or two." She choked up. "We love that guy."

  She cleared her throat. "We love you, too. We want you to stay in the house. That said, forbidden love has consequences. In this case, we have to fine you for breaking house rules." She paused. "As Double Deltsies, we don't use punitive measures and fear for control. We like to think of discipline as corrective action with the goal of house harmony. You and Morgan have to find a way to get along. Understand?"

  I did. But they'd given me an impossible task. Morgan hated me.

  The powers that be also voted to make Zach a big brother, even though it was really rare for a Geed to be given the honor. The house voted to give him a special award for saving Morgan's life. They even offered to let him keep his job. He refused it, saying he wanted to date me without causing problems and he'd rather be a big brother than a houseboy now.

  My parents were slowly coming to terms with me dating the houseboy. They were a little mollified when they found out how successful his parents were.

  Zach didn't want to press charges against Dakota. But the cops had picked him up drunk. It wasn't Zach's decision. He swore out a statement in Dakota's defense.

  Dakota and I had a decoy breakup. The Tau Psis would have ostracized me, except for Dakota. He stuck up for me and opened up to me like the true friends we were. No one could understand our friendship after all that had happened.

  Zach texted me that he was on the outskirts of town. It was a cool, sunny November day. I put on a jacket and went outside to sit on the steps and wait for him.

  When I saw his car turn up the street, my heart practically leaped out of my chest. The girls had left an open parking spot for him out front. I ran to him, bouncing I was so excited, as I waited for him to park.

  He jumped out of the car and pull
ed me into his arms.

  "You look good!" I said. He looked whole again. "I missed you so much!"

  "You look totally hot." He kissed me. And kissed me. And kissed me as my sorority sisters gathered on the front steps of the house.

  They held back like they were waiting for something.

  Zach's eyes danced as he pulled something out of his pocket. "You've heard the rumors?"

  I frowned, puzzled. "What rumors?"

  "That I've been shopping for a promise ring." He opened a wooden jewelry box. A promise ring with a tiny diamond sparkled in the November sunshine. "So?"

  "Yes! Yes!"

  He took my hand and slid the ring on. I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him. As my sorority sisters swarmed around us, welcoming him back and congratulating us, Dakota drove up and jumped out of his car.

  He joined the group and put his arm around Zach. "Welcome back, QB1!"

  In that sparkling moment, everything was perfect.

  An Important Message from the Author

  Are you the kind of person who sits through all the credits at the movies, waiting and hoping for that surprise little scene at the end? Even though you might be the last person left in the theater and the staff is busily sweeping up popcorn around you? That scene is called a stinger. You don't always get one. When you do, score! It might be a funny scene or an outtake. Maybe it wraps up a small dangling thread. Or sets up a sequel. My husband loves them.

  This book is technically a standalone, cliffhanger-free book. But it does have a stinger. If you love stingers, it's your lucky day! If you don't, read the next page at your own peril.

  Gina

  Stinger

  Zach

  There was still one thing I hadn't told Dak. One thing I'd done to him that he didn't know about. That made me disgusted with myself. I'd slept with Jordan. For revenge. Way before I met Alexis. The summer between high school and college. While Dak was still dating Jordan.