Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 28, 2016 14:21:54 GMT -6
There was a pounding in her head. A deep throbbing which robbed her breath with every beat. She could hear the teacher over the murmered whispers in her mind, but it was distant, as if in a fading dream. Sweat beaded on her pale forhead, her mouth growing dry as she clenched a fistful of her hair in an attempt to stave the pain she felt.
She stared blankly at he rpage, waves of nausea washing over her again and again, bringing bile to her throat which she forced herself to swallow. Her breath became panted, and she slowly raised her hand in a bid to try and get Lynette Chevalier 's attention.
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 28, 2016 20:36:47 GMT -6
”Now then, could anyone tell me how this theorem could apply in real life?”
Lynette turned to face her class, dry erase maker in hand as she looked over her class with a bright smile. Much to her relief, none of the students had allergic reactions to any of her plants. Of course, she had blushed just a tad when some of them had looked around in surprise at all the plantlife decorating the room. However other than that, Lynette hadn’t heard anyone coughing or sniffling through the different courses coming and going through. It had given her a happy buzz throughout the day that her various vegetation had reflected back to her. So a smile remained tugging at the corner of her lips the entire time, which hopefully had put her students at ease.
“Yes Thomas?”
She pointed to one raised hand and let the student speak before writing on the board. Her students had been surprisingly confident with raising their hands, although she did get her fair share of awkward silences throughout the day. Lynette was used to this and didn’t mind picking up when no one put a hand forward to answer. However as she turned back around she noticed a hand up even when she hadn’t answered the question. Lynette noticed there was something off about the girl’s demeanor. Part of her suspected it might’ve just been nerves, although something else was ringing warning bells in the back of her mind. Still, she put on as friendly of a smile as she could muster
“Yes,” She paused for a second to try and recall the girl’s name, “Petra? What do you need?”
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 29, 2016 10:13:07 GMT -6
Shhe felt as is her heart was pounding in her ears, a pressure in her chest mouting as every second went by. She was finding it hard to breath, every fiber of her body screamin in pain. Flashes of fire shoot through her mind, terrifyling thoughts flying in hr head.
She hears her name over th drawl in her mind, she she looked up, blood shot eyes landing on the teacher. I dont feel so good. Can i got to the bathroom? She asked in a rough, tired voice, pressing a palm to her forehead
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 29, 2016 11:39:38 GMT -6
"Of course! If you are feeling any worse, you can head over to the nurse's office."
Concern was beginning to grow stronger and stronger within Lynette. She noticed a few things about the girl's appearance that simply seemed "off" by enough of a degree to demand attention.The warning bells that had been ringing subtly in the back of her head were starting to get a little louder. Still she turned back to her lecture as Petra went to the restroom. Lynette still had a class to teach, as worried as she was over the younger girl's health. Worry which only grew tenfold when Lynette managed to finish class and realized that Petra's things remained behind without the girl there herself. Lynette hadn't seen her re-enter nor gotten word of her going to the nurse, both things which made her heart twinge.
"Is she still in the bathroom? I'm sure the nurse's office would've called me if she'd gone there."
The sentence ended in a mumble as Lynette head for the door to her classroom. As she shut the door behind her, the bells in her mind were starting to clang with increased urgency. She was getting increasingly more worried with each step she took to the nearest bathroom. She figured Petra would've headed for the closest one if she'd really felt unwell. Rarely did a door look imposing to Lynette, but as she opened the bathroom door it was with an subconscious bit of cautious and dread. She hoped with every fiber of her being that she was only being over paranoid about all this.
"Petra? Are you in here? I'm sorry but you haven't come back and it's been some time now. I didn't know if you'd gone to the nurse and I'm," She paused and bit her bottom lip, "I'm simply worried. Is everything alright?"
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 29, 2016 11:50:08 GMT -6
It had all happened so fast.
The girl lay on the cold tile floor, shards of broken mirror shining on the floor. Her eyes were half closed, her breath faint wisps trailing from her pasty lips. Blood slowly pooled around her, staining her hair and the side of her face. Held limply in her hand was a shard of glass from the mirror, covered in blood.
She was peaceful. Her mind was silent, wandering gently towards death which she so desperately wanted. Somewhere disttantly she heard a voice, and part of her wanted to shake the calm, light feeling washing through her body, to speak to Lynette. She sighed ever so slightly, blinking slowly.
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 29, 2016 12:30:16 GMT -6
Blood slowly pooled around her, staining her hair and the side of her face. Held limply in her hand was a shard of glass from the mirror, covered in blood.
In that moment a record scratched, sound stopped, and Lynette's heart gave one last mighty ba-bump before ceasing in its beatings. A second or two passed before it inevitably beat again, and with the pump of blood came the energy to act.
"Petra!"
Regardless of the grim sight, Lynette rushed over and found a spot relatively devoid of glass shards to kneel in. Panic was threatening to override her common sense, and Lynette knew she had to act fast. A sliver of relief came when she noticed the girl's eyes had fluttered open.
"Oh Petra hold on! We have to get you to the nurse!"
Eyes flying, Lynette got back up and took almost emptied the paper towel dispenser before returning to the fallen girl. Lynette didn't care to get bloody herself when she moved Petra carefully, but she kept the paper clean to apply to the girl's wounds. Tears stung in Lynette's eyes as she kept pressure on the cuts. She couldn't stay like this without help, otherwise Petra would bled out on the floor.
"Oh please stay with me!"
That being muttered, she scrambled out of the bathroom and yelled for help to some passers by. Covered in splatters of blood, Lynette figured she demanded attention as several dashed off to get proper help. Meanwhile Lynette returned to Petra's side with several others starting to follow her into the bathroom. Most stayed out of the way of the debris and liquid, but some joined Lynette carefully on the floor to keep Petra from bleeding out. Lynette could hardly register anything that happened after that. Her brain had noted the sickening slick and warm tile on her knees eventually being replaced with nothing at all. Somehow her scenery had changed without her noticing, and the girl she'd been cradling in her arms was gone. Lynette blinked and raised her head, taking in her sudden change in environment as her neck ached with movement.
She was in a hospital room as far as she could tell. Petra was lying down in front of her on a bed, and as Lynette blinked she realized her own eyes were swollen from crying. Everything was surrounded in sheer confusion and bafflement, but through it all one clear thing managed to wiggle out of Lynette; worried relief.
"Oh Petra." She managed to say as new tears came to her eyes and she scooted closer. "I'm glad you're ok! But I just-" She shook her head repeatedly, not yet understanding, "Why?"
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 29, 2016 13:30:15 GMT -6
She was slipping.
Everybreath became fainter, every beat her her heart more feeble. She heards her name, but she hardly registers it, lips parting to let out whispered words.
I wanted thhe pain to stop.
A hiss rushed through her teeth as Lynette gripped her wrists, pain which she didnt want to feel surging through her arms. She seemed to choke on her own air for a moment before she went limp, eyes rolling back into her head, breath no more than a whisper.
---
Beep. Beep. Beep.
She remembered the sound, the slow rhythm of the heart rate moniter. She breathed in slowly, oxygen filling her lungs from the mask over her mouth. Her eyes fluttered open just a crack, her vision bleary. The first thing she saw was a bag filled with deep red liquid, slowly dribbliing down an IV line into her veins. She groaned slightly, lifting her head a small bit.
She could see her bruised arms, the bandaged around her wrists, the blanket covering her legs. Finally her distant gaze landed on Lynette. The words were distant, and she just blinked slowly.
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 29, 2016 14:31:36 GMT -6
”Why would you hurt yourself so badly?” Her voice was getting shaky again as emotions flooded to fill hollowness she had felt. “You have so much left of your life to live.”
Now that her ability to feel and recognize her surroundings had returned, Lynette was starting to remember bits and piece of what had happened. Mainly she recalled exactly what had made her numb in the first place. A mixture of white hot anger sliced through Lynette for a flash, but it was instantly drowned in heavy sorrow and concern. She shook her head and tried to wipe away the now flowing tears trickling down her cheeks.
“The doctor had told me about other things as well.” She tried to steady her voice and keep herself from hiccuping. “There’s been alcohol in your system, and drugs, and-” She shook her head and paused to collect herself, “Petra you’re far too thin and the doctor found scars.”
Lynette really did not want to broach the next subject. Just the thought she would even need to bring it up and address something like this to one of her students no less made her both angry and pained all at once. However, she knew she would have to say something.
“Petra are you,” There was a lump in her throat that made her hesitate only a moment, “Being abused?” She already knew the answer; they’d found the obvious signs. “Petra,” Her voice had calmed but the ache in her heart had not, “You need to get help. If you go on like this you could die!” She sniffled and wiped a few more tears away. “And I’m afraid you think that’s a good thing but it’s not! It’s not!”
Lynette knew she’d been through some difficult times in her life. There were moments where she had considering giving up on something; but never had she reached the point when she’d wanted to give up on life. Seeing one of her very own students reaching such a dismal point made her feel ridiculously guilty. In her own opinion she had failed Petra, even if others could argue she had nothing to do with it.
“Petra it’s not worth it. Please believe me when I say that things can turn around! All you need to do is reach out and theres so many people who would be willing to help you.” Lynette sniffled and shook her head, the tears still leaking. “I just,” Her voice cracked for a moment, “I feel like I’ve done wrong not noticing you were having these issues. I’m sorry I didn’t try to help you sooner.”
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 29, 2016 15:00:19 GMT -6
Lynettes words shook the cloud from her mind, eyes growing a little more bright as she focused on her teacher. There was a deep sorrow in her pale eyes, an unfathomable sadness which couldnt be explained. I wanted the pain to go away. Words uttered from a rough, dry throat.
She looked away as the woman continured to speak, her breath catching in her throat. God, why did they always have to mention what was wrong with her. Teeth grate against her lip nervously, her yes closinng for a moment.
Petra almoost jumped as the ginger woman's words flowed into the air. Her hands quickly began to shake, her gaze flitting around the room nervously, yet never landed on Lynette. It my fault. I do stuff and Max gets angry. Its my fault, my fault She rushed, figting weakly.
Pale gaze suddenly landed on the woman, seeing the tears running down her cheeks. Why are you crying? Her voice was soft and quiet, almost inocent in its resonance. No ones ever cried for me before. She added as an after thought. Her hand shifted closer to the womans own, slowly fingers curling around the other womans weakly, such trust for a woman she had barely spoken to before. She says no more, her fingers entertwined with the womans, soft gaze sad yet trusting.
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 29, 2016 15:57:19 GMT -6
"I wanted the pain to go away.”
The tears and sadness gripping Lynette grew even worse at Petra’s words. She could only shake her head in pure dismay.
“But I don’t want you to go away! There are other things that can help take away the hurt without you disappearing.”
The fact Petra hurt so much was making Lynette ache with sympathy. It was almost as if one of her plants had gotten burned and she could feel it’s agony. Maybe someone could say it was terrible for her to relate a human being getting abused to a normal plant being burned, but Lynette had a bond with plant life no normal person could understand.
"It my fault. I do stuff and Max gets angry. Its my fault, my fault.”
Seeing her shaking like that with her eyes flitting about like she was terrified once again brought equal parts rage and sorrowful sympathy coursing through Lynette’s veins.
“No. It’s never your fault. No one should ever hit you or injure you like you’ve been. There are no excuses. None.”
Part of Lynette wanted to find this so called “Max” and give him a piece of her mind. The other, smarter part of her wanted to call the authorities to give him rightful justice. The majority of Lynette simply wanted to hold Petra close and get rid of ever hurt that’d been inflicted on her. Yet she knew she couldn’t take all the pain away; only try and make sure it never happened again.
"Why are you crying?”
Lynette looked up and her heart clenched painfully at the soft innocence in those words.
"No ones ever cried for me before.”
As a hand slipped into hers Lynette felt herself break and squeeze back. The sheer insanity of the day was getting to her at last, the realization of all that had occurred hitting her. She was sobbing now, shaking her head and holding that hand. The trust she’d glimpsed in Petra’s eyes felt undeserved, but she wanted to be worthy of it.
“Please promise me you’ll never do that again.” She could barely choke it out now. “Please. I swear things can get better. We’ll get you help. I’ll help you. I promise. I don’t ever want to see one of my students hurt themselves like this again.
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 29, 2016 16:25:58 GMT -6
The girl was unsure what to do, especially in her groggy, weak state. The situation unnerved her slightly, but she almost like it. Haveing someone so worried about her flushed warmth though her system.
But Max always says its my fault, and hes my husband. I thought I had to do what he said? She breathed almost in confusion, brows furrowing ever so slightly. She swallowed, leaning her head back into the pillow and breathing deeply.
She jerked slightly as Lynette squeezed her hand, but she did not pull away, slowly sitting and slumping her body against the woman, face pressing into her abdomen. Her hands snaked up to grip the fabric of the womans shirt, as if she was frightened she would dissapear. I promse. She whispered gently.
A small, cheery nurse suddenly came in, smiling at both the girl and the teacher. Petra pressed harder into Lynette, the heartrate moniter beeping a little faster. "Hello Petra, I need to change the bandages on your wrists and clean the scratches on your back, ok? Petra looked sick at the thought, her hands shaking as the moniter bleeped wildly beside her. Dont let them touch me, dont let them touch me. She screeched. They took my baby away, dont let them take anything else away, dont let them touch me.
The nurse looked a little dumbfounded, but looked to Lynette. Would you mnd if i gave her a mild sedative to calm her down a little bit?
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 29, 2016 17:20:56 GMT -6
”No!” It came out far firmer than she realized. “A marriage is supposed to be equal! He should not be hitting you or telling you something’s your fault when it’s not!”
Lynette had never been one to get angry easily, but seeing this girl in such a state and saying everything she was only fed Lynette a fury she was unused to. It mingled inside of her like a storm with her other emotions. Never would she have imagined she would have to deal with something quite like this in her lifetime.S he knew she should’ve been stronger, but all she could do now was hold Petra when she came closer.
”I promise.”
Lynette managed a tiny smile at the promise, but she was still hiccuping and crying. She’d had no idea she could cry this much in one day. She figured most of it must’ve been due to the sheer shock of such a situation landing in her lap. Lynette wasn’t sure how to handle something like this; she’d dealt with depressed students but nothing close to this magnitude. Still, she was determined to stay true to her word and help in any way she could.
"Hello Petra, I need to change the bandages on your wrists and clean the scratches on your back, ok?”
Lynette looked up when she heard another voice, but she noticed how Petra’s grip had suddenly tightened.
”Don't let them touch me, don’t let them touch me.They took my baby away, don’t let them take anything else away, don’t let them touch me.”
To say Lynette was shocked would’ve been an understatement. She looked at Petra with newfound concern as she whipped the tears away and forced herself to calm. She knew she had to be there for Petra now; no more crying.
"Would you mind if I gave her a mild sedative to calm her down a little bit?”
In her own eyes Lynette saw no harm in the nurse’s request, but one look at Petra told her that might not be wise. Instead she squeezed Petra’s hand gently and tried her best to have a calming tone despite having just been sobbing.
“Petra please. She’s only trying to help.” Lynette tried her best to explain. “I’ll be right here the whole time. I promise I won’t let them take anything else from you. Don’t worry."
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 30, 2016 15:57:57 GMT -6
Petra whimpered slightly at the forcefulness of Lynette's words, her eyes clenching shut for a moment in a brief flash of fear. The voice in her head whispered almost silent, she couldnt make out the words but it hurt.
She breathed in Lynette's perfume, forcing herself not to freak out. She could hear the womans heart beat thrumming against her ear. She pressed herself closer into Lynette, whimpering like a frightened child and she glared at the nurse, shaking her head visiously. Stay away from me! Dont touch me! She oushed Lynette away, drawing her knees up and gripping her hair, screaming into her skin before suddenly muttering. Shut up shut up its not true dont say that. The girl said it as if she was speaking to herself.
The nurse looked sympatheticly at Lynette, before edging forward she slowly innjecting a sedative into the IV line. Petra's mutterings slowed and became weaker, her body slowly unfolding. There we go. The nurse said gently, easing the girl back onto the pillows. Petra looked to Lynette with half closed yet terrified eyes. Dont let them hurt me. She uttered weakly, panting in fear as the nurse slowly unwound the bandage around one of her wrists.
Post by Lynette Chevalier on Jan 31, 2016 7:49:22 GMT -6
”I’m sorry, I,” She stammered just a little, guilt seeping into her tone, “I didn’t mean to be so firm.”
The whimper and fear in Petra’s eyes made Lynette’s heart clench painfully in her chest. She wished she hadn’t let her emotion get the best of her, but the damage was already done. She held Petra as comfortingly as she could as the nurse came in.
"Stay away from me! Don’t touch me!
Lynette’s eyes widened when suddenly she was shoved away. She turned her head to take in Petra all curled up in a defensive position. Sympathy was flowing through her as strongly as her concern was, especially when she could hear Petra’s mutters from her proximity.
"Shut up shut up its not true don’t say that.”
Her heart went out o the girl even more, if that was truly humanly possible. Lynette almost couldn’t believe someone could be so frightened of someone else trying to help them. Petra had mentioned something about her child being taken away from a nurse, and it suddenly clicked she meant she’d had an abortion. White hot anger threatened to taint the sympathy in Lynette’s veins, but her anger had already hurt more than helped.
“Petra please. I promise this nurse isn’t like the other you’ve seen. She only wants to help.”
She was tempted to touch Petra again, to hold her hand and offer some form of comfort. Only Lynette had a feeling it would be rejected instead of welcomed this time. instead she could only watch with sorrow etched on her features as the sedative was applied and Petra grew weaker and weaker.
”Don't let them hurt me.”
The terrified look in Petra’s eyes was shattering Lynette’s already shaking and heavy heart in tiny little pieces. Each ba-bump had a tint of misery and pain pumping through the teacher as she beheld her injured student. Lynette shook her head and pulled together a weak smile.
“I promise. I’ll be right here. She’s not going to hurt you Petra. We’re only-” Her voice choked a little and interrupted her, “We’re only trying to help. But I’ll watch and make sure she doesn’t do anything if you’re really so worried.”
Lynette turned her head to the nurse with a somewhat apologetic smile even though it was still weak from the emotion turmoil taking it’s toil.
“Please be careful. I know you mean no harm but,” Lynette paused and glanced at Petra for one agonizing heartbeat before looking back, “She’s had a bad experience with nurses and the like before.”
Post by Petra Davis-Shelley on Jan 31, 2016 8:44:08 GMT -6
The girl was comforted by her teachers presence, it eased her racing heart. Part of her wanted to slip away into sleep, but she knew sleep would bring horrid nightmares which she struggles to awaken form.
They cut me open, they took away my baby. They didnt let me see her. Her gentle words utter from her pale lips, eyes occasionally shutting for a few moments sleepily before opening again. The nurse continued to ork on the girls wrists, keeping a tight hold though Petra tried to pull away. She tried to keep her focus on Lynette, though she couldnt seem to hold her gaze on the woman for more then a few seconds at a time.
Can you hold my hand? She asked gently, tears building up in her eyes, but refused to fall. The nurse behind her almost scoffed as Lynette spoke. I know. Last time she was here she broke a nurses nose. She carefully began to wind a new bandage over the wound. The doctors want to do a Psyciatic evaluation, when she was here last time she was diagnosed with depression. She was written out a perscription, but they were never taken out.