The man takes a step back, his hands raised in the air, cigarette poised between his fingers. "Hey, man. I'm not getting into this. If he got puddled, he must have done something."
"It was supposed to be me," I cry.
Trish cries too, pleading, "Please, just take us to the hospital. We have no idea where we are."
The man grimaces. "I'll take you to the closest town, but I ain't taking you to a hospital. You'll be on your own from there."
We all nod, grateful for any kind of help.
The man nods toward his van, and we all shuffle in, shoving Neil into the middle. Willie sits in the front, his hands gripping his headrest as he turns around, staring at Neil. He tries to talk to him, asking him questions and shaking his knee.
Nothing happens.
I cry the entire time down the mountain and into town. The man doesn't say anything, doesn't ask us any questions. He just drives us directly into the closest town, parking on the corner of an empty street. There are shops nearby, but none even look open yet for the day.
"Thank you, man," Willie says, giving him a smile.
"Where's the closest hospital?" I ask through my tears, unable to stop the terror of this morning. I could be dead right now, or mentally, anyway. Who knows what kind of trip Neil is going through in his mind right now.
The thought of that terrifies me.
The man points out the passenger window. "Three blocks that way you'll find the emergency room."
We all nod, thanking him again before shuffling Neil down the road. He can walk himself, but his feet are wobbly, and we want to get him there as soon as possible.
My eyes glance at a sign that shows a nearby airport, and my heart lurches in my chest. This is the first time the thought of going home has hit me so hard. This is the first time I've felt as lost, as homesick as I do in this moment.
I don't want to be here anymore.
We walk into the emergency room, and the scent of disinfectant slaps me in the face. The doctors give us disappointed looks when we tell them what's going on. They put Neil in a wheelchair, the wheels slightly squeaky, and bring him to the back, telling us to stay in the waiting room and they'll update us when they can.
The moment Neil pushes through the pale white doors, I break down and cry, bending at the waist and burying my face in my skirt.
I can hear Trish crying beside me, and then Willie's hand pushes me off to the side, shoving the both of us into the waiting room chairs. The plastic bangs against my spine, and it only makes me cry harder. "It's not going to do us any good to sit here and cry. Let's just wait and hope for the best," Willie says.
"I want to go home," I cry, wiping the tears from my face. "I feel so lost. That could be me right now. But Neil saved me. He pushed me out of Crow's way. That could be me, and my family would never know!" A sob rips from my chest, and I feel so incredibly desperate. "I just want to go home."
"Let's just sit here and wait. We can talk about it when we get some news from Neil, okay?" Willie says, his voice a little uncertain, a little possessive. It makes me feel uneasy, and I grind my teeth together with unease.
"Luna, will you go to the bathroom with me?" Trish asks, standing up from her chair. She wipes her red face, her skin discolored and blotchy from tears.
I nod, standing up and wiping my own face. We look for the sign and find it right away, holding each other's hands as we walk into the bathroom. Pushing open the heavy door, I walk straight toward a pale blue stall when Trish's fingers wrap around my arm. Her hand is shaky, tremors so heavy that my arm twitches. "Luna."
I look at her, confusion in my eyes, "What? What is it?"
She looks around for a few seconds, like someone, maybe Willie, will walk in here any moment. She sticks her finger into her bra, pulling out a wad of cash. She looks uncertain, but so damn sure of herself as she stares me in the eyes. "Take this. I saw you eyeing the airport. This is your time. Willie will never let you leave. Did you see the look in his eyes? He'llneverlet you go."
I feel her words in the depths of my heart. I know he won’t. There's been a look in his eyes since San Diego, a possessiveness that has no right to be there. Our relationship was never that serious, yet the look in his eyes is one that says he'll never let me leave him.
Never.
"But… where'd you get this?" I stare down at the money, eyes wide.
She winces, looking a little sheepish, "I left home with it. It's always on me." She rolls the money out, some of it faded, crumpled from being wet. "It's not in the best shape, and it's not much, but it should get you home. You want to go home, right?"
I nod, tears springing to my eyes. I don't know what waits for me, but I know I want to leave California. This place, it doesn't feel right.
But neither does taking Trish’s money.