Sshh, Be Quiet

After hesitating for a slight second at the shock of the door now open, they exited the house, taking in the fresh, nighttime air. Both of them were stunned into a state far beyond disbelief. Once they were a safe distance away, they turned around. Smoke was now rising from the house. Sirens could be heard in the distance, slowly getting louder. They collapsed in the grass, taking a deep sigh of relief.

“She’s alive right?” Stephanie asked, pointing to her friend who lay curled up in Brian’s arms.

“Yeah. She was just knocked out, hopefully she’ll be okay.” He paused before looking at Stephanie. “It probably doesn’t mean much, but on behalf of the guys, I am so sorry. We had no idea it would turn out this way. We just expected a week to meet some fans, make some friends, and have fun.”

“I know. I’m sorry that you lost your band,” she said as flashing lights were racing towards them. “Do you think they’ll believe us?”

“We can only hope. I will promise you both this, I will help you two out any way I can. I’ll pay for all of the medical expenses, and whatever else you guys want, just ask and it’s yours.”

Stephanie shook her head. “I’m not as injured as she is. I’m still alive though, that’s all that matters to me right now. I’ve never been so glad to be alive right now, and I have you to thank for helping us out. And for helping my best friend.”

Fire trucks, ambulances, and police cars all raced in from every direction, screeching to a stop outside the house. Cops and paramedics ran towards the three while firefighters went to work on putting out the fire.

“What the hell happened to you guys?” one of the cops asked.

“It’s a very long, and very unbelievable story,” Brian said.

“We'll go over that. First we need to get you guys treated.”

Paramedics grabbed Lisa and began treating her, trying to bring her back to consciousness. As another treated Brian’s burns, he explained the story in a short version to an older cop. To Brian's surprise, the cop was believing the story. He'd been with the department for a while, and had heard multiple stories about the house. The cop walked away, talking into his walkie talkie. When Brian’s hand was wrapped up in clean gauze, he looked up to see Stephanie fighting with a paramedic.

“She’s my best friend, and she’s unconscious, just let me go with her!”

“We can’t, because we need the room.”

“Please!? I won’t get in the way.”

Brian was being motioned to the second ambulance, and asked if she could go with him. With approval, she jumped in the ambulance with Brian, still worried about her friend.

“She’ll be fine,” Brian said, trying to comfort Stephanie.

The ride to the hospital seemed to take forever. They went inside, learning that Lisa was being treated in the ICU, and was still unconscious. Brian and Stephanie were then split up so they could be treated for their injuries. Both suffering from smoke inhalation, and Brian suffering severe second degree burns on his hand, along with bruising around his neck. Stephanie was released, but paced the waiting room furiously, waiting for any news on Lisa. Two hours passed when Brian was released. He found her in the waiting room and once again tried to calm her down. It took a few minutes, but he soon got her to sit down and relax. Minutes barely passed when Stephanie leaned on him and fell asleep. Brian himself was almost asleep when a doctor called to them.

“She’s awake, but pretty out of it. We had to get her treated for infection, and get her wounds stitched up. She was in pain, so we put her on morphine. We're going to keep her for a few days to monitor, especially since we were told she took quite a hit to the head. Other than that, she is responsive, should recover fully, and has asked for you two.”

They followed the doctor to Lisa’s room and walked in. She laid there with her injured arm in a sling, her face still slightly darkened from the fire.

“Thanks, Brian,” she whispered.

“Don’t mention it. You shouldn’t be so damn stubborn, it almost got you killed.”

“I wasn’t about to let him kill you, then come after us if we weren’t able to get out. Plus, I owed it to you after how much you did for me.”

Without even thinking, he reached and stroked her hair. “Don’t start on who owes anybody what. The three of us are alive, and we’re safe now. Just rest.”

“What else happened?”

“The cops believed the story. The one I talked to had heard several stories about the house. We went downstairs, and the front door was wide open. We assume that a neighbor called the fire department. Now shush, rest now.”

Stephanie was in the room, but as soon as she sat on the couch, she fell back to sleep. Brian continued to stroke Lisa’s hair until she fell asleep. Sitting in a chair next to her bed, he laid his head down for a moment to relax, and fully embrace everything that happened. He continued feeling horrible for the events turning out like they did, and he was trying to figure out how to repay the two girls. His mind raced at the new stress of the upcoming weeks, but fatigue won the war, and he too was soon fast asleep, thankful that he was alive, and able to at least save two lives.

Notes