Sirens blared in the background, getting louder and louder. Summer sensed more people gathering around but was afraid to look up. Blocking everything else out, she repeated the CPR steps again. She had to get Ashlyn breathing again before the paramedics tried to take her.
Time slowed.
Each second dragged.
The world fell quiet as Summer concentrated all her efforts on keeping Ashlyn breathing. If I can get her breathing again, it’ll all be okay.
The ambulance screeched to a halt a few yards away. Paramedics burst out of it, running in her direction. Summer recognized them—she’d seen them when she’d seen Ashlyn die. No way I’m letting them take her.
“Move aside, miss,” one of them said.
Ignoring him, Summer leaned down and blew two breaths in and started pumping again.
“You’ve done a good job,” the same guy said. “Now let us do ours.”
“Summer, move away so they can help.” Troy had broken through the crowd of people and was staring down at her and Ashlyn.
I’m not moving. The second she gets in that ambulance it’s over. She kept pumping. Eighteen, nineteen…
“Move back!” The paramedic raised his voice. “Someone get her away from here!”
Arms encircled Summer’s waist, pulling her away from Ashlyn. “Get off me!” Desperation tore through her heart, ripping and tearing until her chest felt like a gaping wound. She tried to pry the hands off of her, but the grip remained firm. “Let me go!”
Troy’s voice filled her ear. “The paramedics are going to help her. Just let them do their job.”
“You don’t understand.” Tears blurred her vision. Her breaths were coming faster and faster. “She’s going to die. We can’t let them take her in the ambulance.” Summer lunged at the paramedics as they strapped Ashlyn on the stretcher. “Stop! Don’t take her!”
Troy pulled her back, holding her against him. “She’s going to be fine. They’ll know what to do.”
“She’s not going to be fine. I’ve seen it. If she gets in the ambulance, she’s dead.” She twisted around in Troy’s arms and met his gaze. She didn’t even care if he thought she was crazy, as long as he helped her keep Ashlyn out of the ambulance. “Troy, please don’t let them take her. If they take her in the ambulance, she’s going to die. Don’t let her die.”
Troy hugged her to him. “It’s going to be okay. I know you’re scared, but it’s all going to be okay.”
“But it’s not. You don’t understand.” Summer glanced back and saw the paramedics loading Ashlyn into the ambulance. “Please, help me. Don’t let them take her.” She pushed her hands to his chest, desperate to break free. “At least let me go so I can stop them. Please, Troy. Please.”
The doors of the ambulance closed.
“It’s going to be okay,” Troy said again, keeping his arms tight around her.
The vehicle took off, sirens blaring. Summer’s body slackened, Troy the only thing keeping her from falling to the ground. “I don’t like this job, I don’t like this job, I don’t like this job.”
“What job?” Troy asked.
Everything inside her turned icy cold, and at that moment, she wished for the ground to swallow her whole so she didn’t have to feel or think or be. “I can’t believe she’s dead. I couldn’t stop it. I really thought I could stop it.”
Troy didn’t say anything; he simply squeezed her tighter. She buried her head in his chest and sobbed. In the background, she heard teachers instructing students to get to where they needed to be. She knew she wouldn’t be going to class today. She didn’t even know if she could walk anymore.
“Everybody needs to get to class,” a female voice said, closer this time. Summer didn’t bother looking up to see who it was. “We’ll update you as we receive word.”
“We’re friends of Ashlyn’s,” Troy said. “Just give us a few minutes.”
The woman sighed. “Okay, take your time,” she said. The sound of shoes against the sidewalk got quieter and quieter before dropping off completely. The area that had been buzzing minutes ago was now painfully quiet.
Summer stepped back, not bothering to wipe her tears off her cheeks. “I’m going home.”
“You can’t drive right now,” Troy said. “You’re too—”
“I’ll be fine.” Summer dug in her bag and retrieved her keys.
Troy took them out of her hand and held them behind his back. “I’m driving. We can go to the hospital and wait for word on Ashlyn.”
Another stab of pain shot through her chest. “She’s dead, Troy. I couldn’t change it.”
“You can’t talk like that. We’ve got to stay positive. Besides, think about her mom. We need to be there for her.”
That stopped Summer. She was so caught up in her grief over losing her best friend that she forgot about Pamela. Ashlyn was all Pamela had in the world. She supposed it was still her job to help Pamela with the closure. “Okay. Let’s go to the hospital.”
Troy reached out and took Summer’s hand in his. “I’m sure Ashlyn will be fine.”
And I’m sure she won’t.
Troy drove them to the nearest hospital. When Summer bent down to get her bag, she saw the brown Diet Coke stain on her floor mat. Her eyes burned as new tears formed. “That’s where Ashlyn spilled her drink. It was so”—sniff—“funny.”
Summer leaned her head on the dashboard and started crying all over again.
Troy placed his hand on her back. “Soon you guys will be laughing again. The doctors will patch her up, and things will be okay.”
“You don’t get it. The paramedics tried to shock her heart, but it wouldn’t start beating again. Ashlyn is already gone.”
“They didn’t shock her heart,” Troy said, his voice soft. “They loaded her onto the stretcher and brought her here so that she can get the medical attention she needs.”
“They shocked it in the ambulance. It didn’t work, though.”
“How do you know?”
“I just do, okay!” Summer yelled.
The two of them sat in silence for a minute, only the noise of her sobs filling the air. The dash wasn’t exactly comfortable, but Summer couldn’t seem to lift her head off of it. Instead, she stared at the floor. Stared at the brown stain that ripped out her heart. When she heard Troy get out of the car, she figured she’d pissed him off enough that he’d decided to leave her there.
Then her car door opened, letting a waft of cool air in.
Summer twisted her head to look up at Troy. He didn’t say anything, simply extended his hand. She took it and let him pull her out of the car. Hand in hand, they entered the hospital. Troy walked up to the desk and asked about Ashlyn. Since they were a couple of teenagers with no relation to the patient, the receptionist was less than forthcoming with the details.
Through the fog in Summer’s mind, she sensed Pamela before she came in. Seconds later, Ashlyn’s mom burst through the doors of the hospital, looking harried. Gaze trained on the receptionist, she made a beeline for the front desk. “Where’s my daughter? I was told the ambulance brought her here.”
The receptionist took down her name and told her she’d get someone to update her. Pamela turned around and seemed to notice Summer for the first time. She blinked at her. “Summer? What happened? Is Ashlyn okay?”
The lump in Summer’s throat made it impossible to respond. More tears were all that came out.
“They took her in the ambulance,” Troy said. “They wouldn’t tell us anything when we got here.”
Finally, Summer found her voice. “We were just walking, and she collapsed. I tried CPR. I tried everything I knew, but I was too late.”