27. Cursed
Cursed
I flipped through the channels, trying to find something to watch. But at this hour, there wasn’t much in terms of programming. There was only a week left for Jack to come back, and I was growing restless.
Breaking news.
“Now what...?” I stopped on the channel as I watched on.
The woman on the television was speaking about a shooting, but it was the text beneath her that caught my attention. Toronto nightclub. My chest squeezed as I grabbed my cellphone and sent a quick text to Jack. I hoped everything was okay and if he could just let me know he was safe.
Minutes passed by as I glanced from the television to my phone. Still nothing.
People had been shot. A security guard was brought to the hospital in critical condition.
My stomach churned, and I tasted bile in the back of my mouth. I called the number this time. It just rang. It wouldn’t stop ringing. Why wasn’t he picking up?
I bolted to my feet, pacing the living area. What should I do? My finger hovered over David’s contact; Jack had given it to me in an emergency. Did this count? He might’ve been working and just couldn’t answer. That wasn’t an emergency; that was a needy girlfriend.
Still, no one could blame me as I watched the news unfold. The same nightclub he worked at. No names released.
I tapped on David’s name and waited. And waited.
Nothing. With a scream, I nearly threw my smartphone against the wall but instead tightened my grip on it.
My device buzzed, and I answered it without even checking the name. “Jack?” I shouted.
“It’s David,” his voice sounded strained. “Jack’s been...shot.”
The world around me vanished until I stood in nothingness. Everything around me was still there, but it stopped existing in those few seconds I stayed on the line. David continued about Jack being in the hospital. That he’d keep me posted, but I barely registered any of it.
“Jill?” David’s voice brought me back. “Hey. It’ll be alright. He’ll be okay.”
“Yeah... thanks.” I dropped my phone onto my couch and walked a few steps before collapsing on the floor.
My hands curled into fists, and I pounded against the wood, not caring if my downstairs neighbor complained.
I didn’t care. Not about anything. Why had this happened?
I’d known I was cursed, but I still let him get close because I loved him.
But if I’d really cared, I would’ve pushed him away.
I staggered to my feet and went straight for the drawer of my nightstand. Codeine. What was left of it. This pain could go away if I took some. Even if it was only for a few minutes, I just needed the anguish to stop. I needed to breathe.
What if David calls with an update, and you’re passed out?
The little voice inside my mind was right, and I bit my lower lip. Instead, I took a chance and called Nina.
She answered on the fourth ring. “Jill? What’s the matter?”
I burst into sobs, trying to get the words out about what happened to Jack, about needing to make it all stop. To stop the curse.
Shuffling sounded from the other side of the line. “Whoa, hold on sweetie. I’ll be right there, okay? Stay on the line with me, please.”
I nodded, trying to control my shuddering breaths, but nothing seemed to work. Why couldn’t I breathe anymore? The room seemed to dim around me, but I shook my head. I needed to stay conscious. Needed to know Jack was okay.
Time stopped making sense as I waited to hear back from David and for Nina to arrive. This was all my fault; my parents and brother died in a car accident, my aunt died of cancer, and my foster parents were murdered. Ginette overdosed because of me. Everyone around me died.
Jack’s not going to die.
My buzzer went off, and I yelped, running to it and answering. “Yes?”
“It’s Nina.” Her voice was gentle but strong, exactly what I needed in that moment. I let her in, and as soon as I opened the door to her, she rushed inside.
“Okay, you’re okay,” she said, bringing me in for a hug as I burst into tears again.
“I’m...sorry...I called...so late,” I blathered.
“You did good to call me,” she said, pulling me back before closing the door behind her. “Come. Let’s get you sitting.” She led me to the sofa, and I slumped down onto it, still clutching my smartphone.
“I haven’t heard anything more from David yet...” I’d muted the television, but the words continued scrolling past the screen. My heart seemed to stop.
Security guard brought to hospital has passed away.
“No...” I refused to believe it. It was impossible. “No,” I said louder as tears rolled down my cheeks. I hadn’t told him... not everything. I had to tell him.
My phone buzzed, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the television. Nina picked it up and spoke in a quiet tone as she got to her feet and moved away from me.
I wanted everything to end. I’d always prepared it, and this wasn’t how or when I’d planned it. But fuck everything.
“Oh, that’s good news,” Nina’s voice caught my attention, and I turned toward her, blinking.
Hadn’t she seen what was on the television screen?
She pulled the phone away from her for a second and smiled.
“The security guard who passed away wasn’t Jack.
There was a mix-up in all the commotion.
He was shot, but it was a bullet graze. He’s fine. ”
I shot up to my feet and nearly threw myself into Nina’s arms. “He’s alright!” I shouted, not caring if everyone in the building―hell, the street―heard me. Nina handed me the phone. “He’s okay, David!”
“I’m so sorry for the confusion before―”
“No, no. I can’t imagine anything makes much sense when you’re being shot at...” I stopped and let out a breath. “Are you okay? I never even asked if―”
“I’m alright. Just a bit shaken up. Jack’s getting stitches done, but he’ll... well, speak of the devil. Hey! You can―”
There were muffled sounds on the other line. “Jill?”
“Jack,” I burst into sobs again, unable to control myself. He was alive. He was okay. I couldn’t believe it, but I needed to. “I’m so... happy you’re... alright.”
“I am. Breathe in, darling girl. I’m here.” There was a short pause. “I’m coming back early. I’m leaving on the first flight tomorrow, okay?”
David said something, but it was muffled.
I just nodded, still smiling through the tears.
He was coming back to me. Alive. It was the only word that repeated inside my mind over and over.
Despite wanting to stay on the line with him until he got home, my eyelids drooped as though they weighed a ton, and Nina insisted I get some sleep.
“Get some rest now,” Jack said over the phone. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Nina helped me into bed, and as she did, I opened my nightstand drawer and handed her my pill bottle. “I don’t want these anymore.”
Her eyebrows shot up, but she smiled as she took them from me. “I’m proud of you. You’re so much stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
I closed my eyes as my head touched the pillow. It should’ve felt better, but the nagging voice in my head kept haunting me.
He didn’t die this time, but he will if he sticks around you.
“Get some sleep and call me after class tomorrow. We’ll talk some more then, okay?” Nina said in a gentle tone. I knew she wanted to know more about Jack, but I wasn’t about to tell her the whole story.
“Thanks again for coming, Nina,” I said, peaking through one eyelid. “I appreciate you so much.” Would she die, too?
Yes. Everyone around you dies.
I shut my eyes tighter, plagued by the memory of death surrounding me at every turn.