SCORE (A Stepbrother Sports Romance)(16)
I slid my shirt on and grabbed my jacket from my bag, putting it on before throwing my books into my backpack. I tossed it over my shoulder and peered at Alyssa, who was ready to head out the door. I stepped close to her, and she froze, looking up at me as I spoke. “Hey, Lys, I’m sorry.”
She smiled a small smile and touched my face gently. “Don’t be,” she whispered. I smiled sadly at her and turned to leave. My phone buzzed harshly as it vibrated against the table where I’d left it. Alyssa grabbed it for me and said, “You almost left your phone.”
She glanced at the screen, scowled immediately, and pushed past me without a word, practically throwing my phone at me. Confused, I called, “Alyssa, wait for me!”
I let out a groan when I saw what had upset Alyssa so badly: another text from Brittney. I look forward to our date baby, followed by a winky face and a heart. “Dammit.” I cursed under my breath because I had forgotten about Friday night.
I left the classroom and walked to the parking lot where Alyssa waited in the car for me. She looked like she had been crying, and I felt guilty. I never intended to hurt her, but how could I make her see that? “Lys…” I began softly around a lump in my throat and an odd, hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach.
She shook her head, ending the apology before I could begin. We drove home in silence. I looked over at Alyssa as she drove, still guilty for hurting her. The emotion was raw, cutting me deeply as I stewed in my own self-loathing. I was so intent on protecting her from all those terrible guys, but at the end of the day, I had hurt her. The fact that I had no real feelings for Brittney made the whole thing even worse, and I questioned the way I was acting. Was this really the kind of person I wanted to be?
We pulled up to the house, and I was relieved that the ride was finally over. I grabbed my backpack and duffle bag full of football equipment, hoisting it over my shoulder. Alyssa left her backpack in the car and walked up the steps to the house. Just before she opened the door, I watched as her body slowly crumpled, falling to the floor of the porch with a hard, thudding noise.
“Alyssa!” I cried out in panic and dropped my duffel bag to rush over to her. She lay on the ground, unmoving, and fear seized my heart. I had no idea what had happened or what to do. I knelt beside her, reaching down gently to touch her face, and called her name again. “Alyssa, please wake up,” I moaned, shaking her. Her skin was hot to the touch and covered in a layer of clammy sweat. Relief shot through me as I watched her slowly blink her eyes open.
“Blake,” she said hoarsely. “I’m not feeling very well.”
I set my backpack down on the ground and scooped up her small body with ease. “You’re going to be okay, kid,” I told her, carrying her into the house and up the stairs to her room.
I set her down gently on the bed as she said, “Thank you.” Fluttering her eyes shut, she turned her head, clearly exhausted.
“Alyssa. You have a fever. I’m going to get you some medicine, okay?” I told her in a strong, clear voice.
She didn’t open her eyes but simply nodded, turning over and curling into herself. I was nervous about leaving her, but she needed something to lower her fever. I ran out into the hall and to the bathroom, pawing through the medicine cabinet, scanning the labels of the different bottles until I finally found something that would reduce her fever.
I ran downstairs, bottle of pills in my hand, collected my stuff from outside, and tossed it in the living room, quickly locking the door behind me. I didn’t know where my mom or Rich were, so I was on my own as far as helping Alyssa. I went to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and bounded back up the stairs as quickly as I had come down.
She was still lying in bed, but I watched as her body shuddered violently. She was shivering even though sweat beaded her body. I placed my hand on her burning hot skin, turning her towards me as I sat on the edge of the bed. “Alyssa, I need you to take these,” I said carefully, placing the pills in her hand and handing her the water after I helped her to sit up.
She nodded, swallowing the pills with a big gulp of water. She drank a little more and said, “Thank you.”
“Is there anything else you need?” I asked, unsure how to help her. I watched her as she lay back on the bed, resting her head on her pillows and shaking her head weakly. I hated to see her so fragile like this. I sat on the bed for a while, watching her shake and shiver, feeling useless.
I decided to leave and let her get some rest. I covered her up with the pink comforter, shut her bedroom door quietly, and went to my room and laid down. The day had really wiped me out. I would check on Alyssa in a little bit and take a small nap in the meantime. My eyes closed, and sleep came fast and easily.
My eyes blinked open when I heard a weird sound coming from down the hall. I sat up, looking at the alarm clock near my bed. 2:54 am. I groaned, sliding out of bed, and entered the hallway wearily. I remembered Alyssa was sick and felt bad because I had never gone to check up on her. I stumbled quickly down the hallway, the heaving noises becoming louder as I neared the bathroom.
“Lyssa?” I called out, peering into the bathroom. She knelt on the ground in front of the toilet bowl in the same clothes as earlier, and her hair fell into her face as she leaned over it.
She was unable to answer me, though, as she gagged and vomited violently. The sight of it made me nauseous, but I stepped into the bathroom anyway, kneeling next to her on the ground. I pulled her hair out of her face, and she rested her head on the rim of the toilet seat, exhaustion visible on her sunken face. Her skin was deadly pale and covered in sweat, and she had dark rims under her eyes. Her chest heaved up and down with painful breaths.