Samantha's eyes shot open, and she found herself face to face with the pristine white ceiling of their school infirmary. She had sent enough kids in thee to know what it looked like.
Head groogy and eyes blurry, she slowly assessed her surroundings, taking not of the fact that the nurse was not in, and she seemed to be the only one there at the moment, until she turned her head to the side of her bed and noticed a figure sitting by her bed.
Startled, she shot up from the bed and sprang into a sitting position. She regretted that soon after when her vision dulled at the sides, and she felt a stinging pain in the back of her head.
"Woah there, you shouldn't move too fast. The nurse says it'll make you feel more disorientated, " the figure calmly explained after seeing Samantha jump.
Samantha focused, trying to make out who it was based on the outline. Her eyes widened a little when she realised who it was.
"...Ron?"
"Hi," he answered meekly with an awkward smile.
Samantha tensed. They weren't exactly best of friends, and she was still extremely mortified by the events that transpired between them earlier in the day.
"uhm.. what happened? How did I get here?" She asked, looking around to check for her belongings. She noticed her phone on the bedside table and picked it up before turning to Ron, hoping to get some answers from him.
"You were having a panic attack in the hall, and you passed out. The hospital seemed too far away, considering it was still lunchtime then, so I just brought you here. The nurse seemed to be surprised, though. She said something along the lines of you,'Finally feeling the comfort of the bed you made others lie in'
'Tch. Rude old hag!' Samantha scolded inwardly. She always knew the nurse had an aversion for her ever since she dealt with a student who seemed to be particularly close to the nurse. It was later that Samantha found out it was the nurse's nephew.
Samantha couldn't care less, though. It wasn't her fault that they raised a nuisance. He just so happened to pick the wrong person to mess with that fateful day.
Sighing, she turned on her phone and zeroed in on the notifications flooding her screen.
'25 text messages and 6 calls, wow. A new track record'
Samantha knew her parents were always worried about her getting in trouble, so she wasn't too surprised to find out they had been blowing up her phone. She was, however, curious about why. It couldn't be because they missed her during lunch.
That's when Samantha's eyes caught the time.
"It's 5:30?!"
She screeched. How long had she been in here.
"Yh. You were out like a light since lunchtime, " Ron answered after recovering from her outburst .
"Did you stay with me the whole time?"
"Kinda. I left to attend classes and then came back to check on you"
"Why, though? Shouldn't you be avoiding me. I mean, a few hours ago, I backed you up against a locker and threatened you because you looked like someone I thought I knew. Most people wouldn't wait behind after that. "
Ron blinked. It was true. The girl in front of him had acted weird, and he shouldn't have cared what happened after their alteration, but he found himself answering.
"Well, yeah. But maybe you have a solid explanation for your creepy, psychopath behaviour. And besides, what kind of person would I be if I just looked away while someone else was struggling? You seemed near death in those halls. It was admittedly a little scary. "
"I didn't get to thank you. Thanks for helping. That's the first time I've experienced something so serious. I honestly had no idea what to do.
Though Samantha wasn't a stranger to panic attacks, it was the first time she had one that felt so raw. She could feel the panic in her blood, like it was crawling around and making her even more unhinged.
"No worries." Ron replied with a quirky smile. "I do still expect some sort of explanation for what happened at lunch, though. I don't think it was simply because I look like someone you know. If you wanted to be my friend, you could just ask, yknow"
Samantha let out a humourless chuckle.
"Arrogant, much? You just assumed all that was because I was too scared to approach you and befriend you? What are we, five?"
"Seems to be the only explanation thay checks out right now. And I might be enjoying some self gratification in the process. Win win." Ron answered cheerily, without missing a beat.
"You're funny," she said, struggling to bite back a smile.
The warm moment of camaraderie was cut short by the loud ring of her cellphone. Samantha cringed at the intensity of its volume and wondered how she slept through that for so long. She glanced at the caller ID and sighed when she saw her mother's contact.
Taking a deep breath, she put the phone to her ear and answered the call.
"Hey mo-"
"Samantha! Where have you been? Where are you? Do you have any idea what time it is right now? Why didn't you answer your phone? Your father and I have been worried sick. Get your pretty little behind home right this instant, young lady!"
"Mom, calm down. I'm fine, " Samantha answered lazily to the torrent of questions she was attacked with. "I was in the infirmary, I'll be on my way home now,"
"The infirmary? Why? Are you hurt?" Her mother now sounded worried instead of angry.
"I'm fine, mom. Don't be so dramatic. It's nothing serious. "
"You know what? Wait for me. I'll come and pick you up, and then you'll explain exactly what happened that led to you ending up in the infirmary. I'll decide whether it's serious or not. No arguments. "
The call ended before Samantha had the chance to object. Groaning, she dropped the phone into her lap and got comfortable on the bed, waiting for her mother.
"My mom says she's coming to pick me up. How are you gonna get home?"
'I'll probably just take the next bus or something. No worries. Don't think I've forgotten about this, though. I'll follow you around until I get an explanation for what happened. "
"There is no explanation. It was a moment of temporary insanity. " Samantha replied, now convinced that her mind had indeed been playing tricks on her.
Ron looked at her, narrowing his eyes as if trying to huahe whether or not she was lying before exhaling loudly.
"Fine then. I guess you really just did want to be my friend. Very well, your request has been granted. Consider me your newest friend. And, as your friend, it's only right I stay until your mom gets here. It strengthens the plot"
Samantha couldn't help but laugh at that.
"You're seriously still on this?"
"Now, now, that's no way to speak to your new best friend."
"Moving fast, are we? Why are you suddenly declaring yourself my best friend. What if I already have one?" She asked him, a bit amused at the situation.
"I doubt you do. You seem like you don't have a lot of friends, " he answered simply.
Ouch. Well, he was right. Samantha didn't have friends, but hearing him say it still rubbed her the wrong way.
"Hey! I have friends!" She rushed out, but there was no real conviction to her words.
"Hmm. Sure, " Ron replied, and Samantha could have sworn she saw a twinkle in his eye.
He was enjoying this, wasn't her?
Unbelievable.
Samantha rolled her eyes and decided to ignore her best friend's antics. She slowly brought her mind back to the issue that sent her spiralling in the first place.
If Ron claimed not to have known her before today, then who was that person who spoke to her at the riverbank?
Her mind ran at a million miles per second, but she couldn't figure it out.
Her thoughts were interrupted by her mother hurriedly rushing into the empty room.
"Sam! Samantha! Where are you! Snort twice if you're alive!"
Samantha let out another sigh for the millionth time that day.
Her mother was so dramatic.
"I'm over here, mom, and like I've been telling you, I'm fine,"
"Let me see your arms, your teeth? Do you feel any pain? How many fingers am I holding up?"
Her mother ignored her and continued her instinctual fussing, checking Samantha for injuries before finally settling down when she found none.
After calming down, she noticed Ron standing stiffly in the back of the room.
"Oh, and who is this? A friend of yours?"
Ron, taking that as his opportunity to speak, stepped forward and extended his hand.
"Hi ma'am, I'm Ron. I'm a friend of Sam's. I brought her here when she passed out. I'm practically her lifesaver. "
Samantha gaped at his confidence and the nerve to say that in front of her mother.
Her mother didn't seem to mind, though, as she shook his hand fervently.
"Oh, is that so. Thank you so much. I'm glad sammie has such a good and reliable friend by her side. I was always worried she was a loner at school. "
"Mom! Really?"
"Right. Sorry, hon, but it's the truth. Let's get you home now. Come along, Ron, I'll drop you off. Where are you headed?"
"Really? I could take the bus, you don't have to worry"
"Nonsense! It's the least I could to thank you for keeping an eye out for Samantha. She tends to get in trouble often"
"Really mom, again?"
Her mom let out a sheepish laugh, and Ron displayed a cheeky grin.
They were getting along swell, and Samantha was worried for her mental health.
Outside, in the parking lot. Samantha was about to enter the car, when she saw something in the corner of her eye.
She whipped her head towards the direction where she sensed it, but there was nothing there.
'Was that...?'
"Sam! Get in. Come on, we're late"
"Coming, mom."
With that, she turned away from what she was looking at and slipped into the back seat for her mother to drive them away from the school.
However, she couldn't fight the weird feeling she was getting, seated in the back seat.
She just hoped it wasn't anything serious.
It couldn't be, right?