Camden Thomas's Story

"Okay, stay right here," Brandon warned Camden, then bolted back towards the abandoned building, running as fast as his legs would allow him. Once reaching his destination, he swung the door open and walked up to the counter, picking up the knife and stashing it in his back pocket. He almost tripped as he reached the door again, then cursed under his breath as he swung it shut and ran back over to Camden. By the time he was back, his chest was burning from the oxygen that was rushed through his lungs.

"Got it," was all he said before he sat down on the ground in front of her, flipping his strands of hair out of his eyes. "Fuck, I don't know what we do from here. He's gonna be out cold like that for a while. He hasn't slept in days, AS USUAL. Nothing could wake him up right now."

As Brandon caught his breath and started breathing normally again, Camden pointed out someone behind him. A girl. Standing up and turning around, he didn't recognize the petite figure at first, but as she came closer, he came to find that it was Jamie. "Jamie?!" he called out, then walked the rest of the way towards her, meeting her halfway.

"Hey, Kotlov..." she said quietly, looking up at him. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she seemed to be trembling. Looking at her closely, Brandon noticed bruises along her jawline, and as he examined them further, he realized her face was gripped.

"Who did that to you?!" he exclaimed, gesturing to her face. She didn't say anything for a couple moments, and when she did, it was more to the ground than to Brandon.

"Ivanov..."

"Kellan?! Why?!"

Because he got pissed at me..." she said, her voice being barely above a whisper.

"THAT is a shitty excuse."

"Well, tell that to him."

Looking back at Kelly now, Brandon suddenly felt nauseated. He knew that Kelly had a violent past, hell, he admitted himself that he had severe anger issues. But to hit a girl, JAMIE, of all girls, drew the line. "Tell us exactly what happened," Brandon growled, staring at Jamie.

"He was pissed about you, you being with her," Jamie started, gesturing to Camden. "He didn't want to hear it...he gripped my jaw and flung out his arm and I fell off the counter...so I ran out. I don't know what he did after that," she finished, then answered Camden's question. "It happened earlier today--" she began, but then noticed Kellan several feet away, sleeping away the moment. Brandon saw the fear flash through her eyes, and before she could scream, he gripped her arm.

"Listen, everything is under control, he won't hurt you again," he said to Jamie, then looked at Camden. "What is it?"

Keeping his eyes on Jamie, Brandon had no idea what to say to her. He felt the familiar sting of guilt take a stab at his heart, for he was the one who had introduced Jamie to Kellan years and years go. He supposed that it wasn't fair to blame himself for Kellan's actions, because it's not like Brandon was the one who made Kelly hurt her. Biting his lip, he looked down at Jamie's arms and saw more bruises, probably from the fall she had on the way down to the floor. "Jamie, I can't change what Kellan did...but I am sorry. You don't deserve that."

Jamie simply nodded at that statement, looking up at him and biting her lip. There was something she was not telling Brandon. But he didn't have time to ask, becasue Camden then came back and said she had to go. "What is she doing?" Jamie asked, and Brandon's gaze followed Camden. She was simply walking away. Looking back towards Kellan, who was still sleeping, Brandon sighed. "How long has he been like that...?" Jamie whispered.

"A while," Brandon replied back quietly, then looked at Jamie for a long time. "...You like him, don't you..."

Jamie's reaction wasn't one of surprise, but the question did catch her slightly off guard. "...Yeah...but it doesn't matter. He's in love with you--"

"And I'm in love with Camden," Brandon interupted her.

Brandon -

Jamie simply nodded at Brandon's statement, and he was glad that she didn't try and put up an argument. He was not up for discussing anything other than what to do from this point on. Looking back, he noticed that Camden had walked off out of sight. "What the fuck, where she hell did she go?!" he exclaimed, looking back at Jamie, who simply shrugged her shoulders.

"I have no clue."

"You're useless right now," he shook her head at her, then began walking the direction in which Camden had gone, but he didn't get very far, because he then noticed that Kellan was waking up. "Shit," he muttered to himself, then ran over to him and grasped his face in both of his hands. "You okay?"

Kellan simply nodded at the question, then opened his sleepy eyes to look at Brandon. "How long was I out, babe..." he trailed off the question, looking out at nothing. Brandon sighed and chewed on his bottom lip, his heart squeezing at the word 'babe'.

"Not long," he replied, knowing it was a stupid answer, then looked back towards Jamie, who was already walking away from the whole scene. It was probably better that Kellan did not see her, at least not again after the incident. Brandon knew that there was no way in hell that Kellan liked her. The facts were stacked up against it, why would he push someone whom he would possibly care for. Life wasn't that easy.

"Where the FUCK are you going?!" Brandon exclaimed in Kellan's general direction, but that didn't stop him from rounding a corner and dissapearing from Brandon's sight, into the alley. ALWAYS like him to pull shit like this...always. He didn't know whether or not to follow him, so for the next couple of moments he stood there, enjoying the silence. Jamie was gone, Camden had left, and now Kellan had magically evaporated, too. The silence was much welcomed, but soon it invaded his mind, giving him time to think over the events of the past couple of days. NO. Now is not the time for thinking. Thinking just makes everything ten times worse.

"Hi.. uhm, did you see this girl? At all.." The irritating voice broke through his inner thoughts, and Brandon turned around to see some guy standing in front of him, holding up a phone to reveal someone's picture. CAMDEN'S picture. "She's my best friend..by the way, my name is Jordin."

Balling up his fists, Brandon spoke through his teeth, staring into the kid's eyes. "Yeah. That's my fucking girlfriend." Walking around him, Brandon took a left, the exact way which Kellan had went. Best friend? Why wasn't he informed of this. It didn't take long to locate Kellan, who looked up at Brandon as he walked up.

"Check your girl, babe," Kellan said nonchalantly, pointing to Camden, who was on the ground, pale as a ghost.

"CAMDEN!" Brandon exclaimed, feeling his heart drop ten feet into the ground as he ran up to her, taking her in his arms and brushing the hair out of her face. "Talk to me, what's wrong? Please talk to me," he repeated over and over, taking her hand, which was cold as ice.

Looking from Camden to this Jordin guy, Brandon frowned, holding Camden even closer. "He's the jealous type," Kellan called out nonchalantly from where he was standing against the wall, looking down at the three of them. Brandon hated how he looked like he was having the time of his life, like he was completely immune to what was happening around them. In reality, he was. He couldn't care less if Camden died on the spot right there, his world would remain untouched.

"Shut up, Kelly," Brandon spat out.

"Or what?"

Looking back at Jordin, Brandon sighed, ignoring the idiotic question. "Yes, I know she's done this before, she told me. We have to get her to the hospital or she is going to die right here right now."



Although he was still drowsy from his lack of a full night's sleep, Kellan felt okay for the most part. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he looked from Camden to Brandon to this new kid. Smirking to himself, Kellan shook his head, letting his bangs swoop around his eyes. Brandon would never be okay with Camden having a close male friend in her life besides himself. He was not the type, not that Kellan blamed him. It took everything he had for him to not just attack Camden on the spot right there for stealing what belonged to him.

What goes around comes back around...just wait for it. The thought brought some comfort to him. Who knows, by this time tomorrow, Kellan could have Brandon back in his bed where he belonged, and this would all just be a funny memory they would be laughing about over a bottle of vodka and some cigarettes. He could go back to Jamie and shove it in her face. Yeah bitch, I got him back. How does it feel to be wrong.

"I think ambulance works best. We don't have time to wait for some jackass to show up in a car," he replied to Jordin, looking down at Camden, who was slipping away fast. "Call right now," he spat at Jordin, then went over to Kellan, standing inches from his face and glaring at him. "What did you do to her."

He was unaffected by the question. "What are you mumbling about, babe, I didn't do shit. Do you seriously think I'm gonna get in trouble with the cops."

"THAT'S what you're worried about?!"

"Don't raise your voice at me, Brandon."

Taking a deep breath, Brandon balled his fists up again, feeling is nails dig into his palms. It took everything he had not to explode. "...I'm sorry," he growled, but the words felt bad on his tongue.

"That's better. And to answer your question, yes that is what I am worried about. Assault wouldn't look good on my record babe, and you should know this," Kelly purred, smirking at Brandon. Shaking his head, Brandon went back to Camden, once again taking her in his arms. He didn't know what to even say, and hoped silently that the paramedics would get here in time. Looking at Jordin now, he knew that he had feelings for Camden. It was completely obvious just in the way he looked down at her fragile body now. But the question was, did Camden have feelings for him? How could she say 'I love you' to Brandon's face and have feelings for this kid? That would certanly make Brandon feel lied to, but this wasn't just about him.

"I didn't do anything to anyone, you f---" Brandon heard Kellan begin, and he quickly put a hand to his mouth to prevent him from starting on his rant.

"Now's not the time," Brandon whispered, then watched as Kelly rolled his eyes at Brandon's comment. Removing Brandon's hand from his mouth, Kelly just shook his head.

"I'm goin' home...stop by if you want, Brandon," he smirked, then before he move back, he felt Kellan's lips on his own. Pulling away, he waved Kellan off, then went back to Camden's side. When he heard Jordin's question about coming with them to the hospital, Brandon shrugged.

"I don't care what you do."



Walking away from Brandon, Kellan shoved his hands in his jean pockets. The humid night was taking it's toll on him, and it didn't help that he was drowsy from lack of a proper night's sleep. "I hope you die. I seriously hope you die, you stupid bitch," he said to himself, biting his lip in disgust. The mintues were practically counting down from here: Brandon would be back in his arms in no time. The kid who had claimed to be Camden's best friend would irritate Brandon to no end, everyone who knew Brandon knew that he didn't deal with competition.

Taking out a cigarette and a lighter from his back pocket, he quickly lit it and inhaled the smoke, feeling it's calming effects on his body.

It felt like ten thousand pounds were lifted off of Brandon's shoulders with Camden woke up, then grapsed his hand with her own cold one. Squeezing it, he looked over at her, then frowned, chewing on his lower lip like he always did when he was anxious. "I love you too, Camden, listen, everything is gonna be just fine, okay? They're not going to take you to the nut house...but Camden, you could have died tonight and I wouldn't have had the chance to ever tell you that I love you again...do you know how much that scared me," he said, but it was more of a statement than a question.

Looking up at Jordin, he had to agree with the kid. Camden was not okay. As much as he hated to admit it, maybe Brandon's love wasn't enough to cure her of this sickness, of this addiction. What if she did want Jordin? What if she would say those heartbreaking words at the hospital: Brandon, I'm sorry, but this isn't working. He wasn't sure if he could handle those words. What exactly would he do with himself, without this girl in his life? The questions wouldn't stop spinning around his head.

Looking down at Camden again, he kept his gaze on her beautiful eyes the entire ride, not wanting to look at Jordin or their surroundings or anything else.

Instead of answering Camden's question, Brandon chose to answer the ones that the paramedics threw at him. He told them why Camden was found where she was found and where they all were at the time. He told them everything he knew, being sure to leave Kellan out of the equation. He knew that it would be useless to even mention him, because in all reality, he had nothing to do with the whole scene. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time as he often was. Holding Camden's hand the entire way to the hospital and through the doors, Brandon finally let go when him and Jordin were shown to the waiting room by a younger nurse.

Instead of having a seat, Brandon paced around and looked at the clock every now and then. Time seemed to be imaginary, something you only hear about in folk tales. By the time the nurse came back and told Jordin and Brandon that they could go see Camden, Brandon had gone completely silent. Shoving his hands in his jean pockets, he let his legs lead the way to Camden's room, and when he got there, his heart sunk ten feet into the floor. He saw Camden's fragile body tied to several machines, an IV poking through her skin and releasing God knows what fluids through her veins.

Walking up to her side, he looked down at her, still mute. He observed the way her chest moved up and down in respiration, the way she currently had no idea what was going on around her. The next thing he heard was Jordin telling her that everything would be okay. Brandon literally bit his tongue to prevent him from spitting out vile words at him. How the FUCK could you possibly know that everything's gonna be okay. If you care about her so much, why didn't you just stop the fuck by. Cell phones aren't the only source of communication, you know...

Blinking twice, Brandon realized that Camden was slowly opening her eyes. He felt his heart squeeze, and in return squeezed Camden's hand. "Hello," he simply mused, getting his voice back.

Listening to Camden talk, Brandon instantly felt better. Just knowing she was there, okay, was enough for him...at least for now. But her words were false. Anyone could tell that Jordin had feelings for her. HIS Camden. But it wasn't his place to tell her that, when Jordin was ready to be a man and tell her himself, he could do it. But that could take her away from him.

Ignoring her statements about Jordin, Brandon sighed. "I'm not mad at anyone...I just want you to be okay. More than anything, I need you to be okay." With that being said, he once again went silent, and simply looked into her blue eyes. Was he enough for her? The question was painful to ask, even in his mind. He could give her everything in the world, embrace her with his love and never let her go. Be there for her when she needed him. But couldn't Jordin also do that for her?

NO. Brandon could do it better. What a sick fucking love triangle...wait, more like a square. Kellan wants me, I want Camden, and Jordin wants Camden. Yeah, if only Jordin liked dudes, maybe then he could get with Kellan. Imagine that night.

"I doubt the doctors are gonna listen to what we have to say," Brandon retorted to Camden, sitting down in the arm chair next to her bed and keeping his gaze locked on hers. "I wanna get you out of here, I just don't know HOW," he then said, shaking his head and resting his head against the chair, trying to calm himself down. He realized that he hadn't slept in more than twelve hours, and the lost hours were catching up to him.

When the nurse walked in the doorway, Brandon didn't know what to say, so instead he chose to stay silent.

As he was handed the papers by the nurse, Brandon looked down at them as if they were written in French. Before he could say anything else, the nurse walked out of the room, once again leaving the trio and the awkward silence. Eventually even that was broken, when Camden spoke out the words: "Seriously, what's wrong, guys?"

Smirking slightly, Brandon looked down at her, papers in hand. "I think you and Jordin here have some things to talk about," he started, glancing at Jordin with an emotionless glare. "I'll be outside if you need me, babe," he then said to Camden, squeezing Camden's hand one final time before letting go and walking out of the room and into the hall, where he observed the nurses and doctors rushing by, discussing life and death situations.

For a minute, he almost felt jealous. Maybe if he would have stuck with school like a good kid, he could be on the road to an excellent future at the moment. He could be like these doctors, with enough money to last them a lifetime. But what did he have to offer, especially to someone like Camden? His love. His heart. Those were the only things he had left that he could be proud of. Brandon knew he could love someone like no tomorrow, and because of this, he still had at least a quarter of self respect for himself.

Brandon wasn't sure how long he had waited out there, watching people walk by back and fourth, each with their own lives and their own problems to deal with. He wished he could have been one of them, any one of them, just for a second. Maybe to experience what they had to go through for a bit instead of being in his own situation, which was driving him up the walls. Jordin's voice broke through his thoughts, and he glanced over at him, barely hearing what he had to say. "Yeah, thanks," he mumbled back, then stepped back into the room, looking over at Camden on the bed.

Walking over to her side slowly, he gained his seat back near Camden's bed and looked out at nothing. "...It's obvious that he loves you...that he wants you. And I know that. But what I don't know is what you feel for him...love doesn't die, Camden. It fades and fades, but it never completely leaves. I want you to know that I want you to be happy. Completely happy. You deserve that. Hell, Jordin deserves that, and I don't even know the kid." And Kellan deserves that. Pushing the thought side, he continued. "I need someone to be able to give me ALL of their heart...ALL their love. With me, it's all or nothing. I know it sounds selfish, but it's just who I am."

It's who I'll always be. Not saying anything for a while, he leaned back in the chair, dreading the next words that she was going to speak.

As Camden spoke, Brandon's heart finally felt complete, like things weren't so messed up anymore. Smiling and standing up, he once again took her hand, squeezing it as tightly as he could, then leaned down and kissed her forehead gently, closing his eyes against her skin. "That's all I needed to know...I needed to know that you still loved me, Camden."

Watching as a tear fell down her cheek, he gently wiped it off with his thumb, then looked into her eyes. "That promise I made to you? It's still going strong, babe," he whispered, then moved down to her lips, placing hers against his for a brief moment, wishing they were anywhere but the hospital at the moment.



Realizing he had walked in a circle, Kellan laughed at himself. He was feeling a tad better, the lack of sleep wasn't interfering with his vision anymore, and the cigarette helped calm him down, at least a little. Letting his legs do the leading, he realized he was walking by the hospital, then stopped, leaning against a building, keeping his head down which caused his bangs to fall in his eyes. "What a joke," he muttered to himself, shoving his hands in his pockets and sighing.

This wasn't going like it should have been...Brandon would have called by now if he called it quits with that girl of his. He would have texted and started yapping about how that kid ruined everything. But of course he didn't. Because life just isn't that easy, is it now, Kelly. The thought revolved around his head, and actually made him frown down at the ground.

As the nurse walked in and asked Brandon to sign the papers, he simply rolled his eyes and grabbed the pen she gave him, then scribbled his name at the bottom of the forms. This was yet another one of those times where he was glad he was above eighteen years of age. Handing the mess of papers and the pen back to the nurse, he watched the exchange of conversation between her and Camden.

She was supposed to stay here overnight, so that they could make sure she was okay. In a way, he agreed with what they were saying. "Don't worry, it's just one night, I won't leave you here alone," Brandon whispered to Camden, once again taking her hand and intertwining his fingers through hers. He didn't even realize Jordin came back in the room until he heard Camden reply to something he asked her.

Instead of replying to Camden's protests, Brandon simply sat there holding her hand, not wanting to use his voicebox anymore. He felt a dull headache in his temples, indicating that he needed to get sleep as soon as possible. But how could he simply leave Camden there, in that condition? Glancing at Jordin briefly, Brandon shook his head. It was obvious that the two were never going to be able to get along. Brandon did not WANT them to get along, in fact, he could barely even look at the kid. But Camden probably felt the exact way towards Kellan, the situation wasn't any different whatsoever.

Glancing at Jordin, Brandon saw him smiling and nodding as Camden was protesting. Giving him a weird look, he looked back down at Camden, who finally calmed down and sat there in silence like the rest of them did. It seemed like hours passed by before she was finally asleep, and looking over, he saw that Jordin fell asleep, as well.

Standing up and stretching, he took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts, landing on Kelly and tapping his name. Pressing the call button, he raised the phone to his ear and listened to the rings. Kelly finally picked up after about the fourth one, and his voice sounded normal. "Hello?"

"It's me..."

"Oh."

The response aggravated Brandon, but he didn't put up a fight. "Where are you?"

"Outside the hospital," the answer came, and he could almost hear Kellan smiling into the phone. Sighing, Brandon looked around the room, the phone still pressed to his ear. He wasn't even sure why he had called Kelly, it probably just made the situation ten times worse. He then heard the desperation in Kellan's voice in his next sentence. "Please just come out here so we can leave....I want you by my side right fucking now. Enough with these damned games."

Before he could say anything else, Brandon ended the call.