clutched in my hand. I need to get moving. Running from the room, I pull my towel tightly around me as I hold my phone in one hand and her inhaler in the other. She’s laying on the floor in a fetal position when I make it back to her.
“Mom,” I call, wiping my face free of tears. Her chest moves at a rapid pace as she stares at me with panic in her eyes. Pressing the inhaler to her lips I pump it a few times as she breathes it in, tears run down her face.
“Slow and steady.” My voice trembles as I push her hair back from her eyes. I grab my phone from the floor and place a call to the paramedics while trying to text my father at the same time.
Dad. Come home now!!
22
JORDAN
My steps are slow and heavy as I walk down the hall toward Satchi’s office. I lay awake all night thinking about how it felt being back at that hospital.
It was the smell that set me off. When I saw the ambulance take Kenzie away, I was full of adrenaline. I didn’t pay attention to which hospital we were going to. I didn’t even think about it, I was so concerned about Kenzie. Once we got there, we parked quickly and jumped out of the cars, running to the entrance of the emergency room. It took about thirty seconds before the reality of where I was sank in. The prickling smell of alcohol, sterilizers, and pungent saline solution. The beeping of the blood pressure machines. It all took me back. It was like I fell into a fog. Everyone moved around quickly as King explained to the receptionist why we were there.
People flooded the waiting room and I stood there watching as everyone moved in different directions. I couldn’t think, couldn’t see, I just kept hearing my mother's voice.
I love you.
It was the last thing she said to me before she fell unconscious. She had been on a ventilator and had been communicating with us through writing. When we were told she didn’t have much time left, she insisted it be removed so she could speak to us one final time. My father and I knelt at her bed as she weakly lifted her hand, placing it on my face.
“I love you, Jordan.” Her voice was broken and dry as she whispered, but I saw the love in her eyes. She was my mother and she was dying.
The halls are bustling with students and I keep my focus on the door ahead, not really looking at anyone. Just as I’m about to grab the knob Satchi opens the door. I stop and study his face.
Heaviness weighs in my chest as I meet his gaze. “You know I didn’t do this,” I say, blocking his exit. “It’s that bitch,” I say. I know I’m not being professional but I can barely think straight, much less remember to use a filter.
Satchi shakes his head. “The student will be in the meeting as well. Let’s go, we're running late.”
I follow Satchi a few steps down the hall before he enters a large conference room. Two faculty members I’ve never seen before sit across the table from Felicia, who purses her lips at me with a hard stare when I enter the room. I glare at her as I take a seat at the end of the table. Satchi sits on the other side.
“Thank you for coming, Mr. Black,” the admin says. “I’m Thomas Thorne and it’s with a heavy heart that we had to call this meeting at all.”
“It’s all bullshit,” I say, trying to remind myself to calm down. Thomas glances at us all before dropping his gaze to the small stack of papers that sits in front of him. He’s wearing a blue suit with a white button-up shirt, which looks uncomfortably tight around his neck. The urge to jump up from the table and tell Felicia exactly what I think of her is unbearable. She’s always been selfish, it’s true, and maybe this is my own fault for dealing with her as long as I have. But even though I knew she was a bitch, I never thought she would stoop so low.
“Let’s get started, shall we?” the admin says. Adjusting his tie, Satchi locks eyes with me, giving me a small nod before I glance away. I can’t stop staring at Felicia, no matter how hard I try, but I know that