Page 20 of Pocketful of Shame

"Wow." I deadpanned. "Now I'm really convinced."

"You should be." Reaching into his bookbag, he withdrew a pair of green scrubs and tossed them at me. "We've got this, Sketch. But –" He held a finger up. "On the off-chance that itdoesn’twork and we get caught, I'm totally throwing you under the bus because I'm not built for prison." He chuckled nervously. "Full disclosure."

"Lovely," I muttered, grabbing the orderly scrubs. "That's just…fucking lovely."

Chapter Five

Romi

When I woke again, it was to a spinning room and tingling limbs. Feeling woozy from the steady stream of medication that had been rammed into my veins, I blinked the sleep from my eyes and peered around the sterile room.

"Ah, good, you're awake," a gentle voice said from close by. "My name is Kathy. I'm your nurse tonight and I'll be with you until changeover at 8am." I heard the sound of a hardback snapping shut moments before a chair scraping against the tiled floor filled the silence. "You've been asleep for hours, Romi."

Reluctantly, I turned my neck to face her. "What time…" swallowing deeply, I forced out, "is it?"

"It's a little after four in the morning," she replied, voice warm, eyes kind. "On Thursday night – or Friday morning." She smiled. "Whichever way you want to look at it."

"Oh." Turning back to face the ceiling, I ran my tongue over my cracked lips, tasting the familiar tang of metallic on my flesh.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, fussing with the blanket draped over my body. "Any pain in your leg?"

"Um…" I shook my head. "Just thirsty."

Sympathy flickered in her brown eyes and she leaned close to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. "Such a pretty girl," she whispered sadly. "Such a shame."

"I feel really…woozy."

"That's the meds," she explained. "You're a little out of it right now, but that's okay. It's a chance for you to get some well-deserved rest. I bet you're really tired, huh? You've had a hard year."

"I don’t like it."

"I know," she crooned in a coaxing tone. "It's no fun, honey."

"Can you help me?" I squeezed out, turning to face her. "I don’t belong here."

"I believe you," she replied, stroking my cheek affectionately. "But you won't be here forever."

"Please," I replied weakly, forcing myself not to recoil from her touch. "I'm so scared."

"What are you scared of, sweetheart?" she asked gently. "Hmm?"

"Everyone," I breathed, feeling my heartrate spike. "Everything."

"Well, maybe if you tell me what's worrying you most, I can help you?"

"You can't help me." I shook my head. "No one can help me."

"Why don’t you let me be the judge of that," she replied, offering me another comforting smile. "I'm here to help you, Romi. Icanhelp you, honey. Trust me."

I'm scared.

I'm in so much trouble.

I think I'm going to die.

Just like him…

"I'm …" Shaking my head, I blew out a ragged breath, forcing myself to swallow my fears. She couldn’t help me and I couldn’t trust her. I couldn’t trust anyone. Chris warned me of that. "Thirsty." I swallowed deeply. "I’m just really thirsty."

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