Page 79 of Certified Pressure 3
“Kashmere,” I said, my voice crackin’. “Her name Kashmere.”
“Alright sir. I need you to stay calm. Help is on the way, but I need you to check if she’s breathin’. Put your ear close to her mouth and tell me if you hear or feel any air.”
I crouched down, leanin’ close. Her breaths was faint, almost like she was strugglin’ just to pull one in. “She breathin’, but barely,” I said, my hands shakin’.
“Okay, is she conscious at all? Try talkin’ to her.”
“Kash, hey,” I said, pattin’ her face lightly. “Come on, baby. Open your eyes.”
Her lashes fluttered once, then her head went limp again.
“Sir, you need to roll her on her side in case she vomits. Keep her airway clear. Can you do that?”
“Yeah, I got it.” I slid one hand under her shoulder and the other under her hip, turnin’ her gently so she was on her side. Her body was heavy, like dead weight in my hands.
“Good. Is there anything around her? Pill bottles or alcohol?”
“Yeah. It’s pills. Looks like she took a lot.”
“What kind of pills, sir?”
I picked up the bottle, squintin’ through the blur in my eyes. “I don’t even know, I just know she took ‘em.”
“Okay, that’s fine. Don’t give her anything to eat or drink. Just keep her on her side and keep talkin’ to me until help arrives.”
“She gon’ be alright, right?” I asked, even though I already knew she was slippin’.
“Paramedics are on the way. You’re doin’ good. Just stay calm for her, okay?”
I nodded. My hands was shakin’, my heart racin’, but I wasn’t about to let Kashmere die on my floor.
“I’m movin’ her downstairs,” I said suddenly, my voice rough. “They ain’t gon’ make it up here fast enough.”
“Okay, if you can safely move her, go ahead.”
I stuffed my phone and the pill bottle in my pocket, slid my arms under Kash, and lifted her off the floor. Her head dropped back against my chest, her mouth still slightly open. A weak wheezin’ sound came out every few seconds.
“You still with me, baby?” I said, my voice low as I carried her through the room. “Come on now. Don’t do this to me.”
I held her close, movin’ fast toward the elevator. The dispatcher’s voice was still comin’ through the phone. “Sir, is she still breathing?”
Still holdin’ Kash tight, I managed to reach in my pocket and grab my phone. “Yeah, but it’s light. Real light.”
“Alright, keep her tilted on her side once you get her to the main floor. The ambulance should be there any second.”
“Stay with me, Kash,” I said as I carried her toward the elevator. Her fingers twitched against me, and her eyes rolled back before closin’. I hit the elevator button, my heart poundin’ so hard it hurt.
By the time I reached the front door, I could already see the red and blue lights through the glass. The ambulance pulled in fast once I buzzed the gate open. I stepped outside still holdin’ her, and the paramedics ran toward me with a stretcher.
“I think she overdosed,” I said quickly as I laid her down on it. “I found her on the bathroom floor. Pills everywhere.”
Once I handed them the pill bottle, they didn’t waste a second. One of them hooked her up to a monitor while the other opened her airway. Her body jerked slightly when they started workin’, but her eyes never opened. One of the medics told me she had a pulse, but it was weak.
They lifted her into the ambulance, talkin’ to each other in medical terms I ain’t even understand. I grabbed my keys from my pocket and followed right behind them in my car.
The sirens screamed through the night while I drove close behind, my headlights flashin’ against the back of the ambulance. My mind was racin’, thinkin’ about every word, every argument and every time I told her I needed space. I ain’t even know what the hell pushed her to this point.
Maybe it was the pressure of everything, or maybe she felt me driftin’ and didn’t know how to pull me back. Either way, I couldn’t shake the image of her layin’ on that floor.
