You Will Be Found (A Lumity AU)

Burden

Still no song for this chapter, I'm sorry!

Chapter 23

Luz's time in the hospital was nerve wracking, to say the least. Thoughts of how her and her mom were going to pay for her medical bills plagued her mind. She was suffering from more frequent panic attacks and couldn't help but feel like this was all her fault. If she wasn't such a freak, then Jared wouldn't have picked on her, she wouldn't be injured and in the hospital. Amity and the others hadn't been back to visit her yet, mostly because they said school was crazy.

She was released in late December, right before New Years' Eve. She was given strict orders by the doctor to go on a  protein based diet so she could gain some weight. She still had a concussion, and it was making her head spin slightly, but she told the nurses she was fine. Her mom signed the papers, but then had to get back to work. She thought that Luz would be able to get a ride from Amity, but that wasn't the case. Luz was a little unsteady on her feet, but some nurses helped her out the door. They led her out of the building, and she told them that she had a ride so that they would leave her alone.

Luz knew she had caused everyone enough trouble as it was. She still didn't have a jacket, and she was freezing. Her phone was also broken thanks to Jared so she couldn't call anyone. The apartment building was only a few miles away, but Luz wasn't sure she could get that far without falling over. Maybe she could use the hospital phone? Yeah, that seemed like a good idea. She walked back into the building and approached the front desk. The lady working there looked up.

"U-um can I use your phone?" Luz asked. The secretary smiled kindly and pushed the phone towards her. Luz picked up the phone and balanced it between her ear and shoulder as she dialed Amity's number. It rang a few times, and on the fourth ring she heard her girlfriend's voice.

"Hello?" Luz smiled a little.

"A-Amity? It's me."

"Luz! Hi! how're you feeling? I'm sorry I haven't been there."

"I'm fine. They released me, but I don't have a way to get home. Could you come and get me?" She heard a sigh on the line.

"I'm so sorry, Luz. I want to, but I've been drowning in homework and SAT prep for days now. My parents will kill me. They've been home for a couple days now."

"Oh, okay." Luz said. What was she gonna do? "I'll figure something out. I'll see you on Monday."

"Luz..." But Luz hung up. She thanked the secretary and stumbled back out of the hospital. As she trudged along the sidewalk, Luz shut her eyes and her thoughts started to come in.

You're a Burden.

You're a Failure.

You're a Weakling.

You killed your father.

Thoughts kept swirling around and around in her head, and she started to mutter to herself. She wasn't looking where she was going and slipped on some ice, falling onto a snow-covered patch of grass. Face planting in the snow wasn't very helpful. It hurt her arm as well, and she yelled out in frustration and anger. Luz sat up and brushed the snow off of herself. Tears were prickling in the corners of her eyes. It was so cold. She shivered and tried to push to her feet. It was only successful for a moment before her head started to spin and she fell to her knees.

This went on for a long time until Luz felt too weak and cold to move. Her teeth were chattering, and her body felt numb. She had no idea what to do. Maybe giving up was the best option. She turned over onto her back and stared up at the gray sky. maybe this was a good thing, Amity would find someone better who didn't burden her. Camila could save more money without having to pay for Luz. Yeah, it would be better, then maybe it all could end...

"Kid?" Luz didn't move, her mind was too fuzzy. She felt someone lift her up into their arms and carry her. Luz still didn't react, her expression didn't change. A car door opened, and Luz was buckled into the back seat. She faintly heard someone talking.

"Yeah, yeah I found her. She's not responding to anything I say. Where the hell do I take her?...Her what? Huh, never thought the kid would have the balls...okay, thanks. Bye." Luz sat silently as the car moved, her mind was still blank, completely separated from reality. Her body was still quivering from the cold. The person spoke, but Luz wasn't paying attention. The car eventually came to a stop, and the driver got out of the car. Luz continued to sit and stare blankly at the house outside the window until her door opened. She heard a familiar voice.

"Luz? Oh my god, are you okay?" She felt soft hands pull her out of the car and lead her away. Then the familiar person spoke again.

"Thank you, Ms. Clawthorne."

"Call me Eda, kid."

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Amity led a soaking wet Luz into the manor. Thankfully, her parents were at a meeting for the next hour or so. Her girlfriend's face was completely blank and she was shivering violently. She didn't seem to be seeing anything in front of her. Needless to say, Amity was worried. She sat Luz down on the couch. As she went to go and get some towels and dry clothes, the twins poked their heads into the room.

"Hey, we overheard you and some lady talking down here. Is Luz okay?" Edric asked. Amity sighed and gestured towards Luz.

"See for yourself." The twins made their way over to Luz. Ed waved a hand in front of her face, he looked at Em and shrugged. Amity went into the other room and grabbed some clothes that Luz had left there when she was staying with them. She set the stuff down and sat down next to Luz.

"Hey," she said. "Luz, it's me. It's Amity. I'm here. Can you look at me?" Luz blinked, seeming to snap out of her trance, and looked at her. She didn't say anything though. Amity smiled softly, and ran a hand through Luz's cold, wet hair. She leaned into Amity's touch.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Luz shook her head and closed her eyes ashamedly. Amity sighed.

"Luz, what do you need right now. I can see you're freezing, and that you need to get warm. Can you at least change into these clothes? It'll give you some time before we talk." Luz nodded, and tried to stand up before her head spun again and she stumbled. Ed caught her just in time.

"Hey, Em. Can you grab her other arm? Let's get her to the guest room. Mittens, grab the clothes and towels." Amity did as she was told, and together they all helped Luz onto the bed in the guest room. The twins and Amity left and shut the door. Amity stood outside it and told Luz to call her when she was done changing. She stood there for a few minutes before she heard a soft voice.

"Y-you can c-come in now." Amity opened the door to see Luz still sitting on the bed. Her wet clothes were on the floor and her hair was sticking up in all directions. Her eyes looked hollow, sad. It broke Amity's heart. She sat down next to Luz and took her hand.

"Hey, can you tell me what happened now? Eda said she found you lying in the snow." Luz sighed then spoke, almost in a whisper.

"I thought things would be better." Amity raised an eyebrow inquisitively. Luz continued. "Maybe things would be better if I..." Her words were cut off with quiet sobs. Amity rubbed her back soothingly until Luz could speak again.

"So m-many problems were caused b-because of me. If I wasn't a-around anymore then no one would have to deal with them anymore." She broke out crying again. Amity gasped quietly, and tears filled her eyes. She threw her arms around Luz's neck and whispered.

"Luz, no. There are better ways to solve things. If you were gone, think about how many people would miss you. Your mom, our friends, me. Don't try to leave me again, Luz. I love you too much." There was a small intake of breath from Luz, who then wrapped her arms around Amity and whispered in her ear.

"I love you too."