Sweetest Confusion

Chapter Fifty-Six: The Beginning of The End

"DREW!" I screamed. Without thinking, I pulled out my gun and shot Daniel in the shoulder. He fell to the ground but I didn't pay attention to him. I focused on the man I loved in my arms. Daniel had shot Drew in the stomach with had hopefully missed the vital organs.

"Drew!" I cried out. I applied pressure to his bullet wound to stop the blood from seeping out. I pulled my jumper off and scrunched it into a ball, pressed it against the gaping wound.

"Maddi." He called.

"Drew, I'm here. You'll be fine." I gave him a watery smile.

"I know I'll be fine. After all I'm in your arms." He gave me a breath taking smile. I helped him sit up ad placed his arm around my shoulder. I lifted him to his feet and we walked to the wall so he could lean against it.

"Hold this against your stomach. I'll be right back." I left him sitting there as I ran to the garage again to hot wire another car. This time I chose a Porsche Carrera. I dumped all my weapons in the cupboard and found a shirt as well and pulled that on. I took a screwdriver off the table and jammed it into the ignition key. The engine rumbled to a start and I drove to where Drew was sitting. He was hanging on, but just barely. I left the engine running but I got out the car. I lifted him up and helped him into the passenger seat. I ran to the driver's side and jumped in. I clicked on the GPS monitor.

"The nearest hospital." I told the machine.

"Calculating." It replied. I drove through the fence ignoring Drew's wince when he realised there were probably going to be many scratches on this beautiful car.

"Thank Maddi." He smiled, while breathing heavily.

"For you I'll do anything." I squeezed his hand. His face was getting paler by the minute as he lost more blood.

"Twenty minutes to destination." The lady from the GPS told me.

"Fuck that." I muttered. I eased the car into gear five and allowed my speed to reach 160 kmph.

"Holy shit Maddi! Slow down." Drew smirked.

"Shut up and stop bleeding over the custom made leather seats then." I smirked back.

"Only you." He laughed, but grimaced at the end.

"Hang in there Drew. We're almost there." I told him encouragingly. Just then I heard sirens wailing and red and blue lights flashing behind me.

"Fuck." I muttered before increasing my speed. I continued to drive to the hospital ignoring the police on my tail. My priority was getting Drew medical attention, everything else could wait. I saw the exit for the hospital and drifted into the lane.

"Drew you're going to be fine." I said. I squeezed his hand. "Stay with me Drew, I can't loose you. Not now. Not when we've come this far."

"I'm still here Maddi. I'm still here." He whispered weakly. I saw the hospital and drove to the front entrance. The police were running out their car, but I was already pulling Drew out the car.

"I need help!" I screamed. Doctors and nurses were rushing towards me with a stretcher and paramedics.

"A bullet wound to the stomach, possible broken bones, multiple bruising, possible internal bleeding, possible concussion." I reeled of a list of injuries he may have sustained from Daniel.

"Thanks miss we'll take it from here." The doctor said, as he wheeled Drew to the operating theatre. I held on to Drew's hand.

"Maddi you're bleeding." Drew whispered, horrified.

"I'm fine. Really. I love you Drew." I kissed his hand.

"I'll be fine Maddi. Get some help." He urged me.

"I'm fine. It's nothing."

"Miss you can't go any further." The doctor insisted. I nodded and stood at the operating theatre doors.

"Miss we need to check you out." A nurse approached me.

"I'm fine." I waved her off. I walked back towards the entrance but felt a searing pain in my stomach. I touched my abdomen and felt blood soaking my black shirt. I looked up and everything I saw had doubled. The room was spinning and the noise seemed quieter. I felt as though I was under water. My body felt numb and I couldn't move my feet. I blinked a few times but my vision didn't clear. I could see doctors talking to me, but I completely ignored them. I stumbled towards the exit, blood smearing the dirty white walls as I steadied myself.

I stood in the hallway disorientated and confused. My heart was pounding and my skin was prickling. I was breathing hard and my hands were shaking violently. I closed my eyes and fell to the ground as my legs gave way and I succumbed to darkness.

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

"She's regaining consciousness!"

"We need a stronger anaesthetic."

"She's going into myocardial shock."

"I need the defib."

"Clear." Beep.

"Her heart rate is increasing too quickly."

"She's going into shock."

"Inject the anaesthetic."

I felt myself losing control of my body and I slipped into the darkness again.

"Dammit. Why is this anaesthetic not working. She's regaining consciousness." I heard someone shout.

"She's losing too much blood."

"We need a blood transfusion now or she'll die."

"Defib now!"

"Clear." Beep.

My mind was jumbled and the noise was hurting my ears. I tried to open my eyes to make sense of the chaos but it felt as though concrete blocks were attached to them.

"She's going into shock again."

"Clear". Beep.

"Her heart's going into overdrive. What is happening?" Someone cried frantically.

"Dammit Joe, I need the blood. Where the blood." What about Drew? Is someone helping Drew? Does he need a blood transfusion too?

"She's having a myocardial infarction. We need the defib again."

"Everyone clear." Beep.

I felt my windpipe constricting and my lungs emptying. I couldn't breath and the tube down my throat wasn't helping. I gagged on the plastic jammed in my throat as I gasped for air.

"She can't breath! Get the tube out her mouth."

"We're going to have to continue the operation without anaesthetic. It's not working and we've given we the highest dosage we can give a grown man."

"We have to give her anaesthetics though, she'll be in too much pain."

"If she hasn't screamed out already I think she can fight it for a while, she's still drowsy. We need to do this op or she'll die."

"Okay. It's on you if something happens to her." What was going on? I was being operated on without anaesthetic?

I think I must have fainted because I blacked out.

I gasped and sat up. When I opened my eyes, I was expecting to see tubes connected to my hands, my family standing round me in a hospital room, but I didn't. I was staring at four bright white walls and a man sitting in a big armchair placed in the furthest corner from me.

"Am I dead?" I asked hesitantly.

"Why is that the first this people ask when they wake up?" The man chuckled. His laugh sounded oddly familiar.

"Uh... because they all assume to be staring at a hospital room that smells of bleach and antiseptics and looks a bit like a prison." I retorted.

"Is that what you think of hospitals?" He asked.

"I hate them." I shrugged.

"Where do you think you are Maddi?" The mysterious man asked.

"Heaven? Or maybe hell because I've done a lot of shit in my life."

"I can tell you it's neither."

"Well shit." I sighed. "I'm in between. What does this make me?"

"Human." He replied. I laughed loudly.

"Of course I'm human. I have been my entire life. Unless you're telling me that I was an alien and since I died I became human." I babbled. I don't know why I felt so comfortable with this man. I didn't know why I trusted him.

"Maddi, you are not an alien." He laughed quietly.

"Duh, you just said I was human." I rolled my eyes.

"Come with me." The man said, standing up.

"Where are we going?" I asked, for some unknown reason I tripped over air and face planted into the ground.

I gasped for air.

"She's back. Guys we need to work fast, her heart won't be able to continue working like this if we don't stop the bleeding. Where's the extra blood, it's a type 1 emergency now."

"I can get her heart rate to a steady speed but she has already lost so mic blood it's going to be difficult to save her." There was so much pain I felt too numb to scream out. That was until I felt something sharp pierce my lung. I scream agonisingly loud.

"Dammit Conrad, you nicked her lung. Give me the suture needle and string. I need to fix your mess." I gasped for air as my heart began to speed up.

"She's having another heart attack." I heard loud and fast series of beeps before I blacked out again.

"Hello again Maddi." The man greeted. We were standing in the same place before I tripped.

"Uh... hello. So where are we going?"

"Trust me." He said those words and my defences went up.

"I don't even know who you are. Why should I trust you?" I asked distrustfully.

"Because Drew did." He replied simply.

"Who are you?" I asked slowly, an idea already forming in my mind.

"I think you already know who I am." He smiled at me.

"You're Drew's dad!" I exclaimed with realisation.

"You got me." He smiled easily at me.

"I knew Drew got his good looks from somewhere. I'm not saying that his mom was bad looking or anything. I haven't actually met her, I mean I'm sure she's really pretty and... Drew looks like you." I finished lamely.

"I am his father." He stated pointedly.

"Why didn't you call him Luke?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Because I'm not Darth Vader." He laughed.

"But that would be so cool." I whined. "Wow this in between place make me weird." I cringed.

Drew's dad laughed. "You're a good kid." He smiled. "You're good for my boy."

"I was horrible to him the last four years." I pointed out.

"But the last few months have been more important than the last four years. It's the change that counts the most." He led me through endless white corridors that I believed would lead us nowhere. But we reached a double door.

"Are you ready to go in?" Jack Cooper asked me.

"I think so." Still unsure of what I going to see. And boy was I unprepared.

It was Drew lying in a hospital bed, wire and tubes attached to his body. "Drew," I cried, running towards him tears slowly wetting my face.

I reached forward to touch his face but my hand slipped through. This made me sob harder. I didn't want him to die, instead I died. "Drew!" I cried out in hopes he could hear me. But he lay motionless in the bed, looking ghostly pale and tired. Without touching his face I traced the contours of his features. "I love you Drew. Forever and always." I kissed my fingers and touched his lips.

"Is he dead?" I asked.

"No he's not. He is fighting for his life though." He told me.

"Is there anything you can do?" I asked, wiping my tears.

"No but there is something you can do." He told me.

"Anything. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it." I said.

"You have to accept your death. If you do then Drew will survive. But before you do I should probably thank you for all you have done for my family. You have brought my family together even if my wife isn't there. Drew wouldn't be that man he is today if you hadn't come into his life." Jack smiled thankfully at me.

"I haven't really done anything." I admitted.

"But what you have to do next is going to be the biggest decision of your life. You can't go back on it after you have decided." He warned me.

"I'll do whatever it takes to save Drew." I told him firmly.

"If that's what you want. Go back to the room. Beside the bed is a vial. While drinking the liquid you have to think about why you are doing this. If you have the right intentions then Drew will survive. Good luck. I know you'll choose the right thing." He hugged me.

I turned towards the room but i stopped when I realized there was one more thing I needed to know.

"Why can't you go back instead of me?" I asked.

"I can't do that. It would hurt my family. You have started to bring them together I couldn't upset them again." He told me honestly.

"Can I go now then?" He nodded. With only one motive in my head I made my way through the maze to the room. I finally found it and opened the door. Everything had been left the same way as I had seen before. Sure enough there was a vial sitting in the bedside table. I lifted the the vial and broke the glass cap.

"This is for you Drew." I raised the vial as a toast before throwing it down my throat. Before the tasteless liquid had reached my stomach I felt extremely dizzy. My vision blurred and I collapsed in a heap, everything blackening around me. I had definitely died now.

My eyes snapped open. I was surrounded by bright flames licking the pristine white walls. I screamed for help but I didn't think anyone could help me. I was lying on the ground, my clothes collecting spot.

"Help me! Somebody! Anybody!" I screamed for my life. The flames were getting closer to me, in minutes the flames will be burning my skin, I could already feel the heat against my hairs. I saw a silhouette against the fire. Whoever they were, was wearing a fireman's uniform. They approached me, extending their hand. I took it and they held me close, shielding me from the flames. We got into the open where I could finally breath the fresh air.

"Thanks Jack." I wheezed out.

"I'm not Jack." The man took off his helmet.

"Drew!" I cried.

"You saved me, it's only fair that I save you too." He smiled and winked. My heart melted and I felt like butter, looking into his eyes. I grabbed his head and kissed him as hard as I could. My eyes were shut, but I could see his every feature. Every contour of his face. I sighed in contentment.

I felt the fire die down and the burning sensation settling. I felt myself lose control of my muscles and collapsed in Drew's arms.

I gasped. My heart was pounding and my forehead was damp with sweat. I struggled to open my eyes but when I did I saw I was surrounding by a group of concerned doctors and nurses.

"What happened?" I croaked. My voice was so hoarse and scratchy that I winced when I spoke.

"You were in a bad shape when you came in. Since you were unconscious most of the time we haven't had time to find out what happened to you. We assumed you were kidnapped because of the large doses of horse tranquilizer in your system. That was what made you feel like you were on fire. It was also what prevented your body from accepting the anaesthetic." The doctor explained.

"What day is it?" I asked.

"It's Wednesday." He told me. I was taken on Friday night.

"How long was I here?" I asked.

"About three days." Which means I was with Daniel for two days. How long was Drew kept there? Shit.

"Where is Drew?" I cried.

"He's fine." The doctor insisted.

"No where is he? I want to see him." I cried out, attempting to get up.

"Miss he's fine. He's currently recovering." The doctor reassured me.

"No I need to see him. I need to know for myself." I shouted.

"Miss you need to calm down." The nurse insisted as my heart monitor peaked.

"No I need to see him now!" I shouted. I was now struggling against the hands who were pushing me down.

"You were in a major operation a few hours ago, you need to rest." The doctor said.

"I don't give a fuck. I need to see my boyfriend now." I shouted, my voice cracking by the end.

"Maddi would you calm down. You're going to rip your stitches like that." The doctor said.

"I just want to see Drew." I sobbed, as I finally gave up and fell backwards.

"I know you do, but he needs his rest as much as you do. So maybe in a few days I can get him to meet you." The lady doctor told me quietly.

"I can't wait a few days. I need to see him." I cried. My eyes started droop and my muscles started to relax. I could hear my heart monitor to level out again and my breathing evening out.

"Nobody tell her he's in room 508. She'll want to meet him, we need someone to check up on her at regular intervals that way we can make sure she is recovering properly. I have never seen someone so badly injured. We should have a psychiatrists on the ready, she's going to be traumatized with whatever happened so we need to support her..." And that's when I fell asleep.

When I woke up again, there was a cup of water on the table beside me and the steady beep of my heart from the monitor. I greedily forced the water down my throat, the cool liquid soothing my parched lips. I took a deep breath and sat up. my entire body hurt like hell, but it was worth it when it came to Drew.

I pulled the tubes out my hand and ripped the pads off my body. The monitor began beeping loudly, so I pulled the plug before it could interrupt the doctors. I groaned as I shifted my legs off the bed. Taking a deep breath and planted my feet firmly on the cold floor. I shivered slightly but then pushed up off my hands. Shakily I stood up and and took a small step towards the door.

"One small step for Maddi, one huge step towards Drew." I whispered, smiling. Slowly and painfully I made my way to the door. A few minutes later I had scrossed the small room and was standing behind the door. I took a peek from the window and saw that there weren't any doctors doing their rounds. Cautiously I turned the handle and slipped out. I probably looked like a mental patient excpaing their cell because my hair was a mess and I looked a little crazy. My eyes flicked up to my room number. I smirked.

503... 504... 505... 506... 507... 508. I looked down the hallway to make sure no one had noticed. I slipped in his room, as silent as the dark.

He looked so peaceful lying there in his bed. I had to admit he looked better than I did. Even with the casts and the bandages he looked hot. Only Drew could pull that off. I saw his chest rise and drop, the same rhythm as his heart monitor. His face had more colour since the last time I had seen him, and he looked less... dead. Despite my pain and major discomfort I powered through the pain and waddled towards the spare chair. I didn't have any energy to lift it, so I dragged it across the vinyl flooring.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I was finally able to sit down. I brushed his hair out of his face and kissed his forehead. I just sat there, in silence. Just sat there admiring my boyfriend. Who he was. What he had become. He changed me. For the better might I add, but he definitely changed me.

"Hey Drew. It's me, Maddi. How are you feeling? I'm good of that's what you're asking. You don't have to worry about me. Just think about getting better yourself. I don't know what happened to Daniel though, he may have got away. It's annoying but I couldn't deal with him when you were bleeding out. I just want you to get better. Then we can go away together. We could take a gap year and travel. You know how I always wanted to see the world.

Before that we need to graduate. We missed a few days already but god know how much we'll miss now." I laughed lightly. I slipped my cold hand into his warm one and raised it to my cheek.

My body started to hurt again, the pain killers were wearing off. I breathed through it and forgot about the pain. If I didn't focus on it then I wouldn't be able to feel it. But that also meant I felt incredibly tired. I rested my head beside his hand and closed my eyes. I fell asleep to the steady rhythm of his breathing.

When I woke up there was no sunlight streaming through the window, instead the moonlight lit the room. I lifted my head to find Drew smiling at me.

"Hey there sleepy head." He grinned at me.

"Hey." I grinned back.

"How... how are you feeling?" He cleared his throat. I got up and walked round to the other side if his bed and handed him the cup of water. He downed it in one.

"Someone's thirsty." I laughed.

"Yeah. So how are you feeling?" Drew asked again.

"I'm better now."

"What are you doing out of your room? Surely they had you hooked up to all these machines?"

"Yeah, but they wouldn't let me see you. They wouldn't even tell me where you were. I had to see you." I told him.

"What about the painkillers? I know you're in a lot more pain than I am because I'm hooked up to the drip and I'm still hurting all over."

"I'm fine. The pain doesn't bother me. I just want to worry about you." I said.

"I want to be okay too though." He insisted.

"Dot worry about me. Just focus on getting better." I smiled at him.

"Come here." I leaned over to him as he leaned up. Our lips connected and an explosion erupted between us. There was so much built up tension and passion, that the kiss began very hot and heavy quickly.

"Ahem." We jumped away. Well I jumped away. I turned towards our intruder.

"Miss. I think it's better if you get back to your room." My nurse told me pointedly as she walked to Drew's monitors and took down the relevant numbers.

"I'll be there soon." I said, though I had no intention of going back.

"You're a sneaky one. We didn't even know you had left. I didn't think you would know where to go." She glared at me. I rolled my eyes.

"I said I'll be there." I spat. I didn't care that I was being harsh, I didn't like the way she was talking to me.

"Don't make me get security to carry you to your room." She replied.

"Don't forget that my fees are paying your salary." I retorted. He glared once more before stomping out the room.

"What was that about?" Drew asked, laughing.

"She was pissing me off. I did tell her I was going to my room, but I'll go when I want to go." I shrugged.

"You're amazing you know that right?" He grinned at me.

"And why am I amazing?" I asked, leaning closer to him.

"Because you are dealing with all this and you only care about other people. It's amazing." He whispered as I leaned in closer.

"You're amazing too." I whispered.

"Why is that?" he shivered.

"Because of this." I kissed him full on the lips. His hand went to the back of my neck and pulled me closer. This kiss was tender and full of love. Something I realised I never had with Daniel. I didn't feel like my heart was going to jump out of chest every time I kissed him. I didn't feel like flying every time he held me. I didn't feel those birds fluttering in my stomach when I saw him. No Drew, made me feel. He made me love. He made me complete.

Sure I'm only seventeen but when you feel so strongly about someone that you would do irrational things to keep them, you know it's love. The day I realised that was the day I finally felt free. A tear escaped from my eye.

"Hey, hey what's wrong?" Drew asked, his eyebrows furrowed. He looked so cute when he was concerned.

"Nothing. I'm just really glad you're here." I gave him a watery smile.

"I made you cry." He pointed out.

"Yes, you made me into a cry baby." I laughed, wiping the remnants of my tears away.

"I think it's cute." He chuckled.

"I'm not cute." I cried, grumpily.

"No you're not. you're beautiful." He grinned and kissed me again. He groaned loudly as he moved.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay?" I asked, standing up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It was nothing." He said, without and conviction. I took the painkiller remote from the side of his bed and placed it in his hand.

"No I don't want to take it." He shook his head, wincing.

"I'll be here when you wake up." I insisted.

"I don't want to lose you again."

"You never lost me Drew. I was always there and I will always be there. Just take the morphine and I'll see you later. Don't worry I'll be there." I kissed his hand.

"No I can't." He said. I sighed and took the remote from him and pressed the button. "No Maddi!" He cried out.

"I love you Drew." I kissed his forehead as his eyelids began to droop.

I held his hand as I crumpled to the ground in pain. I clamped my teeth together to prevent myself from screaming out. I curled up on the cold floor, only the thin hospital gown covering my bruises. I couldn't care less anymore. Just being here with Drew made everything okay to deal with.

With him I felt strong yet weak. I felt strong enough to face the world, but I was too weak to stop myself from falling deeply in love with him. I loved him more than I would have ever imagine. I never thought I would fall this hard and fast.

I woke up in a bed, but I wasn't alone. In the bed beside me was Drew. He was awake and sitting up, talking to the doctor quietly. I heard them mention my name a few times and glance over to me. I immediately shut my eyes and relied on my sense of hearing to make sense of what was happening.

"Yeah I'll keep an eye on her." I heard Drew say.

"She's a fighter." The doctor chuckled lightly.

"That she is." I heard Drew agree. Once the door closed Drew spoke up again, "He's gone you can open your eyes now."

"How did you know?" I gasped.

"I know all your tricks. You were moving slightly and attempted to breathe steadily. I know you too well." He replied.

"Why am I in your room?" I asked.

"Well, when I woke up you were curled up on the ground still holding my hand. So I called the nurses to get them to move another bed in here. At frost they argued but they knew you were going to escape again so they agreed with me. This way we can still see each other and not have to worry. Though I do admire how you have dealt with everything. It wasn't easy." Drew sighed at the end.

"It couldn't have been easy for you either. Dammit you had to watch him torture me. It wasn't the electricity that hurt, it was the pain in your eyes. I couldn't bear it." I teared up.

"We won't have to deal with him anymore." Drew said with an air of finality.

"Damn right." I giggled. I sat up, ignoring the rippling pain of my torso. The painkillers were wearing off but I was beyond caring. In the last few days so many chemicals had been pumped into my body I didn't want anymore. Just as I was going to rip the tubes out my hand again two nurses walked in, each with a tray of food.

"Here you go my lovely." The older nurse said cheerily. The younger one walked over to Drew's bed and started talking to him.

"Thanks." I muttered as she placed the tray on my table. I glared at the other nurse.

"Hope you like the food, I know you guys would hate the hospital food so I sneaked a little of the doctors food. Just coz I know it's probably better for you." She winked at me. I smiled at her, but continued to glare at the young nurse flirting her ass off with my boyfriend. If looks could kill she'd be lying on the floor drowning in a pool of her own blood.

My nurse continued to chatter away, but I wasn't in the mood. "Thanks for the food." I said shortly, making it clear I wasn't in the mood for talking.

"Oh don't mind Ella. She flirts with all the young male patients." She glanced over to her colleague.

"Yes. well she's currently flirting with my boyfriend." I gritted out.

"Don't worry, he looks like he's handling her quite well." She winked. Ella was leaning over Drew with her boobs near her face and he was pushing her away. I could tell his answers were short and his eyes never strayed from her face. Finally she gave up and stomped off in a strop.

"Handled like a pro ma boy." The nurse laughed. Drew chuckled nervously with her too. I grinned at his discomfort. "Okay then. I'll leave you guys alone. Enjoy your dinner." She chirped.

I looked down at the slop that was supposed to be fish and chips. I looked over to Drew and he had chicken curry and rice. I sighed and pushed my plate away.

"Do you want some?" Drew asked as I looked at his more appetising plate.

"No. You need to eat too." I told him firmly as I ripped the tubes out my hand and the heart monitor wires. I pulled the plug out the wall as well. I swung off the bed, but as I placed my feet on the ground I fell again. I groaned loudly as I clutched my torso.

"Maddi!" Drew exclaimed.

"I'm okay, I'm okay." I laughed. I grabbed the edge of the bed and pulled myself up. I wobbled over to Drew and sunk into the chair.

"Come here." Drew ordered softly. He shuffled to the side slightly. Slowly an painfully I climbed into his bed. I laid my head on his chest as he wrapped a bandaged arm around my shoulders. He kissed the top of my head and leaned his cheek against it.

"I'm not actually that hungry." I told him.

"Neither am I to be honest." Drew chuckled.

"This is nice." I commented.

"Yeah it is."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Since when have you needed permission to ask a question." Drew's snorted.

"True. Why did you leave?" I asked in a quiet voice.

"I realised that I couldn't lose you, so I had to make sure it wouldn't happen. I needed you to be angry or upset with me so you wouldn't try to find me. The top guy in the gang had threatened to kill you if I didn't leave you. He had been threatening me for as long as you had been getting those messages. I couldn't lose you so I spent all those weeks tracking him down and monitoring the gang. In the mean time I asked James to take care of you. To make sure you wouldn't do anything rash. I checked up on you almost every night and he called me to tell me how you were getting along. I left for you. I know it wouldn't have seemed like it at first but trust me when I say I felt like shooting myself when I did." He told me honestly. It was so deep I felt myself tearing up. I was angry with myself for ever thinking that Drew would do something to hurt me.

"Hey don't cry, I don't want to see those tears if yours. Let me tell you a story." Drew continued as he wiped the tears from my eyes. He pecked me on the lips before speaking.

"When I was growing up my dad and I were really close, considering we were the only men in the house. We used to play spy games and pretend we were the FBI or the CIA. I didn't realise that he was secretly training me to protect myself. He taught my martial arts and how to shoot a gun, granted it wasn't something a fourteenth year should do in their spare time. But I would do anything to spend time with my dad.

When he was killed, I had doubts about the way he was murdered. I wen to our corner shop and there was broken glass and food everywhere but no blood. It was highly suspicious and I couldn't think of why the police would cover up his death and then fake a scene. I started digging into my father's files on his computer. I became good at bypassing his encrypted files and pass codes. When I got to the heart of his computer it was filled with files from the CIA. When I found the case file of the Red Moon gang I decided to investigate it. It was his most recent case and probably the one that got him killed. So what did I do, being the reckless teenager I was? I joined the gang to find the man who murdered my dad.

The only other person to know about this was JJ, but that was only because she found out. After that we worked together to nail this guy. This was before I met you. When I did, all I could think about was quitting it all. But my sister persuaded me to continue the search. I made sure I was as close to you as possible but I didn't want you to be put in harms way so I made sure you hated me..."

"Why would you want me to hate you?"

"So the gang wouldn't find my weakness. But it was useless really. It slipped one day and Hunter never forgot. He would constantly remind me to do my job or your life would be in jeopardy. So I continued to work with Red Moon and continued to investigate them. The summer before senior year my dad's boss from the FBI approached me. He had been keeping tabs on me and wanted me to help them close this case. I agreed. They promised that if I closed the case then they would make sure no harm would come to you. So I decided to finally let you in. I allowed you to get to know the real me.

I was finally getting close to the boss when I was captured. It was like they knew I was there. Daniel tortured me for I don't know how many days before he told me he killed my dad. He knew my dad was a fed so he executed him. He had no remorse and didn't care. Then he brought you in too. I couldn't take it. I saw you broken and bruised I knew I had failed. I was angry and disappointed with myself that I let this happen.

But I'm glad that its all over now. The FBI have everything they need including Daniel in custody. Apparently it was Daniel's grandfather who started the gang in Michigan but Daniel's father took it to California, because of it's close connections to Mexico. He was training Daniel to take over these last seven years and then he retired to let Daniel take over." He explained. It all made sense now.

"Daniel wasn't the same guy I used to know." I whispered.

"I'm sorry that he wasn't who he said he was. He knew you were here so instead of raising suspicions he joined school again. His goal was to make you fall in love him so you wouldn't care about his extra curricular activities. A cruel plan but what he didn't count on was me. When you started to like me he was angry. He was furious when you broke up with him so publicly that he didn't want you to be with anyone. Daniel was a harsh and hardened man. He was took young for this and yet his father left him no choice. I don't think his mother knew about it. At least I hope she didn't. Daniel never said." He finished. I leaned my head back against his chest, careful of all the bruises and stitches.

"I was so scared." He whispered.

"Why were you scared?" I asked turning my head to see his face. He had his eyes closed as he took a deep breath.

"I wasn't as bad as you. My surgery was pretty simple. I had a few broken ribs, one or two were fractured. My stomach was almost ripped but they stitched it up. The bullet would was a through and through. I had some internal bleeding, but they managed to stop it before I could bleed out on the table." He chuckled darkly.

"But you. You were in a worse shape than I was. I had woken up and you were still in surgery. They told me you had almost all your ribs broken, one splinter nicked your lung so you basically drowning in you own blood. You had a fracture collar bones. Massive internal bleeding and blood clot in one of your arteries. You had also sustained a bleed in the brain. You had two heart attacks, went into shock twice and died twice. Maddi. I though I had lost you for good when they told me your heart stopped. I felt as though my own heart had stopped as well. You died Maddi. Just the thought and I didn't want to live with myself." I felt a tear fall on to my neck. I looked up to see Drew's silent tears falling from his eyes.

I kissed away his pain and his sadness. I kissed away his tears and showed him I was alive and well. "You will never lose me. Never." I promised.

"Oh and I forgot to mention we had identical bullet wounds. It turns out that when Daniel shot me the bullet hit you too. So we have matching scars." He laughed.

"I love it." I turned and kissed him deeply. "And I love you." I kissed him again. I snuggled into his body as he tightened his hold around me. I rested my head back against his chest, our hearts beating together.

"I love you Maddi." He said.


************************************


That's the last chapter in this book. I can finally mark it as completed.

I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have had writing it. This book has taken me almost a year and a half to write and every moment has been enjoyable for me.

I don't think I will put an epilogue but I may think about it. I haven't decided yet. This is going to be a stand alone book. I don't think I want to write a sequel. The story would drag too much.

Thanks for all your support and commitment. This last chapter is dedicated to all of you who have read Sweetest Confusion.

Thankies

IamRecklessAndBrave