21 Guns

Chapter 3

"You've got to be kidding me." I said, fangirling big time. My favourite band saw my cover of their song... Did they like it? How did they even see it? How did Katie and Dakota know that they had seen it? I realized that I said all of that out loud as Katie started to answer my questions while Dakota held back a laugh.

"Well, let's start with how they saw it. As the video went viral, people started sending it to the members of Green Day. They released their own video saying that they had seen it. They loved the cover, Izzy. They were honoured that you chose one of their songs to perform when you thought you were about to die. It brought all of them to tears-even Tré. They went on to say that it sickened them to hear about the shooting. They asked for any survivors needing to talk to please reach out to them. They sent their condolences to anyone who lost friends or family members in the shooting, and they hope that anyone who was wounded in the attack would make a speedy recovery." Katie explained.

"And we found out because we got notifications through YouTube saying that Green Day had posted a new video. You were still asleep at that point, so we decided to watch it." Dakota added.

As I nodded, I remembered reading somewhere that reliving what you had gone through could actually help you move on. Sort of like how hypnosis could potentially help some people with PTSD.

"I want to see the video." I said simply.

"The one with Green Day?" Dakota asked, turning on her phone.

"No. The one you guys took earlier. The one I asked you take when I thought that I was going to die." I explained with my voice shaking ever so slightly. I was nervous to see the video, but I would try anything to prevent reliving my nightmare every night.

"Izzy... I really don't think that it's a good idea for you to watch it yet... You just had surgery less than 24 hours ago... Because you were shot three times!" Dakota protested.

"Guys, please! Maybe it will help me if I see it from a different point of view." I reasoned. Dakota sighed and found the video.

"Look, I can't watch this again. I'm going to find us something to eat, alright?" Dakota said, handing me her phone and exiting the room. I nodded.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Katie asked seriously.

"Yeah. You don't have to watch it if you don't want to. I'll be fine." I told Katie, sensing that she was hesitant to watch the video as well.

"I don't want to leave you in here alone while you watch this. Look, Dakota kept recording. The video shows you getting shot. I asked her about it after and she told me that it could have been used as evidence against the gunman if he had been caught alive. It was pretty smart, actually. I just thought I'd warn you." I took all of that in and took a deep breath.

"Seriously, Katie. I can tell how shaken up you are about all of this. I don't mind if you leave me alone for a few minutes. I'll be fine. If I get too freaked out, I'll just stop watching the video. I don't want to make you relive this. And by the way, the real reason I asked you guys to record the video was for evidence... Thank you for that." I said honestly. She nodded and told me that she would be right outside the door. She closed it behind her and I stared at the play button on the screen.

"It's now or never..." I whispered to myself. I pressed the play button and watched as I went to grab my guitar. The gun was pointed at me. I made sure that it was in tune and began to play "21 Guns". The gunman's hand seemed to tremble as I got to the bridge of the song. Had it struck something personal with him? Or was he just filled with rage because I was taking so long to let him kill me? I guess I'll never know. I finished the song and began saying my goodbyes. I was doing alright until I started crying on the screen. I wiped my real tears away absent-mindlessly and smeared more of my eyeliner. Just wonderful. My eyeliner was all smudged in the video too...