Fallen for the bully

Jayden's POV:

I could hardly breathe as I pulled Liam out of the water. His body was limp, his face pale, and his lips blue. Panic surged through me. I slapped his cheek, tapping his face over and over, trying to wake him up. "Liam, wake up! Liam, please!" But he didn’t move. His eyes were closed, and he was silent.

My heart raced. What was I supposed to do? I didn’t know. I had no idea. I just kept tapping his face, shaking him. I was desperate. "Wake up, Liam!" I said, my voice cracking. But it was like he didn’t even hear me.

Then, something clicked in my mind. I remembered watching movies, how they’d always say if someone fell into water, you had to help them breathe. My hands shook, but my mind was clear. I knew what I had to do, but I didn’t want to. It felt so wrong, so weird. I didn’t want to kiss him, not like that. But I had to. He wasn’t breathing. He was dying.

I leaned down, my heart pounding in my chest. My lips touched his. I tried to force the water out of his lungs, but the moment my lips made contact with his, my breath caught. My face turned hot. What was I doing? My whole body was shaking.

Then, suddenly, his eyes shot open, wide with shock. He shoved me away, gasping. "What did you do?!" His voice was hoarse and full of disbelief. "What the heck is wrong with you?!"

I fell back onto the shore, my hands trembling. I couldn’t believe what had just happened. My face was burning with embarrassment. "I couldn’t just leave you to die," I muttered, my voice barely a whisper. "You… you weren’t breathing. I had to do something."

Liam’s eyes narrowed, his face twisted in confusion and anger. "Why would you even care?" he snapped. "Just let me die. I don’t care. You should’ve just let me go."

My chest tightened. I couldn’t just let him die. I couldn’t. "I can’t let you die, Liam," I said, my voice firm. "You don’t deserve that. Nobody does."

I helped him sit up, my hands steady despite my panic. "I’m calling the paramedics," I told him, pulling out my phone. My fingers felt numb as I dialed 911. "Please, hurry. Someone’s not okay here!" I said, my voice shaking. The operator on the other end told me help was on the way.

I didn’t know what to do next. I just stared at Liam. His chest was rising and falling shallowly, and his eyes were glazed. I tried to keep calm, but it was hard. I kept checking the time, waiting for help to arrive. The seconds felt like hours. Every minute that passed made my heart race faster.

Finally, the paramedics arrived, their van skidding to a stop. They rushed over, and I stepped aside, trying to stay out of their way. I was shaking, still reeling from what had just happened. They lifted Liam onto a stretcher and started checking him over, asking him questions, but he didn’t respond. I felt so helpless. I wanted to do something, anything, but there was nothing I could do.

One of the paramedics turned to me. "Are you his friend?" she asked. I froze for a second. Was I his friend? I wasn’t sure. But I couldn’t let him be alone right now.

"Yeah," I said, nodding. "I’m his friend."

She nodded back and gestured for me to get in the van. Without thinking twice, I climbed in next to Liam, sitting on the edge of the stretcher as the doors slammed shut. The van sped toward the hospital, the lights flashing in my eyes. I couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened. About the kiss. About how my lips had been on his. My heart raced, and I couldn’t get rid of the feeling.

At the hospital, the paramedics rushed Liam inside, and I followed, staying close behind. I was anxious. What if something went wrong? What if I couldn’t help him in time?

A doctor walked over to me as I stood outside the room. "He’s okay now," the doctor said, giving me a reassuring smile. "You can go in and see him."

I nodded, still feeling shaken, and pushed the door open. Liam was sitting up in the bed, looking pale and exhausted. His eyes met mine, and for a second, neither of us said anything. The silence was thick between us. I didn’t know what to say. How do you explain something like that?

Finally, he spoke, his voice hoarse. "Why did you save me?" He looked at me like he was trying to figure me out, his eyes red from the water and the panic.

I swallowed hard. "Because I had to," I said softly. "Because everyone deserves to live. Because nobody should be left to die." I paused for a moment, then added, "And because I like you. I really do. I want to be your friend."

His eyes widened for a split second, then softened. A small, almost shy smile tugged at the corner of his lips. For a second, I forgot how to breathe. The way he smiled at me—it felt different, like something had shifted between us.

I couldn’t stop looking at him. My heart was thudding in my chest again. My mind flashed back to the kiss, to the way his lips had felt against mine. I remembered how it had made my heart race. And now, seeing him smile at me, everything felt… wrong, but also so, so right.

I couldn’t make sense of it. Was I falling for him? No, that couldn’t be it. I couldn’t.

But when I looked into his eyes again, I wasn’t so sure.

Liam’s voice broke my thoughts. "I don’t understand you, Jayden." He sounded confused, but there was something in his voice, a hint of vulnerability.

What the heck! I'm doomed if I've fallen for a human, and let alone a bully.