Help Me

We pull up to the front gates of campus and Caitlin leaps out of the car. I yell a quick goodbye and get a quick air kiss in return before she starts sprinting to class. Caitlin may be crazy, but she is dead serious about being a lawyer. I shake my head and park my car next to a black Toyota that looks slightly familiar. I shake the feeling, and speed walk to class. I mean, I see half these people everyday, I'm sure I would have parked next to that car at least once before.

I hold the door open for the professor and internally sigh at the close call with being late. He nods a quick thank you before stepping up to his desk as I slide into my seat in the third-to-last row of the classroom. I pull out my coral blue laptop, lining it up perfectly with the end of my desk. Perfect symmetry. Just the way I like it. I lean back in my chair and zone out to the professor's monotone voice.

I quickly snap to attention when I hear the words "... new student starting today." I rise slightly off my seat, trying to see over the rugby player that always sits in front of me. Why does David have to be so tall? The front of the classroom appears, and the professor has his arm around the new student. Tall. Brown hair. Pretty good looking, if I may say so myself . It takes me a split second to realize my mistake. Wait a second! I know that good looking face. My heart drops as his suddenly evil-looking smile turns towards me. He lifts his hand in a fake enthusiastic wave. "Architecture first-years, this is Jake Carson. He's a new student from Sydney that'll be joining our class." Jake flicks that (once) handsome smile around the room. "Ah Jake, I see you already know Miss Edwards. Take the seat next to her, why don't you?" Jake smirks at me as I start to panic. Fuck. Fuckity Fuck Fuck. What the hell is that dickhead doing here, in my new life that I started without him six months ago?

I'm pulled out of my panicked thoughts by the menacing thump of his laptop onto the desk to the left of me. He leans over and I instinctively flinch away, feeling fear fill my heart. "Long time no see, princess.", he snarls.. "It took me a while to find you, never knew you'd end up here." He leans over my desk, purposely knocking the perfectly aligned laptop out of place. "Old habits die hard I guess", he smirks as I instinctively fix the placement of my desk. "So do old boyfriends, it seems", I mumble, a sudden rush of courage pushing me to stand up to him. Well, shit Brooke, where did that come from? He leans over me as I cower under his gaze. "What did you just say to me?". I feel his hand grab my wrist under the table and start to squeeze, hard. "No-nothing!" I stammer as his grip gets tighter. "I'm not sure about that, princess" "Please le-let go of me!" He tightens his grip on my arm, the bones feeling like they're about to snap. I shoot up out of my chair, releasing my wrist from his grasp. Ignoring the looks of my class mates, I shove my stuff into my bag. I run to the front of the class and out of the room. A few metres away from the door I lean against the cool wall of the corridor, trying to calm myself down.

I can't believe he's here, I can't believe that just happened, how the hell did he find me, he's meant to be long gone, what am I doing, how do I escape him- My thoughts are rushing through my mind, I have to calm down, my panic attacks, fuck, someone has to help me-

BOOM. The attack comes out of nowhere. My lungs are seized with the desire to rip themselves out of my chest as the foam mattress starts to fill my throat. DREAD. It fills my mind with thoughts of what is to come. I glance to my right, seeing half the class watching curiously out of the classroom door. Brilliant. Just what I don't need. My hands clutch at the wall, my last chance of finding my way out of the rising storm inside my chest. The whirlpool of suffocation drags me under, as my side convulses with rising panic, the waves of terror start to swell. FEAR. The ground seems to rush up to meet me as the whirlpool of colour and white noise fades into nothing but the sound of my ragged, terrified gasps. The panic forces its way into my head, a megaphone screaming warnings to every muscle in my body. TERROR. The message is received by my lungs first. I feel my chest tighten around them like a steel band, forcing them to suck in air as if I'm breathing through a straw. My heart pounds wildly against my ribs like a prisoner fighting to escape. The icy chains of panic constrict my chest, trapping me inside myself, unable to reach for help. I am faintly aware of hands grabbing my arms, pulling me back up to a standing position. My tears clear ever so slightly to see the professor holding me up, looking at me with barely contained panic. "wha-what do I do?" He stammers. "Cat- Caitlin Wal-Walters" I manage to squeak out, before slipping through his grip onto the floor. He nods once, then whispers in one of the watching student's ears. They run off, presumably to get the only person who can calm me down. Behind the watching students, I can see Jake, staring at me with an evil grimace. I have no idea what I’m going to do about him.

I hear running footsteps and then the familiar soothing voice. "Come on hon, breathe, let's go.." She lifts me up under my armpits and I stumble against her, she walks me out of the building towards my car, but I collapse on the grass, gasping. I can't breathe I can't breathe I can't breathe I can't breathe. Suddenly I hear the one thing that only Cat knows that will calm me down.

I figured it out
I figured it out from black and white
Seconds and hours
Maybe they had to take some time

My breathing starts to slow down, and clear, clean thoughts rush through my mind. You're ok.

I know how it goes
I know how it goes for wrong and right
Silence and sound
Did they ever hold each other tight
like us
Did they ever fight
like us

This girl can sing like a freaking angel, it works every time.

You & I
We don't want to be like them
We can make it till the end
Nothing can come between
You & I
Not even the gods above
Could separate the two of us
No nothing can come between
You & I

That is what I needed. I slowly sit up, Caitlin's arm steadying my back. We wordlessly walk towards the car, and I slide into the passenger seat. I don't even have enough energy to tell her that she knows she's not allowed to drive my beauty, and if she she gets even a slight scratch on it, I will kill her. All I know is my best friend is here to rescue me.

Notes

Hope yall still enjoying it :) A new chapter for my girl @ZaynMalik'sWife, go check her story out!

Lots of love as always,
Half_a_heart x