Page 91 of Shameless

The dock is high and it’s quite a jump to the small concrete step Jenna fell onto.

I close my eyes. There’s no way I’m going to land safely on the high heels I decided to pair with my dress.

The concrete feels rough under my bare feet, but I feel steadier now.

“Hopefully I don’t break something and add another medical emergency to this shit storm.” I say to no one, just to hype myself up for the jump.

Every second could be critical for Jenna now, so I close my eyes and jump.

The impact with the concrete is hard and I hit the ground with my feet but immediately stumble. My hands shoot forward to protect my face and the pain is searing.

I don’t even need to look to know that my hands are scraped and my knees probably got the worst of my fall.

There’s no time to worry about a cut or two though, I need to check on Jenna.

At a first look, the toddler’s small body looks still. I can’t spot any chest movement. Jenna is lying on her side and moving her onto her back would help me assess her breathing, but I don’t think I want to do that. If she had a spinal injury, moving her would make things worse.

I lean down to listen for breathing. It’s faint and shallow, but when a little warm puff hits my cheek, the tears I’ve been keeping at bay break the floodgates.

“Thank God,” I murmur, but I know the situation isn’t good. There’s a lot of blood and we need help fast.

I wish I had my phone to call 911, but I must have dropped it when Evan jumped me. If Napoleon doesn’t come back soon, I might need to climb back up to the dock and get back inside the boathouse to look for it.

If jumping down was hard, climbing back up is going to be next to impossible. I don’t know what this small platform is for, but whoever designed it, didn’t intend for anyone to be down here.

The stress must be fucking with me, because a second later I notice a couple of steps carved into the concrete a few feet away from me.

I don’t want to leave Jenna, but I might need to go look for my phone. Hopefully Evan isn’t still in there or I might be in a lot of trouble.

“What’s going on, Naps, is it Jenna?”

I’ve never been so happy to hear Crew’s voice. “Crew!” I call, glad that there’s a pause on the fireworks.

“Lula? What are you doing—holy fuck. Is that your blood or Jenna’s?” he stops at the edge of the spot where I jumped.

“Not mine. Crew, call 911.”

“On it.”

As I hear Crew talking to the operator, I brush Jenna’s hair away from her forehead as gently as I can. “Hold on munchkin, help will be here soon.”

19.Braving The Storm

Jules

Star Cove Memorial Hospital

Ican’t even remember the short ambulance ride here.

All I know is that the paramedics were working on Jenna the entire time. I played football with one of them, and I almost punched the fucker when they took my daughter into the ER and he kept me from following her into the treatment bay.

“That’s my little girl,” I yell. “I’m not leaving her.”

The paramedic, Greg I think is his name, doesn’t budge but his tone is sympathetic when he explains. “Let the doctors do their work. You going in there isn’t going to help Jenna. You’re only going to be in the way.”

I know he’s right but I feel so powerless. I need to be with her. “What if she—” tears make it impossible to finish the sentence.

What if she regains consciousness and I’m not there?

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