Page 29 of Euphoria
Chapter 11
Bambi
Something doesn’t feel right.It’s officially been a week, today is Sunday and I’m at the gallery door. We’ve been closed for the past ten minutes and I haven’t stopped staring at the door while I sit on one bench.
“Waiting for someone?” Sasha asks.
I don’t turn towards her, but I shake my head. “No.” I say in a small voice. I hear the trembling of my voice as I say that, and I wouldn’t believe myself either.
Something is wrong and I know it because there’s no way Phoenix or Bowie can leave me alone for a week. I blink twice. Why do I feel like this? I shut my eyes feeling like I’m about to have a panic attack, it’s been so long since this happened. My last one was right after Phoenix walked out of the door. I knew he wasn’t coming back.
I hear the chiming of the entrance and I look up, hopeful but I frown when I notice Andres Bishops himself. His men are behind him and another is still holding the door open as he walks in. My heart beats.The first time I saw him was when he stepped into my house after Phoenix left. He stepped over my stepfather and sat me up. He removed his suit jacket and the clean dress shirt off his back. He covered my naked body with his dress shirt with such care; I didn’t understand.
“What’s your name?” He asks me.
“Bambi Laurence-Vasquez,” I reply.
“Nice to meet you, Bambi. Call me Andres.”
I look up at him. “What are you doing here?” I ask.
Andres, his gray eyes seem sort of empty and soulless, but there was a glint of some hope in there too. He buttoned up the dress shirt and made me stand up. “My son, Phoenix told me to come help you.”
“Your son?” I blink. I didn’t understand because Phoenix wasn’t related to Ainslee. I knew him as Ainslee’s father. He is a Founder’s, what the hell is he doing here? And why didn’t Phoenix ever tell me this information.
“Yes,” he gives me a small smile. “He told me I was to help you and I’ll do it. Do you trust Phoenix?” He asks.
“Yes.”
“Good.”
Andres Bishops will always have a special place in my heart because he treated me with caution when it could’ve gone worse than that and now, here he is. I can’t move from my seat because the look in his eyes, the sadness, is so profound that it’s suffocating me. “Bambi…” He says my name in such a sad way.
I don’t know why I let my tears flow, but I just do. Something is wrong. He wouldn’t be here. Andres doesn’t seem like he would, or would he? “Please tell me they’re both okay? I can’t handle it if they’re not,” I say.
Andres takes strides towards me in record time, courtesy of his long legs. He crouches down and grabs my chin between his thumb and forefinger. “I came to get you. Phoenix needs you and Bowie is okay, he’s just not in town...”
I sigh a breath of relief, but then my anxiety shoots up again. “What happened? Have you told Bowie yet? I can call him.” I ask in a small voice.
Andres gives me a sad look. “Don’t worry, one of the men told Bowie the situation, but yeah, Nix is in surgery, we went stateside, and something happened.” His face shows the sadness that he was holding back. “He,” Andres shakes his head chuckling mirthlessly. “That fuckingcabronput his life before mine.” Andres looks like he’s on the verge of tears but he controls himself and looks away.
“He, he did what? Is he going to make it?” I try to ask calmly, but all I hear is my heart beating over the sound of my voice.
“Dr. Nash is doing his best; he is the best at his job. Trust that nothing will go wrong with Phoenix. He lost a lot of blood, yes, but you know him, he’s too stubborn to die. Let’s go. Orion needs us,” he states.
Andres stands, and he pulls me up with him. When Andres pulls me into his arms, I can’t help it as reality sets in. I may never see Phoenix again if he doesn’t make it. I go numb.
Through the entire car ride to the hospital, I know that Sasha came with us. Andres is sitting with me and Sasha is in the front seat of the GMC SUV. I don’t feel like I’m myself, I just look out the window because I feel like I’m going to break apart.
My phone rings and it’s like I know I answered, but something doesn’t click until I hear his voice. “Baby…” Bowie calls out to me.
“Bow.” I whisper and I feel as the tears fall down my face.
“Don’t cry, he’ll be fine. I know he will.”
I sniffle. “How do you know I’m crying?”
“Some things never change,” he whispers. “Andres told me you’re on your way and so am I.”
