Read Online Surviving Elite High by John H Ames - Free Book Online Page A

the bathroom near the main entrance. Matthew stared at us and froze. A maniacal smile slowly spread across his face. I knew I was safe in the presence of the entire school, so we continued walking to the science lab. We were going to turn into another hallway when I glanced at him again. Matthew slowly placed his hand into his letter jacket and took out two pistols. My heart stopped. He was pointing at us.
    “Madison!!” I shouted as I pushed Madison towards the left-wing of the school.
    Madison flew down the corridor while I threw myself to the right. That was the moment I heard the first two shots. I instantly felt a burning sensation between my heart and shoulder. Something metallic and hot pierced through me and rested inside. After that, I heard a lot of screaming and tumult. Chaos hit the halls of Elite High. I dropped both bags on the floor and ran towards the right-wing emergency exit. Everyone was pushing and screaming. Suddenly, I heard the second round of shots. This time, I heard even more uproars of confusion. I held my left shoulder as I bumped into a student. I examined my right hand. It was stained with blood.
    I kept running and looking back. I saw the frantic faces of the students as they ran towards the emergency door. At that moment, I heard a fifth shot that was followed by a sixth shot. I panicked. I had never felt that type of anguish before in my life. The emergency exit was too far away and I felt like I was about to faint; I wasn’t going to make it. I had to hide, so I opened the first door that I could find and stepped inside. It was the school's gymnasium. I dropped on the floor; my breathing was becoming more difficult by each passing second. I painfully crawled across the empty gymnasium floor. A rack of mats was neatly packed at the end of the room so I decided to hide behind it. It was the safest spot that I could find.
    I held my shoulder tight and moaned. The wound burned whenever I applied force to it, but I had to keep it from bleeding out. I knew I was getting close to bleeding to death. The screaming had died out by then and everything was dead silent. My heart pounded against my chest. I did not want to die. I had not experienced my first real kiss, gone out on my first date, gone to prom or had my first real heartbreak. I wanted to live! My body began to tremble; a cold chill penetrated my body. I continued to apply force to my wound, but my strength was slowly decreasing. Two more shots broke the silence. They sounded ten times louder and closer than ever. I prayed that Madison and Kitty were okay. I knew that Nick was safe because he was at the school's parking lot. I slowly closed my eyes.
    After a few minutes of silence, I heard the door open and close behind me. I opened my eyes. Tears instantly filled them. Someone found me. The person froze and slid a barbell from a nearby rack. Then, he continued making his way towards me. I closed my eyes tight. I was going to die. I knew it. Someone tugged on my right shoulder and I jumped and squealed.
    “John! It's me! Nick!”
    I instantly opened my eyes. Nick was clutching a barbell in his hands.
    “Oh my God, John! You're bleeding!”
    He knelt in front of me and removed my hand from my shoulder. By now, I was shaking uncontrollably. He took off his shirt and placed it on top of my wound.
    “Hold it,” Nick instructed as he placed my right hand over my shoulder again. “Don't move. I'm going to get some help.”
    “No, Nick! Please! Please don't leave me! Please!”
    Nick hesitated at first, but he eventually sat down next to me. He pulled me into his arms and hugged me tight. I began to sob.
    “Everything's going to be okay,” Nick whispered as he pressed his lips against my temple. “I'll never let anyone hurt you again. Just hang in there. I had no idea that it was you. I saw the traces of blood and I immediately knew that someone needed my help.”
    “I'm going to die, Nick.”
    “No! You're not going to die. Don't say