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Post by Chuck Bass on Nov 29, 2009 0:33:13 GMT -5
It was as if he was on autopilot. None of his actions after he saw her fall through the ice required thought. Without stopping to take anything off, Chuck jumped in and disappeared under the surface of the water.
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Post by Adrienne on Nov 29, 2009 0:35:05 GMT -5
If there was a feeling Adrienne hated above all others, it was that of uselessness. Right now, waiting by the side of the pond, unable to breathe or move or even think, she felt useless. Compared to the sick terror that seemed to be shredding her chest, however, it was negligible.
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Post by Chuck Bass on Nov 29, 2009 0:54:33 GMT -5
A minute later, Evie's head resurfaced a split second before Chuck's did. He moved as quickly as he could towards the bank without stopping to catch his breath. He knew he needed to get her inside and warm.
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Post by Adrienne on Nov 29, 2009 0:57:47 GMT -5
The bottom of Adrienne's skirt was drenched as she slogged through broken ice and freezing water, getting up to her knees before she grabbed Evie. It might have been selfish, but she had to reassure herself that she was still there, still real. Her hurried return to the house was a blur, as was taking the too-still child up to her room and bellowing for the fire to be brought up and the doctor to be called.
As long as she kept shouting and directing, she wouldn't have to feel anything.
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Post by Chuck Bass on Nov 29, 2009 1:09:16 GMT -5
Though rushed, Chuck was quiet. He quickly grabbed all the blankets in sight, tossed them on the floor and laid her down gently near the fireplace. She was unconscious, her lips were blue and from what he could discern, she wasn't breathing. He tilted her head back and though was completely out of practice, he started CPR.
"Come on, Evie," he muttered to himself. "You know I didn't mean any of it."
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Post by Adrienne on Nov 29, 2009 1:10:56 GMT -5
Evie coughed up the water and gasped for air, but after a split second of eye contact with Chuck, she slipped into unconsciousness. Adrienne knelt beside her, pushing curls out of her face and gently shaking her.
"Evie, you have to wake up for maman, come on, I know you're there..." But it sounded desperate.
When the doctor came, he removed the glass from Evie's foot before examining her. Adrienne never left the room, pacing like a caged lioness.
"Madame, I'm afraid your daughter has slipped into a coma."
Those words made Adrienne shut down completely. She nodded numbly, waiting until the doctor left to sit beside Evie's bed and just look at her face.
It was a while before she started sobbing quietly. Guilt, worry, and selfish fear washed over her.
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Post by Chuck Bass on Nov 29, 2009 2:17:27 GMT -5
Chuck let her be alone for a few minutes before pulling up a chair and sitting next to her silently. He couldn't think of anything to say that would make the situation any better.
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Post by Adrienne on Nov 29, 2009 18:38:33 GMT -5
Truly, there was nothing she wanted him to say. What she was feeling was beyond words, beyond speaking or listening. She clutched at Evie's pale little hand, afraid to let go.
Though when she realized Chuck was still in the clothes he'd been wearing when he'd jumped into the pond, she managed to find words.
"You have to go put some dry clothes on," she said softly, "or you'll catch something."
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Post by Chuck Bass on Dec 21, 2009 0:59:57 GMT -5
Chuck's eyes were empty yet fixed on Evie's unconscious form.
"I'm fine," he said briefly despite icy water still dripping from his hair. But when he turned and saw Adrienne's face, he decided to do as she suggested.
He didn't take very long. A few minutes later with dry clothes on and a towel around his neck, he was sitting again in his chair.
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Post by Adrienne on Dec 21, 2009 1:03:52 GMT -5
"I've already lost her once; I don't think I can do it again." She said, trying to hold back the emotions until she could deal with them. It wasn't so much Chuck as herself that she said it to.
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Post by Chuck Bass on Dec 21, 2009 1:09:03 GMT -5
Chuck looked at her with a curious frown. Her choice of words were strange, he thought...
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Post by Adrienne on Dec 21, 2009 1:10:58 GMT -5
"I couldn't even handle it the first time." She said self-critically, with a humorless laugh.
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Post by Chuck Bass on Dec 21, 2009 1:20:48 GMT -5
"What are you saying?"
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Post by Adrienne on Dec 21, 2009 1:27:54 GMT -5
"I didn't meet Evie until she was 18 months old," she said quietly, holding Evie's hand. "Fernand, as it turned out, wasn't as stupid as I'd presumed. He suspected he had been cuckolded and told his valet to 'take care of that whore's bastard.' The valet left the room with the baby; I assumed she'd been killed. I was delirious and didn't take it well."
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Post by Chuck Bass on Dec 21, 2009 1:31:44 GMT -5
"Son of a bitch," he muttered under his breath. "Heart failure wasn't cruel enough..."
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