Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card

HOW WE GOT BACK SENIOR YEAR LAURA

When I woke up, my head throbbed, and my vision was blurry. The rough fabric of a car seat pressed against my cheek, and the air smelled like gasoline and sweat. I tried to move, but my arms felt like lead. "Jess..." I croaked, my voice barely audible.

"She's waking up," a voice muttered, sharp and unfamiliar.

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"She better stay out," another snapped.

Jess was beside me, her face pale and streaked with tears. She whispered something to me, her voice urgent but muffled, like it was coming from underwater. "Laura, listen... You need to run. You have to run, okay? As soon as you can, go!"

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Her words barely registered before the car jolted, throwing me against the door. The pain in my head intensified, and I felt the darkness creeping in again.

The next thing I knew, I was outside. The cold air bit at my skin, and the world swayed unsteadily. I didn't remember how I got there. Did I kick someone? Did they push me out? "Focus, Laura," I whispered to myself, trying to stay upright. My

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head was pounding, and my thoughts felt sluggish, like they were swimming through molasses.

stumbled forward, my hands brushing against rough tree bark as I made my way through the

thought burned through the fog in my mind, keeping me moving even as my legs felt like they would give out

1. me.

I whispered, the

to a road, and headlights suddenly blazed in the distance, cutting through the darkness. The light was too bright, stabbing into my eyes

more.

forced myself forward, raising my arms as high as 1 could, though they felt like

croaked, the word barely escaping my

against the asphalt. I tried to stay standing, tried to keep my eyes open,

my knees, the cold road biting into my skin. Someone

help... Jess..." I forced the words

of my vision were darkening. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't keep my

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open any longer.

me, and then a hand on my shoulder, shaking me gently.

I couldn't place it. Everything was slipping

The harsh white light of the hospital

a moment, I thought maybe just maybe-my mother would be here. I imagined her sitting in the chair beside me, her face pinched with worry, her perfectly manicured hands clutching mine. But, of course, she wouldn't be here. She wasn't even in the

hard, my throat scraping like sandpaper.

1. me.

Jess.

to sit up, panic surging through

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from the couch across the room. His disheveled hair stuck up in every direction, his shirt wrinkled from where he must have fallen asleep. His eyes found mine, and in an instant,

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