Shredded
Mizi's footsteps echoed through the hallway as she approached the bathroom door, then stopped. "Sua? Everything alright in there?" Sua still hadn't answered her texts.
Sua attempted to hide how shaky her voice was. "Yeah." She bit her lip, wincing at the pain blooming by her wrists. She traced her scars with the blade, covering it with shallow lines of blood. A spot of red dripped onto the floor. She'd gone too far this time, farther than she'd meant to, but she couldn't stop. She couldn't. This could be her last chance to finally get it over with, to finally feel peace. She hadn't been at peace for months-or was it years? The days had begun to blur together after her parents kicked her out. She'd written notes down on her phone. She could schedule the texts for a few hours later, when she'd already be long gone.
Mizi asked again, "Are you okay?" She tapped her foot anxiously, then sighed. "Fuck it, I'm coming in."
Sua didn't have enough time to hide the knife, to clean the blood, to put the bracelets back on-she didn't have enough time. She didn't have any time at all. She glanced at the lock, only to see that she'd never locked the door. A habit, she guessed. Her parents hadn't ever let her lock the door. Panicked, she looked up and found herself staring straight into Mizi's concerned eyes.
Mizi paled when she saw the blood. Her eyes widened as she tracked Sua's arm down to the knife she was holding at her side. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't. She couldn't say anything at all. Slowly, she moved towards Sua and attempted to pry the knife out of her steel grip. Sua resisted and jerked the knife back, nicking Mizi's arm. A trickle of blood became visible momentarily, but was sooner lost to the stream of blood they were both standing in. Mizi barely flinched, and would not let go. Sua whimpered, exhausted. How deep had she cut herself? How much blood had she lost? She was drained, tired, of both life and energy. Sua, distracted, relaxed her hand, and Mizi took the knife, now unsure of what to do with it.
Sua felt numb. Mizi knew now. She, or the hospital, would probably have to call her parents. The same parents that abandoned her when she came out as lesbian, the parents that had ignored and ridiculed her her whole life. This idea almost stung as much as the cuts.
"You should have told me," Mizi whispered under her breath. "Fuck, why didn't you tell me? I could've helped you!" She picked up Sua's phone and dialed a number. She kissed Sua's head, and then the voice from the speaker-
"911, what is your emergency?"