Marcus cries and screams as he frighteningly and painfully runs down the first flight of stairs practically rolling down the stairwell with his body still bent forward in pain!
Back up on the third floor hallway, Diane D reaches the stairwell exit doors as her feet practically slides past the door from the running! Then she quickly spins her entire body around and angrily kung-fu kicks the door wide open causing a loud ‘BANG‘!
Marcus is running and rolling down the second flight of stairs as he frighteningly looks up and screams then hears heavy footsteps jumping and charging down the first flight of stairs after him! He screams even more as he reaches the second floor landing! He frighteningly runs and rolls down the third flight of stairs as he continues to scream! He reaches the bottom of the third flight of stairs then runs and rolls down the fourth flight of stairs!
Marcus reaches the first floor landing as he continues to cry and scream! He quickly runs to the first floor stairwell doors! He opens the stairwell doors and painfully runs out into the first floor back exit as his body remains bent forward!
Marcus rushes to the first floor double doors! He pulls one of the doors open and runs right into the first floor hallway as the double doors close behind him!
Marcus is slowly running in the dark, dim first floor hallway crying, screaming and bleeding with his body still bent forward painfully holding his right wrist and side as he continues to run! He sees the double doors way down the front end of the hallway opened. He turns his head around and frighteningly looks back towards the back double doors! He turns his head back forward and continues to run! He sees the two black male security guards rush through the opened front double doors and rush to him! Marcus slowly runs towards them shouting, “Help me! Help me please!” Marcus is about to pass out and collapse as the security guards quickly reach him and grab him! The security guards see Marcus bleeding! They see his right arm and wrist bent backward as one of them shouts, “Oh my God, what in the world happen to you?!”
“It’s Diane D!” Marcus cries and shouts.
“Diane D?!” both security guards shout.
“What about her?!” the second security guard shouts.
“She’s after me!” Marcus cries and shouts.
“She’s after you?!” the first security guard shouts. “What in the world are you talking about Diane D is after you?! How can she be after you?! Why would she be after you?! Weren’t you the one standing and waiting for her outside the principal’s office?”
“Yes!”
“So what happened after we walked away from you guys?” the second security guard says.
“I had confessed something to her!”
“You had confessed something to Diane D?” the first guard says.
“Yes!”
“That’s why you wanted to talk to her in private, because you wanted to confess something to her?”
“Yes!”
“Well what did you confess to her that is making her want to come after you?”
“I can’t say!”
“You can’t say?”
“No!”
“Well what happened after you confessed something to her?”
“She got upset then she got angry!”
“She got upset then she got angry?”
“Yes!”
“Did she hurt you?!”
“No, she didn’t hurt me!”
“She didn’t hurt you?”
“No!”
“Then how in the world did your arm and wrist get broken like this?! How did you get blood all over yourself?!”
“I fell down the stairs while I was running, trying to get away from Diane D!”
“You fell down the stairs?! That’s how your arm and wrist got broken?! That‘s why you‘re bleeding?!”
“Yes!”
“My God, it looks more like you got ran over by a car or something! Are you sure you didn‘t get run over by a car?!”
“No I didn’t get run over by a car or anything! I wasn’t outside! I actually fell down the stairs!”
“Wow, you must have fell down the stairs pretty hard to get a broken arm and wrist and get blood all over yourself! My God this don‘t make any sense! I don’t understand how can Diane D get upset then be after you, when she had just performed for the children in the auditorium?!”
“I don‘t understand it myself!” the second security guard says. “We saw Diane D’s husband, her father and her uncle heading out the building a little while ago! They asked us have we seen Diane D! We told them we never saw Diane D leave the building, then they went out the building to look for her, then they came back in the building and went back up to the principal’s office! Where did you see Diane D?!”
“The last time I saw her, she was coming after me on the third floor hallway!” Marcus cries and shouts, “then I turned, ran into the stairwell and ran down the staircase! When I reached the second flight of steps, I heard the third floor stairwell door bang open, then I heard her footsteps jumping and charging down the staircase after me!”
“You heard Diane D’s footsteps jumping and charging down the staircase after you? That staircase back there?” the security guard asks as he points down the end of the first floor hallway.
“Yes!”
The security guards turn their heads and anxiously look towards the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors that lead to the back stairwell are. They do not see any sign of Diane D or anyone else coming. The security guards turn back to Marcus as the second security guards asks, “Isn’t Diane D’s family still inside the principal’s office?!”
“Yeah they should be!” Marcus cries and shouts. “As far as I know, they’re still in there!”
“Are they aware of Diane D coming after you?”
“No! They were in the principal‘s office! I think they were calling Diane D looking for her, because her cell phone kept ringing, but she never picked up or answered her cell phone!”
“She never picked up or answered her cell phone when it was ringing?”
“No, she just ignored it!”
“How come?”
“I don’t know! All she kept doing was staring right at me like she was in a trance or something after I made a confession to her!”
“What? Diane D kept staring at you like she was in a trance after you made a confession to her?”
“Yes!”
“Wow, that must have been some confession you made to her to make her become upset then be in a trance then come after you just like this!”
“Where is your family by the way?” the first security guard asks. “Who did you come to the school with?”
“I came here with a couple of friends!” Marcus cries and shouts. “I told them if they didn’t see me at the end of Diane D’s performance, that I was going to walk home with some other friends!”
“But you didn’t walk home with some other friends, because you’re still here. Instead, you wind up staying in this building on the third floor hallway to talk privately with Diane D. So in other words, your family don’t know where you are right now, do they?”
“No! I think they were calling my cell phone but Diane D refused to let me get to my cell phone and answer it when it fell out of my hand and it was laying across the floor!”
“Your cell phone fell out of your hand?”
“Yes!”
“And it started to ring while it was laying across the floor?”
“Yes! Most likely it was my family calling me looking for me!”
“And you’re saying that while your cell was laying across the floor ringing, Diane D refused to let you get to it and answer it?”
“Yes!”
“Why?!”
“I don’t know!”
“Where is your cell phone now?”
“It’s still laying on the floor in the third floor hallway!”
The second security guard says to the first securit
y guard, “I better go check in that back stairwell then go up to that third floor hallway and see what‘s going on.” The second security guard turns and is about to run towards the end of the first floor hallway.
“No don’t go back there!” Marcus frighteningly shouts. The second security guard stops in his tracks then turns his head around towards Marcus as Marcus pleads, “Please don’t go in that back stairwell or go up to that third floor hallway! Diane D might still be there! You don’t know what she’s capable of!”
“What? What do you mean I don’t know what she’s capable of? Did she harm you? Is she the one who broke your arm and wrist and made you bleed?”
“No, she‘s not the one who did it! Like I said, I fell down the stairs while I was running from her!”
“But why were you running from Diane D if she didn‘t harm you? You must have been running from her for a reason! Why were you running from Diane D?”
Marcus is about to pass out again. The first security guard quickly grabs Marcus as the second security guard turns around, rushes back to Marcus and grab him. The first security guard shouts to Marcus, “Hang in there kid! We’re going to call the ambulance!”
The second security guard says to the first security guard, “I’m going to run to the nurse’ office and get the wheelchair for him.”
“Okay.”
The second security guard turns and runs off towards the direction of the front double doors.
The first security guard says to Marcus, “I guess I’ll have to carry you.” The security guard bends down and wraps his arms around Marcus’ waist and hips. He is about to lift Marcus.
“Aaaah!” Marcus screams.
The security guard quickly lets go of Marcus’ waist and hips and gently holds on to Marcus as he puzzled looks at Marcus and asks, “Can you make it to the desk?”
“I don’t know!”
“Well you can’t just stay here! Come on, I‘ll help you to the desk.” The security guard gently holds onto Marcus as Marcus’ upper body remains bent forward. He slowly helps Marcus towards the security desk.
The security guard brings Marcus through the front double doors and brings him to the security desk chair at the edge of the lunchroom. He gently sits Marcus down on the chair. He holds onto Marcus as he grabs the telephone receiver. He picks up the telephone receiver and is about to dial a number.
Suddenly, there is a loud ‘BANG’ coming from the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors are.
Marcus and the security guard become startled and quickly turn their heads towards the opened front double doors and look through the front double doors towards the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors are! “What in the world was that?!” the security guard shouts. The security guard and Marcus remain startled as they stare towards the end of the first floor hallway where the back double doors are. The security guard then says to Marcus, “Did you hear that?!”
“Of course I heard it!” Marcus shouts.
“Did you feel that too?!”
“Yeah I felt it! I think that was Diane D! It sounds like she might still be in that back stairwell!”
“That noise don’t sound like it could be coming from Diane D. That vibration don’t feel like it could be coming from her either! That noise and that vibration sounds and feels more like something was being banged by a bulldozer or something.”
“That’s the way the third floor stairwell door sounded when I heard it bang open while I was running down the stairs! It sounded and felt like that door was being banged by a bulldozer!” Marcus and the security guard continue to stare through the opened front double doors towards the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors are. Marcus then shouts, “It’s a good thing I stopped that other security guard from going in that back stairwell, because I think Diane D is still in there! In her state of mind, I don‘t know what she might try to do if she saw him!”
“I don’t think Diane D is capable of making a banging sound so loud like that young man.”
“Oh yes she is, I heard it myself while I was running down the stairwell trying to get away from her! She is capable of making a banging sound like that!”
“But that’s impossible!”
“What else could be causing that loud bang sir?!”
“It was most likely the wind.”
“The wind?! It can’t be the wind sir, it’s not even that windy outside! Would the wind make a loud bang like that?! Maybe it’s possible during a hurricane or a tornado, but there‘s no hurricanes or tornadoes going on right now! The wind is not even blowing that hard, and there’s no bulldozer outside or anywhere around this area! Diane D was the only one in that back stairwell!” Marcus frighteningly looks at the security guard as the security guard puzzled looks at him. Marcus and the security guard turn and nervously look back towards the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors are. They still do not see any sign of Diane D or anyone else coming. Marcus frighteningly turns back to the security guard and says, “I want to get out of here now! I don‘t want to stay here!”
The security guard looks back at Marcus and asks, “How are you going to get out of here now son, you can barely walk. If I try to lift you up and carry you again, you’ll scream in pain again. You’re just gonna have to wait right here until the other security guard comes back here with the wheelchair so we can put you in it.”
“How long is he going to take?!”
“He should be back down here with the wheelchair soon. In the meantime, I’m going to call upstairs to Principal Cole’s office right now.” The security guard and Marcus look back down towards the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors are. The security guard then turns his head back to the telephone and starts to dial a number again. He puts the telephone receiver to his ear. He waits a few seconds. He then speaks into the receiver and says, “Hello Principal Cole? There is an emergency down at the front desk! The little kid who was waiting for Diane D outside your office is hurt! … Yes! He’s down at the front desk with me now! .… He claim he fell down the stairs while he was running from Diane D! .… Yes! I think you and Diane D’s family better get down here to the front desk right away! … Okay!” The security guard hangs up the telephone receiver. He turns to Marcus and says, “Principal Cole and Diane D’s family are on their way down here. I’m going to call the ambulance for you right now, after that, you‘re going to tell me your home phone number so I can call up your family!” The security guard picks up the telephone receiver again and dials another number again as Marcus turns his head and frighteningly looks back through the front double doors towards the end of the dark first floor hallway where the back double doors are.
Fifteen minutes later, a big commotion is going on inside the front lobby steps of the school as Diane D‘s family, Principal Cole, the security guards, the paramedics and the police surround Marcus as Marcus lays in a stretcher. Marilyn then shouts, “I don‘t understand all of this! We were all having a good time in the auditorium with the children, and now this happens?!”
“Where is Diane?!” Barry shouts.
“I‘ll go look for her Dad!” Michael says.
“So will I!” Mary shouts.
“Yeah me too!” Marilyn shouts.
“We’re all going to look for her!” Barry shouts.
One of the police officers, Officer Martell a white male around his mid 40’s with dark hair, turns to the security guards and asks, “Where was the last place this kid said he saw Diane D?!”
“He said on the third floor hallway,” the first security guard says. “Then he said he ran down the back stairwell and heard Diane D’s footsteps jumping and charging down the steps after him. That’s the last place he said he heard Diane D, in the back stairwell.”
“Okay let’s go!” Officer Martell shouts as he, the security guards and Diane D’s family t
urn and rush for the lobby door!
Suddenly, the lobby door BANGS wide open so hard it practically hits Officer Martell and the security guards causing them to fall backwards onto Barry, Tonio and Michael as Barry, Tonio and Michael almost fall on Mary and Marilyn! Everybody looks and see an angry puffy eyed, bruised, swollen and bleeding faced Diane D standing right in the doorway!
“Diane!” her family shouts.
Diane D looks in the lobby! Her eyeballs then looks towards Marcus. She angrily points at Marcus and shouts, “There you go you little son-of-a-bitch!”
Marcus painfully turns his head and sees Diane D. He becomes frightened and starts to scream, “Aaaaaaah!” He frighteningly turns his head away from Diane D and screams, “Aaaaah!”
Diane D angrily bursts into the lobby and is about to charge Marcus with her fists balled as her entire family quickly grab her by the torso and stop her! “Diane what the hell is going on?!” Barry shouts as he and the rest of his family tightly hold on to Diane D! “What happened to you?!”
Mary goes in front of Diane D and shouts, “Oh my God Diane, what the hell happened to you! What happened to your face?!”
“My God Diane!” Marilyn shouts. “Your face looks different!”
“Why is your faced bruised up and bleeding Diane?!” Michael shouts.
“Why are your eyes and face swollen Diane?!” Tonio shouts. “What happened to you?! Where have you been?!”
Diane D angrily points her finger at Marcus and shouts to him, “Tell my family what you told me! Tell them what you told me!” Everyone puzzled looks at Diane D then turns towards Marcus.
“What’s this all about Marcus?” Principal Cole asks. “What happened?!”
“I had confessed to Diane D a little while ago, that it was me and my brother who sent that letter to her family about the little boy who has leukemia,” Marcus cries.
“What!” Diane D’s family shouts.
“What are you talking about Marcus?” Principal Cole asks.
“I told Diane D that my brother and I made that whole story up about the little boy who has leukemia, just so that her family can think it’s a charity event and let her come here to the school,” Marcus cries.
“What!” Diane D’s family shouts.
“I told Diane D that the school had nothing to do with sending her family that last letter, that the last letter was sent by me and my brother! The only thing we did was put the school‘s return address on the envelope.”
“What!” Diane D’s family shouts again.
“Tell my family what else you told me!” Diane D angrily shouts as her fists remain balled. “Tell them!”
“I told Diane D that there is no little boy in this school who has leukemia,” Marcus cries.
“What!” Diane D’s family shouts.
“I told her that’s the reason why Principal Cole wasn’t able to find the little boy who has leukemia. I told her that’s the reason why she will never get to see or meet the little boy who has leukemia, because he doesn‘t exist.”
“What!” Diane D’s family shouts.
“You told Diane that this little boy who has leukemia doesn‘t exist?!” Mary shouts.
“Yes!” Marcus cries. “I told her that the little boy who has leukemia never existed.”
“What!” Diane D’s family shout.
Mary bends to Marcus and shouts, “You mean to tell us, that there was never a kid in this school who has leukemia?! No kid at all? That this whole entire story was made up, by you and your brother?!”
“Yes Ma‘am,” Marcus says.
“My God!” Diane D’s family shout.
Barry turns to Principal Cole and shouts, “Now we know why you cannot find the mystery child in this school who has leukemia! Because the mystery child who has leukemia was invented by this kid and his brother!” Diane D angrily pushes her family off herself and storms off towards the front door. “Where are you going Diane?” Barry asks.
Diane D turns to Barry and angrily shouts, “I’m outta here! All I know is that we’ve been played! This damn kid and his brother tricked us into coming to this school! They made a fool out of all of us, especially they made a fool out of me! The next time you all receive a letter about a sick child who’s dying and wants to meet me, don’t ever bother to show it to me again because if you do, I swear I’m going to tear it up!” Diane D angrily turns away and bangs the exit door open! She then storms out the exit door!
“Wait Diane!” Mary shouts as she, Barry, Michael, Marilyn, Tonio, Officer Martell and one of the security guards quickly hurry out the front door after Diane D!
Marcus continues to scream and cry as the paramedics turn to Principal Cole and tells him, “We better hurry and get him to the hospital.”
“Okay,” Principal Cole says. “I’m going to call his family right now and have them meet us at the hospital.”
“Okay.”
Principal Cole and the security guard hurry to the exit doors as the paramedics rush Marcus and the stretcher towards the exit doors!
Principal Cole and the security guard push the exit doors open and hold them open as the paramedics hurry Marcus and the stretcher out the exit doors.
Five minutes later, Michael is sitting in the driver’s seat of the van again with an angry sweaty faced, bruised faced and bloody faced Diane D sitting edgy and restless in the front passenger seat again with the top of her hair over her eyes covering her eyes as Mary and Barry sit in the back seats again reaching towards her, trying to hold tightly onto her! Diane D hisses as her family shouts to her, “Calm down Diane! Calm down!” Barry turns to Michael and shouts, “Hurry and get her to the hospital Michael!”
“I’m trying to!” Michael shouts as he desperately speeds the van!
Suddenly Diane D raises her left arm and fist high into the air and throws her left fist right into the dashboard bashing it in making a loud BANG as her family frighteningly screams and shouts, “Diane!”
“Oh my God!” Marilyn frighteningly shouts. “She bashed the dashboard in!”
Suddenly Diane D raises her left arm and fist high in the air again and throws her left fist right into the windshield bashing the windshield shattering it as her family frighteningly screams and shout, “Diane!”
“My God!” Michael shouts. “She just bashed the windshield!”
Suddenly Diane D raises her left arm and fist high in the air again and is about to throw her fist again, but Barry and Mary quickly grab her left arm and stop her, holding tightly onto her left arm as they shout, “Diane! Calm down!”
“My God!” Michael shouts. “The windshield is all shattered and cracked! I can barely see through it!”
“I know!” Barry shouts. “You want me to drive?! Because we have to hurry and get Diane to the hospital right away!”
“I know Dad, but if I can hardly see out of this windshield, what makes you think you can see out of it?!”
“I don’t know! All I know, is that we need to get Diane to the hospital fast!”
“I’m trying to!” Michael continues to speed the van as Barry and Mary has Diane D’s head back holding tissues over her bloodied face!
A half hour later, Marcus is laying unconscious in the hospital bed hooked up to tubes and monitors with bandages wrapped around his right arm, hand, wrist, torso and legs as his mom Jessica Whitley, a slim black woman around her late 30’s, her mother Vanessa, a slim black woman in her late 50’s, Marcus’ brother Richard, Principal Cole and Officer Martell surround him with Jessica, Vanessa and Richard crying and holding on to him. “Oh Marcus,” Jessica cries. The doctor, a male white around his mid fifties, enters the room. He approaches Marcus’ family, Principal Cole and Officer Martell as they turn to him. “What does his X-ray say doctor?” Jessica cries.
“Well unfortunately, your son has a broken arm and wrist and he also has a couple of broken ribs,” the doctor says.
“What!” J
essica, Vanessa and Richard shout.
“A couple of broken ribs?!” Jessica shouts.
“I’m afraid so,” the doctor says. “He‘s messed up pretty bad. He might have some internal bleeding also.”
“Internal bleeding?!” Jessica, Vanessa and Richard shout.
“Oh my God!” Jessica shouts.
“How in the world did he get fractured ribs and internal bleeding?!” Vanessa shouts.
“I have no idea,” the doctor says. “Are you sure he wasn‘t beat up or anything?”
“As far as we know he wasn‘t beat up!” Jessica shouts. “The security guard from the elementary school told us on the phone that Diane D was the last person to see and be with Marcus before they found him running on the first floor school hallway injured and bleeding! The security guard told us that Marcus had told them that he fell down the stairs while he was running down the stairs trying to get away from Diane D!”
“He told the security guards that he fell down the stairs while he was running down the stairs trying to get away from Diane D?”
“Yes!”
“Why was he trying to get away from Diane D?”
“From what we heard, Diane D was after him!” Vanessa says.
“Diane D was after him? Why would Diane D be after him?”
“We heard that he confessed to Diane D, that the little boy in the school who has leukemia didn’t exist!” Jessica cries. “When he told Diane D that it was him and his brother who made up that whole story and sent her family that letter, I guess she got angry then he ran from her!”
“Did she harm him in any way at all? Because the injuries your son got are so severe, it looks like he got kicked by a wild horse or something like that!”
“Kicked by a wild horse?” Vanessa asks.
“That’s the way his injuries look, like he got kicked by a horse or some other wild animal.” Everyone turns their head and shockingly look at Marcus.
A male white hospital security guard with dark hair anxiously enters the doorway and knocks on the opened door. Jessica, Vanessa, Richard, Principal Cole and Officer Martell turn to look. The hospital security guard anxiously enters the room. He approaches Principal Cole and Officer Martell and says, “Principal Cole, Officer Martell, I’m sorry to bother you, but there has been an emergency with Diane D!”
“What?” everyone says.
“An emergency with Diane D?!” Officer Martell says.
“What do you mean an emergency with Diane D?!” Principal Cole asks. “What happened?”
“The security guards back at that elementary school just called here!” the hospital security guard says. “They said that Diane D’s family had called them and started complaining about the cuts, bruises and swellings they discovered on Diane D’s body and wants to know what happened to her!”
“What!” everybody says.
“Diane D’s family called the security guards at the elementary school and started complaining about the cuts, bruises and swellings they discovered on her body and wants to know what happened to her?!” Officer Martell asks.
“Yes!” the hospital security guard says.
“How did they discover that she has cuts, bruises and swellings on her body?!”
“They said while they were all in the van driving Diane D to another hospital emergency because of the cuts, bruises, swellings and bleeding on her face, Diane D suddenly fell asleep for several seconds, then they said she suddenly woke right back up and started complaining that she feels pain all over her face, neck, chest, stomach area, hands, feet and toes!”
“What!” everybody says.
“Diane D fell asleep in the van for several seconds, then woke right back up and started complaining that she feels pain all over her face, neck, chest, stomach area, hands, feet and toes?” Officer Martell asks.
“Yes!” the hospital security guard says. “They said Diane D thought that maybe she was coming down with the flu or something!”
“She thought she was probably coming down with the flu?!”
“Yeah! Then she discovered that her face was bleeding and wanted to know why her face was bleeding!”
“She doesn’t know why her face was bleeding?!”
“No! Diane D‘s family said when they got Diane D to the other hospital emergency room, the doctors over there lied her down on a stretcher to check on her! When the doctors there lifted her shirt up, they and Diane D’s family discovered cuts, bruises and swellings all over her body!”
“What!” everyone shouts.
“The doctors at the other hospital and Diane D’s family discovered cuts, bruises and swellings all over her body when they lifted her shirt up?” Principal Cole asks.
“Yes!” the hospital security guard says. “They discovered cuts and bruises on her neck, chest and belly area!”
“What!” everyone shouts again.
“Yeah! When Diane D’s family took off her socks and shoes, they discovered that she has bruises on her feet and toes also!”
“She has bruises on her feet and toes too!” Officer Martell asks.
“That’s what her family says!”
“What hospital did they rush her too?!” Principal Coe asks.
“I think Diane D’s family took her to that other hospital that was close by to where they were driving! They want to get in touch with you Principal Cole! They want you to get in touch with Marcus also because they want to find out from Marcus what happened to Diane D since Marcus was the last person to see and be with Diane D!”
“What!” Jessica shouts. “They want to find out from Marcus what happened to Diane D since Marcus was the last person to see and be with Diane D?”
“Yes!”
“Why do they have to find out from Marcus what happened to Diane D anyway?” Officer Martell asks. “Can’t they find out from Diane D herself what happened to her? I’m sure they had to have asked Diane D herself what happened to her!”
“They said they did ask Diane D what happened to her! They did ask Diane D how did she get the cuts and bruises on her face, neck, chest, belly area and feet!”
“So what did she tell them?”
“They said Diane D told them that she doesn’t know how she got the cuts and bruises on her face, neck, chest, belly area and feet!”
“What?” everybody says.
“What do you mean Diane D told them she doesn’t know how she got the cuts and bruises on her face, neck, chest, belly area and feet?!” Principal Cole says. “She’s claiming to her family that she doesn’t know how she got the cuts and bruises on herself?!”
“Yes!” the hospital security guard says. “She is telling her family that she doesn’t remember how she got the cuts and bruises on herself!”
“What!” everybody says.
“Diane D doesn’t remember how she got the cuts and bruises on herself?!” Jessica asks.
“No, according to her family!” the hospital security guard says.
“How can she not remember herself getting cut and bruised?!” Principal Cole says. “You mean to tell us that Diane D’s family discovered that she’s been injured, and she doesn’t know how she got injured or remember how she got injured?!”
“I’m afraid she doesn‘t! That’s why her family wants to find out from Marcus what happened to her! They want to know does Marcus know anything or did he beat Diane D up or anything like that!”
“What!” Jessica and Vanessa shout.
“Diane D’s family wants to know if Marcus beat Diane D up?!” Jessica shouts. “Marcus is a nice sweet kid! He wouldn’t hurt a fly!”
“That‘s right!” Vanessa shouts. “Marcus would not hurt anyone unless he had to defend himself! Maybe that’s what happened! Marcus was probably defending himself from Diane D! The security guards at the school did say that Marcus told them that he was trying to get away from Diane D when she got angry hearing the news that the little boy who has leukemia doesn’t exist and she found ou
t Marcus and his brother lied to her and her family! What we want to know is, if Diane D beat MARCUS up!”
“Diane D’s family is claiming that Diane D doesn’t remember anything from the time she first got angry at Marcus on that third floor school hallway to the time she woke back up in the van!” the hospital security guard says. “They claim the only things Diane D seems to remember, is being alone with Marcus on that third floor school hallway when Marcus confessed to her about the little boy who has leukemia telling her that the little boy who has leukemia doesn’t exist, then she remembers herself being shocked when she finds out that the little boy who has leukemia doesn’t exist, then she remembers herself being shocked when she finds out that Marcus and his brother had played her and her family lying to them, then she remembers herself becoming sad and moving away from Marcus, then she remembers herself at the edge of the corner standing far away from Marcus, then she remembers herself becoming angry at Marcus! The next thing Diane D remembers is finding herself waking up in the van riding with her family and feeling intense pain all over her body!”
“What!” everyone else says.
“So what is Diane D’s family saying?!” Principal Cole says. “Are they saying that Diane D doesn’t know or remember anything just before she got back into the van with them?”
“That’s right!” the hospital security guard says. “They said Diane D doesn‘t even remember getting into the van! They said she woke up and found herself already in the van riding with them!”
“What!” everyone else says.
“Are they saying that Diane D doesn’t even remember herself kicking and banging the school lobby door wide open, then bursting into the school lobby yelling and cursing at Marcus acting like she was about to attack Marcus right there while he was laying in the stretcher?!” Principal Cole says.
“Diane D’s family is claiming that Diane D doesn’t remember that part either!” the hospital security guard says.
“She doesn’t?” Officer Martell says.
“No! They said Diane D is claiming that she never saw Marcus in a stretcher!”
“What!” Jessica, Vanessa and the police officer say.
“Diane D told her family that she never saw Marcus in a stretcher?” Principal Cole asks.
“That’s right!” the hospital security guard says. “They also said Diane D is claiming that she never even saw Marcus in the school lobby at all because Diane D is claiming to her family that she doesn’t remember ever being in the school lobby!”
“Diane D is claiming to her family that she doesn’t remember being in the school lobby?!”
“Yeah! She even asked her family if Marcus was in a stretcher, why was he in it! She asked her family what happened to Marcus!”
“What!” everybody says.
“She asked her family what happened to Marcus?” Principal Cole asks. “She doesn’t know what happened to Marcus?”
“No!” the hospital security guard says. “Her family told her Marcus’ arm and wrist got broken and he was bleeding, that‘s why he‘s laying in a stretcher! Then Diane D’s family said she became shock then asked her family how did Marcus’ arm and wrist get broken and how did he wind up bleeding!”
“What!” everybody says.
“She asked her family how did Marcus’ arm and wrist get broken and how did he wind up bleeding?” Principal Cole asks. “She doesn’t know how Marcus’ arm and wrist got broken or how he wind up bleeding?!”
“No!” the hospital security guard says.
“But she was the last person seen with Marcus!”
“She still doesn’t know how Marcus’ arm and wrist got broken or how he wind up bleeding! She still doesn’t know what happened to him! Diane D’s family claimed when they told Diane D that Marcus claim he fell down the stairs while he was running from her, she became shocked and wondered why would Marcus be running from her! She told her family she might have gotten angry when Marcus confessed the truth to her about the little boy who has leukemia, but she wasn‘t chasing him!”
“She told her family she wasn’t chasing Marcus?!”
“That’s what they said! When Diane D’s family told her about her behavior in the school lobby, kicking and banging the lobby door wide open then bursting into the lobby yelling and cursing at Marcus acting like she was about to attack Marcus right there while he was in the stretcher, she looked at all of them like they were crazy, then got upset with her family and told her family that she would never in her life attack or harm a kid!”
“What!” Officer Martell says. “Diane D is telling her family that she would never in her life attack or harm a child?”
“That’s what they said! They said Diane D doesn’t believe she behaved like that, kicking and banging the school lobby door wide open then charging at Marcus! She thinks her family is lying!”
“What?” Principal Cole says. “Diane D thinks her family is lying about her behavior in the school lobby?”
“Yes!”
“Why does she think her family would lie about something like that?!”
“Because Diane D said she would never in her life attack or harm a kid! She claims to her family even though she got angry when she found out Marcus and his brother played her and her family by lying to them, she would never in her life attack or harm Marcus because he’s a child!” Everybody puzzled looks at each other. The hospital security guard then says, “Diane D‘s family also said, that when Diane D first got back into the van with them right after they all left that elementary school, she was so mad and so angry that she swung her fist and punched the dashboard of the family van in and wind up breaking it!”
“What!” everyone else says.
“She punched the dashboard of her family’s van in and wind up breaking it!” Officer Martell asks.
“Yes!” the hospital security guard says. “Now her family has to get the dashboard replaced!”
“What!” everyone else says.
“They have to replace the dashboard?!” Officer Martell asks.
“Yes!” the hospital security guard says.
“Why can’t they just get it fixed?!”
“They said it’s beyond repair! They said Diane D damaged it so bad! They said when they got Diane D to the other hospital and told her about her behavior inside the van, telling her that she punched the dashboard in and broke it, she looked at all of them like they were crazy again and told them she never punched or broke any dashboard!”
“I don’t believe this! You mean to tell us that Diane D does not remember breaking her family’s dashboard?!”
“No, she does not remember doing that either!”
Everybody puzzled looks at each other again. Principal Cole then says, “You know this whole entire thing is a mystery! Marcus and Diane D go off somewhere in the school. Marcus makes a shocking confession to Diane D about the little boy who has leukemia telling Diane D that the little boy who has leukemia does not exist, telling Diane D that the kid who has leukemia never existed, then telling her that it was him and his brother who sent her family that phony letter. Diane D becomes shocked then angry hearing the news. Marcus and Diane D disappear for a while. Marcus’ family calls his cell phone, he doesn’t pick up or answer his cell phone. Diane D’s family calls her cell phone, SHE doesn’t pick up or answer her cell phone either! The next thing we know, is that both Marcus and Diane D are mysteriously hurt, injured and bleeding and both wind up in the hospital! Marcus’ family is wondering if Diane D beat Marcus up, Diane D’s family is wondering if Marcus beat DIANE D up! We’re not able to get an answer from either Marcus or Diane D right now because Marcus is unconscious and Diane D doesn’t seem to remember a thing! There’s only a few things I can figure out!”
“What’s that Principal Cole?” Officer Martell asks.
“Either Diane D got angry at Marcus when she learned that Marcus and his brother sent her family that phony letter about the little boy who has
leukemia then she and Marcus get into a serious physical fight, or there was a mysterious third person who came along on that third floor school hallway and beat both Diane D and Marcus up, or we have a major split personality case on our hands!”
“What!” everyone else says.
“A major split personality case?!” Jessica and Vanessa asks.
“Sounds like a possibility!” Principal Cole says.
“What do you mean a major split personality case Principal Cole?!” Vanessa asks.
“Well Diane D’s family is saying, that Diane D doesn’t remember her behavior inside that school lobby when she kicked and banged the school lobby door wide open, burst into the school lobby and acted like she was about to attack Marcus right there while he was laying in the stretcher! Her family, the security guards, Officer Martell, the paramedics and I all witnessed her behavior inside that school lobby, yet she doesn‘t remember it and thinks her family is lying about it! Diane D’s family is also saying, that Diane D doesn’t remember her behavior inside the van when she took her fist and punched the dashboard in and wind up breaking it! Her family witnessed her behavior inside the van, yet she doesn‘t remember it and thinks her family is lying about that too! I’m wondering if there is anything else that Diane D might have done after she got angry at Marcus and not remember it! I have to find out what hospital Diane D’s family took her to. I need to get in touch with her family right now and find out what the hell is going on and find out why is Diane D all of a sudden having a mysterious memory laps! I‘ll be back.” Principal Cole, Officer Martell and the hospital security guard take one sad look at Marcus. Principal Cole turns to Officer Martell and the hospital security guard and tells them, “Let’s go.” Principal Cole, Officer Martell and the hospital security guard hurry towards the door and hurry out of it.
Outside another hospital, Principal Cole and Officer Martell hurry into the emergency room entrance.
Upstairs in the hospital hallway, a different male white hospital security guard leads Principal Cole and Officer Martell to one of the rooms. Nicolas, Mickey and Diane D’s angry relatives are standing outside the hospital room fussing with each other. The security guard approaches Diane D’s family and relatives with Principal Cole and Officer Martell. Diane D’s family and relatives turn to the security guard as the security guard says to them, “Hi Diaz-Davidson Family. This is Principal Cole from the elementary.”
Nicolas, Mickey and the rest of Diane D’s relatives look at Principal Cole as Nicolas angrily shouts, “What happened to Diane Principal?!”
“Yeah!” Mickey angrily shouts. “Why is our sister all cut up and bruised?!”
“I don’t know,” Principal Cole says. “That’s what we came here for to find out.”
“Well my parents and grandparents are inside the room with Diane,” Nicolas says. “Come with me.” Nicolas and Mickey turn and go into the hospital room as Principal Cole and Officer Martell follow in behind them.
Inside the hospital room, Mary, Barry, Margarita, Tomas, Marilyn, Tonio, Nancy, Charlotte, Michael and Aunt Celeste stand around Diane D’s hospital bed crying and worriedly looking at Diane D as Diane D lays chest up in the hospital bed unconscious with her face to the side with eyes still swollen and still puffy and a still bruised face with some bandages around it. Nicolas and Mickey approach Mary, Barry, Margarita and Tomas as Nicolas says, “Mom, Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, the school principal is here.”
Mary, Barry, Margarita, Tomas, Marilyn, Tonio, Michael and Aunt Celeste turn and look at Principal Cole as Mary cries and shouts, “What the hell happened to my child Principal Cole?!”
“That’s right!” Barry cries and shouts. “We let Diane out of our sight and this is what happens?!”
Margarita cries and shouts, “Principal Cole, we agreed to let Diane come to your school because we received a letter about a three year old boy who has leukemia whose dying wish is to meet her and she winds up in the hospital for it?!” .
Tomas cries and shouts, “Is this the thanks we get for letting Diane come to your school after we received that letter about the little boy who has leukemia Principal Cole?! Is this the thanks SHE gets for being concerned about the little boy who has leukemia, then coming all the way to your school to grant this little boy his dying wish to meet her, then gets the shock of her life to find out that the little boy she felt sorry for and grew to love never existed?!”
“I understand that and I feel real bad about it!” Principal Cole says.
“We want to call the other hospital and speak to the boy who wanted to talk to Diane in private!” Nicolas shouts. “We want to find out what the hell he did to Diane!”
“Yeah Principal Cole!” Michael cries and shouts. “Diane was fine when we left her standing outside your office! As soon as we find her again, her eyes are swollen, her face is puffy, bruised and bleeding, her neck is bruised, her chest is bruised, her stomach is bruised, her feet and toes are bruised and she doesn’t know or remember how she got these bruises?!”
“That’s right Principal Cole!” Tonio cries and shouts. “Diane didn’t look like THIS when we left her standing outside your office! So she had to have gotten injured or attacked somewhere inside your school!”
“All we know is that Diane disappears from your office with this kid Marcus, then winds up showing back up with these cuts and bruises all over herself and doesn‘t know how she got like this?!”
“Principal Cole,” Marilyn cries, “something obviously happened to Diane from the time we left her standing outside your office until the time we found her again!”
“That‘s right!” Mary cries and shouts. “On our way to this hospital, Diane dosed off for several seconds, then woke right back up and felt pain all over her body!”
“Yeah,” Margarita cries and shouts. “The pain all over her body was so bad that the doctors had to sedate her, so she can get some rest!”
“I’m so sorry for everything!” Principal Cole tearfully says.
“Sorry my foot!” Mary cries and shouts. “Look at the bruises on her body!” Mary and Margarita stand on opposite sides of Diane D’s hospital bed and turn towards Diane D. They reach over to Diane D and pull her hospital sheet and blanket down. They then open Diane D’s hospital shirt and gently unbutton the bottom of Diane D’s hospital shirt all the way up to the bottom of Diane D’s chest. They open the bottom of Diane D’s hospital shirt all the way up to the bottom of Diane D’s silky light blue bustier. They hold Diane D’s hospital shirt wide open baring her bruised six-pack abs as Diane D continues to lay unconscious. Principal Cole and Officer Martell look at Diane D. They see bruises on her belly, neck and face. Mary and Margarita then lift the bottom of the hospital blanket off Diane D’s feet. Principal Cole and Officer Martell look at Diane D’s feet and see thick bandages wrapped around her feet and toes with slight blood on it.
“My God,” Principal Cole says. “What happened to her feet?”
“Her feet might be broken!” Mary shouts
“Oh no! How in the world would her feet get broken?!”
“The doctors believe something heavy probably dropped and fell on it!” Margarita shouts, “they don’t know for sure!”
“And she doesn’t know or remember how her feet got broken at all?!”
“No she does not know or remember!” Tomas shouts, “but she certainly wants to find out just like the rest of us!”
“My God!” Principal Cole then sees Nicolas and Mickey at the head of Diane D’s hospital bed as Nicolas pats Diane D’s forehead and eyes with a damp cloth and Mickey pats Diane D’s neck with another damp cloth. He then says, “I have no idea how this could have happened to her.”
“Well what did that kid in the other hospital say?!” Margarita cries. “Did he ever say what happened to Diane?!”
“He’s not able to speak right now because the doctors over there have him sedated also.”
“Man if we knew all of thi
s was going to happen, we would have never allowed for Diane to come to your school!” Tomas shouts.
“I am so sorry for what happened to her,” Principal Cole tearfully says. “Is it true that she doesn’t remember anything from the time she was standing far away from Marcus on the third floor school hallway until the time she was riding in the van with you guys?”
“That’s right Principal Cole,” Mary shouts. “Diane remembers nothing between those two points in time! She remembers nothing at all! All she remembers is one minute, she is standing far away from this kid Marcus right after he made that shocking confession to her! The next minute, she finds herself already riding inside the van with us feeling aches and pain all over herself!”
“Sorry that this happened to her. So you’re saying, she doesn’t even remember kicking the school lobby door wide open then bursting into the lobby cursing and swearing at Marcus like she was about to attack him while he was in the stretcher?!”
“That’s right Principal Cole!” Barry shouts, “Diane doesn’t remember that! She doesn’t remember being in the lobby at all! She said the last place she saw that kid Marcus was on the third floor school hallway!”
“My God. You don’t think she lost her memory at that point, do you?!”
“We have no idea! We sure hope not because this whole entire thing is fishy!”
“It sure is.”
“Principal Cole, when we were inside your office, and Diane said she was ready to go down to the auditorium, we didn‘t want her to go down to the auditorium alone, so her mother and I made sure her husband, her aunt and her uncle went down to the auditorium with her to keep an eye on her, just in case something happens! Even though her husband, her aunt and her uncle went down to the auditorium with her and she made it back from the auditorium safely even after all the children, parents and teachers were gone, something still managed to happen to her inside your school!”
“I’m so sorry all this happened to her. I really am! When will she wake back up?”
“As soon as the sedation wears off,” Margarita says as she and Mary puts the blanket back over Diane D’s feet.
“I don’t know what we’re going to do,” Mary cries as she and Margarita reach over to Diane D’s hospital shirt again and gently button Diane D’s shirt back up. “Our organization has a show to perform soon and Diane can’t go out and perform in this condition!”
“Yeah we might have to cancel the show or just pull her out of it!” Barry says.
“I’m so sorry about this whole entire thing!” Principal Cole says. “As soon as the sedation wears off Marcus, I’ll try to find out from him what really happened. In the mean time, we‘re gonna have to go back to the school and investigate around the hallways and see if we can find out anything.”
“Okay Principal Cole. We’re ready to go with you.”
“Yeah we need to find out what happened,” Tomas says.
“Okay,” Principal Cole says. “Marcus’ family need to be there also. I’m gonna call them and have them meet us at the school.”
Mary and Margarita replace the hospital sheet and blanket back over Diane D and tuck her back in. Margarita then turns to Aunt Celeste, Nicolas, Mickey, Nancy and Charlotte and tells them, “Ustedes mantener un ojo en Diane mientras llegamos a la escuela para investigar.”
“Bien la Abuela,” Nicolas, Mickey, Nancy and Charlotte say.
“Vamos a estar espalda derecha.”
“Bien la Abuela,” Nicolas and Mickey says.
Mary, Margarita, Barry, Tomas, Tonio, Marilyn, Michael, Principal Cole and Officer Martell take another look at Diane D. They sadly stare at Diane D. Margarita turns to Mary, Barry, Tomas, Tonio, Marilyn, Michael, Principal Cole and Officer Martell and says , “Okay let’s go.” Margarita and Mary come from around Diane D‘s hospital bed as they, Barry, Tomas, Tonio, Marilyn, Michael, Principal Cole and Officer Martell all turn and head towards the door. Nicolas continues to pat Diane D’s forehead and eyes with a damp cloth as Mickey pats Diane D’s neck with the other damp cloth.
An hour later, Mary, Margarita, Barry, Tomas, Tonio, Marilyn, Michael, Principal Cole, Jessica, Vanessa, Richard, Officer Martell, some other police officers and the two school security guards are at the school on the third floor hallway where Marcus and Diane D were, this time with the main bright lights on. They all look around the well lit hallway. They see a mess in the hallway. They see a pen, cell phone, calculator, yellow pails, a tin pail, a tin garbage can, a garbage can lid and two paint cans all on the floor with some paint spilled. There is blood on the walls and on the floor. “My God, what the heck happened up here?” one of the officers asks. “It looks like a tiny war zone happened! Did Diane D and that kid Marcus get caught up in the war zone that happened up here?!”
“It sure looks that way,” Principal Cole says.
“My goodness!” Jessica says. “Whose blood is that?”
“We don’t know,” Officer Martell says. “Marcus was the one who was bleeding.”
“But Marcus says he fell down the stairs,” Principal Cole says. “If he got injured running down the stairwell, then how did his blood come up here on the third floor hallway on the walls and on the floor?”
“Maybe it’s not his blood. Maybe it’s Diane D’s blood. She did have blood on her face when she burst into the lobby downstairs.”
“Hey!” Richard says. “There goes Marcus’ cell phone,” Richard says as he points to the cell phone on the floor.
“And his calculator,” Jessica says as she points to the calculator on the floor.
“And his pen,” Vanessa says as she points to the pen on the floor. Richard, Jessica and Vanessa go to pick up Marcus’ cell phone, calculator and pen.
Fifteen minutes later, Mary, Barry, Principal Cole and the two school security guards are inside the principal office surrounding Richard as Richard sits in the chair crying his eyes out shouting, “This is all my fault!”
“Yeah go ahead and cry!” Mary shouts to Richard. “You need to cry!”
“I’m very sorry!”
“You should be young man!” Barry shouts. “You got our family here under false pretenses, sending us a phony letter about a child dying of leukemia! We all got sort of suspicious, because when we responded to the first letter, saying that Diane cannot come to this school because she only performs for charity, a second letter about a sick child dying of leukemia whose dying wish is to meet Diane all of a sudden comes our way!”
“That’s right!” Mary shouts. “We weren’t even gonna allow Diane to come here to this school even after the second letter, but she kept insisting when she read the letter about this sick child’s dying wish to meet her! She wanted to meet this child too and hopefully meet this child’s family and invite them and the child over to our place for dinner! But sadly for Diane, that will never happen! You and your brother played with our emotions, especially, you played with our daughter‘s emotions, having her being emotionally attached to this child!”
“Yeah we all bought toys, stuffed animals, coloring books, balloons and fruit for this child and brought the stuff all the way here to the school, only to realize that ‘the kid who has leukemia’ never even existed, that it was all a hoax just to prey on all of our sympathy to get our daughter to come to this school!”
“You and your brother sent this phony letter and put this imaginary dying child right into our daughter’s heart, then you and your brother ripped the dying child right out of her heart, crushing her heart by telling her that the little boy she started to feel sorry for then grew to love and care about doesn‘t even exist! I don’t take kindly to anybody breaking my child‘s heart. I don‘t take kindly to that at all.”
“Please Ma‘am,” Richard says. “My brother and I didn’t mean to break your daughter’s heart! We didn’t mean to break her heart at all! We only wanted her to know the truth!”
“You wouldn’t have had to break our daughter
’s heart if you and your brother had not put this imaginary dying child into her heart in the first place!” Barry shouts.
“Richard, how could you and Marcus lie to Diane D’s family like this?” Principal Cole asks. “How could you lie to Diane D like this? Now it‘s going to be hard for her and her family to trust any letter that comes their way again, thanks to you and your brother!”
“I’m so sorry,” Richard says.
“Why did you and Marcus do this Richard?”
“Well when their organization sent this school a letter back stating that Diane D only performs for charity, I made this story up to Marcus about a child dying of leukemia whose dying wish is to meet Diane D so that Diane D’s family could let her come to this school because Marcus and the rest of the kids in this school wanted to see Diane D real bad.”
“So you figure you will solve the problem by sending Diane D and her family a phony letter about a little boy who has leukemia whose dying wish is to meet her. Were the rest of the kids in the school in on this? Were they involved when you and your brother sent Diane D’s family this phony letter?!”
“Oh no, the rest of the kids in this school didn’t have anything to do with this at all. They aren’t aware of the second letter. It was just me and Marcus involved.”
“What made Marcus decide to confess the truth to Diane D?”
“He felt bad about making up this story. He didn‘t really want to do this in the first place, having Diane D and her family all come here to this school, that’s why he decided to tell Diane D the truth. He needed to get this off his chest and let Diane D know that there is no kid in this school who has leukemia, but we decided to let her know after the kids in the school got a chance to see and meet her.”
“I see,” Mary says. “So the bottom line to this story is, there was never a kid in this school who has leukemia. No kid in this school at all, huh?”
“Not that we know of.”
“Well what do you know of young man, huh?” Mary says as she paces back and forth. “What do you know? Do you know how to spell certain words?”
“Certain words? Like What?”
“Do you know how to spell, let’s say,” Mary stops pacing, turns to Richard and says, “reimbursement?”
“Reimbursement?”
“That‘s right, reimbursement, because that’s what your family is gonna have to do, reimburse our family for all of our expenses of the toys, gifts, travel expense, fruit and for our time being here! It is going to cost your family for that lie you and your brother sent to all of us and especially for breaking our daughter‘s heart.”
“I said I’m sorry,” Richard cries again. “Marcus knew Diane D would get upset, mad and disappointed if he told her the truth about the little boy who has leukemia, but he was willing to risk that rather than have her not knowing the truth! He couldn‘t live with himself if he didn‘t let Diane D know the truth about the little boy who has leukemia, he just couldn‘t!”
“Well I hope you and Marcus learn from this Richard,” Principal Cole says. “Telling or sending out a lie usually backfires on people, look what it did to your brother! Look what it did to Diane D! Diane D and Marcus are both laying in the hospital unconscious right now, just because of a lie! You can’t go around sending phony letters out to people or businesses, playing on people‘s hearts and emotions just for your own selfish gain! A lot of times, saying sorry just isn’t enough!”
“It certainly isn’t enough for me,” Mary shouts as she folds her arms, angrily looking at Richard.
Principal Cole turns to Mary and Barry and says, “I’m so sorry about this whole false pretense thing. I’m so sorry that your family came here to this school specifically for this non-existed kid. Sorry that you bought all those toys, gifts and fruit for nothing. I’ll make it up to you anyway I can. What are you going to do with all those toys, gifts and fruit? Are you planning to return them?”
“No we’re going to donate them, like we donate everything else!”
“We’re going to donate the toys and gifts to a Children’s Hospital,” Barry says.
“A children’s hospital?” Principal Cole says. “Oh that’s good. Sorry you wasted your money.”
“Oh our money is not going to be wasted,” Mary says. “This young man’s family is going to reimburse us for everything! Call his family in here!”
“Okay.” Principal Cole heads for the office door.
Chapter 38
Children In A Hospital Read Article About Diane D