I ended up having to stay in the hospital Wednesday due to the residual poison, but Donny said that I should be able to leave sometime today. So far, my leg was doing good, and I should have the stitches removed in two weeks. While my brothers were at school, I worked on my picture for Art. Finishing the outline, I grabbed my colored pencils to start on the colors. I started with the red, and as I was coloring in the blood, Donny walked in.
"What are you working on?" He asked as he looked at the paper.
"Something for Art. The theme for the week is emotions." I explained, finishing coloring everything that was red.
"Okay. Well, I need to get some more blood to see what level the poison's at." Donny said, pulling some tubes out of his coat pocket.
Relaxing against the pillows, I held out my left arm for him. As he drew my blood, I thought about the shooting. Thinking about it, I decided to ask Donny what he thought.
"Do you think I was the target for the shooting?" I asked slowly, not knowing how Donny would respond.
"Honestly? I think you were, considering that you were shot at twice. However, we won't know for sure since the shooter got away." He responded as he filled another tube with blood.
"How will I be able to go to school if it's going to lead to another school shooting?" I asked, despair in my voice.
"I don't know, Andrew. Your parents were talking about possibly doing homeschooling, but I don't know if they'll do it or not." Donny answered truthfully as he finished getting the tubes filled. As he walked out of my room, I went back to coloring the drawing. I finished it as my door opened again and my brothers, Jacob, and Amber walked in.
"How are you doing?" Jacob asked the most typical question you could possibly ask anyone in the hospital.
"Really? That's the most typical question ever." I said while laughing. "But I'm doing okay. Donny had gotten some more blood earlier to see how much poison is left in my system. Other than that, I've been trying not to go crazy from boredom."
"Well, we've got your homework, so at least your mind can be kept busy." Damian said with a slight chuckle.
"How was school? What did they say about the shooting?" I asked while Damian got my homework out of his bag.
"The school claimed it as a random shooting, but the students think differently. They say that you were the reason behind it." Josh admitted softly.
"Donny thinks the same, as do I. It's not confirmed yet, but apparently mom and dad were talking about homeschooling." I admitted, just as quietly as Josh.
"Damn. You can't seem to catch a break in between shit happening, but it seems like you're being punished for it." Amber commented dryly.
"Well, there's not much that we can do except our homework. Right?" Adam said, sitting on the edge of my bed. Everyone soon found a spot to sit, and we all did our homework while talking. Soon, Donny came in with a smile.
"The last of the poison is gone. I called your parents and they're coming to sign your discharge papers."
"Finally!" I said, throwing my head against my pillows dramatically. Everyone laughed as we packed our homework away. The twins and my brothers stayed until my parents arrived before they left. Getting dressed in basketball shorts and a t-shirt, I walked out to the car on crutches.
"So, honey. Your dad and I have been talking." My mom said after we were all in the car.
"I don't want to switch to homeschooling." I said before she could continue.
"How did you know that's what I was going to talk about?" She asked, surprise lacing her words.
"Donny told me when I asked him about school. I know I begged for it in the past, but I have friends now. And changing how I go to school won't change anything. If anything, it'll bring trouble to home." I said, trying to reason with my parents.
"You're right about it only bringing trouble home. Are you sure you still want to go to the high school, though?" My dad said, relenting to my reasoning.
"I'm sure. Running away when there's a problem won't fix anything. It'll only make the problem worse." I said resolutely.
"If you're sure about staying at the school, then I guess we can't stop you. Just please stay alert. No more headphones during PE class. I know your hearing has improved, so use it to stay safe." Mom said, sighing at the end. The conversation ended as we pulled into the driveway and went inside the house.
"Donny said that you can start putting weight on your leg after a week if the pain isn't bad. So for right now, you'll have to sleep on the couch again." Dad said as he handed me the doctor's note for tomorrow. Looking at the note, it exempted me from physical activities for at least a month.
"That's fine. I'm just glad to be home." I said, sitting down on the couch. Turning on the Playstation 5, I logged into Call of Duty and started a non-ranked multiplayer match. Playing a few rounds, I switched to a ranked match. My rank was halfway through Veteran IV, and by the end of the match I was in Veteran V.
When I logged off the game, mom had finished making dinner. She had made steaks, with corn on the cob and salad. As we all sat down, Dominic spoke.
"So, will you be switching to homeschooling?" He asked around a mouthful of steak.
"Nope. I managed to persuade them to keep me in public school." I said while adding ranch dressing to my salad.
"Did everyone know what we had talked about?" Dad asked mom, sighing at the end.
"Andrew told us before you came and got him." Adam said, chuckling.
"Figures." Mom said, laughing. We continued talking while we ate and soon, I was laying on the couch for the night.