Homecoming

Chapter 36

The night was terrible. Out of fear, I woke her all up and prayed to God to save Jared for us. I know it wasn't right of me because I turned away from him after Jack's death, but hope dies last. I was able to do anything to save Jared.

Every now and then I checked my cell phone to see if Max had called me, but my cell phone was silent. I couldn't decide if it was a good sign or a bad one. Maybe he didn't call because nothing had changed and maybe he couldn't because Danielle was sitting next to him. The monster that was supposed to be there with them yesterday and support Max and Garrett. I wondered where she was and why she wasn't interested in Jared's condition. In all the hours we spent with them in the hospital, she never called him or sent him a text message. That she wouldn't know about it? Didn't Max tell her about it? But I doubted that. The whole city, and if only the city was talking about nothing but the serious condition of Max Kendall's son. It was also in the evening news and in all the media.

When I woke up in the morning, my eyes were dry and sore, and I had no doubt that you were covered in blood. I took a quick shower and jumped into the store for fresh pastries, some baguettes and croissants for Garrett. I smeared them with butter and jam as he liked it and prepared cocoa for that.

After breakfast, I played him a fairy tale on TV and I tried to get a little in order. I had huge circles under my eyes, which I could not even cover with make - up. Traces of a sleepless night and a settling cry resonated on my face, just like in my heart.

Before we went to the hospital, I quickly called my mom. I didn't have any new or encouraging news for her, but I called mainly because I needed to make sure that at least they slept well. The last thing I needed now was for one of them to collapse. His father even tried to call the hospital, but they did not give him any information there because he was not related.

"Come on," I sighed, turning Garrett off the TV.

"Where?" he looked disapprovingly at me.

"We will return to the hospital. Maybe they'll tell us more. "

"Is Jared still in the hospital?"

"Yes," I nodded. "And he will definitely stay there for a while. He was seriously injured. "

"And will he die?" he cried.

"No," I replied confidently, but I wasn't sure either. "He will be healed."

"Do you promise, Kirsten?"

I can't promise you that belief, I thought sadly, but instead I replied, "I promise."

We drove in front of the hospital, but nothing changed there either. Like last night, when Garett and I were leaving the campus, journalists were everywhere. They watched intently for them to catch a glimpse of Max and, with a little luck, to confess and take a picture of him. These people only wanted a sensation, and the pain Max was experiencing was stolen from them.

I put my cap deep on my forehead and Garrett's, and I snuck into the hospital with him unnoticed. As we walked past the standing reporters, my heart was pounding wildly. I was afraid they might know me and do even more evil. I didn't want my photo to appear in the newspapers or in the evening news, and not at all for Danielle to see me.

As the elevator door closed behind us, I leaned loosely against the wall and released the air I had held in my lungs without realizing it.

"He's taken over!" exclaimed Max as he noticed Garrett and I coming hand in hand. "Jared has taken over," he repeated the good news once more.

"My God," I covered my mouth with my hand and ran to him.

It was finally the good news we had been waiting for so long. Without thinking, I threw myself into his arms and hugged him tightly. I cried with happiness and at the same time I felt the burden that weighed on my chest as the table weight left me.