"Steph? Steph?"
"Yeah?!", Stevie said sleepily and turned in her bed.
It was in the middle of the night, only three days after her conversation with Kristen, when the ringing of the telephone had shaken her out of sleep.
"It's happening, Steph.", Lindsey said agitatedly, "She's.. Kristen is..."
"Oh God!"
"She wants you here. Kristen wants you to come here. I have no idea why... But..-"
"I know why... I'm on my way!"
"Steph, please hurry up! I need you here! And.. I have no idea how much longer she's going to make it."
"Linds, I'll be there as fast as possible."
"Steph?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
"I love you, too."
----------------
Thirty minutes later, Stevie rushed down the empty hospital hall. It was exceptionally quiet and except of one nurse there was not a soul to be seen.
When she reached room 546, she saw Lindsey sitting in front of the closed door, his head in his hands, his legs nervously shaking.
"Linds!", she called his name and ran to him.
He lifted up his head and jumped up to take Stevie in his arms.
"You're here.. You're here..", he mumbled relieved in the curve of her neck and pressed her tiny, warm body close to his.
"I'm here...", she soothed him, placed a kiss near his ear and rubbed his back, "Where are the kids?"
"Inside.", he mumbled, "We've been here for hours. They haven't left the room once."
Stevie nodded understandingly, looked right into Lindsey's eyes, and bit nervously her lip.
"I'm so glad you're here.. I.. I can't do this without you, Steph.. This is.. I can't even.."
"I know.", she said softly and stroked his cheeks.
"Come with me..", he said, took her by her hand and pulled her to the closed door of room 546, "She wants to see you.."
Stevie swallowed hard. This was intense and she was seriously frightened to death right now.
When Lindsey slowly opened up the door and she looked into the room, she saw Kristen lying in bed. She looked worse than ever before. She was literally dying. Stella lay in her mother's hospital bed, as well, with her arms circled around Kristen's skinny frame and her head on her mom's chest. Leelee and Will sat around her mother, each of them holding one of Kristen's hands, their eyes red and puffy from crying. Kisten's mother sat at the end of the bed, she looked as if she was going to collapse any minute.
It was by far the most heartbreaking picture Stevie had ever seen in her whole life.
When Kristen heard the creaking of the door, she looked up.
"Stevie..", she whispered weakly and stretched her hand out for her.
Stevie freed her hands out of Lindsey's grip and took a few steps forward to take Kristen's.
"Mom, Stella.. Lee, Will, can you... Can you please leave me and Stevie alone for a few minutes?", Kristen asked and it clearly exhausted her to only speak a few words.
"Mom, no..I wanna stay here with you..", Stella whined instantly and tightened her grip around her mother.
"Stella, honey, please..", Kristen pleaded and looked for help to Lindsey who immediately approached the bed and picked his daughter up into his arms and carried her out of the room, Will, Leelee and Kristen's mother following him behind, both teenagers looking curiously at Stevie.
