˗ˏˋOur Differences Sequelˊˎ˗

-23-

Trigger Warning:
This chapter contains mention of child abuse and sexual assault.

The hospital was extremely quiet.
I'm not sure what I was expecting though. It's not like they play music in hospitals.

Devin walked ahead of me, proving that he knew his way around this place. He used to be here quite a lot before he moved out to California, spending a lot of time with his Dad. Truly, I've never understood if him and his Dad are close. They've never appeared that close, and Devin rarely talks about him. His Dad's always been quiet, but also intimidating. I've known him since I was 4, and I genuinely think I've held maybe 2 conversations with him in my entire lifetime.

He's a good person, but I've never been 100% sold on the idea of him being considered 'nice.'
That's where him and Devin are very different.

"He's in the ICU." Devin mentioned casually as we were walking.
"I'll have to ask them what room he's in. And the door only opens for visitors every few hours, so there's a chance that we might have to wait."

I sped up so I was walking next to him and not behind him.
"That's fine with me."

The hospital was large, but nobody was on this side of the building. It could've been the late hours, but I didn't see a single person in sight until we made it to the ICU waiting room which was down a large hallway.

We went to the lady who worked at the desk and Devin started asking about visiting hours and room numbers.

"We have 20 minutes until our next window opens. Which patient are you visiting?" she asked.

"Um." he muttered.
"Dan Smalls.. Actually, it probably says Daniel in the computers now that I think about it."

The lady searched up his name and nodded.
"He's in room 426. I'll get someone to call the room and tell them that they have a visitor."

"Thank you." Devin replied, and went to go sit down.

We sat in silence for a while, occasionally clearing our throats or tapping our fingers against the arm rests. Devin leaned his head back against the chair, exposing his detailed neck. It's definitely unusual for anyone to stare at a guy's neck and obsess over it, but it was hot. How can you not stare?

Devin had a lot of unique features about him that I hadn't really noticed until I was around him a lot. He actually has freckles across his nose, but nowhere else. His nose is very distinctive, along with his nostrils. It reminds me of a turtle. He's also good at burying his issues away and pretending like they aren't as bad as they actually are. I hated for him to be in this hospital right now, and I couldn't even attempt to understand what kind of thoughts were running through his head right now. I know he's scared. He told me. But how bad is it? To what extent?

He turned to me, his eyes tired.
"Madison, if you want, you can stay in the waiting room. I'll only be a few minutes— I hope."

"Nonsense." I cut him off.
"You asked me to come in. I want to come in. So let me."

He didn't say anything and continued to stare off into space. Should I distract him, or let him worry about going into that room?

I glanced down at my watch, seeing that we only had 10 more minutes to sit here until we'd be facing his parents. He inhaled sharply, and then scratched at the skin on his arm, pulling and tugging at it, leaving red marks from his finger grip.

"What are you gonna talk to them about?" I asked curiously, in a calm, quiet voice.

He rubbed the red, abused marks on his thin arm, and blinked.
"Well, I could tell them about school." he said.
"Or my girlfriend. Or soccer. Maybe about getting a job."