6,000 Miles (Station 19)

It's Nice To Have A Friend

Carina's POV:

"I'm still alive," Adelina said with a smirk as I walked into her hospital room for the 10th time that day.

"And you're gonna stay that way," I winked at her.

I knew she thought I was being overbearing, but she had no idea how terrifying it was to see her laying in that hospital bed unconscious for hours. Needing to know that she was okay, I was stopping by her room as often as I could between patients. Most times I just poked my head in to say hi, but this time I actually entered the room and took a seat next to her bed.

"So, I talked to your school," I said slowly, not sure if she'd want the update.

"And?" she asked, sitting up a little more.

"And they said that the consequence for cutting class and leaving school grounds is a 1 day suspension. But given that you're in the hospital for at least a couple of days, they're going to let you off the hook." I didn't tell her about the part of the conversation when I yelled at the principal for trying to punish Adelina. Once I explained a bit about her situation, the principal backed off.

Addie nodded and I could see her wrapping her head around what I'd said.

"What about Brynn and Alexa?" she asked a moment later.

I cocked my head, not sure what she meant. "What about them?"

"Did they get suspended?" she asked, sounding nervous.

I nodded. "Si, bambina."

Adelina sighed. "Well, they're definitely not going to be my friends now," she said under her breath.

"Do you really want them to be?" I asked before I could stop myself. I had never met these girls, but the second I found out that they had walked away totally unscathed from an accident they caused that left my baby sister in the hospital, I hated them. I didn't want her anywhere near them ever again.

Addie could tell I was mad and just shrugged, but she looked kind of defeated. I felt bad and took a softer tone as I held her hand in mine.

"I'm sorry bambina. You'll make other friends. I promise."

I smiled, trying to reassure her, but her expression didn't change.

"I'm kinda tired," she said quietly, her hint that she wanted me to leave.

"Okay, bella." I said as I got up and placed a kiss on her head. "You get some rest. I'll check on you later."

As I made my way back up to OB, I couldn't stop thinking about how sad Adelina looked. The sparkle completely faded from her eyes when she thought about losing the closest thing to friendship she'd had since coming here. I guess I kind of forgot how important high school friendships feel when you're 16.

Adelina's POV:

It was my second day of observation in the hospital and I was feeling a lot better than I expected considering I had been thrown from a car 48 hours prior. More than anything else I felt bored... and lonely. Dr. Shepherd said she was pretty confident my brain bleed was healing well on its own and wouldn't need surgery, but I still had a concussion so I couldn't watch tv, or look at my phone, or even read. And sitting alone in a hospital room with nothing to distract me was getting old really fast.

Of course every few hours Carina would pop in to check on me, but that didn't really feel like a fun visit; she just needed to know I was still okay. A few times I saw her pink scrubs from down the hall and closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep, so she wouldn't feel like she had to come in and sit with me. I knew she was working and I already felt bad enough that she was so worried.

An hour or so after Carina came to tell me about school, I heard a knock on the doorframe. I assumed it would be my sister again, but when I looked up, I found Maya standing there instead.

"Up for a visitor?"

I smiled and nodded.

She returned the smile. "You up for three visitors?" she asked with a laugh.

I was confused but agreed and watched as she entered the room with two women following close behind her.

"This is Vic, and Andy," Maya said, introducing me to her friends.

I gave them a small wave and sat up a little more in my bed.

"How are you feeling?" Maya asked as she took a seat next to me.

I shrugged and watched as Vic and Andy sat down on the other side of the room. "I'm sore and have a headache, but mostly I'm just bored."

Andy laughed. "Yeah that's what we figured."

"That's why we brought you this," Vic said as she presented me with a small basket.

I gave Maya a confused look as I started to look at the various items they brought me so she explained. "As firefighters, we've gotten a few concussions throughout the years and know how boring it can be. So we wanted to bring you some concussion safe activities to keep you occupied."

I smiled as I pulled out a container of playdough, a children's coloring book, a pack of crayons, some silly putty, a stress ball, and a travel size version of the board game Candy Land.

"I haven't played this since I was 7," I laughed, holding up the game.

"Trust me," Vic said as she walked over, took the box from my hands, and started to open it. "It may seem silly, but there's nothing to read so it's safe for your brain, and you can find ways to make it fun."

"But don't just take Vic's word for it," Andy chimed in as she moved her chair closer to my bed. "We'll prove it to you."

The four of us played three rounds of Candy Land, and much to my surprise, it actually was fun. I'm not sure if it was the game itself or the company, but I felt happier than I had in days.

Carina's POV:

I was on my way to check on Adelina again when I heard her laugh from down the hall. As soon as I walked into the room I understood why. Standing in the doorway, I smiled and watched my sister play with Maya, Vic, and Andy.

"What?" I joked, getting everyone's attention. "No one invited me to the party?"

Maya held her hand out for me to join them. I happily took her hand in mine and let her pull me into her. She was still in her station 19 t-shirt which somehow always makes her look hotter. I smiled as I rested my head in the crook of her neck and breathed her in.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"For what?" she asked back, kissing my temple.

"For..this," I gestured to Adelina having fun with Maya's friends. I sat for another moment just watching my sister smile and taking it all in before a thought entered my mind.

I hopped up without warning and pulled Maya up with me.

"What are you doing?" she asked with a laugh.

"I have to talk to you," I said as I dragged her out into the hallway. "I have an idea."

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Author's Note:

Any guesses as to what Carina's idea is?

As always, thank you for reading and please let me know if there's anything you want to see :)