Long Away

Chapter 51

Joe was in the kitchen, cleaning up his dishes from breakfast, when his phone rang in the other room. He slammed the dishwasher shut and hurried over to the living room table where he had left it. Gwil's name was lit up on the screen. Joe swiped to accept the call.
"Hey mate, how's it going?"
"Joe, I have just gotten terrible news. Are you at home?" The lingering panic in his voice made Joe freeze.
"I am. Gwil, what's going on?"
"You should sit down," Gwilym told him.
"Okay?" Joe sat down on the sofa.
"I am sitting."
"Okay." Gwilym exhaled heavily.
"So, I just got a call from Brian. And he told me that Roger has a brain tumor."

Joe's stomach dropped. It was just a little over a year ago that his father had died from cancer.
"Oh," he meakly responded.
"Do you know anything more specific?"
"No, Brian didn't want to say too much. I was going to contact Roger myself. But there's another thing."
"What is it?"
"Brian first called Ben to tell him the news. But what he didn't know was that Ben was driving at the time. And there was a storm..."

Joe's heart skipped a beat.
"Please tell me he didn't have an accident?"
Gwilym's silence spoke for itself.
"What happened to him? Is he badly injured?"
"All I know is that he was brought to the hospital, and that he is alive. But they apparently don't know if he will make it."
Joe's throat tightened. Not a sound came over his lips.

"I will be driving to the hospital myself and ask if I can see him," Gwilym continued when he realized he wouldn't be getting an answer. His voice was calm and silky, as if he was trying to soothe a frightened child.
"Is there anything you want me to tell him from you?"
"I am flying over," Joe said, only realizing what he was thinking as he heard the words leave his mouth.
"You are?" Gwilym sounded surprised.
"I am. I need to see him."

"Okay. You can stay at my place if you'd like," Gwilym offered without hesitation.
"Are you sure? I could just get a hotel room. I don't want to be burdening you."
Gwilym sighed loudly.
"Joe, that is ridiculous. You could never be a burden. On the contrary. I think we could both use the company of a friend right now."
"Right... Thank you, mate. I'll book a flight and get back to you later," Joe said.
"Alright."
"And please, text me as soon as you have any updates from Ben."
"Of course," Gwil assured him.

Only a few hours later, Joe was sitting on a plane to London. He had brought one suitcase with him that contained most of the essentials. Probably. He didn't exactly have a clear head while he was packing. This was the most stressed he had ever been during a flight. Usually he would use the time to work on a movie script or take a nap, but now all he could do was come up with worst case scenarios of what might have happened to Ben, and what was yet to come.

By the time he got off the plane, he was a complete nerve wrack. He had put on sunglasses and a beanie, in the hopes that not too many people would recognize him, or at least not see his teary red eyes. He picked up his suitcase and looked around the bustling airport to find Gwil. A tall man, who was also wearing sunglasses, waved to him from across the hall. Joe picked up his pace and made his way over to him.

Gwilym immediately pulled him into a hug.
"Hey. How are you feeling? Was your flight okay?"
"It was, but I'm worried shitless. Did you get to see Ben?"
"I was at the hospital, but they said he can't have any visitors today."
"Oh." That was not the answer Joe had hoped for. But at least Ben seemed to still be alive. Unless the hospital staff couldn't tell anybody who wasn't directly related to Ben. If anything serious had happened, Joe wasn't sure if he could take it.
Gwilym picked up Joe's suitcase.
"Come on, let's get out of this crowd. I can tell you more in the car."

A spark of hope flared up inside of Joe.
"Okay."
He followed Gwil out of the building and onto the large parking lot. The sky was covered with gray clouds, and a light rain drizzled down on the men.
"Did you miss the British weather?", Gwilym asked sarcastically, in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"I sure have." Joe smiled half-heartedly. He was not in the mood to joke around. Gwilym took the hint and remained silent while they walked the rest of the way.

After he put the suitcase in the trunk, Gwilym opened the passenger's door for Joe.
"Thanks," Joe mumbled, and got in the car. He took off his sunglasses and the beanie and placed them both on his lap.
Gwilym quickly walked around the car and sat down next to him. As soon as he had closed the door, Joe looked at him with anticipation.

"So, they didn't let me see him, but I could convince them to let me talk to one of his doctors," Gwilym began, while taking off his own sunglasses.
"He obviously wasn't allowed to get into much detail, but he said that they didn't find any fatal injuries. But Ben was unconscious when he was brought in. And now they put him in an artificial coma. The doctor thinks they should be able to let him wake up in a week. Then we can visit him."

Joe nodded slowly.
"How do you feel about all this?", Gwilym asked.
"I don't know," Joe said.
"I am glad he's alive. But this is still a lot."
"I know," Gwilym agreed.
Joe closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"It's so ironic that this is happening now," he sighed.
"How do you mean?"
Joe looked down at his hands.
"I've realized some things about myself since we wrapped on Bohemian Rhapsody. And Ben has played a big role in that."
Gwilym tilted his head.
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"I always thought I liked women," Joe went on, "but now I'm not so sure anymore. It's like I never really understood what it meant to be attracted to someone. Or be in love with them. I don't really know what my sexuality is. I feel like I never really liked anyone... except Ben. And I was thinking about asking him out. But now..."

"Joe, I'm so sorry," Gwil said. He put a hand on his shoulder.
Joe swallowed.
"It's okay. It's not me we should be worried about right now. Plus, I can still ask him out in a few weeks when he is better, right?"
Gwilym nodded with an enthusiastic smile.
"Right. Of course. I'm sure it'll be great."

***
Hey guys!
I'm very curious to hear your thoughts on this chapter. How do you all feel about the change in pov?

I wish you all happy holidays! I should be able to get one more chapter out before the end of the year. Until then!

Tay