What Goes Around...

Part Twenty One

Chapter Twenty One

Coop was stunned. Though at that exact moment he was unable to say what had stunned him more. His aunt's voice as she told him his father had taken a turn for the worse, or the abrupt end to the amorous clinch with Freya. The phone call had been like a cold water shower on his misplaced libido, and now as he almost ran to his car dragging Freya wordlessly in his wake he was unable to process a thought.

In the car the silence prevailed, until Freya's quiet voice asked, "what did they say?"

He slammed his fist into the steering wheel as the traffic lights turned to stop; it was several moments until he glanced to his right to the small quiet person in his passenger seat. He offered an apologetic half smile.

                "It was my aunt, just saying that he'd taken a turn for the worse, that I needed to get there ASAP. I don't want him to die..."

Freya's hand settled on his thigh and for a moment he wanted to shrug it off, but there was no malice and no threat in the gesture, he just felt her warmth and her support through it.

                "He won't die, I'm sure. But you need to settle things...as soon as you can. Otherwise you'll take this pain with you through the rest of your life."

He knew she spoke the truth, and it was what he wanted. As a reply he settled his hand over hers briefly, just for a moment and gave it a squeeze, "thank you."

The rest of the journey passed in silence. The city wasn't that big and soon they were parking up at the hospital. Freya wasn't about to stay in the car, in the dark this time, so she got out of the car with him.

                "I'll stay in reception, read my book."

Mitchell Cooper shook his head, "no way. It's late, this is a hospital. Who knows who'll walk in off the street? Come on; at least come up to the ward."

His concern for her in the face of his own trauma was more than touching, she'd have teased him about it in any other situation, instead she just nodded and followed him into the depths of the hospital. 

At a waiting room he turned and looked at her and without needing words she nodded, of course she'd wait there. As he was about to leave, she tugged his hand, turning him back to her, then she wrapped her arms around him squeezing him tight. He resisted for a moment, but then she felt the sigh of surrender as he gave into that embrace, reciprocated. For just a few seconds they stood there like that, then he lifted his head and she gave him a little smile.

                "I couldn't have done this without you Freya

          "You could and you would. It's just true that a problem shared is a problem halved. Now go see your Dad. Ok?"

As he turned away from her he came face to face with a small older woman who gave him a warm friendly smile. Freya lowered herself to her seat as he addressed the woman, suddenly she wished she wasn't there, wasn't witness to conversations and interactions that he would not have chosen for her to be part of. Instead she dropped her eyes and pretended she couldn't hear.

                "Aunt Lucy, where's my mother?"

He looked at his aunt the anxiety rising by the minute. She smiled, placed a hand on his arm in comfort.

                "She's with your father, the doctors have just let her back in. He crashed about half an hour ago. Alarms, crash team, all hands on deck..."