MIDNIGHT RAIN, ʲ.ᵏ

𐮜chapter seven𐮜

johnny didn't know what to do as he watched charlotte walk away from him. he sighed heavily and put his car into drive, heading to his favorite place in town. the gym. he drove fast, faster than he should've, but he didn't care. all he cared about was going to the gym and forgetting about everything that happened. he didn't care what bella had said, if she was going to hurt charlotte, johnny would be there to protect her. he walked into the gym, slamming the door behind him. he walked into the locker room and put on his gym clothes, walking back to the equipment room. for the first time since he tore his abductor, he felt the urge to do squats. he grabbed a squat bar and put 215 pounds on it. he did a few squats, testing out his leg to make sure it wouldn't hurt. he grinned, feeling triumphant. he did more before adding more weight to the squat bar, making it weight 250 pounds. he kept going, for a while before a searing pain shot up his leg. he winced, dropping the squat bar. he limped to the locker room, sitting down and looking at his leg, which now has drops of blood trailing down it. he had torn his stitches. he knew neither of his parents were in town, so  he would have to go to the hospital on his own. he kept his gym clothes on, not wanting to ruin his gray sweatpants. he grabbed his bag quickly and stumbled back to his car.
"shite!" he yelled, slamming his fist against his steering wheel. he got his phone out and called gibsie, his best friend.
"gibs,"johnny said when he answered, "i tore my stitches so i have to go to the hospital, but i promised charlotte a ride to school. can you pick her up?"
he waited for gibsie to reply, "of course lad."
he sighed in relief and quickly thanked him before hanging up and driving to the hospital. he got there quickly, and the pain in his abductor only seemed to hurt more and more.

he walked into the hospital and staggered up to the front desk. "i tore my stitches," he said roughly. they took him back to a room quickly. he changed into a papery hospital gown that smelled like sanitizer and laid down on a stiff white bed. he stared at the ceiling and contemplated how he got here. he needed charlotte, he concluded. all he needed was to be with her and he'd be alright. he knew this was all his fault. if he had told bella to fuck off and ran after charlotte, he would've been with her right now, and not bleeding on a hospital bed. there was no one to blame but himself. the doctors came in at that moment, offering him anesthesia and pain medication, but he couldn't take anything, or he wouldn't be able to play at his rugby game. he bit down on his lip while they took out his old stitches and replaced them. a coppery taste filled his mouth as pain seared through him. he hadn't remembered how bad it was. by the time they finished, johnny was exhausted. he closed his eyes tightly and thought about charlotte. what she was doing, how she was feeling, if she was okay. coincidentally, at that moment, his phone began to ring. he grabbed it wearily, feeling drowsy. he didn't recognize the number that was calling, but he answered anyway. as soon as he said hello, charlotte snapped.
"what the hell johnny," she said harshly, "you tell me you want to explain and then you go and send gibsie to pick me up?"
"charlotte?" he said in confusion, "what time is it?"
she scoffed, "what? are you drunk or something? it's seven thirty."
"fuck," he muttered quietly, "listen charlotte-"
"no!" she said harshly, "i'm done listening. you had a chance to explain, and you blew it."
"please," johnny said, "just listen."
"what then?" she asked condescending, "what's your great excuse this time?"
he waited for a moment before saying, "i'm in the hospital charlotte."
she was quiet for a while before she said, "what?"
"you heard me," he says, somewhat sourly.
"w-why? what happened johnny?" she asked, sounding suddenly concerned.
"tore my stitches," he said shortly.
"i'm coming to see you," she concluded quickly.
"better not," he said, "don't wanna scare you out with all the blood and stuff."
she laughed, sounding sad, "you could never scare me, johnny."
he sighed and said, "if you're so sure."
after confirming that she was in fact "so sure", charlotte hung up, insisting she was coming to visiting. he didn't know how long it was until she was there, but he knew that one minute he was alone, and the next, he had her pressed against his chest, holding on to him as tight as she could without hurting him.
"i'm sorry," she whispered, barely audible over the pounding of his heart.
"i'm not mad at you charlotte," he said gently, using his hand not connected to his antibacterial IV to caress her head gently.
"i know," she said before adding, "you should be though."
"no," he said sternly, "i shouldn't."
"johnny," she said, clinging to him tighter.
"stop," he demanded, kissing the top of her head softly. "i could never be mad at you."

he didn't know what he was gonna do, or what was gonna happen to them, but he kept holding her, kept reassuring her that he wasn't mad. he didn't know why it mattered to him so much, they truly did barely know eachother, but something about her being happy was so important to him, he would tell her anything to make her happy. she just hugged him tighter, no matter what he said.
"johnny," she said, yawning, "i'm so sad you're hurt.
he sighed, "it only makes me feel worse that you're sad."
they sat in silence for a while before he added, "go grab my sweatpants, will you?"
she nodded and grabbed them, finally letting go of him for the first time in hours.
"now reach into the pocket, okay?"
she nodded again and did what he asked, pulling out a small polaroid picture. a picture that happened to be of her.
"i'm not mad at you, see?" johnny said, gesturing to the picture. he didn't know what point he was trying to make with it, but apparently it worked because charlotte put it back in his pocket and climbed back onto the hospital bed, letting him hold her tightly as they fell asleep.