Broken Heart/Broken Mind

-Chapter Sixty-one-

The alarm blared throughout Sophie's room. She groaned and buried her face into her pillow. It was way too early to be getting up, four in the morning, to be exact. She still dragged herself out of bed and started to get ready.

Once she was dressed and had her items collected, she knocked on her parents' door.

"I'm leaving," she called to them.

"Got it," Grady said back. "Love you, be careful."

"I will," she promised. "Love you, too."

It was Friday. Keefe's surgery was going to be at six thirty in the morning. The first stop she made while getting out the door was McDonald's for a coffee and hashbrowns. She didn't think she'd be able to stay awake if she didn't.

After thirty minutes of driving, she arrived at the hospital. She pulled out her bag she brought to keep herself busy. There also was a good chance of her spending the night, so she brought some clothes to change into.

When she made it to the room, nurses were already there, asking tons of questions. Sophie quietly snuck through the doorway to wait in a corner until they were done.

When they left, she moved to go greet Keefe and Ro. Ro waved, while Keefe sleepily blinked up at her.

They waited around until five thirty, in which the nurses took them into the pre-op room. The nurses took to Keefe with a bunch of needles. Sophie wanted to support her boyfriend, but the sight of them made her heady woozy. She had to turn away.

When it was safe, she turned back to find Keefe with several IVs in his arms. She noticed the way he cringed at them. She took his hand as the nurses continued to fiddle with the various monitors he was hooked up to.

One of the nurses pushed some drugs into the IVs. Sophie had to fight back a giggle when she saw the exact moments it hit Keefe's system. His pupils dilated wider than she thought was possible, and he slumped back into his pillows.

Ro snickered. "Yeah, I want what he's on," she told the nurse. "Seems like a good time."

The nurse shook her head with a grin. "Sorry, this is for the VIPs only. Afraid you can't have any."

Ro gave an over-exaggerated pout.

The nurse finally left the room, and they were alone. Keefe turned to look at her and held a hand out. She took it, giving it a gentle squeeze. He closed his eyes as the meds kicked in.

Time to be taken back was quickly approaching. Sophie was still stationed by his bed, stoking his hair.

He finally looked up to Ro and said, "Can I talk to Mom and Dad before I'm taken away?"

"Of course," she agreed.

She pulled out her phone, dialing Cassius's number. It ended up in voice-mail. She tried again with Giselle. Each ring felt like it was sucking life out of the room. Until-

"Hello," their mother's voice came out. "What do you need?"

"Hey, mom!" Ro said. "Is dad with you?"

"Yes, he's right here. How come?"

"Well... Keefe is going to be taken back into surgery within the next ten minutes. He wanted to talk to you guys."

She moved the phone over to Keefe's mouth so he could say, "Hey. Just wanted to talk."

A yawn came from the other side of the receiver. "Why? Thought you knew better than to be needy."

Keefe's eyes shifted downward. Ro pursed her lips.

Their mother continued. "How old are you again? Oh, right, sixteen. Can't you handle yourself?"

Ro finally spoke up. "Why are you so pressed for him wanting support from his parents? Those are natural instincts to have!"

"He needs to learn that we won't always be there-"

"You never were there in the first place," Keefe spat.

"Excuse me, sir? You're not going to talk to me like that. You're crazy if-"

Ro clicked the button for it to be off speaker. She then got up and stepped outside. It was quite useless because the argument was easily heard through the walls, though.

Sophie leaned in and kissed Keefe on the cheek. He turned up at her when she pulled away and reached out a hand, pulling her back down.

He pressed his lips to hers. It almost seemed desperate. Every time she thought he would be ready to break away, he deepened the kiss.

They didn't scramble away until someone cleared their throat. Ro and a few nurses were waiting. Sophie felt her cheeks turn red hot.

"Remember," the nurse directed to the couple, "We're actively not trying to take his breath away. Exact opposite of what you were doing." He smirked.

He came up to the bed and started fiddling with wires. Once he was done, the bed was able to be rolled around easily.

Ro came over to Keefe to lean down and give him a hug. "You've got this. You'll do great," she whispered in his ear

Sophie leaned in for one last kiss. "Everything will go well," she assured him. "Promise."

At the last second before he was taken out of the room, she whispered by his head, "I love you."

She never saw his reaction before he got wheeled away.