imaginary / muke a.u | c.

ten; imaginary

Luke sat down in front of Calum. The other boy's wrists had padded cuffs around them, keeping him from trying to do anything. After last night, there had been a lockdown on the entire hospital. When Calum had woken up, he'd fought hard, yelling about needing to see Michael. Dr Smith had tried to talk to him, but he'd refused to listen, so the doctor had asked Luke to try.

"Hey, Calum," the blonde said softly.

"I need to see Michael, please," Calum replied, eyes bloodshot and hands shaking violently.

"Listen, Cal... about Michael..." Luke paused. "There's something I have to tell you."

"Did you hurt him?!" Calum was suddenly alert. "Did he hurt himself? Where is he?"

"No, Cal, no..." Luke sighed. He didn't want to have to break the news to Calum, but the boy had to know. He'd flat-out refused to listen when Doctor Smith tried to tell him, but maybe - just maybe - he'd listen to Luke.

"What? What is it?" Calum asked desperately.

"Calum... Michael's not real," Luke said softly.

"Stop fucking around and tell me where he is!" Calum snapped.

"This might be hard to hear, Calum, but you have to listen to me. You've been here for two years, right? Do you remember what happened that made you have to come here in the first place?"

"Mikey crashed his car and his parents got mad and convinced my parents to send us here." Calum frowned. "I don't understand how any of that has to do with right now. Where's Michael?"

"Calum..." Luke trailed off with another deep sigh.

----

"Michael, slow down!" Calum said, a touch of panic seeping into his tone.

"Ease up, Cal! You're such a stiff!" Michael replied, hooting with laughter as he pressed his foot down harder on the accelerator.

"You're going too fast!" Calum replied. He could still feel Michael's mouth on his own, though the ecstasy in his bloodstream had mostly diffused.

"There's no one around -"

Michael was cut off by a flash of bright light and a loud shrieking sound. Calum felt himself jerked around, felt something hit his head, felt his arm crack, felt blood coat his head and his chest. And then he felt nothing at all.

----

When Calum woke up, he was in a hospital bed. His mother sat beside him, her cheeks puffy and tear-stained.

"Mum...?" He groaned, blinking hard.

"Calum!" His mother sat up straighter, reaching out to grip his hand. He realised that his other one was covered in a cast.

"What..." Calum said, struggling to think through the fog over his brain.

"You were in a crash, sweetheart," Calum's mother replied.

"Where's Michael? Is he okay?" Calum asked, sitting up slowly. Fresh tears filled his mothers eyes, and he felt a pit form in his stomach.

"Cal, Mikey didn't make it," she said quietly.

Calum felt his world crash around him.

----

Calum barely got past the title of the news article Luke had handed him - "DRUNK DRIVING ACCIDENT CLAIMS TEENS LIFE, LEAVES OTHER IN CRITICAL CONDITION" - before memories he didn't know he had flashed back. He dropped the article, shaking his head.

"No, that's not true," he said, eyes wide and filled with tears. "That can't be true, Mikey didn't - he didn't die, he just got hurt -"

"Michael died on impact when the other car hit you," Luke said softly. He felt his heart breaking for Calum - and a little for himself, too.

"Michael's real, he survived," Cal sobbed out.

"I'm sorry no one told you sooner, Cal,"