Fool's Gold • rewritten

7

Nick was the happiest I have ever seen him in the nine years that he has been my friend. I knew that he thought that everything would go back to normal, and to be honest I did too. I had to go to school again the next day but I was thankful for it being the last day of term and also a Friday. Nick had told me not to bother visiting him in the hospital that afternoon, saying that we would spend the whole day Saturday together. Although, a moment didn't pass that I didn't think of Nick. I imagined the two of us walking out of the hospital together, resembling his freedom. The thought made me too eager for the next day that I could barely focus at school. Once the day was over and I was lying in bed, waiting for sleep to take over me. I last thought was of Nick and how I loved him unconditionally.

I awoke from my slumber the next morning feeling refreshed and relaxed. I realised that today was the day Nick was going to be released from the hospital and I sprung out of bed. I ran to have breakfast, brush my teeth and get dressed, hoping that I would have the speed to get ready in time to meet Nick at the hospital. I wanted to walk out of those doors with him, making it represent how far we have come in our relationship and that we will stay by each other through everything. My mother was in the car waiting for me when I burst through the door and closed it behind me, hoping that there would be no traffic on the way to the hospital. Sure enough, my wishes were granted and we arrived at the hospital in less than ten minutes.

I had bought a small gift for Nick and I carried it in my hands. I strolled through the long, white corridors until I reached his all too familiar room. Turning the door handle, I took a step inside. Nick's parents were sitting next to his bed, a doctor standing near them. Nick was dressed in casual clothing instead of his hospital gown and was sitting on the side of his bed, his legs dangling over the side. Nick's right leg was still covered by a cast, it was blue and matched his eye colour. Nick's eyes met mine briefly and we exchanged smiles,

"Okay, Nick. You will have to use these crutches to get around. Your leg should be good in about two weeks time due to the amount of time it has had to heal within the past couple of weeks you have been here. You will have to come in for a checkup in two weeks time. Until then, I hope you enjoy your time out of the hospital," The doctor was talking to Nick and explaining the procedures he would have to take once leaving the hospital. He handed two crutches to Nick and assisted him in trialling them. Nick was unstable at first and nearly fell over, but as I stood there in the doorway watching him for a few minutes he improved greatly. Once the doctor had told Nick all of the information that he needed to know, he left the room, leaving me with Nick and his family. Nick had sat back on the side of the bed,

"Hello, Campbell family," I greeted everyone in the room. Nick smiled at my unique words. I walked over to him and he hugged me tightly. Nick's parents stood up and approached me, each giving me a hug and a kiss on the cheek,

"Hello, Grace," Each of them said to me as I hugged them. I smiled at how polite Nick's family were. It didn't matter what they had been through, they were always nice and genuine people. I was lucky to have each of them a part of my life.

I left the hospital with my second family, assisting Nick to walk with his crutches. Although I felt sorry for him it was quite humorous watching him try to use the things when he would fail miserably each time. He managed to make it to the car without breaking his other leg though and for him that was a victory within itself. Nick and I sat in the back of the car. I sat close to the window but Nick sat in the middle, wanting to be closer to me. He held my hand the whole way home and occasionally gave it a reassuring squeeze or a light kiss. The gesture made me smile so much that it couldn't be wiped off of my face. Nick turned his face to look at mine. I noticed the cut across of his head once again. It had scarred and was allowed to have no covering. It almost reminded me of Harry Potter's lightning bolt scar on his head. I laughed at the thought,

"What are you laughing at?" Nick asked me, his cheeks turning a light shade of red. I contemplated if I should lie to him or not but thought that he would find humour in my thought as well,

"Well, let's just say that you look extremely like Harry Potter with that scar on your head," I laughed as I told Nick. He returned the gesture but frowned a bit as well,

"Okay then. But I think you are the magician though because everytime I look at you, everything else seems to disappear," I laughed hysterically at the joke and it even earnt a 'nice one' from Nick's dad. Nick was talented at finding the funniest and cheesiest things to say at the right time. It was one of the many things that I loved about him. I turned my head to look out of the window, observing the world around us whizzing by. It reminded me of what my life had been like lately, just a whirlwind and I was like a bird trying to fly through it but being carried through helplessly. To be honest, I didn't even know where we were going but I was with Nick, and for that I was happy.