DECLAN was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. Declan was in the hospital. I was a disintegrating mess of sobs and helplessness. For minutes on end, I had simply cried. What else was I to do?
"Avery? Dinner is—wait, honey, what's wrong?" Mom asked, barging into the room.
"Mom," I managed to choke out, however hoarse. "It's Declan, my boyfriend—my friend. He got into an accident or something like that. He's hurt. Mom, he's—" I curled into a ball, buying my head in my hands and releasing my devastation through a paroxysm of uncontrollable choking and sobbing. Mom rubbed my back in the limited consolation she could offer.
"We can go to the hospital," she said. "Where are they? Do you know?"
I didn't respond. How could I? I didn't know. I hadn't even bothered asking. I quickly wiped my eyes with my sweater sleeves and picked up my phone from the floor. Dialing Declan's number once more, I was relieved when Mr. Andrews answered the phone. Unable to speak, I forced the cellphone onto my mom.
"Avery? Is everything oka—oh," Mark exclaimed, stopping when he saw me. He glanced at my mother through his confusion and concern. Mom was listening intently to what the receiver was saying—Mr. Andrews giving her directions, I assumed.
"Yes," I finally heard her say. "We can come—No, no, it's no trouble—I understand, is everything fine now?—In which hospital is he in? Okay. Good bye. Take care." Once the call had ended, Mom addressed me as if I were a fragile china, only to be reckoned with in extreme caution. "Avery," she murmured. "They're in a hospital two hours away in the inner city. Have some dinner and sleep and tomorrow—"
"No," I interjected firmly. "I have to go today. Now. He could die, mom!"
She let a potential argument dwindle, caving in. "Okay, okay. Mark, go start the car please."
And he did. But Mom drove. The entire journey felt like one into the catastrophic unknown.
YOU ARE READING
Sour Sweet Love
Teen FictionAt first glance, Avery Wilson dislikes Declan Andrews more than she can admit. He gets her to think in ways she has never done before, and he is different than the people she usually associates herself with. Yet amidst the chaos and confusion led on...
