Church Boy ♱ nh

Chapter 20

"He said you're his inspiration, Winter," Ms. Conaway said, fidgeting with her fingers as she sat on the edge of Winter's bed.

Winter lifted her head. "Yeah," She quietly mumbled with a faint smile on her lips, "He would say something like that. Just to try to cheer me up."

Ms. Conaway sighed. "You know you still have to go to school tomorrow, Winter. I'm not letting you stay home because of this."

"Niall's in the hospital!" Winter shrieked, "Isn't that a good enough excuse?!"

"And what exactly are you going to do about it?" Ms. Conaway questioned, raising her eyebrows. "You can't go back to the hospital. He can't leave until tomorrow. You need to go to school. Plus it'll be a good chance for you to clear your mind a little."

"Probably not," Winter grumbled, "I never pay attention in class anyway."

"Winter..."

She shrugged. "S'true. It's a waste of my time. I could be doing something far more productive than sitting in the same uncomfortable chair for an hour, listening to a beat-down excuse of a teacher rant about something that has absolutely no significance in today's world."

Ms. Conaway sighed deeply and muttered, "You sure are something, miss Winter."

∾

It was dark in Niall's hospital room and his father had fallen asleep on the chair in the corner. Niall had been asleep for a while now but it was far from a peaceful slumber. He flinched in his sleep and his eyes had even teared up a few times, because his nightmares were back and they were even more intense now than Niall could ever remember them being before. He was alone and afraid and threatened and he couldn't wake up.

But when he finally did it was with a shrill scream as he jolted upward, clutching the cold hospital blanket tight to his chest. His father was torn from his sleep, jumping up when he heard Niall's scream. Niall's chest heaved and he sniffled as he wiped at his eyes, his body trembling. "Niall!" Father Horan gasped, rushing to Niall's side. He leaned over his son and whispered, "What is it? Calm down, my boy."

Niall just glanced up at his father and hoarsely whispered, "Can you please turn the light on?"

Meanwhile, Winter was groaning loudly as her obnoxious alarm sounded throughout her room. She was beyond tired and had zero ambition to get up for school. If she peeked one eye open, she could see that it was still dark outside. She rolled over in her bed, almost rolling all the way onto the floor. A yawn rolled through her as she stretched her arms out and planted her feet on the floor.

Winter sauntered downstairs, following the aroma of the french toast that her mother was preparing in the kitchen. "Mom?" Winter squeaked, "You're making me breakfast?!"

Ms. Conaway chuckled. "Don't act like I've never made you breakfast before." She set a plate of french toast down on the table and said, "I want you to start your day off right. Here's some orange juice. Drink it all."

On her way out the door, Ms. Conaway stopped Winter for a hug before sending her daughter off to school. "Have a good day, bee," Ms. Conaway whispered, leaving a quick peck on Winter's forehead.

"I'll try," Winter muttered, offering a faint smile before she left to walk to school. Alone. Her hand felt empty without Niall's to hold.

She kept her head low and held her backpack close. It was an overcast day and the air was a bit chilly. She stepped into a puddle while trying to cross an alley, cursing under her breath as someone mumbled her name, "Winter."

She whipped her head to stare into the sticky alley. "What?" Winter hissed, squinting her eyes to see Nadia standing there with a joint in her left hand and her phone in the other hand.