Dedicating Every Day to You

Chapter Fifty-Five

"Kathryn, come on, you're going to be late for school!" John bounds up the stairs to my room, knocking over the pile of neat paint cans by the Gratitude Wall.

I groan, rubbing my eyes, and climb out of bed. "Sorry. I must have slept through my alarm." He gives a pointed look to my alarm clock in the closet, where I threw it when it beeped at six thirty in the morning. Not important now, though. I tug a sweater and jeans on, lace up my Converse, and dash downstairs.

Alex is sitting at the kitchen table, a pile of Pop Tarts wrapped in napkins beside him. When he sees us, he stands up. "Since you slept in so late, we're both going to drive you, and then John'll drop me off at the office." He gives me a quick hug, then hands me two Pop Tarts and my backpack.

In the car, we're all jamming out to Hotel California, one of John's favorite songs. It's raining pretty hard, but it makes the inside of the vehicle feel cozy and warm. As usual, I'm in the back seat, trying not to complain because that makes me seem whiny.

"This rain is awful," John comments, turning the radio down. He's right- it's coming down in sheets, so much so that we can barely see. "I'm going to drive a little slower, so we don't-"

His words are cut off by an awful screeching of tires. Something crunches, and someone is screaming, loud and high and keening. Only when I close my mouth do I realize that it's coming from me. Something, what looks like a semi truck, has smashed into our car from the front. Shaking, screaming again, I close my eyes. I can't look, or maybe I just can't see.

********

A dull beeping jars me awake, and I open my eyes. Everything in my body aches, and I feel a strange disconnect between myself and the bed I'm lying in. I open my eyes. I'm in a hospital of some kind, what seems like the emergency room. My bed is in a hallway, with several machines beeping around me. A nurse, pretty with auburn hair and grey eyes, leans over me.

"Oh, good, you're awake. We were a bit worried about you." Her voice has a pretty cadence to it, with traces of a Southern accent.

I struggle to sit up, the world spinning before me. "Where are my dads? Can I see them?"

She gently pushes my shoulder so that I have to lie down again. "Who are they? I'll see if I can page them for you."

"J-John Laurens..." I have to think for a moment, which is a bit hard as my head is aching. "John Laurens and Alexander Hamilton."

The nurse's face falls. "I'm so sorry, hon..."

I look up at her, biting my lip. "Oh, are they not here?" I feel a little pang of hurt. How long have I been asleep, that Alex and John went to work and left me in the hospital?

"Oh, sweetheart..." Her voice is barely a whisper. "John Laurens and Alexander Hamilton were pronounced DOA."

Dead on arrival. My head spins, the words ringing in my ears. "T-they c-c-can't be dead!" Tears are already pouring down my cheeks, and it feels like my lungs are gone, or they must be, because I can't breathe. In one sentence, my whole world has been snatched away from me.

*******

I jolt up in bed, tears running down my face and soaking my blanket. It's dark in my room, a little cold, but it's definitely my room. The clock on my nightstand tells me, in comforting red digits, that it's almost four in the morning.

Limbs shaking, I lurch out of bed and run down the hall, my socked feet padding on the cold floorboards. John and Alex's door is closed, but I throw it open, needing to reassure myself that it was just a dream, that they're still here and still alive.

There they are, two breathing mountain ranges under a fluffy grey duvet cover. I shake John's shoulder until he sits up, rubbing his eyes. "Hey, Kat. What time is it?"

At the sound of his familiar voice, I burst into tears once more. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me onto the bed and settling me between him and Alex. The blankets are warm and soft, and it feels so reassuring to have my dads' familiar presence beside me.

Alex wakes up next. He immediately hugs me, letting me bury my face in his pajama shirt. "Hey. Hey. Shhh. It's okay."

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" John rubs my back, his hand warm through my thin t-shirt.

"I..." My voice has grown thick with tears, so I have to almost choke out the words. "I had a really bad dream...we were in a car accident and you guys..." I can't finish the sentence, a fresh flood of tears overtaking me.

Alex lifts my head up and kisses my forehead. "Oh, honey, I'm so sorry. Everything's okay. We're here."

I pull my knees up to my chest, relief washing over me. Everything really is okay. My dads are alive and well, and so am I. There was no car accident, no trip to the hospital, no pretty nurse with auburn hair and grey eyes.

"Come lay down with us. It's a little early to be awake, so you can sleep in here with us." John grabs a pillow from under the bed and sets it between his and Alex's.

I close my eyes, lie down, and fall asleep with my dads on either side of me, both of them holding me tight and keeping me safe.