' 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗗 𝗠𝗘 𝗦𝗪𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗜𝗡 ' › D. SWING

22.

Rhonda.

I sat in the chair positioned at the side of the hospital bed he rested on, watching the monitors while I blinked in hopes of adding moisture to my eyes since I had dried them out with my excessive tears. I never thought I would have to be here, seeing him like this. His face was swollen, his head had a sterile gauze pad on it wrapped in a sterile gauze bandage that was stained with blood from the wounds he had received from the pistol. He had three fractured ribs, a sprain in his ankle and wrist, and a previously dislocated shoulder. Whoever did this to him acted as if they wanted him dead. His arms and legs were covered in bruises and K-Ci wasn't in such good shape either. However, Donald's injuries were much more severe. 

K-Ci had regained consciousness after the first night he spent in the hospital but Donald's been unconscious for five days now. The doctor kept telling us that he had received trauma to the brain and kept trying to have us agree to induce him into a coma without much reasoning as of why. The last thing I was going to do was listen to a doctor who didn't have a clue what he was doing. Instead, me and the Hailey and DeGrate family prayed for his recovery.  Well, all except Donald's father. He was still angry at his son for leaving to do the "Devil's work" and blamed him for "influencing Dalvin."  Honestly, I was growing agitated by his constant remarks about Donny while he was in his current condition. It was distasteful and quite frankly, ungodly, since he claims to be all about religion. So-called Christians that judge and have hate in their heart are the worst and are usually the ones who scare sinners from church and religion as a whole. People like Donald, Sr. 

Dalvin stood by my chair, his hand on my upper back as he moved it in circular motion to comfort me while I had my arm hooked around his waist. I could tell he was trying his best to keep it together but was close to breaking down. He looked up to Donald and would do anything for him, though they had their fall-outs every other day. That was his big brother. And there he was, standing over him as he laid battered and bruised in a hospital bed. Donald was my first love and it was already hard to deal with the circumstances. I couldn't imagine what Dalvin was going through. His mind had to be going 100 mph. Is he going to pull through? Am I going to be able to make things right with him? Will I be able to tell him how much I love him? So many questions we needed answers to.

K-Ci and JoJo were sitting in the chairs against the wall on the opposite side of the bed as their parents sat across from it by the doorway. It was a small room but we made it work, all trying to be there for him. 

"I don't understand why he came out here in the first place", Donald Sr muttered to Mary, Donald's mom.

She shot him a look, "Enough, Donald."

"What? I don't. This is exactly why they should've stayed in Charolette, getting involved with a bunch of thugs, doing drugs, drinking, having premarital sex, and God knows what else. Derek is the only one with his head on straight. He's the only one who didn't let Donald drag him down this path of.....of sin! I wish I could say the same for Dalvin", he said, looking over at Dalvin who just shook his head while tears welded up in his eyes. Oh no. "Look at my boy. Donald's got him dressed like some kind of drug dealer. Even the Hailey boys. Donald is no saint—."

"And neither are you, pops!", Dalvin blurted as he turned to face him. I kept a grip on his arm to keep him from walking over to him. Last thing we needed was another altercation. 

Sr looked at him with disbelief, "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. How you a saint when you're judgin' another child of God? You ain't no better than anybody in here because you sinnin' right now", Dalvin said, pausing for a moment. "D has nothin' but respect for you, always has. You wanna' point out the fact that he left Charlotte well guess what? He left to pursue music."