[Chriseva] A Family We Chose For Ourselves

6. William

So, her and Chris, huh?

Eva has had a lot of things to reflect on over the last couple of hours; her relationship with Chris being the most precedent topic. A few hours ago she probably would have said her non-relationship with Chris, but this Eva was different than the Eva that was at the Kose party that evening, getting semi wasted and making vulgar Christmas decorations with her friends. Or what was it that Chris called them? Her crew?

If someone had told her when she started first year that not only would she end up breaking it off with Jonas; be the one to break it off, end up finding a group of the most unlikeliest of people to be her friends. Actually have her very own group friends. Cheat on Jonas with arguable the biggest whore in school after accusing him multiple times of cheating. End up being friendly acquaintances if not actual friends with the person whose boyfriend she stole and the person whose boyfriend she hooked up with and then actually end up hooking up with said whore and actually end up in a relationship that one might even consider intimate and maybe even romantic with him.

If someone had told Eva all that back then, she would have said that they were pretty fucking crazy.

But that's exactly where she finds herself, both emotionally and physically in that moment.

She and William are a constant presence at Chris' side through the whole thing.

Chris is in the hospital for 6 days. He spends nearly 36 hours in ICU after the surgery, slightly longer than the doctors had hoped because of a high fever and chest congestion. The nurses explained that it was probably the result of being intubated when he was brought in and during the surgery, as well his body going into shock after his traumatic injuries and from being out in the cold for who knows how long the night it all happened. None of the medical personnel seemed overly concerned but William was beside himself with worry the whole time. Every time Chris coughed, aggravating his ribs and his injured side and almost ended up in tears from the pain, a little piece of William seemed to wither away on the inside.

At one point, his cough had gotten so bad and he was in so much pain, the doctors had to have him sedated for a few hours so that his body would get the chance to rest. William had to leave the room because he was so distraught almost to the point of tears. There was nothing Eva could say to him them that could have eased his guilt. It was one thing comforting someone's guilt over getting another person hurt. It was entirely different thing trying to ease the guilt of someone watching his best friend suffering knowing that he wasn't without culpability; after all it was probably William they were after.

Eva stays by Chris' side through everything even though he probably didn't even realize she was there. Once he wakes up, this time with a mask covering his mouth and nose instead of the nasal cannula helping him breathe easier, he's once again disoriented and confused, but at least he doesn't seem to be in pain which was the most important part.

Eva is there by his side when his bleary eyes crack open. William is out in the hallways talking with one of the doctors about something, Eva doesn't really know what, but it seems to be official hospital business.

She never asked about Chris' parents or his family before, but she doesn't deny their absence at this point does rouse her curiosity. What kind of parent wouldn't be by their child's side when they've been through something like what Chris went through? Getting stabbed, almost dying. Suffering and in pain. But the expertise in which William handled the whole thing only shows that he's probably been doing this for a long time. She knows a little about William's story and his family, only what Noora's told them. His brother is a nasty piece of work and neither of his parents seem like contender for parent of the year. Eva wishes her mom was around more and that they had more of a relationship, but she thinks that compared to William's and Chris' parents, hers seems like the poster girl for world's best parent.