The Heartbreaker's Home

Chapter 13

I had always hated hospitals.

Then again, saying 'always' may be a little of a stretch. I had only stepped into it's white halls twice in my life. The first time had been when Seeley broke his arm. I had been five, and had laughed at how my big brother was now incapable of catching me by my neck when I stole his extra cookie after dinner.

The second, had been when Mom died.

I could hear Declan running behind me as I dashed towards the second floor, but I barely looked over my shoulder at him. The plane ride home was a blur in my mind, because all I wanted to do was to get to Dad. After Mom left, he had been both a mother and a father to me, and he and Seeley were all I had left in this world. Seeley had declined to explain over the phone, and just insisted that I returned home immediately before he was willing to tell me anymore. Declan had been understanding enough, quickly arranging for a flight home that evening itself, as I packed our bags.

He had held my hand throughout the plane ride, and on the cab from the airport to Lakeshore Hospital in Chicago. But upon our arrival at the lobby, I had dashed all the way, until I finally skidded to a stop in front of the room which Seeley had texted me once I told him I had landed.

Suddenly, as I stared at the emblazoned numbers, my heart lodged itself in my throat, as memories of the day Mom had passed away resurfaced. In the same type of hallway, the doctors had came out, and informed of her death, and I had watched as my father, the strongest man I knew in my life back then, broke down in front of me. Seeley had cried too, and when the concept that I would never see Mom again finally sunk in, my tears surfaced.

That same fear now returned, and I could feel my skin began to grow clammy when a warm hand suddenly clasped itself over mine that was grasping the handle of the door.

Turning in surprise, my chest eased when I saw Declan's smiling face. He looked a crumpled mess, his previously smooth dress shirt now rumpled and untucked from the plane ride.

But I had never seen anyone who could bring me peace more.

"I'm here, Kay. Right here."

The knot in my throat dislodged itself slowly as Declan soothed me, his thumb rubbing slow circles around my knuckles until I finally found the strength in me to push the handle down, and push the door open.

The moment I did, the soft beep of the hospital machinery was clear, as was the unnervingly silent aura around the room. Entering the short walkway towards the main room, my footsteps seemed to have woke my brother up. Seeley sat up from where he seemed to be napping by my father's bedside, his eyes blinking a few times before recognition dawned and he pushed the chair back. For a second, it seemed as if he had a look of distrust when Declan loomed over my shoulder, but Seeley pushed it away as he motioned me forward.

I turned to the single bed, and had to bite my lip to prevent the sob that threatened to make itself heard when I saw the figure of my father. He was hooked up to all sorts of tubes, his slow heart rate clear to see on the monitor on his left. As I watched, his eyes moved beneath lids, before it slowly opened. The moment his gaze fell upon me, a small, wane smile appeared on his lips.

Behidn me, I could hear Seeley exiting the room, but I ignored my brother and quickly moved to the seat he had vacated, grasping the hand which had always brought me comfort. It unnerved me to watch my usually boisterous and warm father in bed, looking so sleepy and weak.

"Dad... What... What's the matter?" I couldn't help but ask first. Seeley had refused to say anything, saying that Dad would explain when I was back.

A sad look entered my father's eyes, and his grip around my hand tightened. "I'm sorry, pumpkin. I didn't want either you or Seeley to worry, and... I really wanted life to be as normal as possible."

I shook my head, unable to comprehend the meaning behind his words. "What are you talking about, Dad?"

"I... I have cancer, sweetie. Stage four stomach cancer. Doctor's cant' do much."

---

My world had shattered when he had said that. If one had asked Declan, he would've said that I had paled instantly, so fast that he worried I had bled out somewhere. I had dashed out of the room immediately, not wanting to comprehend the idea that my father was actually dying and there was literally nothing I could do about it. He had strictly ordered the doctors and nurses to not administer any form of medication or therapy on him. In his words: "I do not want to be remembered as a hairless skeleton. My children deserve the full version of me as their last memory."

But reality had to be faced, as Seeley mentioned when he had found me at the back of the hospital, eyes red from sobbing.

My big brother had held me tightly against him, rocking me soothingly as I sobbed again. Losing our mother was tough, but Dad had been with us as we both grew up. It now explained why he was furiously taking on so many new employees, as well as training our older ones to take over the reins. We had all assumed he wanted to retire. None of us had expected this instead.

"We'll do what Dad wants, okay Kels? We'll make him happy, at least." Seeley had held my chin and looked me in the eye when my sobs subsided.

My heart ached, but I nodded. And we immediately arranged for a hospice carer to be around as we transferred Dad home.

Luckily, after his bout of sickness and other then needing the bathroom very often, Dad was fine at home. Seeley now ran Harrington House, as we expressly forbade him to visit the diner, but on some evenings, he did go there for dinner. It was one of those evenings, a week after he had came home, that Declan and I drove Dad over to Harrington House for dinner, dropping him off under Seeley's watchful eye before Declan took the wheel, and we took at the pier we had first kissed, after he had returned to Redwood Creek.

I grinned when he whipped out a couple of wrapped sandwiches, smiling like a proud parent presenting their kid her favorite toy as he handed me one of them. We both sat on wooden planks that made up the pier, wrapped in our scarves, listening to the wind lapping the water against the wooden surface. Declan had been around almost everyday since we brought Dad home. I suspected he was worried for me, as he often took over the house chores when he came over, just so I could spend time with Dad. When he was done, he often took a seat next to me, chatting with Dad about anything and everything.

"Thank you, Lan." I blurted out, watching as he froze mid-bite, blinking in surprise.

He swallowed his bite, and then raised a brow. "For?"

For someone as smart as he could be, Declan can be impossibly dense sometimes. Leaning forward, I felt more then saw his eyes widened as I planted a chaste kiss on his cheek. "For always being around."

When I said those words, I felt a warm chuckle coming from him as I sat back down on my bottom. Just as he was about to say something however, he was interrupted when his phone buzzed again. I frowned when he turned to look at it, suddenly realizing something.

"Your phone has been going off real often lately. Is... anything the matter?" I ask cautiously.

Declan glances at the glowing screen, and then flashes me an easy going smile. "Nah, nothing much. Just spam messages. You know how things are like." he grinned, taking a bite of his sandwich.

Despite him playing it off though, I couldn't help but frown a little, watching as his dark head bent to grab the thermos of hot chocolate he had brought along. Declan had always been someone I would trust with my life. Even after breaking up with me, he had never been accused of cheating or ruining relationships. Sure, Declan Reed had the reputation of being a playboy with a string of broken hearts, but he was intentionally mean or cheated.

Still... when his phone buzzed again, I couldn't help the frown that knitted my brows.