Room with a View - [Jopper] ✓

Ten Steps in Ten Different Directions

The knock on their door startled the silence between the two patients. Joyce was laid back in her bed with her nose into a book when Dr. Owens walked in, a chart in his hand and a grave expression. 

Before either of them could ask him why he was there, he glanced at Hopper. "May I have a minute with Joyce alone please?" Sam asked politely. Jim cocked his head with curiosity before stepping out without argument. 

"What's wrong?" Joyce felt anxiety rush over her body like a tidal wave. Owens pulled a chair over to the side of her bed while she sat up and waited for him.

"Joyce..." As he started, the tone of his voice only made her blood go cold. "UNOS is... UNOS is taking you off the top of the list for the double lung transplant." his voice was cold and broken up, but Joyce could barely hear him.

The room started to spin and she could no longer hear anything he was saying to her. She couldn't tell if her heart had stopped dead in her chest or if it was beating all too fast. No tears were able to fall from her eyes as it was all too much to process in the moment. They couldn't take her off the top, she had been on the top for so long! Thousands of emotions and thoughts ran through her mind at lightning speed.

When her vocal chords caught up with her brain, she finally spoke.

"Why?" Her voice trembled with fear and anger. Why would they do this to her? She had been on that list since she was 8 years old and it had taken this long to get to the top of the list!

"They found nicotine and tobacco in your system when they ran your last blood test. Joyce, how did this happen? You knew that they would take you down if this happened." Owens looked just as upset as she did, but the worst part wasn't the sadness. He looked disappointed in her more than anything. He had been her doctor since she was in diapers, he knew how important this was to her.

"I made a mistake! All my life I've had to be nothing but careful about every move I make, I fuck up once and it all goes down the drain? This isn't fair!" She howled as tears poured down her cheeks.

"Joyce, you didn't answer me. How did this happen?" Sam set his chart down and scrubbed his face with his palms. The truth was, he had known for a week about UNOS' decision. He had spent every minute he could trying to battle it down but it was set in stone.

"It was half of a cigarette! Hopper told me that it would be out of my system before the next labs. I didn't do it to be stupid and sabotage the transplant, I did it because I'm sick of not being able to do anything! This is the shit I get when I don't walk in a perfectly straight line right?" Joyce huffed angrily through the tears. She threw her portable oxygen backpack over her shoulder and rushed out.

"Joyce, what happened?" Hopper asked as he saw her pile out of the door. "Fuck off," she mumbled silently as she ran off. Usually, she would've run right into his arms but she couldn't stand to see him; not now. Hop just watched as she pushed beside him and disappeared into the elevator.

"What the hell happened?" Jim asked with his voice shallow as he looked over to Owens.

Sam could only give him a disappointed look. "Let her be, just for a little while."

--

Hopper could only sit and stare out the window, the anxiety about Joyce was reaching an all-time high in his mind. Was she okay? What happened? Why was she angry? He didn't dare ask Jenny because the odds were she wouldn't tell him anyway. 

As Hopper stared at the rain pouring over the city, Powell knocked on his door quietly. "What do you want?" he barked, without dragging his eyes away from the scene before him. 

"Joyce is in some hot water, Hop." Calvin sighed as he sat down in the chair across from Hopper's bed. 

Jim shot up with his eyes blazing full of worry. "Why? What happened?" his jaw was clenched tightly as if he was preparing to absorb some kind of shock.

"That cigarette you pretty much guilted her into smoking? UNOS found it in her labs and they're knocking her off the top of the list." Calvin's face stayed neutral through his words even though he wasn't thrilled with Jim. 

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me? Tell me that isn't true." Hopper's expression was one of only pure horror. Had he done this to her? 

"Sorry to burst your pity bubble amigo, but yeah... it's true," Powell replied with a bastardizing look. 

"Where is she? I have to go talk to her," he asked frantically as he started to get out of bed.

"Good luck with that. Jenny is probably hiding her somewhere. Best let her be for the night." Powell stood up and patted Jim's shoulder as he was he headed towards the door. "I think you might've really messed up this time, Hop."

Hop's heart felt like it was in his stomach as he slowly sank back down into his bed. Joyce was going to hate him for this. 

--

With tears stinging her eyes, Joyce sat on the floor, leaning against the wall of the elevator. Her hand rose above her head each time the lift stopped, smacking a random button above her. She didn't even know what floor she was on anymore and the braille of each elevator button was imprinted on her fingers from her continuous traveling. She had nowhere to turn this time. 

She knew she had to go back to her room at some point, but 'some point' didn't have to be now. Truthfully, she'd rather sleep in a cramped waiting room chair than go back to room 240. For now, she was going to keep riding the empty elevator up and down the floors. 

When the 145th fifteen-second elevator ride ended with a small 'ding', she saw familiar white nurses shoes step inside. Jenny sighed and slumped down next to Joyce on the floor of the lift. Her patient was clearly zoned out, earbuds stuffed into her ears with the same song on repeat.

 "That's a good song." Jenny whispered as she saw Joyce's phone set to 'Used to Love You Sober' by Kane Brown. Her words didn't phase Joyce, she continued to stare at the silver walls with tears welled in her eyes. 

"It's okay to be angry, Joyce" she sighed as she patted her back. Joyce's lip quivered with hurt before she leaned her head on Jenny's shoulder, beginning to sob harder than ever.

"It isn't fair!" she cried. "I made one mistake! I wouldn't even be in this situation if it weren't for Hopper!" Joyce spat his name out like it was poison on her lips, but Jenny just kept hugging her tightly. 

"I know, honey. I know." Jenny frowned as she let Joyce cry in her arms. She felt helpless, there was nothing she could do to take the pain away for Joyce. She could only let herself sit in the elevator while her patient cried in her lap. 

--

When Joyce was finally able to pull herself up, it was 2:47 in the morning. She peeked her head through the window of her room, making sure Hopper was asleep. He was laying on his side, facing the window with his headphones in. Joyce quietly snuck in, closing the curtain off between their beds.

She sighed softly as she laid down in bed. She had an alarm set to wake her up a few minutes before Hopper would wake up. All she could hope for was that she'd be up and out before he would know she was back.