The Broken Pieces Left Behind

Chapter 24

Jack's been in an accident, he's in the hospital.

Those words followed me, echoing in my ear, amplifyingy fear as I hastily got dressed and hustled out of my apartment to hail a taxi. My only thought as the car lurched forward only to stop or slow at the traffic lights, only to move again was that the cab ride was taking too long.

My body was wound so tightly that my hands couldn't remain still and my leg bounced to the anxious beat of my heart.

He had to be alright. He just had to be.

My mind flashed back to when my father was in the hospital. The hope, the heartbreak, the crushing disappointment that he wouldn't be home again. It couldn't be a repeat of that, but there was a lingering fear in me that said that it could be. A fear that he wouldn't be fine and that made my heart clench and tears leak out of my eyes. If the cab driver noticed he, thankfully said nothing.

I didn't know the extent of his injuries but my thoughts wandered to the worst possible senarios.

The building loomed before me like a meancing shadow determined to snatch away my happiness, as we pulled up to the front of the hospital. The large white, concrete structure burning with lights and busy sounds tugged on my insides painfully. Hospital's always reminded me of death and false hopes.

I found James nervously pacing the corridor when I arrived at the Emergency Ward, guided by the directions given to me by the woman at the front desk with the round face and cherub cheeks. His tie was gone and his white shirt slightly wrinkled and folded to his elbows. His eyes were grim and his mouth set in a thin line making my mind wander to the worst, because I had never seen his this distressed, ever.

Jack wasn't okay my mind immediately chimed.

My hands trembled, but I clenched them into fists to stop them from shaking. My legs felt heavy and refused to move, but I forced my feet forward and made my way towards him.

"Becca?" He seemed slightly surprised to see me but his shoulders slumped in momentary relief as if he were happy not to be there alone.

"What happened?" hoping that my voice didn't sound as uneven as if felt.

He didn't answer right away and I caught my lower lip between my teeth hoping it would prevent the sobs I could feel pushing up from my throat, threatening to break free. He sank into the cushioned, fabric covered chairs that lined the pale walls and let out a heavy sigh. He pushed his fingers through his hair - an action I'd seen Jack do numerous times before, especially when he was frustrated - before meeting my eyes. His face was grim and the lines at the corners of his eyes were a lot more noticable than before.

"He lost control pf his motorcycle and slid off the road." His voice was strained and he cleared his throat trying to get the words out. "That idiot. I told him that he had to be careful on that thing. The doctors think he might have a concussion and a few fractured ribs, but we'll only know more when he wakes up."

I nodded, a shaky jerk of my head, my knees feeling unsteady and weak. James caught my shoulders and I looked up at him, I hadn't even realized that he'd moved, or that i was about to fall. He guided me to sit and took the space next to me, his eyes softening and holding mine.

"He'll be fine," Jack comforted gently rubbing circles against my shoulder. "He's to stubborn to give up."

I nodded, though I drew little comfort from his words. "He wasn't at school today. I thought maybe he was avoiding me."

"He wasn't," he assured, as if sensing the insecurity in my voice. "We needed some time away. Today is the anniversary of our parents' accident."

My head snapped around to him, my eyebrows raising my question. The anniversary of his parents accident? He never said anything to me about it and had, selfishly never asked. It then occured to me that I was a terrible girlfriend. I unloaded all my problems on him, and there were a lot of them, but I never dug deeper than what he was willing to show. And maybe it was wrong of me to think that he had it all put together, he never really showed that he was struggling, so I didn't think to ask.