Book 3: You Don't Want My Love (Slash FanFic)

Ch. 24: Stuck With Me

Izzy was seated outside of Steven's hospital room, his leg jiggling as he looked every which way as if he was expecting somebody. I guess that person happened to be me, because he shot right up when he saw me. He met me halfway between the room and the elevator, clapping me on the shoulder as he pulled me into a tight hug.

This sudden outburst of affection was really out of character for Izzy, and it kind of freaked me out a little bit. Had Steven said something to him? Was I about to get a similar kind of scolding? I was becoming even more anxious about seeing Steven again.

"Are you ready?" Izzy asked me softly as he slowly pulled away.

"Not really," I admitted with a sigh.

"Well, he's been ready for you since I called," Izzy informed me, giving a nod towards Steven's room for emphasis. "Don't keep him waiting."

"Right," I muttered, even though I was still mentally debating on whether I should turn tail and run or not. But I had already made the trip to the hospital and come all this way to see Steven, and besides, Izzy had his hand pushing against my back as though he knew that I was plotting an escape route. I had nowhere else to go but forward.

Heaving a sigh, I forced my feet to carry me further down the hall until they planted themselves firmly just outside of Steven's door. This was it. I had to face him.

I knew I had to go in there, but for some reason, my legs-which had been functioning fairly well when I'd had Izzy there to push me along-suddenly no longer wanted to cooperate. My knees were shaking slightly, threatening to buckle underneath me if I took another step, and my shoes felt like they had been switched out and replaced with slabs of solid concrete.

I can't do it, I squeezed my eyes shut as my hands began to ball into fists, trembling with a mix of frustration and fright. I'm such a piece of shit....

"Hey!" A groggy voice echoed from around the corner. My eyes snapped open at the sound, and the shaking ceased as my entire body froze. "What's taking you so long?"

The voice was hoarse and a little muffled, but it was definitely Steven's. I recognized it right away, and my entire being snapped to attention, finally lifting me out of the trance that I was in.

I slowly peered around the corner, peeking into the hospital room that I had been practically living in with Izzy during Steven's entire stay. It looked a lot bigger without myself or Izzy in there with him. It looked a lot brighter too, though I assumed that that was because of Steven's wide, flashing grin.

My eyes widened as my gaze finally came to rest on him. His smile....

It was all broken on one side, causing his usual toothy grin to be somewhat dilapidated and watered down. I could hardly even stand to look at him, and yet I couldn't look away either. I couldn't bear the sight of him. It was almost more heart breaking than when he'd been in a coma. Seeing that once carefree grin now half-mangled, it was like getting a glimpse of the real Steven. The Steven underneath all of the upbeat antics and shiny eyes. It was like a physical reminder of all that he'd been through, a crack in his otherwise jovial mask.

If I looked absolutely horrified, Steven either pretended not to notice or just didn't care.

"Aren't you going to come in and say hi?" Steven asked, cocking his head slightly.

"Uh..." I blinked at him.

"That means I'm inviting you in."

I continued to stand there like an idiot, my mind still reeling from the shock of seeing him sitting up and talking like nothing had happened, like he hadn't just almost died and scared the shit out of all of us.