Be Your Everything

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Alive, Barely

Chapter Twenty-Seven:

Alive, Barely.

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"Are you ready to go home?" Jessie asked Cameron as she unhooked his IV's. He said his throat felt much better and he could breath perfectly fine. I think he was just saying that so he could get out of that closed space.

I concentrated on grabbing his stuff together and shoving it in the duffle bag his parents had brought him the first day they got here. So far, Cameron had only been in the hospital for two days. It was great considering the awful condition he was in. I had a flashback of how I saw him squirming on the ground with his hands around his throat, eyes squeezed shut. He looked completely helpless.

I cringe from the thought and turned to watch Jessie unhook everything from Cameron. Anything to distract myself. I knew that as soon as we left here, Cameron and I would go our separate ways for a little while and I'll be alone to think about everything. This is going to eat me alive. I closed my eyes and sighed heavily for a moment. Cameron has to go home to his family for a little while. Although I wished so bad that he didn't have to, I knew he needed to and probably wanted the comfort of his own bed.

Then the thought of him staying with me while my parents were away, it still stunned me. How could my dad give in like that? I'm sure, him being a cop, he weighed his options carefully. Who else did he have to trust in town or anywhere close that didn't have to take off work to stay with me? He knew me well enough to know that I wouldn't be able to handle being alone. Cameron was his only choice, and he trusted him.

Cameron told me that my dad set rules as well. Cameron had to sleep on the couch downstairs to be near the phone and the door and what not, he wasn't allowed to sleep in the same room as me, and he had to respect me. He even told me that my dad said this, and I quote, "her body, her rules. My house, my rules". I laughed at that. That's my dad, always over protective.

"Ready?" I heard the door creak open and my eyes darted over to see Mrs. Bridges step inside. She was if in her son a happy smile and her light eyes slid over to meet mine. Her smile grew warmer as she approached me, arms stretched wide. I could hardly manage a smile at that point, but I made sure to make up for that with a tight hug.

"Thank you, Sophia. We don't know what we'd do without you." She gushed to me in my ear. I nodded my head and gave her a small smile. She grabbed Cameron's duffle bag and slung it over her shoulder as she approached the door.

"I'll be in the car out front." She waved goodbye to me and I retired the favor as she walked away. Cameron stood up from his bed and walked over to me. The room was now silent, only the two of us there to break it. I didn't left my head to meet his gaze as he stalked over to me. He had finally put on a pair of khaki tan shorts and a blue Nike shirt.

He wrapped his arms around me and I automatically slid my arms around his waist. His hands went to my hair and held my head in place against his chest. I could hear his heartbeat against my ear and it seemed to be in rhythm with mine. I was happy for the sound of his heart. I didn't want the silence to surround me. It will only give me time to think.

I fought back tears as I clung to Cameron's shirt with my nails. I wasn't going to cry. I had plenty of time to do that alone, later. And to be perfectly honest, I don't know what I would be crying about. Cameron is fine and healthy. Matt is... okay, so far. Mom called me and informed that the first treatment went well, it was definitely a little painful for Matt, though. Maybe it was that. The fact that my baby brother was going through all that pain and I wasn't there to hold his hand or even read him a bedtime story. It sucked. Majorly.