Haunted

"Why are you here?" - UNEDITED

Disclaimer: This chapter has not been edited from the original as posted on JBFF. There will be mistakes, typos, continuity problems and other issues.

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"Make her leave," Wes pleaded. "Lock the door while she's gone, anything."

"I can't do that," Maddox smiled. He was at the hospital visiting Wes a few days later. Kylie had all but moved into Wes's hospital room. She'd only left them just then to get coffee. "She'll murder me and then where will we be?"

"Ugh," Wes slumped against his pillows. "I have cancer and I still can't have a break."

"What part bothers you the most?" Maddox asked. "Maybe we can get her to tone it down."

"She's always here," Wes said. "I just want my space."

"Okay, you understand your mother is not going to leave you alone in the hospital while you're sick, right?" Maddox pointed out.

"Well don't say it that way," Wes huffed. "It's not like I want her to abandon me. But she never shuts up."

"See, that we can fix," Maddox said.

"Have you met my mom? She doesn't stop talking," Wes said. "I don't think it's possible. Dad says she even talks in her sleep."

"She does," Maddox laughed. "But I have some ideas."

"Hmph," Wes looked over at the window.

"Wes?" a soft voice called.

Maddox looked over to see Aiden's friend, Luke, standing at the door. He looked pale and really worried. It took Maddox only a few more seconds to realize this Luke was the Luke - the same one Wes had texted.

"Hi," Wes started to sit up. He started coughing so Maddox raised the head of his bed for him so he wouldn't have to sit up the rest of the way. The cough was a side effect of the chemo, the worst one so far. Though he looked exhausted, Wes was still Wes.

"I'll just go get you more ice," Maddox said, getting up. "You can come in," he told Luke on his way out with Wes's cup.

"I, um," Luke took a few steps inside the door. "They said no flowers or stuffed animals," he said.

"I don't want any of that," Wes said. Maddox smiled. He waited outside the door, not just because he was nosy but because he wanted to make sure Wes was okay.

"Okay," Luke said.

"Come here," Wes said.

"I don't want to get too close," Luke said.

"You can't catch it," Wes told him.

"I know, but," Luke didn't finish his sentence.

"Why are you here?" Wes asked.

"I wanted to see you," Luke said.

They were quiet after that and Maddox hurried down the hall to get Wes's ice. He wanted to know what was happening but he didn't want to completely spy on Wes either. Poor kid had a hard enough time getting privacy without him there listening in.

Maddox took his time walking back down the hall. He pretended to be really interested in all the art hanging on the walls. It looked a lot like the hall at school, like the kids who were in the hospital had gotten to hang up their artwork after a special art day or something.

Just as Maddox was about to turn around and do another lap he saw Kylie come rushing off the elevator and ran to stop her before she could go into Wes's room. She wasn't easy to interrupt but Maddox took her arm.