johnny's eyes open slowly, the bright light above him causing the boy to wince. he tries sitting up, his head dizzy and the plain room spinning. he starts to panic, what're the hell is he?
"johnny? johnny calm down" he hears a voice but he can't see the person.
his vision is blurry and watery as his eyes fill with tears because of how much pain that's flowing through his bruised and sore body.
"son it's dad and darian, you're in the hospital okay?" sales smooth voice speaks calmly.
"hospital?" johnny repeats, letting himself be gently shoved back down onto the bed by his older sister.
darian strokes his messy hair, her eyes glued to his.
"you got attacked at the football game and you almost- you almost died johnny" she croaks, the thought of losing her little brother haunting her.
johnny's thick eyebrows contort as he tries to remember everything that happened on the field. he remembers mackenzie. she smiled at him and waved. he waved back and then someone yelled at him before tackling him and banging his head off of the grass covered ground a numerous amount of times.
"where's kenz? is she alright?" he asks, needing to know. he hopes that she isn't too upset about what happened. johnny knows she'll be worrying.
"she's fine, she's giving a statement to the police right now but then she'll be here okay?" dale tells him, patting his sons hand.
"why is she at the police station?" johnny asks, his voice full of worry. is she okay? what happened?
darian and her father share a look of concern. do they tell him about sage and how he was the one who set it all up? or do they leave him in the dark for his own good?
"maybe she'll tell you when she gets here but right now. you have to rest, you suffered from a serious head injury johnny" darian responds, deciding against telling him.
if johnny knew, he'd get angry and go looking for sage himself and he'd get worked up about it which isn't something he should be doing right now.
after the police station, mackenzie and nadia drive back to the hospital. nadia didn't think she'd be welcome but mackenzie insisted, she can tell that the green eyed girl is really sorry for what she did and she also knows that nadia cares deeply about johnny. it wasn't all for popularity.
getting out of the car, mackenzie rubs at her eyes. she hasn't slept yet and then she's slowly starting to go insane. nadia stops by the starbucks inside the hospital, she grabs two coffees for she and mackenzie, hoping the caffeine will wake them up just enough to get through the next few hours.
"hey, there you are" lauren sighs, pulling mackenzie into a hug. the brunette embraces the blonde, hugging her back tightly.
"any news?" mackenzie asks.
laurens smile suggest that there is. she glances at nadia for a moment, making her feel nervous. lauren flashes a soft smile at nadia though, now is not the one to be arguing or to be petty.
"he's awake and doing well, the swelling on his brain has gone down and his blood temperatures are also good" she speaks clearly, for both worried girls to hear.
feeling like she could collapse with relief, mackenzie lets out a sigh, her smile growing as she pulls nadia into a hug. johnny's going to be okay and sage is where he's supposed to be. everything's falling into place.
"can we see him?" nadia asks, her voice small and uncertain.
lauren nods, gesturing for the two girls to follow her. they go up in the elevator and arrive at the hospital wing where johnny's being kept. the hallways are filled with a strong scent that isn't very pleasant. loud beeping sounds belonging to various machines fill their ears as well as the sound of phones ringing and low murmurs.
lauren stops outside of a room, dale and darian are also seated outside. they stand up, exchanging hugs with both kenzie and nadia, all of them relieved that everything is going smoothly.
"nadia would you like to go in? it's only one person at a time right now, too many people can be too much for him" darian explains to the two newcomers.
eagerly, nadia nods her head, her hand holding onto the door handle. she shares a look with lauren before stepping inside and closing the door. although mackenzie knows that nadia and johnny aren't together like she previously thought, it still worries her. what if almost dying made him realise that it is nadia he wants to be with and that he possibly does still have feelings for her.
johnny shifts his head, a small smile tugging at his lips when he sees a nervous nadia approach him. her green eyes are dull and glazed. her hair is in a messy bun and she looks very uncomfortable.
"hi" she greets the tired boy, standing beside his bed.
"hey" johnny smiles. "you okay?".
nadia nods but fails to keep the tears from flowing. she covers her face with her hands, embarrassed about everything.
"nads, come on don't cry" johnny pleases, pulling her down onto the soft mattress. she lets him but doesn't remover her hands. she sobs louder as he hugs her, her head on his shoulder.
"i'm so sorry johnny it's all my fault" she cries.
"don't blame yourself, it was a mistake and an accident but hey, i'm alive, see!" he exclaims, not wanting her to feel bad.
johnny hates seeing her like this. he's so used to the bossy, independent nadia that never cries. she's strong and smart, brave and so beautiful. the last thing he wants is for her to crumble right before him.
"you know, she's a great girl" nadia smiles sadly, finally looking at him. their eyes connect, both of them staring at each other intensely.
"who?" he questions dumbly.
she smacks his arm playfully.
"mackenzie you doofus" she laughs.
johnny smiles, a blush creeping into his slightly tanned skin. he looks down at his hand that rests on nadias knee.
"she is, isn't she?" he says.
"yeah...she is" nadia confirms. "and what's going to happen is that i'm going to leave and go home, take a bath, and sleep. and what you're going to do is tell her how you feel, tell her how you've always felt and treat her with the respect she deserves. don't break her heart johnny because if you do....i will not hesitate, bitch" she says, her tone serious. maybe a little too serious.
johnny's eyes go wide, nodding his head as a smile forms. he leans in to hug the girl he's known forever. johnny's glad that he's finally getting to meet the real nadia though and not just some imposter she pretends to be.
"i love you johnny and i'm glad you didn't die" she smiles, a laugh escaping his mouth.
"i love you too nadia".
it may only be a platonic relationship they have from now on but that's all they could ever want and at least they'll still be in each other's lives. friends for ever.
________________________________________________________________________
he ain't dead
