Preacher Man // ross lynch + driver era

33

A week later, I was able to visit Ross' mom in the hospital. The two of us make our way down the bright hallway to the last room on the left. Their dad made sure to transfer her to one of the nicest rooms with a pretty view so she would feel comfortable – using as much money as he needed to.

"Hi mom," Ross says once we step into the room. Flowers, teddy bears and balloons decorate the room.

She smiles weakly. "Hi," I say to her as well.

"Hi lovelies," her voice is raw and tired.

Ross books it to her side. "Do you need water? You sound dry," he says as his head whips around to try and find a liquid to help soothe her throat.

She nods. "I just woke up not too long ago," she explains.

"I'll go find some," I smile at them then exit the room. I spot a nurse and ask her for the water.

Moments later I walk back into the room and hand her the water. "Thank you. It's so good to see you, Hayley. How are you?" She takes a huge swig of water, wincing as it made its way down.

I smile at her. "I've been great."

I'm afraid to ask how she has been. I know the answer, so do I still ask? She's sick as though she is deteriorating as each second passes. She can't even breathe on her own anymore. Her head is wiped clean of any trace of hair follicles. Do I ask her how she is when the answer is right in front of my face?

"Mom, I didn't tell you. Hayley works with Morgan," Ross thankfully saves me from the overthinking in my head.

His mom looks at us with confused eyes. "Your ex-girlfriend? Didn't she move?"

"It's crazy. She basically goes by her first name now. And she's hooking up with their married manager," he continues.

The way he looks at his mother warms my heart and breaks it at the same time. He looks at her with admiration, but there is so much sadness in his eyes.

She laughs. "I can see she's grown up tons."

We stayed for three hours. I've talked to his mom a handful of times before, but it seemed like we couldn't run out of things to talk about. After we said our goodbyes once their dad arrived to keep her company, Ross and I walked out to the parking lot.

"She loves you," he says as we approach the car. "She acts a certain way to my family's girlfriends or boyfriends if she likes them. She didn't like one of Rocky's ex's and everyone could tell. But she definitely loves you."

I smile. "I'm glad. She's an amazing woman," I reply.

He nods with a smile adorned onto his face. "Want to come back to my place and do some homework?" He asks.

Forty minutes later, we were sprawled out on his living room floor with our textbooks and laptops out. "I don't get this," I groan, my face flat against the floor.

"I'll quiz you again. You have to know all of the parts of the cells and their functions. Our test is coming up," he replies.

I pout and sit up so I can face him. "Fine," I whine.

"What is the... rough endoplasmic reticulum?"

I simply stare back into his eyes. "I don't know," I whisper pathetically. "These words don't even sound like English."

"Mitochondria?"

I smile. "Powerhouse of the cell, duh." He rolls my eyes at me. "What? It's not my fault it became some meme and now I understand it."

"Smooth endoplasmic reticulum?" He quizzes.

"Can you tell me what the rough one does?" I question.

I don't understand this. Trust me, I study, but my brain isn't grasping this.

"The rough endoplasmic reticulum carries out protein synthesis, they're internal membranes studded with ribosomes," Ross explains.

I crawl over so I am inches away from him. He stares at me with questioning eyes, his hands grasping the textbook. "I love it when you talk science to me," I say. I will do anything in efforts to stop studying. My brain has shut off for the night and I know I won't understand it even if I tried to right now.

"I am not kissing you until you tell me one correct answer," he says, leaning away from me a bit so I can't push my lips on his.

I roll my eyes. "Mitochondria," I defend myself.

I may not have learned it from class, but I do know it. So that counts.

"Nope, another one."

I sit back onto my bottom and cross my arms. "Not fair." I close my eyes and try to tap into the memory of my previous studying. "The peroxisome contains enzymes," I say.

"What kind of reactions do they carry out?" Ross questions me further, testing my knowledge.

I bite down on my lip gently. "Peroxisome," I mutter softly to myself. "They can detoxify harmful molecules?"

"Yes baby! I know you understand this stuff. You just need to concentrate. You get too distracted," he says with a wide smile on my face. With a swift movement, he slides the textbook across the wooden floor and cups my cheek to bring me closer. "Now fuck this studying, kiss me."

---

a/n: i'm home from college on my winter break, so i haven't had much time to write. i'm hoping to catch up soon. hope all is well and sorry for the short chapter x