Waiting For You | Michael & Semaj || COMPLETED!!

Chapter 12 | Right Here

Never to be mistaken, long as it's love we're makin'
There'll be no hesitating you and me
And it always will be, and I won't leave your side
'Cause you know
Love will be right here

Semaj's POV

I drove.

Not that Michael didn't try to get behind the wheel, because he did, but I knew that it was best if I was the one driving and not him. My decision was wise because every time I glanced over at Michael he looked spaced out.

I tried not to pester him with questions knowing that, with everything going on, he'd probably snap at me, but I was worried.

Worried because he'd been here for a whole week and none of his family knew besides Katherine. Worried because he'd been here all this time and hadn't gone to see Joseph. Worried because while I was trying to communicate my feelings to him, so that we would be on the same page, he hadn't extended me the same courtesy.

I knew that right now was the wrong time to be nitpicking at things that didn't really seem to matter, but I needed Michael to talk to me.

I sighed and reached over to turn the music down that I'd initially turned up to drown out the silence. "Michael?"

He didn't really answer in words. It was more like a sound emitted from his throat in a form of a yes. "You can talk to me. I may not know how you're feeling, or how to deal with it, but maybe talking about it will at least help."

"Semaj," my name came out broken, so he cleared his throat. "There ain't nothing to talk about."

My eyebrows rose as I kept my eyes ahead at the road. "Nothing to talk about? Joseph is in the hospital... lying on his death bed. That is more than enough to talk about."

"A'ight, how about I don't wanna talk about it. That better?"

No, I thought to myself, but what actually came out of my mouth was a sheepish, "okay."

I left the conversation, and Michael, alone the remainder of the drive to the hospital. The only time we spoke again was when I offered to drop him off at the entrance while I went and parked in the garage, but he gave me a look as if I was crazy for even suggesting it.

"There be nutcases roamin' out here and shit, so no. Park the car and we gon walk over there together."

He was right, and I felt dumb for suggesting it in the first place, so I parked the car and we walked through the garage and over to the emergency entrance. Joseph was an actual inpatient, so we had to make a small commute to the ICU and we were about to turn back around to find a nurse who could give us simpler directions when we thought we were on the wrong floor, but I recognized Janet coming out of the restroom and called out for her.

She turned around, proving to look more like Michael now than when she was younger. Especially since she was upset. A lot had changed in the matter of a few months.

Her eyes were red, and just like us, it was as if she wasn't getting enough sleep. It made me wonder if anyone had been getting any sleep lately with all the drama and death looming in the air. She'd obviously stopped crying, but as she ran to Michael, knocking a breath out of him as her body collided with his, she started to sob into his chest.

He said no words as he wrapped his arms around her tightly, letting himself be her shoulder to cry on. Once she calmed down a little bit she pulled back and used the tissue she'd retrieved from the bathroom and wiped at her eyes before coming to hug me. At least one of my sisters weren't upset with me.