I Just Wanted to be Edgy Too

Chapter Thirty-Four

Van

Ellie slept through Thursday.

She woke up once, blinked, looked around the room, and then fell back asleep quickly. I envied the way sleep found her, even if it was an affect of the medication she was on. I didn't know what it was like to sleep like that. I didn't know what it felt like to succumb to it. 

The doctors weaned her off her sedatives Wednesday night, shortly after I was discharged. I didn't go far. I made my way to Ellie's room and sank to the chair in the corner. I convinced the nurse I was her close friend, the only person within hundreds of miles that could be here for her, and when I thought about it, it wasn't really a lie. They let me stay. They knew the story by now. The police had taken my report down after I was discharged, and it matched the reports given by the strangers who were present for part of our fight, and the hotel's security footage.

Everyone around us knew the truth. The band, Steve, even Barns, wherever he was, knew most of our story. On top of that, everyone knew the truth about Ellie now, too. She wasn't some pill popping addict that Barns painted her to be. She was a very broken woman, who was a product of her circumstance. She let the venom of the villain win, and she believed every horrible thing Barns ever told her. I 'spose you can only hear something from someone for so long before you start to believe it. I don't know how long Ellie heard the things he said, but I knew it was long enough that she let that become her. 

The beeping of the machines next to her bed stirred me from my thoughts. Her heart rate increased for a moment before slowing back down to a resting rate. I relaxed. She'd done that a lot. There was a small tap at the door, and after a moment, the outline of Bondy appeared. I smiled and waved him in.

Bondy looked uncomfortable. He wasn't the type of person to be caught in a hospital. He couldn't hold still, and kept his eyes on the floor.

"Sorry mate...just not my favorite place to be."

"S'alright mate. I get it."

He nodded at Ellie in the bed before turning his gaze back to me. "She wake up at all yet?"

I shook my head. "Briefly but not enough to consider her conscious. At least she's not in pain when she sleeps."

"And what about you? How are you feeling?"

I moved my hand, the weight of it suddenly heavier than it was seconds before. "Pains me some, but I try to ignore it."

"Can't play guitar for six weeks I hear."

"I'm sure I'll be back at it before that."

Bondy kicked at an invisible scuff on the floor and shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket. I glanced at Ellie, chest rising slowly, and rose to my feet.

"I could use a tea. Care to join me?"

"Please." 

Bondy led the way from the room, and I shut the door gently behind me. He paused by the small lobby area, adorned with a few couches and a television that never turned off but always stayed muted, the captions filling the bottom of the screen. I shook my head. "This seems a little too formal. There's a coffee shop next to the gift shop. Why don't we go there?"