The Boy I Used To Know ( A Josh Hutcherson FanFic)

Chapter 28

Annie returned a few hours later than she had intended and hoped Josh had not awaken before she arrived. Though it was a bad thing to hope for, she didn't want Kayne to have beat her to being there first when Josh wakes up.

She entered the room quietly, immediately taken aback by the closeness of Kayne who was asleep beside Josh. He had one arm wrapped around Josh protectively and his head on Josh's chest. It rose and fell to Josh's slow breathing and for a moment, she almost felt bad.

Seeing that they both were asleep, she guessed Josh was not out of his coma yet, so she settled down on a sofa by his bed and read for awhile. Not long later, she heard movement on the bed and turned to see if Josh was finally conscious. Kayne sat up, stretching and yawning. He glanced towards her and almost fell off the bed. 

"Jeez, woman! Way to scare somebody shit-less. What are you doing here?" he asked, annoyance clear in his tone. He slid out of the bed and rearranged the blankets so it kept Josh snug.

"Be glad I didn't call the nurses or kick you out of his bed," she snapped, putting her book down.

"It's too early to argue. If you don't mind, I'm going to go get some air," he said, storming out of the room. 

Kayne paced around the corridor of the Oncology ward, his head whirring with insults. He hadn't a clue what to say when Annie caught him in Josh's bed. It wasn't because it embarrassed him. Heck, he'd make out with Josh in front of her to spite her if he could. Kayne had never let anyone see how intimate he was with Hutcherson. The nurses probably already suspected something was up, that he knew. They'd never caught him though; so when Annie showed up unannounced, for God knows how long, watching him sleep beside Josh, it made him feel almost afraid.

Does his parents know? Will they disown Josh? Will they hate him for possibly "converting" Josh? He had a hundred questions but none he had an answer to. Kayne sat down beside the medicine counter and before long a nurse came up to him.

"Hey there, Kayne," she greeted with a smile.

He recognised her voice. "Nurse Judy, hey. I'm just leaving.." he started to get up.

"Oh, it's alright. I need to speak to you, if that's okay? It's about your roommate, Josh," she told him.

"What about him?"

She shifted her gaze to the floor, hesitating.

"His parents are here and they want to see him but I don't think it's a good time. Is he awake yet?" she asked.

Kayne shook his head in reply, eyebrows beginning to furrow. "Is something wrong? Why is it a bad time?"

"They've got company and I'm afraid it might be a shock to Josh when he wakes up," she told him, stressing on the word company. Kayne wondered who they might be. Probably an old friend or relative.

"So, what do you need me to do?"

"Be there for him. Stop arguing with Annie. He may be unconscious but he can still hear the bickering. It's not healthy," she told him. It was apparent that their argument was heard by the nurses but being called out on it sucked. Kayne looked down, feeling guilty.

"I know you want what's best for him but Annie is what is best for him too. You both are the closest thing he has to normalcy and he loves you both. You may think it'd be wise for him to choose but it is not. Let him live what is left of his fragile life without unnecessary heartbreak," she advised him. She placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. "Look, Kayne. I'm not saying stop loving him, but quit limiting the love he deserves to receive from you both. He is, after all, only a boy."