1985
Boston, Massachusetts
"Conan, do you have any idea of what you've done?"
Conan was dizzy, his bloody self being driven to the hospital. He knew Luke was on the backseat with him, and he knew his brother was talking as his lips moved, but he couldn't hear anything. He couldn't feel his left hand. He was breathing hard, his mind was a blank for a few minutes, he felt lethargic while fully awake. Luke talked to him, but he didn't understand a word. Conan was in shock and it took a while before Luke noticed it, and both just went silent as Mr. O'Brien drove them to the hospital.
"Where's June?" Conan asked after a moment of silence, as he came back to his senses. He still looked a bit lethargic, his eyes expressing a lack of emotion.
"She went the hospital, and you're going there too.
"Is she okay?"
"I hope so."
-
Conan arrived at the hospital, in a bloody, sweaty, disturbing state. As he was being patched up, the pain came in gradually, and as it became greater, he finally understood the state he was in. Soon his entire arm was aching, and his whole hand needed to be in a cast, with the exception of his right thumb. It didn't matter, it hurt like hell. Luke came to help and he sat with Conan to discuss the situation. Turns out, Conan's outburst wasn't something that could be easily forgotten.
"You know you could go to jail for this, right?"
Conan was quiet, the anxiety still trying to take over. He looked down to his aching hand. "I... need a painkiller."
His dad came and sat with him. "You are lucky your brother is a lawyer, Conan."
"What happened... to June?" he said, still looking down
"Conan, please let June go for one moment and think about yourself for a second." his dad said.
Conan was in blinding pain at this point but all he could think about was June. All of those people around him couldn't give him an answer. He could go to hell for all he did, but he needed to know if June was okay. He didn't want to know about implications, jail. He just wanted something for his hand as soon as possible, because the pain was absolutely unbearable.
"Can you please give me something for this?" he was trying to be polite, even though it was really difficult.
He wanted just to swallow a whole bottle of Valium, so he could sleep for at least three days. Not literally, but when in pain, people tend to think horrible things. His family decided it was better for him to stay at the hospital for a night at least, due to his mental and physical health. Luke and Mr. O'Brien still wanted to talk to him about this messy situation, but it was better not to. He took a good shower and got rid of his bloody clothes, had a morphine injection and went to sleep.
The next day, Conan prepared himself. for the inevitable. He didn't have a good night of sleep, but it was enough for him to calm down at least a little. Luke stayed with him at the hospital, and his mom came to visit. She wasn't angry at him, just concerned about his hand and the situation that unfolded. She had been there after he fell asleep to be sure everything was okay, and then Luke offered himself to keep an eye on him.
"Okay, Luke. I know you're mad at me, but..."
"I'm not mad." Luke said. "I understand why you did what you did. I just hope you didn't injure Scott pretty badly."
Conan sighed. "I snapped."
"You didn't snap, Conan." Luke continued. "You were just... tired."
"But please son, don't do this anymore." Mrs. O'Brien interfered.
Conan nodded. He sat on the hospital bed. "Do you know what's gonna happen to me?"
Luke shook his head. "No. But I'll do my best so hopefully nothing is gonna happen."
"And... June?"
"June is... unconscious, Conan. She's alive. Just get some rest. You'll probably be out in a few hours."
-
Conan ate and changed his clothes, being in a hospital gown never felt good. His arm was put in a sling, it wasn't broken, but it was swollen and he was experiencing muscular pain. He was let go in the evening. He wanted to see June, and his mom went with him. Luke went home. Conan knew what he did was wrong, but as the situation unfolded, his instincts kicked in. By God, if he was there sooner he would just call the police. And the police would take too long. He silently made his way to June's room, both were taken to the nearest hospital. She was sleeping, apparently. Or at least that's what Conan hoped was happening. The doctor came right after.
"She's fine." the doctor said. "We put her to sleep for a few hours."
"I saw the blood. It was a lot..." Conan whispered.
"It was a fair amount. She is stable. She'll be here for a few weeks. We are mostly monitoring her head trauma. We expect she'll make a full recovery."
Conan nodded and looked at her. "May I stay here a bit?"
The doctor nodded. "Sure. I think she was expected to wake up around this time."
Conan approached her bed and kneeled. The area around her nose and lips was bruised, and she had a little cut on her forehead. Her head was all wrapped up in gauze. He forgot for a second his mother was there. It was just the two of them. He wanted this to be different. He blamed himself for it. He kept thinking about all the times he talked back to his bullies, and he wished he'd never took her with him to places. Now their vengeance reached her the in the worst way possible. He shook his head.
"I'm sorry." he whispered. "I'm sorry for all of this."
"You're everything to me." he continued. "I should've told you sooner."
He felt like the air became heavier as he spoke. "No matter what happens from now on... just don't leave me."
His thumb caressed her fingers as he stared at her hands. "I don't think I can live without you."
"Boo-hoo." she said softly.
He looked up immediately. She was looking at him, still a bit sleepy and frail, but with a smile.
"Guess what? I'm not going anywhere." she spoke slowly. "I'm gonna be here forever."
Relief took over his face. "I love you."
She closed her eyes for a brief second, and smiled. "I know."
