Summer Romance

Summer Romance: Chapter 14

*** Kelly's P.O.V. ***

I pace back and forth in the lobby still in my hospital gown. A little girl watches me curiously from her seat and shifts uncomfortably. I ignore her and anxiously wait for my friends to arrive with Karlie.

I've been in the ICU's lobby for the past two hours, jumping every time a nurse or doctor would walk out.

"What's going with Austin now?"

I ask for the hundreth time to the desk nurse. She smile sympathetically and says, like before,

"He's going to be fine and all this worrying will only harm you. Please go back to your room."

Time seems to completely disappear and the whole night all I can do is wish that what ever was going to happen would just happen. Tormented by thoughts of what could happen I tremble.

"What if this is it?"

I think to myself.

"The last time I ever see him?"

The nurse starts to stand up and looks at me with worry in her eyes and I whisper,

"I need help."

I grip the desk with my hands and I see enough that my knuckles are turning white. My body starts to quake and my knees give out underneath me. I stay there collapsed on the floor waiting for it to all disappear.

The nurse turns around and pushes a button and starts yelling,

"Code blue! Code blue!" 

Her voice starts to fade and with it my consciousness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (Kelly's P.O.V.)

I close my eyes for what I think is only going to be a minute but come to to lights streaming in through the drapes. A man's voice comes from outside of the door. I squeeze my eyelids tightly together and hold my breath.

"Kelly is in the very first stages of shock," says the man competently.

My eyes open wide, what had caused me to go into shock? I'm not in shock, I shrug the blanket off and wiggle myself into a sitting position.

Everyone turns their heads to stare at me. I say the first thing still on my mind,

"Where's Austin?"

I ask, panicked.

"Kelly everything is fine lie back down,"

My mother smiles sadly and makes her way to the right side of my hostipal bed. She caresses my head and pushes my hair back.

"Everything is not fine!"

I spit vehemently. My mother takes a step back startled and my dad wraps an arm around her protectively. I look down, ashamed at the hurt I caused to fill my mom's eyes. I say, nicer but still pain saturates my voice,

"If everything is fine then take me to see Austin,"

"It's against protocol,"

The man in the scrubs supplies. He coms to foot of my bed and cocks his head to the side awaiting my response.

"Really?"

I ask, my voice cracks and I quiver.

"Honest to God, if I could take you to see him I would do it in a heartbeat,"

My eyes water and I slide back down under the covers of the uncomfortable hospital bed. Karli sighs on the couch next to me and continues to text people or whatever else she's doing on her phone.

My mom says in a quiet voice to me,

"Go to sleep baby, when you wake up everything will be fine. I'm leaving your phone on this side table."

She kisses my forehead and says to my dad and sister,

"Let's go find the cafeteria." 

I feel my family's lingering gazes at me so I close my eyes and pretend to sleep, hopefully they will leave. My small hands curl into fists under the blankets and I lie there paralyzed. I know what I need to do.

I slow my breathing and I fall into a semi-conscious state. After a few minutes of this, everyone - including the doctor  - leaves. I stay still for the count of fifty before sliding out of the bed.

I tip-toe over to the hospitals dresser and dig through it hoping to find some of my clothes. Much to my luck theres a pair of sweats and a random t-shirt. I throw them on, ignoring the shoes set aside for me --- they would be to loud, instead I slide on socks.

I quietly walk over to the door and press my ear against it, at first, all there is is silence. Then a cart comes rushing by, I run over to my bed and sprawl across the mattress ---- just in case someone was about to barge in. For a few minutes I breathe heavily terrified that someone was going to catch onto my plan. When no one comes in after another count of fifty I try  again.

This time I don't wait, slowly I turn the door knob and peer out into the hallway. No one is in my line of vision. Quickly I walk over to the public bathroom.

"So far so good," I chant to myself.

I glance back over towards the nurses desk on this floor and it's empty. I slide across the slick floor, stubbing my toe on the flat surface.

The computer's browser is up and running. Awkwardly I bend over it and do a search. Within seconds the hospitals patient list pops up. I type in Austin's name and cross my fingers and close my eyes. It lets out a little ding causing me to flinch.

Room 203

That's where he is. That's where he's being hidden. A lazy grin crosses my face. This was almost to easy. I decide to take the stairs because the hospital staff will be less likely to find me that way... Won't they?

The stairs stretch in front of me endlessly, cheering me on with nasty comments. Finally I get to the top of the stairs and take a left.

"Just a couple doors down," I whisper to myself feeling slightly insane.

199, 200, 201, 202, I read the small numbers carefully wishing they could give me some form of hope before I opened that dreaded door.

203 pops up in front of me much sooner than I had hoped it would. I open the door slowly, cautiously. I take in a deep breath trying to calm my nerves.

Before I can convince myself otherwise I step into the room and immediately wish I hadn't.

** A/N

Hey guys! I'm sorry for the super long wait, I've had a ton of homework lately and have completely fallen behind on my writing. Please forgive me?! XX ~ buswriters98