The Ways in Which I Die (COMPLETED)

CHAPTER 21: "YOU WERE RIGHT"

SUMMER

The sun is beginning to peek through the blinds in the hospital waiting room when Summer opens her eyes.

"How long have I been asleep?" Summer asks slowly as she lifts her head off Hope's shoulder. However long it had been, it hadn't done her any good. The same feeling of hollow dread hangs over her head like a heavy rain cloud, and the knot in her throat is still hanging there tough and bitter.

"You passed out around four," Hope says absently. "It's eightish right now."

Summer sits up a little straighter, alarm spikes up insider send electrical like bolts of panic through her body. "And they still haven't come out here with an update!"

Hope shakes her head. "Not yet, but I've been on shift for these types of things before. It can be a lot of touch and go for a long time."

Summer lets out a heavy sigh of defeat and buries her face in her hands. "This means it's bad, right?"

Hope's hesitance to answer answers the question for her. "It was pretty bad, and we don't know how long he was laying there before we got home..."

"This is all my fault," Summer chokes. If she had just stayed home with him this wouldn't have happened. She's not even sure how or why it happened. He didn't do it, she knows that much, deep down she really knows it. After everything and how well he'd been doing, he just wouldn't. The burning question is: who did shoot him and why?

"Summer look, there's nothing you could have done. If he was gonna do it he was gonna do it-"

"He didn't, Hope!" Summer snaps lifting her head up. "I don't know why no one believes me."

"Summer! There was no one else there to shoot him!" Hope protests.

"But-"

"Summer," Hope whispers softly.

"No." Summer insists as anger begins to simmer in her blood. "I know him. He didn't shoot himself."

"Excuse me." Summer turns around to see a doctor approaching them. "I'm Dr. Banner."

Summer stands up quickly, her heart leaping into her throat. The man standing before doesn't look like he's about to tell her Anthony's dead. He doesn't look like someone who just lost a seven hour battle for someone's life. "Is he going to be okay?"

"He pulled through," the doctor says, his voice low.

"So he's going to be okay?" James pipes up as he comes to stand next to Summer.

The doctor glances at them nervously. "I'm afraid it's too early to tell. As of right now, we don't even know if he's going to wake up."

A heavy stone of dread sinks in Summer's stomach and a queasy feeling like she's going to throw up comes over her.

"He's in a coma?" James choked question speaks for her, and she feels hollow with dread.

The doctor musters a weak head nod. "He's breathing on his own and his other life functions are all working as they should, but yes, he is currently comatose."

Summer sinks into the closest chair, wiping one shaky hand down her face. "Can we go see him?"

"Not yet. He's still in post op, but you'll be notified as soon as he's ready for visitors."

"Thank you, doctor." Summer hears James say quietly. Her vision begins to blur with tears as James rests a gentle hand on her shoulder. She tries and fails to hold her tears back. "He can make it through this."

~~~~~

JESS JONES

"Hi!" Jess says with mock enthusiasm as she throws a file down on the interrogation room table. It takes all of her self control to not leap across the table and strangle the woman sitting across from her. "You must be Ms. Sunrise Grant."