“Yes, I’m her boyfriend,” I rush out, reeling from the fact she’s in surgery. Not knowing what is going on is killing me.
“Follow me, I will take you to the rest of the family.” She gives me a soft smile, clearly worried I might break down there and then. I’m very fucking close.
I don’t think I have ever in my life had a panic attack, and my body has decided that right now would be the perfect time to experience one for the first time. I can hear my own pulse throbbing through my head. Every joint in my fingers aches from the tight fists my hands have been in. Max grabs onto me, steering me in the direction the lady has gone. I didn’t know he had followed me.
Walking down the hallway to the family room feels like I’m walking the green mile. Dread pulsing through me at every step, not knowing what is waiting for me at the other end. When we finally make it to the open door, I can hear whimpering from the other side.
No.
Please tell me I’m not too late.
Bile starts to rise up my throat, and I choke, struggling to swallow it back down. Throwing the door open wider, we’re greeted by the shocked faces of my family and her friends. Blair and Gracie have fallen asleep on one of thecouches in the corner of the room. My parents and Lucy are trying to comfort Fallon. Even Jenson is here, standing close by the sleeping girls. How did he get here before me?
After taking in the room, I stride straight over to Fallon. I need to know what’s happening. I feel blind in all of this. I notice that Max has headed straight to Lucy, holding his arms open wide for her to fall into. Before I get a chance to ask any of my millions of questions, there’s a knock on the door.
A tall man in his mid-thirties, wearing blue scrubs and a cap, walks into the room.
“Good morning, everyone. I’m Dr Smyth. I have just got out of surgery with Maya,” He speaks in such a calm demeanour, surely that’s a good sign. “Firstly, I’m happy to inform you that she is stable, and surgery went well. She has suffered an open fracture on her forearm, which we have operated on and cleaned up for now, but she also has minor swelling on the brain. We have released the pressure, and so far, I feel happy with how it all went. We won’t know the full picture until she wakes up, but for now, we’re keeping her sedated to give her body time to heal. Once we’ve got her settled in her room, you will all be able to go and see her. Please don’t be alarmed if she doesn’t wake up for a while. Sleep is what will help her the most.”
I should feel relief, yet I still don’t have the full story. It feels like I’ve not had time to process anyof what has happened. Every fibre in my body is itching to go to her. To show her she isn’t alone.
“Do you have an update on Harry? I… I need to see him too,” Fallon’s lips tremble as she struggles to speak.
Shit, I forgot all about Harry.
Dr Smyth turns to her with a kind smile. “I’ll make sure you’re informed of any updates on Harry. Right now, he’s still critical and in surgery. It will be a while longer yet.”
Fallon chokes at that. Gasping as if she can’t suck in any oxygen. Mum grabs her, pulling her into a tight hug.
“You’ll let us know as soon as we can see Maya?” I demand, garnering curious glances from everyone in the room. They can all piss off. I’m not hiding this shit any longer. She’s my girl.
“I will send one of the nurses in as soon as she’s ready for visitors.” How is he so fucking calm?
My dad steps forward, trying to settle the unease in the room. “Thank you, Dr Smyth. We really appreciate it,” He leans forward to shake his hand.
After a few minutes of small talk, he leaves the room. As soon as he does, I spin towards my family.
“Can someone tell me what the hell is happening?” I bark out, my worry now turning into rage. I keep having visions of Maya, bruised, hurt and alone.
The sisters must have woken up when thedoctor came in, as Blair is the first one to answer me.
“It’s all my fault,” She cries out, wrapping her arms around herself. “If I… if I didn’t tell her to hail the taxi… none of this would have happened.”
“No!” Fallon bellows from across the room. “Don’t you dare blame yourself for this; that car came out of nowhere. None of us seen it, including Maya.”
“We had all left together, it could have been any of us,” Gracie supplies, grabbing onto her sister as though she were an injured animal.
“Not Harry,” Fallon starts to sob again, her anger fading away. “Harry is here because he saw it coming and tried to save Maya.” I am so confused right now. Fallon must notice as she continues. “Maya stepped onto the road to hail the cab, and a car's headlights came out of nowhere. I swear there was no other car on the street. Harry must have seen it coming as he ran to grab her and ended up taking the brunt of the car. They think her injuries are from hitting her head on the curb at such a force when he pulled her away.”
The reality of how close I have come to losing my girl is like a knife to the heart. All this time pining and wanting her from the sidelines seems pointless now that I have her. For her to be almost snatched away from me. I haven’t even had the chance to take her on an official date yet.
Fuck, I need to see her.
Max and Lucy stand, offering to get hot drinks for everyone, the most British thing they could possibly do. In our family’s eyes, a cup of tea can fix anything. If that were true, I’d spend every last penny I had on tea bags to help my girl. My mum offers to go with them, but they insist she wait with Fallon.
Once they head out, everyone takes a seat. My dad is coming to sit next to me.
“How are you holding up, son? I can’t imagine how hard this is for you.”
