Just another Loliver oneshot for the Loliver Summer Post-a-thon. Read and review please.

Your Face

Lilly's heart raced.

Her stomach lurched and she drove faster. This couldn't happen. It didn't seem possible. A Mack truck in front of her was slowly inching along.

Exasperated and out of breath, she floored it and passed the truck as fast as she possibly could. Her hands gripped the wheel and her knuckles bulged out and turned white.

How much longer? She'd never forgive herself if something happened and she didn't make it in time. She sped up to 80 and passed a neon sign that told her to 'slow down'. "In your dreams…" She mumbled.

She finally sped into an exit and pulled into the hospital parking lot. Her stomach ached as she jumped out of the car and dashed across the parking lot at full speed.

The automatic doors opened and she burst through them, tripping in the process. She ran to the front desk and leaning against it, gasped, "What room is Oliver Oken in?"

"232, third floor." The lady at the desk said after looking it up. Lilly swung her purse back over her shoulder and sprinted to the elevator, receiving strange looks from the people around her. She almost took out a lady in a wheelchair as she pressed the elevator button 15 times as fast as she could. The doors closed and she nervously tapped her foot as people started getting off.

"Out of my way!" She yelled as she pushed her way through. She ran down the hallway, biting her lip and breathing heavily. She found his room and burst in without bothering to pause to take a breath. Oliver was lying in the bed, cuts and bruises covering his entire body. He was hooked up to all kinds of tubes and wires. Lilly gasped and ran toward him.

"Oliver, are you ok? Does it hurt?" She yelled, kneeling by his side.

"Hey Lils. Don't worry. I'll be fine. How did you get here so fast?" Oliver said. His voice was strained and he looked exhausted when he spoke.

"I got the call and I ran right out of work. The whole newspaper staff was having a meeting and I just left. And of course I drove 80 the whole way here… It's been an hour, Oliver. You call that fast? But enough about me! What happened? I was so worried about you!" Lilly cried. "I was afraid that…that I'd never get to see you again."

"Lilly, I don't want you to worry about me, ok? No need tearing yourself up over this. A drunk driver hit me. But it's ok." He held out his hand and she took it. She gently rubbed her fingertips over the cuts on his hand before bursting into tears.

"You're cut everywhere! How could this happen?"

Oliver reached up and put his hand on the back of her head. He pulled her close and she wrapped her arms around him. She heard his muffled attempt not to groan at the pain of her body on his, but she heard it.

"I'm hurting you." She whispered, jumping up. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. I'm going to be fine." He insisted. He reached out his hand again and she took it, kneeling on the floor.

"Where are your parents?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Mom's in the bathroom and Dad's getting coffee. I had to convince them for an hour that they could leave me for ten minutes and I wasn't going to die on them. Don't you want a chair to sit on?"

"No." She whispered. "I don't want to let go."

He smiled and blushed slightly. "I'm glad you're here, Lilly."

"I'd never even think about being anywhere else." She whispered as she watched him fall asleep.

Just as Lilly was about to go into hysterics, start screaming and curl up into the fetal position on the floor from the constant silence, Miley burst in.

"Is Oliver ok?" She asked, panic in her eyes.

Lilly nodded as she looked up. "He says he is, but I'm worried."

Miley walked over to him and looked at all the bruises and cuts on him, all the wires and tubes and machines. She sighed. "I don't want to wake him up… I'm going to go talk to the doctor." Miley sprinted out the door leaving Lilly alone with him once more.

Lilly buried her head in the soft, white sheets and prayed, harder than she ever had before. A nurse walked in and said, "I'm sorry, but only family is allowed in here."

Lilly looked up at her and lied. "I'm his sister." She said. The nurse nodded and left the room. No one was going to keep her from being with Oliver. She'd die first.

Mr. and Mrs. Oken returned and rushed to his side. "Oh Lilly, thank goodness you're here." Mrs. Oken said. "Oliver's done nothing but talk about you for the last hour."

Miley came back in and walked toward the bed. A male doctor filed in behind her. Mr. and Mrs. Oken jumped up. "Is he going to be ok?"

The doctor took a deep breath and spoke calmly. "Yes, he's going to recover. He has a broken leg and three broken ribs, and some cuts and bruises but luckily no concussion... or internal bleeding… He's a very lucky man."

Everyone released the breath they hadn't noticed they had been holding in. The doctor left and everyone stared at Oliver as he slept.

"Lilly, why don't you go get a drink or something?" Mrs. Oken said. "You look worn out."

"I don't know if I want to…" She said, biting her lip.

"I'll go with you, Lilly." Miley said, standing up. Lilly stood and slowly let Oliver's hand slip through her fingers.

"Parting is such sweet sorrow…" She thought. "Damn you, Shakespeare."

The walk was slow to the coffee machine. Neither one said anything. Miley stuck in a couple bills and pushed some buttons. She handed Lilly the cup and smiled faintly.

"You gonna be ok?" She asked sympathetically.

Lilly sniffed. "I don't know. Just thinking that… that he could be…gone. And I'd never get to see him again, or talk to him, or anything. I can't even imagine." She choked trying to hold back her tears and finally let them fall. Miley embraced her in a tight hug and Lilly buried her face in her shoulder.

Night fell. The hospital grew quiet. Only the faint whispers could be heard out in the hallways, the tapping of shoes. Lilly sat in a chair in the corner of the room, hugging her knees to her chest. Everyone around her was asleep. She couldn't possibly think about sleeping. She had too much on her mind. Besides, sleeping sitting up in a chair is a lost cause anyway.

She heard Oliver stir and she stared intently at him from across the room. She saw his eyes open and her head throbbed.

"Lilly…" She heard him whisper. She stood up quickly and quietly made her way across the room. She stood by his bed and stared at his dark brown eyes.

"What is it, Oliver? What do you need?" She whispered frantically. "Need me to get you something?"

He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "Lilly, you need to stop worrying about me. I have to tell you something."

She sniffed and looked down at his hand in hers. "What?"

"You know how when some people have near-death experiences, their life flashes before their eyes…?"

"Yeah…"

"Mine didn't."

"Oh." She said, kneeling down so she could hear him better.

"Do you know how when some people have near-death experiences, they see the face of the most important person in their life?"

Lilly nodded slowly.

"Well, when that car was about to hit me… I saw your face Lilly, clear as day. That's when I realized… that I've always been too stubborn to admit… that I'm in love with you."

And he kissed her.

End

-Andi