A/N: The song here is 'Hear You Me' by Jimmy Eat World.
She sat next to him. The sounds of the ward around her became muted as she held his hand and stared at his beautiful face. The dark hair framed the pale face and the streaks of red seemed to have dimmed.
All she could hear was the rhythmic beep of the machine next to him. He looked so different now. Connected to wires and tubes. He seemed so fragile and vulnerable. Not like she'd seen him not so many hours ago.
Layla hadn't seen Warren Peace since they'd left Sky High. She'd heard the usual rumours - that he'd turned bad, joined his father, but deep in her heart she knew they weren't true. So when she'd wandered into a bar in Vegas one day, she was surprised to see him, standing behind the bar dishing out drinks. It was a friend's birthday and since she'd moved to the West Coast, Vegas seemed the perfect place to take her. But they'd got separated and Layla was all alone in Las Vegas with no cell service. She'd hoped to find a phone in the bar.
For a moment she'd stared at him but then she'd recovered her composure and gone over to him. He didn't recognise her. She could tell from the blank look he gave her as he idly poured her the water. But then she took the flower from her hair and made it grow in the palm of her hand.
Then it had dawned on him and they did the awkward catching up chat before Layla remembered why she'd come into the bar in the first place. During the conversation it became apparent that her friends had ditched her on purpose which left her in a strange bar in a dodgy city.
There's no one in town I know
You gave us some place to go
I never said thank you for thatI thought I might get one more chance.
He'd taken her in and shown her to his apartment above the bar. He'd said she could stay the night and he'd find her a way home in the morning. She was grateful to Warren. He hadn't needed to do that but maybe there was solidarity between them. It didn't appear that he was doing much in the way of rescuing the needy except perhaps by getting them drunk and providing an ear to listen to their woes.
Not that he cared about them of course but it tended to mean he got a tip, especially from the women.
That was two years ago. Warren had found her a cab to the city and a Greyhound bus that would take her back to California. But he hadn't let her go before imparting words of wisdom, to the effect of stand up for yourself and make life give you what you want.
So she'd done that and was now in charge of the war against eco-terrorists. There were more than you might think.
What would you think of me now,
So lucky, so strong, so proud?
Never said thank you for that
Now I'll never have a chance.
She watched his chest rise and fall. The beeping stayed rhythmic. Memories of Warren flashed across her eyes. She could tell he wasn't well. She prayed for him.
May angels lead you in
Hear you me my friends
On sleepless roads, the sleepless go
May angels lead you in.
Her watch sounded. It was 4 am. They'd been in the ward for an hour now but in the hospital since midnight. She had to be with him now. He had no one else.
After the initial unintentional trip to Warren's bar, she'd made it more of a regular visit and came at least twice a year. They'd drink, reminisce about the old times and talk about what the people they'd been at school with were doing now. Warren was pretty isolated from the hero community so he relied on Layla to hear all the news. The Stronghold Three were wiping villainy from the face of the earth, Zach and Magenta had got married as everyone had expected them to by the end of the year and Ethan was at some Ivy League university specialising in molecular something or other. He was a highly admired professor and had written many papers on the subject.
But he was always interested in her and would cajole tale after tale out of her. On her last visit but one, about three months ago, he was persuading her to talk to her boss about a leave of absence. Even though she was in charge of her department she still had superiors. She'd wanted for so long to have her own nursery and if everyone else could have an ulterior life why couldn't she?
When she'd got back to California, she'd asked her boss for the time off and she'd agreed. Layla had been so happy and she knew she owed it to Warren. She was too meek and Warren always brought out some fire in her. She'd come back to tell him about the nursery. He would have been so proud.
So what would you think of me now
So lucky, so strong, so proud?
I never said thank you for that
Now I'll never have a chance.
As the visits to Warren continued she realised she'd begun to develop feelings for him. They'd always been there, ever since he'd agreed to be her homecoming date in her freshman year. There was something dark and dangerous and yet so sad in his eyes. She began counting down to her visits, sometimes months in advance, but when she got to the bar she was shy, silly and giggly. Warren couldn't understand it until she'd tried to kiss him. He'd pulled back and she'd felt embarrassed but the next morning it was as though nothing had happened. She was thankful he didn't make anything of it and she knew then that what she felt for Warren was just very deep affection, more like a best friend than a lover.
And that was why it hurt her so much that he was here now.
May angels lead you in
May angels lead you in
May angels lead you in
May angels lead you in
The beating of his heart slowed but the ventilator kept his breaths at the same rate. The nurse came over and walked away with a look of regret on her face. He was dying.
And if you were with me tonight
I'd sing to you just one last time
A song for a heart so big
God couldn't let it liveShe'd been in the bar about half an hour. It was busy but not uncomfortably so. Warren had to look after his customers so she was sitting on a barstool waiting for him to come over. She didn't mind. This was his job and she just enjoyed being here. Further down the bar there were a few guys looking at her. They called out to her and she smiled at them but that was all. They were just a bit drunk and harmless, she thought.
One of them had come over to her and started making advances. She wasn't interested and tried to let him know that nicely but he wasn't taking the hint. He got a bit rough and she'd called out for Warren but he hadn't heard. The guy carried on and she'd cried louder. This time he heard and rushed over to her to persuade the guy otherwise. But then his friends had seen this was getting too physical for their friend and had come to take him outside.
She'd been relieved and was happy enough later on to be left alone as he went to fetch something from outside. But then she'd heard the noises of a fight. At first she didn't think anything of it but as it continued she'd got worried. Then she heard tyres squeal and she'd run outside.
May angels lead you in
Hear you me my friends
On sleepless roads, the sleepless go
May angels lead you in
He was lying in the alley, sprawled on rubbish bags. He was beaten badly. His face was bruised and bleeding but then she spotted the blood coming from his head. She'd called the ambulance and while she waited for it she sat next to him, as she did now. She cradled his head and talked to him. She told him about the nursery and how she owed it all to him. Everything she had she wouldn't have if it hadn't been for him. She'd felt his body go limp and she'd screamed his name, her voice choked by tears. Then the ambulance had arrived and whisked him away. She'd held his hand all the way. He had no one else.
The beeping slowed again. He was dying, she knew that. She hugged him as best she could, tears streaming down her face. He was dying because he'd protected her. It wasn't fair.
He was slipping away.
May angels lead you in
Hear you me my friends
On sleepless roads, the sleepless go
May angels lead you in
He was her knight in shining armour, her protector and her encourager. She prayed for his soul, for an easy passing and for angels to greet him at the gates. He deserved nothing less.
On sleepless roads, the sleepless go
May angels lead you inAs his spirit drifted from his body, Warren Peace looked down on Layla and smiled. She had always been there for him. Her visits had kept him sane in the hole of corruption that was Vegas. She was clean and pure and so special. And just before he left the building entirely he heard the three words he'd waited to hear since she'd kissed him that one night.
'I love you.'