A/C: Sorry this took so long. I had an awful bout of writer's block, and this is really just a transition chapter. Big things are to come. And for anyone reading "A Wicked Performance," thank you! My next chapter is coming soon; there's just so much to do! R&R!
"This day's black fate on more days doth depend:
This but begins the woe others must end."
Act III, Scene I
Simon sat outside the hospital under a small gazebo, his glassed pushed up and his head between his hands. He replayed the words that had come spewing out of his mouth, Jeanette's confused and hurt expression as she backed away from him, and finally the sickening sound of her back hitting the closed door as her unconscious body had tumbled down the concrete steps.
She was his best friend, his counterpart, and from time to time, his confidante. Jeanette was his equal, and he had always felt so lucky to have someone so much like him around in his life. Why couldn't she listen to him play the guitar? If he remembered correctly, part of the reason he was learning the song was because it was one of her favorites.
His body physically ached with pain. His eyes, his joints, his head, and especially the throbbing lump in his heart that continued to creep its way up into his throat. This was more than worry for a friend, this was more than guilt for hurting her feelings; it was so much bigger than that.
Suddenly, it hit Simon like a ton of bricks. He loved Jeanette. He loved her more than he had ever loved anyone else. It was different from his love for Dave or his brothers, different from the caring compassion he felt for Britney and Eleanor. He had had a few crushes on girls in the past, but now he realized he had always been drawn back to Jeanette's side without even noticing it.
All she'd been trying to do was get close to him, and he pushed her away. Pushed her right on out the door and into a coma. The lump in Simon's throat crept steadily upward, and it was all he could do to swallow it back down.
When it came to dealing with Alvin or Britney, he was sarcastic, frustrated, and sometimes authoritative. He pulled them out of the binds they put themselves in, and helped to keep them out of trouble and out of failing through high school. He loved them dearly, even though they made him want to tear his hair out from time to time.
As for Theodore and Eleanor, they kept him optimistic with their outlook on life, yet laughing at their brief bouts of naivety. Mainly in Theodore's case, he pushed him to be confident, just as he had been willing to shine a flashlight under their beds when the boys were small, banishing away fears of the Boogieman.
But Jeanette was so different. She challenged his most proven hypotheses with a simple word; one complete thought that was so deep he had missed it entirely. She was so well-rounded in her school subjects and interests that he couldn't help but open his mind and dig into the world with open arms. She was always willing to do a good deed, whether that be to lend an idea, help with a project, run an errand, or to just be a companion. Jeanette was undoubtedly the most open person when it came to others, yet her inner workings were like the greatest equation Simon had ever been given to formulate. She had the one smile that could pass the Earth closest to the Sun on its orbit at any given hour.
And now the Sun had faded, just like her smile. Simon pushed to his feet. Bringing the Sun back would not be accomplished by merely sitting in the dark. He walked toward the entrance of the hospital, a slightly lighter step in his stride.
--
A buzzing in Theodore's pocket pulled him out of the slumber he had slipped into in the hospital waiting room. He pulled out his cell phone, looking over at a sleeping Eleanor, who was curled up in a ball beside him. They had hardly spoken all day; he just couldn't look her in the eyes. Every time he did he saw hurt and embarrassment there, which brought Theodore's blood to a raging boil all over again. So, in order to stay calm, he answered her questions with short responses, and kept to himself, hoping that by tomorrow he would be back to normal. That these feelings pushing him toward Eleanor would be subdued as they always had been.
"Ellie? Hey, wake up. Alvin just texted me."
The blonde girl stirred awake, her eyes brightening at Theodore's voice. "W-where are they?"
"They just got dropped off at the front. One of Britney's friends must have brought them. Where's Dave?" He looked across the room for Simon, who was also gone.
"He left with Ms. Miller to go get something to eat downstairs not too long after you fell asleep," she answered, yawning quietly into her hand. "I hope the doctors haven't come by."
"Did Simon come back?"
"No, I haven't seen him."
The two fell quiet again, Theodore not knowing what else to say, and Eleanor not wanting him to keep up the silent treatment.
"Does Alvin know where we are?" Eleanor asked after a moment.
"Yeah," Theodore replied, fiddling with his phone.
"Should we go look for Simon? Or try to get up with him?"
"Nah, probably not."
Eleanor fell silent for a moment, then spoke again. "Do you want to go get a drink or something?"
"Nah."
Tired of basically talking to herself, Eleanor kept quiet for as long as she could. Minutes felt like hours, and nothing could hold her attention. Defeated and exhausted from being ignored, she spoke what was on her mind in a whisper.
"I'm scared."
She felt Theodore stir beside her, and a moment passed before he spoke in return just as quietly. "Of what, Ellie?
"What if Jeanette doesn't wake up? What if I lose my sister? What if she's damaged for life? What if she's changed forever, and can't do the things she loves that she does now?"
She got up from her seat as she began to pace around the room, her voice rising as she continued speaking. "What if word gets around about what Matthew said, and the soccer coach decides to bench me because I'm too fat? What if I never play soccer again? What if I'm the laughing stock of the school because I really am too fat? What if I lose all my friends because I'm too embarrassing?"
Her voice cracked as she ran her hands through her hair. "What if you're mad at me for almost getting you suspended? What if you don't want to be seen with me because of what happened today? What if you don't want to be my friend anymore because I can't take care of myself, or because I've embarrassed you? What if I lose you, Theodore?" She asked finally, the last question a whisper on her trembling lips, wet with the tears tumbling down her full cheeks.
She stood in the center of the room, the sobs beginning to shake her chest as she covered her face with her hands, trying to hide the tears. Theodore was on his feet in an instant. Seeing her cry twice in one day was more than he could bear.
"Ellie, Ellie please, please don't cry. Please! I can't take it! Come here," he said, snatching her up in his arms with a strength that surprised her. He stood now, holding her tightly against his chest as the sobs of fear rushed out of her eyes, collecting against his chest. He pressed his lips to the crown of her head; he had shot up almost a head taller than her in the past year and now towered above her blonde curls.
"Jeanette is going to be fine. I can't prove it to you, and I don't know how else to put it. I don't know why, I just do. You're the best soccer player Crashcup has ever seen, and even though you're not twig-thin, you're just as fast and more clever than all the other girls on the team. If your friends don't love you for who you are, they really haven't been your friends at all, right?"
He pulled back from whispering in her ear to look at her tear-stained face. "For the last time, you are NOT fat. I don't care what anybody says."
He paused for a moment, trying to properly word what he wanted to say without giving himself away. But the emotions in his heart flaring up from seeing her cry sent the real words spilling off of his tongue. "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever met. And Ellie, you will never, ever lose me, no matter what happens. That's a promise."
His lips drew themselves to hers like magnets, imagining how sweet they would taste against his. But before he could experience them, he heard their siblings enter the room.
"Hey, where's--?"
Britney and Alvin stood staring at the pair as they stopped in mid-sentence, taking in Eleanor's tears and Theodore's arms wrapped tightly around her body, the two surprisingly close before jumping apart.
"I'll ask later," Britney said lightly, brushing into the room. "Where's Dave and Ms. Miller? How's Jeanette? What's going on?"
"We know just as much as you do, Britney," Eleanor replied calmly, her motherly façade taking over as she wiped at her eyes. "Dave and Ms. Miller went to go get something to eat; we've been here for two and a half hours, and the doctors haven't been in yet."
"Well, you two are no help at all," Britney whined, sitting down with a huff. "You sure you weren't too busy being—"
"Where's Simon?" Alvin interrupted, noticing his brother's absence.
"We don't know," Theodore answered, sitting down beside Eleanor, his mind still reeling from his encounter with her just seconds before. How would she handle him from now on? Would things be different between them? Did he come on too strongly?
"We figured he wanted some time alone; he was pretty upset after he left here," Eleanor finished for him, snapping Theodore back into reality.
"Well how long has he been gone?" Alvin asked, suddenly concerned.
"We fell asleep for awhile, and he was gone when we woke up, so maybe an hour and a half?" Theodore offered.
"Well damn, are you sure he's still here?!" Alvin replied, his voice spiking suddenly. "Did you think to make sure he hasn't run off somewhere?! Do you know how upset he is right now?!" He jumped to his feet, staring at Theodore and Eleanor.
"Look, Alvin, don't tell me that's why we didn't ask where he was going. Obviously, he was upset. We didn't want to chase after him, which I'm sure would be your first call," Theodore fired back, on his feet and in Alvin's face.
"Don't you tell me what I—"
"C'mon, Alvin, let's go walk around," Britney said, alarmed as she grabbed his arm, dragging him outside.
Theodore sighed, the breath rushing out of him as he tried to clear his head. He plopped down in an empty seat across from Eleanor, who was suddenly nervous to be in the same room with him alone.
"I…uh…I'm going to get…um, something to drink…maybe find Ms. Miller and Dave," she said suddenly, her words running together as she quickly exited the room.
Confused, Theodore raised his head from his hands, opening his mouth to call after her, but she was already gone. Defeated, he sat back in the wiry chair, emotions rushing through his brain. Had he been too apathetic with Simon about Jeanette's condition, letting him run out of the room suddenly without even checking on him? Now Alvin was mad at him, and he couldn't even get up with Dave. And how did he know Jeanette would be okay? He had heard Alvin use the phrase that he had just thrown at Eleanor a million times, but how did he really know? He had seen her tears falling and he was a goner. But how much good had that done? All those feelings he had thrown up all over her had done nothing but send her running out of the room the moment they were alone together. Sure, he knew she would never lose him, but had he lost her, his best friend?
Breaking his thoughts, Dave walked back into the waiting room with Simon behind him, dark rings underneath his eyes.
"Simon! Where have you been?!" Theodore exclaimed, so glad to see a familiar face he was almost beside himself.
"Just went to get some air. Sorry for not telling you—are you okay, Theo?" Simon asked, concern in his tired eyes.
Theodore didn't know whether to be mad at his older brother for staying gone so long, relieved he was still at the hospital, or understanding that he needed a break from all the commotion. "Y-yeah, I'm fine," he said finally, plopping back down in his chair. "Just worried about you is all."
"Oh, I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have rushed off like that," his brother replied, rubbing Theodore's hair gently as he used to when they were kids.
"Where's everyone else?" Dave asked, noting the empty room.
Theodore sighed, closing his eyes. "Alvin and I got into a little…disagreement, and he and Britney went off for a walk or something. Eleanor is…I don't know. She went to get something to drink or…something, I'm not sure," he mumbled, wanting to forget the whole encounter.
Confused, Dave sat down opposite the boys, a solemn look in his grey eyes. "Well, the doctors want to talk to you, Simon, about Jeanette's condition when you first saw her, so that they can get an idea of how to diagnose her. She may need surgery."
Theodore heard Simon gulp beside him as his arms filled with instant goosebumps. "Okay, where do I need to go?" He asked quietly.
"In a few minutes, we're to meet them in Jeanette's room. Ms. Miller is there now," Dave answered, looking at his watch. A silence fell over the trio.
"How is she, Dave?" Theodore blurted out, once again unable to hold his tongue. Seeing his brother almost shaking beside him was enough to get him rolling again.
Dave pressed his lips together before speaking. "She looks fine. Just like Jeanette." He paused before continuing, trying to keep the boys calm. "But since she's had head trauma, they're unsure of how to awaken her. As of right now, she's…in a coma," he finished, speaking slowly, as if the words were hard to form.
Theodore imagined delicate Jeanette, her glasses missing, her dark brown hair sprawled across the stark white hospital pillow. What he didn't want to imagine was his brother's face when he walked in and saw her, helpless and unconscious, especially when he could do nothing about it.
Surprising to most, out of the three brothers, Simon was the strong and silent one. It had started when they were children, and developed as they got older. Alvin was the center of attention, the eye catcher. When a problem arose, most would assume he was the leader. Alvin was brave, and would charge into any situation. Theodore viewed himself as always looking before leaping, and always wary of what dangers may lay ahead. But Simon was always the wise one; he always had a plan, and never moved forward until he had reasoned the situation a number of different ways. However, when it came to one of the girls, Alvin was the one to sit down on a personal level and reason, like one would believe Simon to do. Personally, Theodore wasn't much more than jello when one of the girls was upset, especially Eleanor. As for Simon, he was a complete paradox of himself at the first sign of anguish. His spine was straighter than the rest, and he always charged forward to save the day. Seeming to switch roles with Alvin, Theodore envied his brother's take-charge attitude, reflected in his eyes now.
"C'mon, Dave. Let's go," Simon spoke quietly, rising from the chair and walking out the door, determination in his step.
Dave sighed as he looked over at Theodore. "We'll be back shortly. Call me if you need me."
Theodore nodded silently as Dave exited the room, leaving him alone again with his thoughts.
