Finally we are at action stations...I did promise that something would happen eventually in this fic and here is some drama for anyone who is still reading :)
Enjoy.
Four Months Later
It was four am on a Monday morning when Grace was woken by her mobile phone vibrating on the bedside table next to her head. "Hello?" she mumbled into it as she woke up slowly. "Hello?" she tried again when there was no response. "Who's this? It's the middle of the night," she complained.
"Gracie, it's me."
"Josh?" she sat up in bed. "It's four am. What's wrong?"
"Is it? Sorry…" he trailed off.
"No. It's ok. What is it? What's happened?"
"I'm at the hospital. There's been an accident… "
"What? Are you ok?"
"Yeah… Look, I know it's early but can I come get you? I need to see you."
"Is everything ok?"
"Not really. Grace?" his voice dropped with a desperation Grace had never heard in it before.
"Yeah, OK. How about I get Andrew to drop me at the hospital…I don't know if you should be driving."
"I'm OK… I'm leaving now."
"Alright. Give me a call when you get here and I'll come out."
Grace pulled some clothes on, going to sit on the front steps until he pulled up twenty minutes later. She got up, going straight over to his car, getting in putting her hand on his arm. "Josh?" she asked, worried.
Josh put his hand on hers, squeezing it tightly before putting the car back into gear. He drove down to the waterfront without a word, parking the car and getting out.
Grace was nervous, getting out and going around to his side, wrapping her arms around her boyfriend firmly.
He gulped as he tried to suck in a deep breath of air, pulling Grace against his chest, clinging to her tightly.
"It's OK" she whispered against him. "Whatever it is, it's going to be ok."
Josh shook his head. "He's dead… I killed him."
Grace pulled back slightly so she could look at him, her arms still tightly around his waist. "Who's dead? What's happened Josh?"
"Matty… there was an accident…" he said, barely audible even though Grace was so close.
Grace moved him so he was sitting back down in the car seat, kneeling on the gutter in front of him, taking both of his hands in his. "Oh God… What happened?"
"I killed him" he repeated.
"It was an accident. Babe, you didn't mean it…you said it yourself, it was an accident."
"I killed my brother Gracie…" he trailed off again, reaching out for her. Grace leant forward so her head was close to his lap, Josh's hand moving to the back of her head, his fingers in amongst her hair.
She stayed like that for ten minutes, letting him sit in silence before moving, her knees grinding against the cement. She stood up, taking his hand. "Come on" she whispered, taking the keys from him and locking the car behind him before wrapping her arm around his waist, walking slowly with him out onto the pier.
Josh kept his arm firmly around her shoulders, walking with her in silence, sitting on the edge of the jetty with his legs over the edge when they reached the end.
Grace sat beside him, her arm going back around his waist, Josh pulling her so she was close beside him. She sat there in silence with him as the sun rose before turning to him, speaking softly. "What happened?"
"We were mucking around in the ute in the paddocks, he was in the back and I was driving. A roo came out in front of us and I slammed on the brakes, and we must have skidded in the mud or something, he went flying. He's got brain injuries…they want us to turn off the life support." Josh hugged her closer to him, Grace putting her other arm around his front to hold him.
"It was an accident."
"He's still dead."
She nodded, tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry" she whispered.
"Just…stay with me?" he pleaded quietly.
"I'm not going anywhere" she promised, kissing his cheek reassuringly. "I'm right here."
He nodded, sitting with her in silence for the next two and a half hours as they both stared out at the horizon.
Grace didn't move, leaving her head on his shoulder, knowing her boyfriend well enough by now to know that he just needed her there without any conversation forced on him. "I better call Mum….let her know where I am and that I'm not going to school today," She finally spoke when the alarm on her phone beeped to let her know it was time to get up.
He nodded, letting go of her slowly, watching her as she stood up and walked a few metres away to make the call.
"Mum, its me."
"Grace? Where the hell have you been? Why aren't you here getting ready for school?" her mother told her off down the phone line. "I've told you, if you're going to run before school you need to be home before seven thirty to get ready."
"I'm not out running Mum. There's been an accident. Josh's brothers been killed. I'm with Josh. I'm not going to school today."
"That's horrible and I'm really sorry to hear that Grace, but Josh should be with his family, and you should be at school."
"I am his family. This is more important than school and I wasn't giving you a choice Mum. I was telling you, I'm not going to school today, or tomorrow or probably the rest of this week. I'll call you later, I've got to go." Grace hung up, going back to Josh.
"She's mad?"
Grace shook her head, "It doesn't matter." Her hand reached back out for his, her fingers curling around his. "I'm not going anywhere."
"I should… I really should go back to the hospital…to say goodbye" he swallowed as the words got caught in his throat.
She nodded "Do you want me to come with you?"
He clutched her hand tighter "Please?"
She nodded again. "Babe…I really don't think you should drive. Let me call the Twins, they can take us in."
Josh shook his head "I'm alright… It'll be ok."
She stood, nodding a third time as she offered her hand to help him up before walking slowly back to the car with him.
Walking into the hospital half an hour later, Josh was still clutching Grace's hand. "Which way, do you remember?" she asked him softly.
He shook his head "I'm sorry."
"It's ok. It's easy to find out." She went over to the information desk, asking a few questions before leading Josh up to intensive care, doing her best to hide the terror in her eyes as they walked past another patient's room.
Josh's mother stood up, fresh tears running down her cheeks as she saw her son walk back in. "Oh Brendan" she sobbed, hugging him tightly, Josh's eyes still watching Grace even as he hugged his mother.
"Mr & Mrs Joshua, I'm so sorry" Grace expressed her condolences, hugging his mother as she cried more tears.
"Thank you love" she whispered.
Josh moved back to Graces side protectively as she let go of his mother, his arm slipping back around her waist, bringing her closer in to his side again.
"Brendan…did you want to see Matt?" his father asked, his own arm around his wife, doing exactly what his son was doing with Grace. "It's time mate…" he added quietly.
Josh nodded, Grace grabbing his hand as she felt his body shake.
"I'll just be out here" she promised him quietly.
"No…please Gracie" his voice shook as he begged her to come in with him. "I need you."
She nodded, walking with him slowly into Matt's hospital room.
The steady beep of the heart monitor and the constant rhythmic breathing set by the ventilator were emphasised in the otherwise silent room. Fifteen year old Matt, a smaller build than his older brother looked tiny in the bed meant for an adult, his face ghostly white as the machines around him kept him alive, a thick white bandage around his head.
Grace's feet seemed to fix to the ground about a metre from his bedside, letting go of Josh's hand slowly. "Go on" she whispered to him.
Josh nodded, not pushing her to go any further with him, taking the final couple of steps to his brother's bedside. "Goodbye mate" he whispered, taking his brothers hand as he perched on the side of the bed. "I don't know what I'm going to do…what any of us are going to do without you…. I'm sorry mate. Now would be the time for you to open your eyes and start laughing at me…" he paused, as if secretly hoping his brother might still be fooling around. "I'm sorry….I didn't mean it." He added one last time before kissing his cheek. "Goodbye."
Josh had tears running down his cheeks as he let go of his brothers' hand and turned back to Grace. She wrapped her arms around him tightly, letting out a sob as he clung to her as tightly as she did to him.
Seeing the two of them through the window in the door, his mother, father and the doctor came back into the room. "It's time" his father told him softly.
"I'll wait outside" Grace whispered so only Josh could hear.
Josh nodded, knowing his young girlfriend was already struggling just being in the room. He let go of her slowly watching as she stepped outside of the room before going back to his brothers' bedside and taking his hand again.
How was that? As usual your thoughts are much appreciated... Unfortunately this had to happen. Even in this alternative universe some elements of the show had to be introduced.