Part 14
Damon sat next to Raven's bed and lay her cool hand against his cheek. Rubbing his thumb against her palm he began to talk to her in a quiet voice.
"I miss you baby. We're all worried about you. You're getting popular you know. With all the visitors I mean. Quinn and Honey are going to let your team come by tomorrow. They're going to trickle in by pairs.
"They're all proud of you. Thierry called today to say that Shale's gang disbanded soon after he died. You did it. You saved the world. For a few months at least." Damon swallowed and paused for a moment.
"Raven, honey, come back to me. You have to. I'm nothing without you. I can't live without you sweetheart. I don't know if you can hear me or not but you have to live," Damon said, his voice cracking a few times.
He tried to blink back the tears that threatened but a few managed to slip down his cheeks. He scrubbed them hurriedly and jammed his fists in his pockets. He paced the room a few times before sinking back into the chair.
Damon couldn't even remember the last time he had cried. He didn't have a reason to start up yet and he didn't want to. For the next few hours Damon stared at Raven mournfully. Around 5 in the morning a nurse came in to check up on Raven.
"Don't you ever go home? It's sweet and all but you need to get some rest young man," asked the pump woman as she took Raven's blood pressure.
"Home is where the heart is," Damon said to himself, just loud enough that the woman heard. "And Raven has my heart."
The nurse gave a sad smile that Damon couldn't see and shook her head slightly. She didn't think Raven would last longer then a week. She had been surprised to find Raven still alive. After a few moments she left, shutting the door behind her. Damon was glad she had because he had heard what she was thinking and it took him a few minutes to blank his face of the torture his emotions were putting him through.
None of the staff at the hospital had any reason to believe Raven would live and few even wanted to dare to hope. Damon heaved a sigh and rested his chin on one of his hands. Soon he feel asleep. He was still half asleep when the door opened and some people came in.
"We should let him sleep," a hushed, feminine voice said. "He's been through so much."
"That can't be comfortable," said another voice that sounded familiar. "We should wake him up and take him to the hotel."
Damon finally forced his heavy eyes open and saw it was Honey and Quinn. Raven was safe then so he didn't have to get up. Quinn noticed Damon was awake almost immediately.
"Come to the hotel with us," he asked Damon.
"I can't leave her," he said in a stubborn tone.
"You're going to have to sometime. Come on, you can get some good sleep in a sort of comfortable bed and then you can go out and feed. We can have someone call the second anything happens."
"We'll take you with us whether you want to go or not, so just agree and come on," Honey said firmly as Damon opened his mouth to protest.
"Fine I'll go. In a few minutes." Honey nodded and she and Quinn went out of wait for him.
"Baby, I'm going to go with Quinn and Honey to get some sleep. You can feel free to get better while I'm gone. I want to get a call hearing you've woken up and are hungry or something, ok. Goodbye," he said leaning over her. He kissed her check tenderly.
Honey went in the room to sit with Raven and Quinn led Damon to the car. Damon could barely keep his eyes open as Quinn drove.
Quinn opened one of the numbered doors and gestured to one of the beds.
"Take your pick. I'll make sure no one disturbs you."
"Thanks man," Damon said sitting on a corner of one of the beds and kicking off his shoes while Quinn left the room. Damon crawled under the covers and was asleep in mere seconds.
Damon woke up well after noon. He felt a familiar itching in his upper jaw so he went of the room to find some one to feed off of.
"You're finally awake," Jeffery said from his spot on the floor opposite to Damon's door. "Here, take this while your out incase Raven wakes up while your busy." Jeffery held out a cell phone to all Damon. Damon took it and slid it into his back pocket with a nod of thanks.
Damon walked down the street and found a pretty girl about 19 who wanted to know if Damon needed to be shown around town. She hadn't seen him around at any of the hangouts and figured he wasn't from around.
Damon smiled to himself and accepted her offer. She took him to a place where they could get to know each other better in privacy. Damon was walking to the hospital half an hour later.
To his disappointment he found that Raven hadn't woken yet. The gang had already been by so they left Damon and Raven alone. A few of Raven's friends stopped by throughout the afternoon and left a card or flowers or something. None stayed to long. No one really wanted to stay in a place where Damon's infinite sadness seemed to fill the room more then the heady scent of all the flowers.
In the evening Damon thought the visitors would be gone for the day but he was expecting the Johnson's to stop by. He didn't look up when the door opened, expecting it to be them. Some one cleared their throat and he realized it wasn't.
Looking up he found Lord Thierry, Aradia and some human girl with a birthmark that swept one check and who had old eyes. After a minute he realized she must be Lady Hannah. He stood but didn't say anything.
"Hello," Thierry said after a moment. "You must be Damon." Damon nodded as he paused. "I'm sorry that Raven was hurt."
"Why are you here?" Damon asked bluntly. "You've already said everything over the phone. Or did you want to come see Raven in person before she died so you'd look like a better person?"
Thierry knew that Damon was just saying it because he was in pain and sick of everyone expecting her to die, so he refused to let himself get mad.
"We came because we're Raven's friends," Hannah said soothingly before Thierry could respond. "Also Aradia wants to see something."
"You don't need to worry, I won't harm her. I may be able to help. If you could leave for a while?" Aradia said, sensing Damon's wariness. Damon muttered a short yes and followed Thierry and Hannah out of the room reluctantly.
Thierry talked to Damon for a few minutes but Damon didn't really hear a thing. He half jumped when Quinn clapped him on the shoulder.
"Come on, I'll buy you a drink." They went to a night world bar that wasn't to far from the hospital. They ordered two Jack Daniels and sat at a booth. They didn't talk too much and sat for a while drinking. Quinn more of nursed his bottle but Damon drank a few more bottles from his own pocket.
"You don't think she'll live, do you?" Damon asked suddenly. Quinn was startled by the question and didn't answer for a moment.
"I hope she does. She's lasted this long so she'll probably pull through. And Aradia might be able to help too." Damon didn't seem to like that answer very much as he frowned at his bottle. "She'll be fine," Quinn said after watching him a minute. Damon shrugged listlessly.
"I hope so."
"Do you want to head back?" Quinn said a bit later. The silence was starting to get to him. Damon shrugged again but stood to follow when Quinn made movements of getting up.
Damon sat next to Raven's bed and lay her cool hand against his cheek. Rubbing his thumb against her palm he began to talk to her in a quiet voice.
"I miss you baby. We're all worried about you. You're getting popular you know. With all the visitors I mean. Quinn and Honey are going to let your team come by tomorrow. They're going to trickle in by pairs.
"They're all proud of you. Thierry called today to say that Shale's gang disbanded soon after he died. You did it. You saved the world. For a few months at least." Damon swallowed and paused for a moment.
"Raven, honey, come back to me. You have to. I'm nothing without you. I can't live without you sweetheart. I don't know if you can hear me or not but you have to live," Damon said, his voice cracking a few times.
He tried to blink back the tears that threatened but a few managed to slip down his cheeks. He scrubbed them hurriedly and jammed his fists in his pockets. He paced the room a few times before sinking back into the chair.
Damon couldn't even remember the last time he had cried. He didn't have a reason to start up yet and he didn't want to. For the next few hours Damon stared at Raven mournfully. Around 5 in the morning a nurse came in to check up on Raven.
"Don't you ever go home? It's sweet and all but you need to get some rest young man," asked the pump woman as she took Raven's blood pressure.
"Home is where the heart is," Damon said to himself, just loud enough that the woman heard. "And Raven has my heart."
The nurse gave a sad smile that Damon couldn't see and shook her head slightly. She didn't think Raven would last longer then a week. She had been surprised to find Raven still alive. After a few moments she left, shutting the door behind her. Damon was glad she had because he had heard what she was thinking and it took him a few minutes to blank his face of the torture his emotions were putting him through.
None of the staff at the hospital had any reason to believe Raven would live and few even wanted to dare to hope. Damon heaved a sigh and rested his chin on one of his hands. Soon he feel asleep. He was still half asleep when the door opened and some people came in.
"We should let him sleep," a hushed, feminine voice said. "He's been through so much."
"That can't be comfortable," said another voice that sounded familiar. "We should wake him up and take him to the hotel."
Damon finally forced his heavy eyes open and saw it was Honey and Quinn. Raven was safe then so he didn't have to get up. Quinn noticed Damon was awake almost immediately.
"Come to the hotel with us," he asked Damon.
"I can't leave her," he said in a stubborn tone.
"You're going to have to sometime. Come on, you can get some good sleep in a sort of comfortable bed and then you can go out and feed. We can have someone call the second anything happens."
"We'll take you with us whether you want to go or not, so just agree and come on," Honey said firmly as Damon opened his mouth to protest.
"Fine I'll go. In a few minutes." Honey nodded and she and Quinn went out of wait for him.
"Baby, I'm going to go with Quinn and Honey to get some sleep. You can feel free to get better while I'm gone. I want to get a call hearing you've woken up and are hungry or something, ok. Goodbye," he said leaning over her. He kissed her check tenderly.
Honey went in the room to sit with Raven and Quinn led Damon to the car. Damon could barely keep his eyes open as Quinn drove.
Quinn opened one of the numbered doors and gestured to one of the beds.
"Take your pick. I'll make sure no one disturbs you."
"Thanks man," Damon said sitting on a corner of one of the beds and kicking off his shoes while Quinn left the room. Damon crawled under the covers and was asleep in mere seconds.
Damon woke up well after noon. He felt a familiar itching in his upper jaw so he went of the room to find some one to feed off of.
"You're finally awake," Jeffery said from his spot on the floor opposite to Damon's door. "Here, take this while your out incase Raven wakes up while your busy." Jeffery held out a cell phone to all Damon. Damon took it and slid it into his back pocket with a nod of thanks.
Damon walked down the street and found a pretty girl about 19 who wanted to know if Damon needed to be shown around town. She hadn't seen him around at any of the hangouts and figured he wasn't from around.
Damon smiled to himself and accepted her offer. She took him to a place where they could get to know each other better in privacy. Damon was walking to the hospital half an hour later.
To his disappointment he found that Raven hadn't woken yet. The gang had already been by so they left Damon and Raven alone. A few of Raven's friends stopped by throughout the afternoon and left a card or flowers or something. None stayed to long. No one really wanted to stay in a place where Damon's infinite sadness seemed to fill the room more then the heady scent of all the flowers.
In the evening Damon thought the visitors would be gone for the day but he was expecting the Johnson's to stop by. He didn't look up when the door opened, expecting it to be them. Some one cleared their throat and he realized it wasn't.
Looking up he found Lord Thierry, Aradia and some human girl with a birthmark that swept one check and who had old eyes. After a minute he realized she must be Lady Hannah. He stood but didn't say anything.
"Hello," Thierry said after a moment. "You must be Damon." Damon nodded as he paused. "I'm sorry that Raven was hurt."
"Why are you here?" Damon asked bluntly. "You've already said everything over the phone. Or did you want to come see Raven in person before she died so you'd look like a better person?"
Thierry knew that Damon was just saying it because he was in pain and sick of everyone expecting her to die, so he refused to let himself get mad.
"We came because we're Raven's friends," Hannah said soothingly before Thierry could respond. "Also Aradia wants to see something."
"You don't need to worry, I won't harm her. I may be able to help. If you could leave for a while?" Aradia said, sensing Damon's wariness. Damon muttered a short yes and followed Thierry and Hannah out of the room reluctantly.
Thierry talked to Damon for a few minutes but Damon didn't really hear a thing. He half jumped when Quinn clapped him on the shoulder.
"Come on, I'll buy you a drink." They went to a night world bar that wasn't to far from the hospital. They ordered two Jack Daniels and sat at a booth. They didn't talk too much and sat for a while drinking. Quinn more of nursed his bottle but Damon drank a few more bottles from his own pocket.
"You don't think she'll live, do you?" Damon asked suddenly. Quinn was startled by the question and didn't answer for a moment.
"I hope she does. She's lasted this long so she'll probably pull through. And Aradia might be able to help too." Damon didn't seem to like that answer very much as he frowned at his bottle. "She'll be fine," Quinn said after watching him a minute. Damon shrugged listlessly.
"I hope so."
"Do you want to head back?" Quinn said a bit later. The silence was starting to get to him. Damon shrugged again but stood to follow when Quinn made movements of getting up.