Lissa PoV
The drive to the hospital was long. For some reason, I found myself telling her about everything in my life. She was sympathetic and kind, the opposite of my mom, who was cold and judgmental. I played The Good Life on my phone, and she seemed to like it. By the time we got to the hospital, it was 2 o'clock in the afternoon. We paused at the reception counter to get the room number, then headed up. Down the hall from the room, I saw Iggy asleep in a chair. I nodded to him and whispered to Kate, "That's James, we call him Iggy." She nodded.
We paused just outside the door. I could hear singing from inside, that sounded like… Fang.
I feel it everyday, its all the same
It brings me down but im the one to blame
Ive tried everything to get away
So here I go again
Chasing you down again
Why do I do this?
Over and over
Over and over I fall for you
Over and over
Over and over I try not to
Feels like everyday stays the same
Its dragging me down and I cant pull away
So here I go again
Chasing you down again
Why do I do this?
Over and over
Over and over I fall for you
Over and over
Over and over I try not to
Over and over
Over and over you make me fall for you
Over and over
Over and over you don't even try
So many thoughts that I cant get out of my head
I try to live without you, every time I do I fell dead
I know whats best for me, but I want you instead
Ill keep on wasting all my time
Over and Over
Over and over I fall for you
Over and over
Over and over I try
not to
Over and over
Over and over you make me fall for you
Over and over you don't even try to
We glanced at each other. His voice made my heart hurt. It was full of fear, worry, anger… and love. It only made me feel worse about everything ive done to them. Glancing at Kate, I noticed she had a soft, saddened expression on her face. Out of all the official people we've had to deal with so far, she seemed to care the most. "Excuse me?" We both turned to look at the doctor who had come up behind us. "Can I help you two ladies?" he asked politely. Kate pulled out her badge. "Yes, we're looking for Maximum Ride." She explained.
The doctor gave a tired smile. "Yes, of course. I was just going to check on her myself. Come, follow me." He said, then moved into the room before us. We followed him in. The first thing I noticed was Maxs horrible condition. I almost ran out, but forced myself to stay and see this through. Next to the bed, Fang sat holding Maxs hand. He looked as if he just woke up, his hair all tousled. He was watching Max so tenderly. If my heart was hurting before, it was bleeding now. But the second he heard us come in, his face shut down again, returning to the same stone wall we always saw.
Then he looked. His eyes flicked over Kate, then he focused in on me. His eyes narrowed for a second, then he scowled. "What are you doing here, Lissa?" he hissed, his words like a dagger through my heart. "Fang-" "Here to mock Max some more? Well guess what? She cant hear you. So maybe you should just f-" Kate cut him off. "Im assuming you're Nick." She said softly. He focused his unnatural black eyes on her again. "I prefer Fang." He said roughly. Kate nodded and smiled at him. "Lissa isn't here to hurt you, or Max." she said in the same gentle tone. "Actually, she's been helping you."
Fang narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "How?" he asked warily. She turned and nodded to me. I took a deep breath, then pulled out my phone and opened the video. "Watch this." I said in an almost whispery tone as I handed him the device. He took it and hit play. I watched as he tensed almost imperceptibly. "How did you get this?" he asked, his voice slightly strained. I gulped. "I-I was outside last night when she came out… and…" I couldn't finish. He bit his lip before looking at Kate. "Who are you?" he muttered. Kate smiled again. "Im Detective Smith. Call me Kate. I came here to investigate after Lissa showed me this video. She says you might know more."
Fang put the phone down, and looked down at Max again. I could practically feel the uncertainty radiating from him, which I had never felt before. Usually he was strong, silent, and confident. Confident enough to give Sam and Omega a piece of his mind. But now? "She said," Kate said, trying to get more information, "That she would come to school with bruises and cuts, or wearing lots of makeup." "She also usually wore a hoodie and jeans." I added. Kate glanced at me and nodded, before turning back to Fang. "Do you know anything else?" Kate asked Fang. He didn't look up from Max, instead just sitting and tracing a swirl cut on her palm. "I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone." He murmured, almost to himself. "I understand that." Kate said gently. "But you wouldn't be doing any harm. You would be helping."
Finally, Fang looked up, but not at Kate. He looked at me. I was shocked by how he looked at me. He was sad and exhausted looking, like he just wanted us to go away and leave him alone with Max. "Why are you doing this, Lissa?" he whispered. I answered honestly. "I don't really hate her, Fang." He looked surprised. "I was jealous. I tried so hard to get everything Max has, to live up to my parents expectations, and I couldn't even compare to what she had. What she had without trying. I thought maybe if I made her miserable… maybe it would… " I shrugged. "I don't really know. And when I saw her dad doing that to her…" I shook my head. "I couldn't just sit there and do nothing."
He looked at me for a minute longer, then resting his forehead against the back of his hands, which still held one of Maxs. I noticed her other hand was wrapped in gauze. "I need to think." He murmured. "I know that it would help… but I promised her… and I can't just go behind her back when she's in the hospital…" it didn't sound like he was talking to us. He sounded like he was fighting an internal battle out loud. "Well, think about it." Kate said. "I'm going to speak with the doctor."
The doctor had left the room, but just then he bustled back in. And he frowned. "She hasn't woken up yet?" he asked. Fang shook his head. The doctor got a concerned expression on his face. "I'm going to have to run some tests. Will all of you kindly step outside for a moment?" Fang looked untrusting. The doctor gave him a smile similar to Kate's. "It'll only take a minute, and I promise to you I will not harm her in any way." Fang mulled it over, then reluctantly nodded and stood up, exiting the room, followed by me and Kate. Fang leaned against the wall, his head down. I just stood next to Kate, looking at my shoes.
Several minutes later, the doctor came back out with a grieved expression. "Well?" Fang asked, sounding antsy. "I'm afraid…" his voice cracked, and he had to swallow and start again. "I'm afraid she's gone into a coma." I felt instant tears well in my eyes, and Fangs face twisted in stunned grief, the strongest emotion I've ever seen him express. I felt Kate's hand on my shoulder, comfortingly. "Will she…." I swallowed back tears. "Will she wake up?" The doctor just looked sad. "I don't know. I honestly don't know."
(A/N DUN DUN DUN. How very evil of me. :P Song is by TDG, AS USUAL. Im starting to think this obsession may not be healthy… but as I will now begin saying, I am a nerd, and nerds are allowed to love things to the point of jumping up in down in just pure love of the object. Back to the song, Its called Over and Over, as you might have noticed.
UNC-
Silence)