Ack! Oh, um, that's right, no one's read this chapter yet. Uh, yeah. Thanks for the reviews, because they did inspire me to write this. Hope this doesn't disappoint.
Chapter 13
It was three oh four in the morning when my phone rang. I rolled over and reached out for the receiver, accidentally knocking it onto the floor. "Shit," I mumbled, fumbling around in the darkness for it. Who on earth could be calling me at this hour?
Not like I'd been sleeping anyhow. Roger had moved out of my apartment, again, after a fight last week, and I'd been sleeping miserably ever since. What was wrong with me? I'd never had this much trouble after a breakup. I wasn't like some of my girlfriends, who always needed to be with a man in order to feel complete. I prided myself on my independence. And now here I was, alone and wretched.
My fingers finally grasped the receiver. "Hello?"
"Mimi?" Collins' deep voice rumbled through the phone. "Did I wake you?"
"Oh, no," I assured him, sitting up and yawning. "What is it?"
"It's Angel," he said, and I felt my stomach drop to my knees. I listened numbly as he rattled off the name of the hospital, and the room, and the doctor said she should be fine, but there was always a chance she wouldn't and Angel had been asking for me.
"I'll be right there," I told him, dragging myself out of bed and over to my closet. "Tell her I'll be there before she knows it."
The first clothes I found were a pair of sweatpants and one of Roger's old T-shirts that he'd left the last time he stayed over. I yanked it over my head, no longer caring about him or our fight or anything else in my stupid little life except Angel. Just let her be okay, I pleaded, and I'll do anything.
The hospital smelled of disinfectant, and I couldn't keep from trembling. Was this how it was going to end for Angel? Was this how it was going to end for me?
She was in a private room on the eighth floor, looking so tiny and fragile lying in that bed, without her wig or any of her bright, beautiful clothes that I always associated her with. She looked so young, no older than fifteen or sixteen. Collins was sitting in the chair beside her bed, holding her hand tightly between his.
I knocked quietly on the door, and his eyes rose to meet mine.
"Hi," I whispered. "How's she doing?"
Collins looked down at Angel, a loving smile spreading across his face. I felt a pang of jealousy. Would Roger ever look at me like that? Would anyone?
"She's sleeping," he whispered. "But she's doing all right."
I sat down on the other side of Angel, picking at a stray thread on my sweatpants. "I was really worried when you called."
"I normally grade papers at my office," Collins continued, smoothing Angel's hair. "Tonight I decided to come home early. When I got there, I found her lying on the floor unconscious."
He told me about how he'd called 911, how it took half an hour for the ambulance to arrive, and how while Angel would be fine in the meantime, her immune system was beginning to shut itself down.
"I'm sorry," he apologized, taking his glasses off and wiping his eyes. "I shouldn't be making you worry about this."
"Don't be," I insisted. "Angel's my friend. I have to worry about her."
Collins managed a small smile. "She loves you a lot, you know. She's always talking about you."
"Talking about who?" Angel mumbled as her eyes fluttered open. A smile spread across her face and she squeezed Collins' hand. "Hi, honey."
"Hello," he whispered hoarsely, dropping a kiss on her forehead. "Someone's here to see you."
Angel turned her head back in my direction and smiled warmly. "Mimi. You came."
"Of course I came," I insisted, reaching for her other hand. "I came as soon as I heard."
She looked embarrassed. "You shouldn't have. You need your sleep."
"Don't be ridiculous," I scolded her. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't come?"
Collins shot a glance at me. "I'm going to get some coffee," he informed us. "I'll be back in a few minutes."
I watched him leave, then turned back to Angel. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm all right," she insisted. "Everyone's making a big fuss over nothing."
"Still," I insisted. "I don't want you taking any chances. I need you too much."
Angel's hand covered mine. "Are you all right?"
I smiled as brightly as I could. "I'm fine, really. A little tired, but fine."
"Mimi," she scolded me gently. "I know you better than that. What's wrong?"
I hated myself for starting to cry then. Angel was going through so much herself, I told herself. She didn't need to deal with my issues as well. And here I was, bawling like a baby and telling her every trouble that Roger and I had had over the last month.
"I'm sorry," I finally finished. "You didn't need to hear all that."
"Oh, Mimi," she sighed, patting my arm. "Roger loves you so much."
"I don't think he does," I sniffled, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. "Why would he say all those things if he loved me?"
"Love isn't always perfect," she said softly. "But that doesn't make it any less wonderful."
"I don't know about that," I sighed. "Why can't this be easy?"
"The best things in life never are," she told me "That's what makes them the best."
"I hope I'll understand some day," I whispered, propping my chin in my hands.
"Mimi?" She struggled to raise her head.
"Hey, take it easy," I told her, helping her settle back down onto the bed. "You need your rest."
"Promise me," she whispered. "Promise you'll take care of yourself."
"Angel, you're not dying," I insisted. "Don't talk like that."
"Mimi, I'm not going to be around forever," she insisted. "We both know that."
I looked away so she couldn't see the tears in my eyes. "I don't know what I'm going to do without you," I whispered.
"Well, I'm not going anywhere for awhile," she tried to smile. "And when I do, I promise I'll still look after you from wherever I am."
I took her hand in mine and pressed it to my cheek. "I love you, Angel."
She brushed my cheek with her finger. "I love you too, Mimi."
The summer passed. Roger and I reconciled, broke up, got back together, and broke up yet again. Early in the morning on Halloween, I got another phone call from Collins. Angel was gone.