~~~Ch 8~~~
"Maria can you slow down just a little? You said this Liz girl is with Ryan…" Michael said, chasing after his long time girlfriend in the hospital parking lot.
"Michael, jeez, sometimes I don't know how you can be so dense. Our best friend is in surgery because he was in a car crash and his son is in the car of some girl we barely know…" she said, not slowing her pace any for her lagging boyfriend. She glanced over her shoulder to see him start to jog to catch up with her. Turning back around, she opened the hospital doors and headed straight for the front desk. The nurse at the desk was talking on the phone and typing furiously, and had yet to acknowledge Maria's presence in the whole ten seconds that she had been standing there, and for Maria…that was ten seconds too long. "Hey you! Over here!" she said, waving her hands in front of the nurse's face.
The nurse sighed and looked up from her computer screen. "Yes? Can I help you?" she said, a tone of annoyance in her voice.
"Yeah umm…I'm looking for Maxwell Evans. What room's he in?"
The nurse rolled her eyes at Maria's abruptness and lack of patience and began typing again, peering at her computer screen. "219…Are you family?"
"Yes I'm his sister in-law and this is his brother…" Maria said, gesturing towards Michael, "Michael Evans."
"Okay. Take the elevator up to the second floor, make a right and it's at the end of the hallway," the nurse replied, already going back to her work.
"Thanks," Maria said, dragging Michael behind her toward the elevator. Maria pushed the button for the second floor and stood there, tapping her foot impatiently. Michael stood silently to her right and noticing her behavior, rolled his eyes and sighed. "Michael Guerin…don't roll your eyes at me," she said, not bothering to turn her head to look at him.
"What?! I didn't…I mean…How?!" he stammered.
"I know," she said as the elevator doors opened and she stepped out. She turned to the right and looked around. "Michael…did she say make a right or was it a left…or maybe it was a right then a left…?"
He looked to the left and saw a nurses' station where a young nurse was sorting through some papers. He quickly walked over to her and cleared his throat to get her attention. "Umm excuse me miss, I'm sure you're really busy but I'm looking for my…brother and I can't remember which way the nurse downstairs told me to go…"
"What's his name?" she asked softly.
"Max, Maxwell Evans."
"Oh yes. The young man that was in the car accident, with a little boy right?"
"Yeah, they told us Ryan was okay…"
"He's fine. Nothing but a few cuts and bruises. It's his poor daddy that's gonna be hurting for a while. Let me walk you down there." She walked briskly down the hall, followed by Michael dragging a slightly confused Maria behind him, and stopped almost at the end of the hall in front of room 219. She opened the door and poked her head in, then pulled the door shut and turned towards Michael and Maria. "They're all sleeping… I feel bad letting you wake them up—I'm sure they all need their rest after all this."
"Who do you mean exactly?" Maria asked still confused.
"Your brother, his little boy, and his fiancée…forgive me I can't remember her name…"
"Fiancée? Fiancée? When did he get engaged? Michael did you know about this?" Maria said, barely keeping the volume of her voice under control.
"I swear I don't know anything Maria. Why don't we just calm down and go see Max and we'll sort this all out later when my 'brother' and your closest friend is not lying in a hospital bed okay?"
"Fine," she said, obviously pouting.
"Thanks for your help. We will try our best to make sure they get their rest," Michael said, giving the nurse a grateful smile.
"No problem. And don't be too hard on him for not telling…she seems like a real special girl…I'm sure he was planning on telling you soon."
The nurse returned to her paperwork at the nurses' station and Michael quietly eased the door to Max's room open. He sucked in a breath at the sight before him. His best friend in the world was lying in a hospital bed, wrapped in bandages and hooked up to machines. And he was so pale…almost as white as the hospital sheets he was lying on. As Michael scanned the room his eyes came to rest on a petite brunette who was sleeping with her head resting on the side of the bed and her arms around Max's small son who was also asleep in her lap. Michael knew that this girl was as much Max's fiancée as Michael was his brother…but she apparently cared enough to stick around with Ryan even though she was exhausted. And Ryan must trust her if he fell asleep in her arms. Michael had to give the kid some credit—he was a great judge of character. And if he trusted this girl…then Michael would too. Maria would be another story though…
"You know I didn't think about it before," Maria whispered, "you know…what he would look like. I don't think I ever expected this though. It just doesn't even look like him."
"I know," Michael replied just as quietly, not wanting to wake any of them. He slowly made his way around to the opposite side of the hospital bed and just stared down at his friend. Maria came to stand slightly behind him, wrapping her arms around him and rested her cheek against his shoulder.
"So…do you think this is the girl that answered Max's phone when I called?"
"I would assume so."
"Do you think she's really his fiancée and he didn't tell us?"
"Not likely. I think she just wanted to make sure Ryan was okay and made it up like you made up that story about he and I being brothers."
"Yeah but you two might as well be brothers for all you've gone through together. I doubt he even knows her."
"Well obviously Ryan trusts her Maria…I mean you know how that kid is with strangers. And honestly, with that and the fact that she sat here all night with him…I just think that really says something, you know?"
"When did you become so knowledgeable about all this sensitive stuff?" she said, squeezing him just a little harder.
"I don't know…when did you become so calm?"
Maria lightly punched him in the arm and turned to sit in an extra chair.
"Owww…that hurt," he said, rubbing the spot and shaking his head.
"Oops, sorry…" she said sarcastically as she plopped herself down and yawned. "So how long do you think it will be 'til these sleepyheads wake up?"
"I'd say not too long," Michael said, directing Maria's attention to Liz, who had begun to stir. She sat up and looked around dazedly, not quite sure where she was. As her eyes fell upon Max, she was jolted back to reality. The accident…she was in the hospital…she had to take care of Ryan… Liz looked down then, noticing that Ryan still slept soundly in her arms. She breathed a sigh of relief that at least while he was sleeping, he wouldn't worry about his father. She shifted uncomfortably, her body stiff from the position she had fallen asleep in and her arms aching from holding the little boy in her arms.
"Here let me take him for you," Michael said, walking towards her. He lifted Ryan from her arms and the boy shifted and snuggled closer to his 'uncle.' "I'm Michael," he said, whispering so as not to wake Ryan or Max. "And this is Maria," he continued, nodding his head towards the chair where Maria still sat. "We're Max's friends and unofficial family."
"It's nice to meet you," Liz said cautiously as Michael walked over to an extra to sit with Ryan.
Maria stood up and eyed the brunette warily. "So I hear you're Max's fiancée…" she said sarcastically.
Liz looked flustered and stood up, smoothing her wrinkled clothes and walking towards the other girl. "No I…" she stammered, shaking her head, "I…I didn't want to leave Ryan alone and I knew they wouldn't let him stay with me if I wasn't family…so I made it up. I'm sorry…I hope you're not angry."
"Not at all," Michael said, looking pointedly at Maria.
Liz smiled and reached out to shake Maria's hand. "I'm Liz, I believe we spoke, or should I say, you spoke on the phone earlier."
Maria laughed as she realized that she hadn't really let the other girl say much earlier…not an uncommon occurrence for her. She accepted the other girl's extended hand and returned her smile. "Yeah I do that a lot. Sorry 'bout that by the way. I was just worried…"
"I totally understand. I'm sure I would be too."
"So…since you're not really Max's fiancée, how do you know him exactly?" Maria asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"We actually only met this afternoon. Max and Ryan came to the soccer game and I'm on the team. We talked a bit after the game and when I was leaving…the accident happened basically right in front of my car…I had to stop and help…I called 911 but…" Liz said, distress evident in her voice.
"Hey, chica, you helped a lot by calling the paramedics," Maria said, wrapping her arms around Liz. "There wasn't anything else you could do for him. Michael and I, Ryan, and I'm sure Max are all so grateful for what you did. I'm sorry if you got the impression that I wasn't grateful for what you did or that I thought you didn't do enough. I know I sometimes come off as a little harsh…but I don't mean any of it."
Liz pulled back and wiped a stray tear from her cheek. "Thanks. I just…it's been a long day, you know?"
"Definitely. If you want to head home and get some rest, Michael and I can look after Ryan, and take care of everything…"
"Actually, if you don't mind…I'd like to stay for awhile. I just need to see that he's going to be alright. And Ryan might be upset if I leave…since I've been the only one with him since the accident. I could just take a little nap in the chair in the corner and when he wakes up, just wake me up too."
"If you're sure you want to then we don't mind. Extra company is always appreciated. Especially when all I have is Michael…he's not usually much for talking and all that," Maria said, a mischievous grin on her face. Michael shot her a look that told her she would pay for that comment later. She ignored him and turned back to Liz. "Do you want me to go find a nurse and ask about like an extra pillow or something?"
"No. I'm fine. I don't want to bother them…they're probably busy. I'll just curl up in the chair and I promise I will be very comfy."
"If you say so," Maria replied, shrugging her shoulders and returning to her original chair next to Michael.
Liz smiled and plopped down into the corner chair on the opposite side of Max's bed. She pulled her legs up, wrapping her arms around her knees, and resting her head against the edge of the bed. Exhaustion quickly took over and soon she was once again fast asleep.
Maria sighed and pulled a small vial of cedar oil from her pocket. She removed the cap and inhaled the scent, closing her eyes, and feeling the calming effect almost immediately. She was an absolute believer in the power of aromatherapy and was constantly annoying Michael with her dependence upon her oils, but for her they worked and that was all she cared about. She looked around the dimly lit hospital room and noticed that she was now the only one awake. Liz was again sleeping in the chair with her head resting on Max's bed, Michael had drifted off holding the still sleeping Ryan, and of course Max was still out cold. She shrugged her shoulders and remembered that old saying, 'if you can't beat them, join them.' She made herself comfortable and finally drifted off with her head on Michael's shoulder.
TBC…
