Chapter Eight

Before the Storm

The hospital parking lot was less crowded when Ana pulled her SUV against the curb, though less then an hour had passed since they had left the building. The lights of Lakeview were still burning brightly, keeping a vigil through the night for those out there who needed it; Marissa looked up and wondered if her parents were still up there, awaiting her safe return.

As Ryan and Seth got out of the car and headed toward the back, Ana turned around to look at the girl. "I'll come visit you tomorrow, just to check up, if you want." She offered and Marissa smiled.

"I'd like that." She said sincerely, wondering again where Summer had vanished off to. If Seth hadn't heard from her in hours then that wasn't a good sign; she knew her friend and knew that wasn't normal Summer, center-of-attention, behavior.

Ana smiled as well. Ryan opened Marissa's door and lifted the girl into the wheel, taking her head and squeezing it reassuringly. Marissa looked up at him and saw a look in his eyes that she knew well; the look that said I'm always here for you. As she gazed into his eyes, she wondered again how she could have been stupid enough to ever believe Oliver over Ryan.

Seth and Ana said their awkward goodbyes and then she pulled away from the curb, leaving the parking lot and disappearing into the night. The automatic doors slid open to allow the trio access into the waiting room and they were surprised to see Jimmy and Sandy waiting near the nurse's station. Jimmy instantly hurried over to his daughter and knelt in front of her. "Are you all right, Marissa?" He questioned, putting his arms on her shoulders.

"Yeah." Marissa answered, surprised by her father's behavior. "Why shouldn't I be?" She looked from him to Sandy and then back again. There was something they weren't telling her.

Sandy pulled his son and ward off to one side and stared at them gravely. "What were you thinking? Taking her out of the hospital like that?" He questioned, looking mainly at Ryan, for he knew he was surely the ringleader of the whole operation.

"She needed to get out." Ryan answered. "She also wanted to pay her respects to Oliver." He added, remembering what Ana had said and how it had sounded so nice despite everything that the boy had caused.

Seth looked at his father. "We weren't gone that long." He pointed out, not liking the look he saw in the man's eyes. Sandy Cohen wasn't a happy man at that moment.

"It's not that Seth." Sandy snapped and tried to regain his composer. He was a lawyer, he had never let his temper get the best of him. "Taking Marissa out of the hospital like that could have further damaged the bullet injury. If it did, the operation won't be as effective."

Ryan looked like someone had slapped him across the face; he felt a cold pit developing in the pit of his stomach. What if he had hurt Marissa even worse and what if, because of that, she wouldn't be able to walk again? It tore his heart in two to think that he might be the cause of such pain.

Sandy saw the look on Ryan's face and put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "You didn't know, Ryan." He said. "And it's not certain that moving her would do anything at all. Who knows, maybe getting out was just what she needed." Ryan didn't look so sure but he didn't say anything.

Seth frowned. "Well, going to Oliver's service certainly didn't do any good." He said off-handedly. "The whole crazy family blames Marissa for what happened."

Sandy frowned as well. "How can they?" He questioned. "To think that Marissa had anything to do with Oliver shooting himself. She was the only one that actually liked the kid."

Ryan looked over to where Marissa was, with Jimmy still knelt in front of her, speaking with his voice low. "What they said really hurt her." He mumbled. "There are just some people..." He trailed off. There was nothing he could do now.

Sandy knew exactly what he meant; he had seen plenty of parents like Oliver's who believed that their children's problems were anyone's fault but there own. They didn't believe in raising a child until they had something to benefit from it.

With nothing more to say, Sandy, Ryan and Seth returned to Marissa and Jimmy; Jimmy stood and smiled at Sandy and the boys. "I think we'd better get back upstairs." He suggested and looked down at Marissa. "Your mother's worried about you."

Marissa raised an eyebrow. "She is?" She didn't believe a word of it.

"Well," Jimmy trailed off and shrugged sheepishly. "Kirsten's worried about you." Marissa couldn't help but smile. Her father often tried to give her a mother a little credit, even though she didn't deserve it, and she found it slightly endearing.

They headed for the elevator in silence, Ryan pushing Marissa's chair since it seemed like he was the one that felt most comfortable admitting that it had to be done. Jimmy looked uncomfortable at the fact that his daughter was in a wheelchair and kept his gaze elsewhere while they were in the elevator.

Kirsten and Julie were standing outside Marissa' room when they arrived and Jimmy did seem to have a point: Kirsten looked more relieved to see Marissa then Julie did. There was a slight awkward silence as the group approached the room; no one was quite sure what to say. Did you have a nice time? seemed a bit inappropriate and so no one said anything; Kirsten smiled but Marissa didn't have the energy to return the gesture.

The doctor that had treated Marissa the day (only yesterday, it was hard for Ryan to believe) and had recommended the operation to help her walk again, a middle-aged man named Thomas Browning, was waiting with Kirsten and Julie as well and wasn't pleased at the events that had taken place. He was so upset that he fumbled with the words he wanted to shout at the teenagers; finally Sandy had to calm the man down ("She's all right Doc," he'd pointed out), worried that the good doctor was going to suffer a heartache. Without another word, Browning stalked down the hallway, throwing his hands in the air as he walked, mumbling something about uneducated ruffians and left the Cohens, the Coopers and Ryan standing in the hallway.

Finally, Julie clasped her hands together in a forced motherly gesture and said, "I think we've all had enough excitement for the night. What do you say we get you back into bed, Marissa?" It wasn't really a question, but Marissa nodded her head in consent anyway and Ryan wheeled her into the hospital room, followed by the others, with the exception of Julie, who stood in the hallway for a moment longer before she realized that she was the only one outside.

Ryan scooped Marissa into his arms and held her for a moment, and she laid her head against his chest. Watching them, Seth thought about Summer once more and got the feeling deep in his heart that something was the matter with the girl he had always loved; he vowed to call her as soon as Marissa was situated and he was no longer needed for the time being. Ryan's gaze lingered on Marissa's wane face for a moment longer before gently placing her back into her sterile, white hospital bed; Marissa squeezed his hand and smiled briefly at him.

Marissa arranged the thin cotton sheets around herself and untangled the IV tubing from around her arm. Her father watched silently, wondering how he could have let something like this happen to his daughter. Wasn't it his duty to protect his child, no matter what? Yet, the worst threat to his daughter's safety had been right under his nose and he hadn't been able to see it. No one had.

Laying against the propped up pillows, Marissa looked undeniably small and exhausted. The whiteness reflected off the fabric of the pillows nearly matched the pallor in her cheeks and dark shadows were forming beneath her eyes. But even as Ryan noticed all of these things, he thought that she still looked beautiful. He pulled a chair beside the bed and moved to sit down but Jimmy stepped forward and put a hand on his arm. "You should go home Ryan, Marissa needs her rest." He said but Ryan didn't like the suggestion; he opened his mouth to argue but Marissa stopped him.

"It's okay Ryan. Go home, relax a little bit." She told him. "I'll still be here when you get back." She didn't even have the energy to offer him a smile but she hoped he knew one was there, hiding beneath her pale and drawn lips.

Ryan didn't look convinced but there wasn't much he could have done; he hadn't slept much in the past days and he hadn't showered since he had rushed off to help Marissa from Oliver. Maybe going home wasn't a bad idea; he could get a shower, a change of clothes and then be right back at the hospital.

With a nod, Ryan squeezed her hand and headed out of the hospital room behind the Cohens and Marissa's parents, never taking his eyes off the girl in the bed until he was in the hallway. The hospital around them was silent and the only sound Ryan could hear were those of his own footsteps. He knew this sort of calm, he had lived through it before and knew what followed it; this was the calm before the storm, the silence that lulled you into peace. They weren't out of the woods yet, bad times were still ahead of Ryan and his friends.