This is short, just focusing on Max and Liz.
Chapter 27
Max
#Oh, Why You Look So Sad/Tears are in your eyes
Come on and come to me now/Don't be ashamed to cry
Let me see you through/'cause I've seen the dark side too
When the night falls on you/You don't know what to do
Nothing you confess/Could make me love you less#
I walked into the room and took the seat next to Liz's bed; I couldn't get over how different she looked with the bruises and the cuts all over her face. I took her hand as gentle as I could and held it. God, she went through this on a countless basic. How could she hide it?
#I'll stand by you/I'll stand by you
Won't let nobody hurt you/I'll stand by you#
And add in the fact that she was pregnant, god, I didn't want to ask her who the father was, I was scared that her father had raped her, I hoped to god that she never went through that horror, that she had been safe from that horror from her own parents, but I knew I had to ask her, I needed to know that her dad hadn't raped her, that she was prevented from that horror.
#So if you're mad, get mad/Don't hold it all inside
Come on and talk to me now/Hey, what you got to hide?
I get angry too/Well I'm a lot like you
When you're standing at the crossroads/And don't know which path to choose
Let me come along/'cause even if you're wrong#
I sighed as I rested my back on the chair; I was confused about how to feel about everything, her parents were battering my girlfriend because they blamed her for Rosa's death and she didn't tell me. I kept my eye on her, I just wanted her to wake up and tell me what happened, to tell me why she didn't tell me.
#I'll stand by you/I'll stand by you
Won't let nobody hurt you/I'll stand by you
Take me in; into your darkest hour/And I'll never desert you
I'll stand by you#
I leaned over and kissed the top of her head as I stroked back her hair.
"You know, you need to wake up soon." I told her. "You have a lot of worried people outside, wondering what happened to you tonight. God, I'm wondering what happened, please Liz, wake up. I love you." I whispered and shook my head. God, what has she been through?
#And when.../When the night falls on you, baby
You're feeling all alone/You won't be on your own#
Soon, I her felt stirring, Liz's hand clenched around mine, reflectively, and I looked up, I saw her eyelids flickering before they slowly opened. At first her brown eyes looked glazed over, like she was confused about where she was before turning to look at me.
"Hey." I whispered and she winced slightly.
"Hi." She whispered back and I noticed that her voice was hoarse. "Where am I?" she asked.
"Your in the hospital." I told her and she closed her eyes before looking at me.
"You know." She stated, it was a statement, not a question and I knew it.
"Yeah, Tammy finally spilled the beans." I told her and she nodded.
"How are you feeling?" she asked me and I rolled my eyes.
"Isn't that my line?" I teased weakly and she grinned slightly before letting it fade.
"Max." she whispered and I sighed.
"Hurt that you didn't tell me, scared that I was going to lose you, confused about everything and angry that your parents did this to you." I whispered and she sighed as she reached over and touched my cheek.
"Don't be, I'm here." She whispered and I nodded as I kissed her gently and lightly on the lips.
"How about you?" I ask.
"Like I've been run over by a truck." She teased and I smiled slightly.
"Everyone is worried you know, god, Isabel and Tammy was crying and I've never seen them cry before." I explained and she sighed, she let one hand rest on her stomach and I swallowed hard, I was going to have to tell her. "Liz, you were pregnant." I whisper and she looked at me with tears in her eyes.
"I lost it?" she asked and I nod. "I was going to tell you today." She whisper and I stroked back her hair.
"The baby was mine?" I asked and she looked at me.
"Who else could it have been?" she asked.
"The doctor didn't know if you have been sexually abused so…" I trailed off and her eyes soften.
#I'll stand by you/I'll stand by you
Won't let nobody hurt you#
"Max…" she whisper as she lifted her hand and stroked my face. "All my parents did was beat me up; they never went any further than that. You are the only person I've been with, sexually." She assured me and I nodded, relief flooding through my body that she hadn't suffered those horrors at the hands of her parents.
"We were going to have a baby together?" I asked and she nodded. "When did you find out?"
"I had a feeling so I went to my doctors, she phoned me and told me of the results. I was about a month along." She whispered and I looked at her stomach before looking at her once more.
"Don't suppose you knew what is was?" I asked and she smiled at me as she ran her hand through my hair and shook her head.
"No, it was too early to tell but I had a feeling that it was a boy." She whispered. I nodded before looking at her stomach once more, trying to comprehend everything; my baby was safe in her stomach only a few hours ago now it wasn't, all I could feel was emptiness.
#I'll stand by you/Take me in, into your darkest hour
And I'll never desert you/I'll stand by you
I'll stand by you/Won't let nobody hurt you
I'll stand by you/Won't let nobody hurt you
I'll stand by you#
Liz
I watched as Max stared at my stomach, I knew that he was feeling confused about how to feel. He found out that he was going to be a father and that I lost the baby in a matter of minutes. I ran my hand though his hair, comforting him as I thought back to my parents.
"Max," I whispered and he looked up at me. "Where are my parents?"
I see his eyes darken with rage.
"They are in jail. One of the neighbours called the cops because of the noise disturbance and Tammy had given a statement." Max explained and I closed my eyes.
"How is Tammy?"
"A wreak, she went hysterical when you blacked out and started shouting how she was going to kill your parents and demanded to know why couldn't you let someone know." Max explained and I nodded. "Liz, we all forced Tammy to tell us so don't be angry with her." I opened my eyes and looked at him.
"I'm not, I understand she felt she couldn't keep it a secret anymore, she told me that if I ended up in hospital because of this, she would tell someone." I explained and he nodded.
"God Liz, why didn't you tell me?" he whispered out, hoarsely and I shrugged.
"Max, I loved my parents and I felt I deserved the beatings." I explained. "I was trying to protect you. You put James in hospital because he manhandled me, what would you have done if you found out about my parents?" I asked and he looked away. "Exactly."
"I would have protected you." He whispered as he looked back at me and I stroked his face.
"And how could you protect me if you were in jail?" I asked, he nodded, my point being made.
"Why did they hit you tonight?" he asked. "It must have been bad otherwise you wouldn't be in here."
"They found out about the baby, don't ask my how they knew, they did and they didn't like the fact that I had a boyfriend while Rosa was dead." I explained and he kissed my forehead.
"I won't let them anywhere near you, you can count on that." Max promised, looking into my eyes.
I swallowed back my sobs, wondering what I did to get a guy like Max Evans.
TBC