~ Lies-12 ~
Seth slept soundly for a few hours, due to sheer exhaustion. He'd moved the other bed closer to Summer's, then unpacked all the things he'd bought her in the gift shop. They'd given him a box to carry two floral arrangements in, with room left over for the bags holding magazines, a teddy bear and a stuffed cat, one of those romance novels she continued to claim she never read even after he'd discovered a stack of them in her closet, Godiva chocolates and a few personal things. His mom had said "forget diamonds, chocolate is a girl's best friend", "chocolate makes the world go around", and countless other variations on the theme a billion times while he was growing up so he decided to test her theories. Summer would be his lab rat. Finally he'd crawled onto his bed and passed out.
It was still early morning when he found himself staring at a white ceiling, wondering why he was awake. Images from the last 24 hours crowded into his head, and there was no way he was going back to sleep now. He sat up and stretched, checking on her as he worked the kinks out. Still asleep. Her bruises were showing up in live Technicolor now, on her face and other arm. It looked for all the world like she'd gone a few rounds with Roy Jones, Jr., or maybe The Rock, since he was pretty sure she didn't know how to box. It was probably not a good idea to mention that, though. She could probably STILL kick his ass in her condition. He bet she'd give The Rock a run for his money, though.
He cleaned up in the bathroom, trying to stay in a zombie-like state. He didn't want to think about what had happened at 4am. So all right. Why hadn't anyone called about Cooper? Surely they knew something by now. His head ached and he felt as though he'd been in a state of high tension for the last year, with nerves strung as tightly as violin strings. Back in the room, he took a seat in one of the low windows, looking out at the new morning. He really wished he could see Ryan. He hoped Ryan wasn't upset that he'd stayed here with Summer instead of going to see him.
He heard a noise behind him, and turned to see Summer looking around with widening eyes. "Hey. You're awake! It's about time you joined me in our lavish temporary abode."
Her eyes settled on him, bewildered and frightened. "Seth? What -? Ooooh, everything hurts!"
He sat on the bed next to her and took her hand. "Summer, don't be scared. You're ok. You had an accident and we're in the hospital. Try not to move, all right?"
"I don't remember! What happened? What's wrong with me? Seth?"
Big brown eyes were filling with tears and terror and the urge to punch something flashed through him again. He wished there was someone to blame this on, so he could unload his frustration and horror at her injuries on their face. He pushed his anger down, and leaned in to hug her gently. "It's ok, really. You're going to be fine. There's nothing to be scared of. You don't remember the accident?"
She clung to him as tightly as she could with her good hand around his neck. "No! What accident?"
Her voice kept rising. Distract her. "Take a deep breath for me, Summer... Good. What do you remember? Take deep breaths and think. Do you remember coming to my house? You were waiting for me in my room? " He pulled away to look at her.
"...Yes! I came over...you hadn't called me yet and I was worried...oh. You were going to tell Ryan by yourself about...Coop! She locked herself in the bathroom and then she took my car and Ryan tried to stop her! Right?"
"Absolutely. Good job. That's all you remember?" She was quickly getting it under control again.
She thought for another minute. "I don't remember anything after going outside and seeing Ryan behind the car. Did we get in a car wreck? Oh my God, are they ok? Are you ok?" She raised her hand to his face, wincing a little.
"I'm fine. There was..." The nurse had told him it was all right to tell her what happened, but he knew how upset she'd be about Ryan and Marissa. He took a deep breath. She had to find out sooner or later. Or maybe he'd let her decide. "Ok. Summer. I have something - not at all good to tell you. Do you feel like you want to know, or will it be too much for you right now? We can wait till later, if you'd rather."
"Tell me." She looked wary.
"Are you sure, because - ?"
"Damn it, Cohen, tell me. I'm not some little kid!" Her eyes flickered with anger.
'You were 4 hours ago' popped into his head, but halted before it got to his tongue. This was strong, stubborn Summer with fire in her eyes again, and he was ridiculously happy to see it. "Ok. You were trying to talk Marissa out of leaving and Ryan got in the car to try to get the key out of the ignition. She floored it, Ryan was stuck, and the car's rear end slid around and hit you." He pointed to her side and hip. "It hit you here. Nothing's broken but everything's bruised." There was no light of recognition, so she must not remember him telling her earlier.
She took in a shaky breath. "And my arm?"
"When the car hit you it - knocked you into the stone pillar at the end of our driveway. You took the impact on your shoulder and arm. Your shoulder was dislocated. When you fell -". His eyes filled at the awful image that appeared in his head and he looked quickly away. "- onto the road, you hit your head. Concussion. I'll be right back." He made a quick exit into the bathroom and leaned back against the door, feeling like an idiot. Guys don't cry in front of women. It killed the whole cool factor, not that he'd ever had much of that to begin with, but definitely made one appear to be quite the girly-man. He dried his eyes and went back, settling beside her on the bed again.
She had a strange look on her face. "And where were you, Seth?" she asked softly.
"Standing in the driveway frozen to the spot, of course. It all happened so fast. I'm sorry. I should have -"
"What? What could you have done? Nothing. Don't even start with that, Cohen." Her tone was sharp, but her hand slid over his gently. "I'm guessing the news about Coop and Ryan isn't good, either." She sighed. "Tell me."
"She was speeding and ran a red light. Two cars hit your car; it rolled and caught fire. The last time I talked to Mom, she was still in surgery and they didn't know anything else. Ryan broke his ankle, has a concussion, and some burns on his arm." He watched her carefully. He had no idea how she would react. "Are you ok?"
She closed her eyes for a moment, then her bottom lip started quivering. She shook her head no, gasping at the pain the movement caused. He reached for her and held her as best he could without hurting her while she cried for a while. "I'm so sorry, Summer. This is a lot to take all at once. Do you want me to go get a nurse? She could get you something for the pain."
Her arm tightened on him. "No. Stay." She continued so softly he barely heard her. " Please."
"Whatever you want. I'm not going anywhere." He rubbed her back gently; afraid that would hurt her too. "How much pain are you in? I think they were lowering your dosage of meds in case they were keeping you from waking up."
"I feel like a train hit me and then backed up over me again. Why? How long was I out? And don't even tell me it's 2005 or some crap like that." She pulled away to look at him, worried.
He laughed. "O-hooooo. I could be so cruel right now. But no, the accident was yesterday. You were out maybe 18 hours. It was rather worrisome. I, quite frankly, hated it, and would like to request that from here on out, you NEVER lose consciousness again unless it's normal sleep complete with the whole REM thing happening."
"Fine by me. This is totally bizarre, waking up in a hospital with like, no memory. It's a blonde moment times 1000." She noticed the other bed next to hers. "What's this? Did I need two beds for some reason?"
Seth looked at the floor. "No. I - uh - slept there."
"You did? Why?"
"I sort of didn't want you to wake up alone and be scared. I'm kind of responsible for you, since your Dad's gone." He stole a look at her. She didn't seem to be mad.
Her eyes softened. "Seth! That's so sweet! I would have, you know. Been scared. What am I talking about? I WAS scared. Wait. What do you mean you're responsible for me?" She watched him warily.
"You didn't have anyone to handle things for you while your parents are out of the country, that I knew of, anyway. I rode with you in the ambulance, and took care of your paperwork and the doctor told me your condition. She's really only supposed to tell a family member or legal guardian. Her husband drove the ambulance and kind of told her what was up with your parents and that mine were out of town. He was completely cool. He even listened in on his radio and sent me a note about Ryan, letting me know he was ok. AFTER I had a meltdown seeing the wreck on the news, but still, it was good to know. What were we talking about? Right, responsibility. So it's no big deal. Oh, my dad said he was going to make some calls and have you put under their care."
Summer laughed softly. "So you're like my guardian?"
"Yes. As a matter of fact, I have complete control over you now; so don't even get mouthy with me. I can send you to your room, or take away your telephone and TV, or even send you back upstairs to change your clothes if I think your skirt's too short. Which, by the way, will never happen. You should be extremely nice to me." He crossed his arms and gazed smugly at her.
She rolled her eyes. "Whatev, Cohen. In your dreams. I'm surprised you didn't mention spanking me."
A guilty look immediately crossed his face. He tried to hide it, but realized she'd already seen it. "Ok. I admit spanking crossed my mind. But under the circumstances I thought it best to keep that to myself. You're in enough pain right now." He shook his finger at her. "But just you wait until you're feeling better, young lady." He slapped his thigh. "Right over my knee."
She gave him a death glare. "If I didn't know it would hurt me worse than you, I would so punch you in the arm right now." She couldn't continue the game, and broke, smiling at him.
"Ha! You were kidding! I really wasn't, but we can discuss that a later date."
She seemed excited at the prospect. "Discuss spanking? Yeah! Let's do that soon! How about, like - never?" She couldn't find the words to tell him, but she was beyond happy he was there with her. Not just someone, HIM. Plus, this was all so surreal, and it felt good to do something normal. Since last summer, other than when they broke up and didn't see each other, nothing was more normal than sparring with Seth.
He went in for another careful hug. "You have NO idea how awesome it is to hear you threaten me and make me feel completely inadequate as a man again. Well. Yeah. You know what I mean." He gestured at her arm. "Just to illustrate what a nice guy I am, since you're in this unfortunate condition, I will now consider myself punched in the arm. Any time you feel like smacking me, just let me know. I'll say "ouch", "ow" or something else appropriate and appear properly chastened."
"Wow. That's such a - sacrifice for you. It makes me feel all kinds of better. But seriously, Seth?" She tried to hug him back.
"Hey, don't hurt yourself. Yeah?" It was so good to put his arms around her and feel her head on his shoulder. He'd wanted to do this since the second he'd seen her hit the ground yesterday. Last night didn't count. This was the real, aware, non-seductive-child Summer.
"Thanks."
There was a quick knock on the door, and Seth slowly pulled away from her as Dr. Mead entered the room.
"Young lady, are you aware that Mr. Cohen hasn't left your side since you arrived in our emergency room yesterday? Not counting the time we tied him to the chair in the waiting area so we could treat you without his interference."
Summer glanced quickly at Seth while he studied the floor.
She approached the bed with a smile. "I'm Dr. Mead. I was your doctor in the ER and will continue until we can reach your family doctor."
"Hi. It's nice to meet you. Actually? It's not, but - " Realizing how that sounded, Summer became flustered. "I mean - um. You know."
Seth jumped in. "Summer is the queen of tact sometimes. It's just part of her natural charm."
Dr. Mead laughed. "I take no offense. I would rather we met under different circumstances, also." She looked to Seth. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cohen, but I have to kick you out so I can examine your friend. Will you go willingly this time or do I need to call security?"
Seth blushed and turned to Summer, smiling nervously. "She's kidding. Mostly," he whispered. He looked back to the doctor. "No, security's not necessary. I still have rope burns from the ER yesterday. And please, it's Seth. I'll just go call Mom and Dad."
Summer was confused. "Aren't they here?"
"No. Ryan and Marissa were taken to another hospital. They stayed there with them. I'll see you in a little bit." He left the room quickly as she started to ask another question.
He walked to the nurse's station and asked if there was a pay phone on this floor. The nurse smiled at him.
"You can use ours here, Mr. Cohen."
He looked up at her questioningly.
"Oh, all the nurses know who you are. It's so sweet, you staying here for that poor girl without parents. You must be very close. Margaret in the ER said you filled out her paperwork perfectly."
Seth's eyes widened. "She has parents. They're just - gone. And we're - uh - friends. Since we were little." Didn't anyone have jobs to do here? Apparently there was plenty of time for gossip.
She winked at him. "Friends. Of course. You just let us know if there's anything you and Miss Roberts need."
He managed a weak smile and used the phone, but both his mom and his dad's cells were off. He left voice mails, and called home, but no one answered there, either. It gave him a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He thanked the nurse as he left.
Dr. Mead was just leaving Summer's room as he got there, and he stopped her in the hall. "Do you have a minute? I'd like to ask you about something that happened last night, if you don't mind."
"Of course, Seth." She looked curious.
"Summer woke up. She was acting weird, and said a lot of unusual things. She fell back asleep, and when she got up this morning, it's like it never happened. Is it possible that anything she said was true, or was it just nonsense caused by the medication?"
"Well, that depends on different things. She had enough medication that she should have slept through the night. First though, how was she acting specifically?"
"Like a child. Her voice and mannerisms were just like she was a little girl again."
"There have been many cases of unconscious people appearing to wake up and talk. Sometimes they regress to an age when a particular trauma occurred in their lives. When they wake up later, they have no memory of it. In most cases they speak about things they might not be able to say in normal life. Sometimes it's buried in their memories or they've blocked it out for some reason. Occasionally, they're just too frightened of the consequences telling it to someone might bring. In one case, a man told his wife he'd been having an affair, but ended it, and begged for her forgiveness. It's not an uncommon thing at all. Was she completely in the past? Did she know who you were?"
He nodded. "She knew me. She was childlike when she woke up, and I assumed it was because of the drugs. She wanted to know what happened to her, so I told her. I apologized for something, and she said someone in her past had never apologized for the same sort of thing. Later on, she mentioned the two of us. Basically, she was a little girl, but she talked about the past like a memory, and about us like she was aware of a conversation we had yesterday before the accident."
"How fascinating. I'm by no means an expert, but I can give you an informed opinion. Since she mentioned specific things about the two of you that were correct, there's a very high probability that everything she said was fact. Was the incident in the past something you're aware of actually happening?"
"No. I'd - uh - never heard this before." His stomach tuned over again.
"Well, if you could confirm it, that would be more proof that it was all fact. But still, I'll stay with my original conclusion that she most likely was speaking truthfully."
Seth nodded slowly. "Thanks for your time. I'm sure you're really busy, but it was kind of important."
"No problem. I'm sure you wouldn't have asked if you didn't have a very good reason." She smiled and headed down the hall.
Seth shook his head, stunned all over again. So her father most likely had abused her. He'd thought she sounded completely sincere last night, but he hoped there was another explanation for the things she'd said. Of much less importance, but still relevant, she might be in love with him, didn't want him to know, and couldn't be his girlfriend. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about any of this.
****
Seth slept soundly for a few hours, due to sheer exhaustion. He'd moved the other bed closer to Summer's, then unpacked all the things he'd bought her in the gift shop. They'd given him a box to carry two floral arrangements in, with room left over for the bags holding magazines, a teddy bear and a stuffed cat, one of those romance novels she continued to claim she never read even after he'd discovered a stack of them in her closet, Godiva chocolates and a few personal things. His mom had said "forget diamonds, chocolate is a girl's best friend", "chocolate makes the world go around", and countless other variations on the theme a billion times while he was growing up so he decided to test her theories. Summer would be his lab rat. Finally he'd crawled onto his bed and passed out.
It was still early morning when he found himself staring at a white ceiling, wondering why he was awake. Images from the last 24 hours crowded into his head, and there was no way he was going back to sleep now. He sat up and stretched, checking on her as he worked the kinks out. Still asleep. Her bruises were showing up in live Technicolor now, on her face and other arm. It looked for all the world like she'd gone a few rounds with Roy Jones, Jr., or maybe The Rock, since he was pretty sure she didn't know how to box. It was probably not a good idea to mention that, though. She could probably STILL kick his ass in her condition. He bet she'd give The Rock a run for his money, though.
He cleaned up in the bathroom, trying to stay in a zombie-like state. He didn't want to think about what had happened at 4am. So all right. Why hadn't anyone called about Cooper? Surely they knew something by now. His head ached and he felt as though he'd been in a state of high tension for the last year, with nerves strung as tightly as violin strings. Back in the room, he took a seat in one of the low windows, looking out at the new morning. He really wished he could see Ryan. He hoped Ryan wasn't upset that he'd stayed here with Summer instead of going to see him.
He heard a noise behind him, and turned to see Summer looking around with widening eyes. "Hey. You're awake! It's about time you joined me in our lavish temporary abode."
Her eyes settled on him, bewildered and frightened. "Seth? What -? Ooooh, everything hurts!"
He sat on the bed next to her and took her hand. "Summer, don't be scared. You're ok. You had an accident and we're in the hospital. Try not to move, all right?"
"I don't remember! What happened? What's wrong with me? Seth?"
Big brown eyes were filling with tears and terror and the urge to punch something flashed through him again. He wished there was someone to blame this on, so he could unload his frustration and horror at her injuries on their face. He pushed his anger down, and leaned in to hug her gently. "It's ok, really. You're going to be fine. There's nothing to be scared of. You don't remember the accident?"
She clung to him as tightly as she could with her good hand around his neck. "No! What accident?"
Her voice kept rising. Distract her. "Take a deep breath for me, Summer... Good. What do you remember? Take deep breaths and think. Do you remember coming to my house? You were waiting for me in my room? " He pulled away to look at her.
"...Yes! I came over...you hadn't called me yet and I was worried...oh. You were going to tell Ryan by yourself about...Coop! She locked herself in the bathroom and then she took my car and Ryan tried to stop her! Right?"
"Absolutely. Good job. That's all you remember?" She was quickly getting it under control again.
She thought for another minute. "I don't remember anything after going outside and seeing Ryan behind the car. Did we get in a car wreck? Oh my God, are they ok? Are you ok?" She raised her hand to his face, wincing a little.
"I'm fine. There was..." The nurse had told him it was all right to tell her what happened, but he knew how upset she'd be about Ryan and Marissa. He took a deep breath. She had to find out sooner or later. Or maybe he'd let her decide. "Ok. Summer. I have something - not at all good to tell you. Do you feel like you want to know, or will it be too much for you right now? We can wait till later, if you'd rather."
"Tell me." She looked wary.
"Are you sure, because - ?"
"Damn it, Cohen, tell me. I'm not some little kid!" Her eyes flickered with anger.
'You were 4 hours ago' popped into his head, but halted before it got to his tongue. This was strong, stubborn Summer with fire in her eyes again, and he was ridiculously happy to see it. "Ok. You were trying to talk Marissa out of leaving and Ryan got in the car to try to get the key out of the ignition. She floored it, Ryan was stuck, and the car's rear end slid around and hit you." He pointed to her side and hip. "It hit you here. Nothing's broken but everything's bruised." There was no light of recognition, so she must not remember him telling her earlier.
She took in a shaky breath. "And my arm?"
"When the car hit you it - knocked you into the stone pillar at the end of our driveway. You took the impact on your shoulder and arm. Your shoulder was dislocated. When you fell -". His eyes filled at the awful image that appeared in his head and he looked quickly away. "- onto the road, you hit your head. Concussion. I'll be right back." He made a quick exit into the bathroom and leaned back against the door, feeling like an idiot. Guys don't cry in front of women. It killed the whole cool factor, not that he'd ever had much of that to begin with, but definitely made one appear to be quite the girly-man. He dried his eyes and went back, settling beside her on the bed again.
She had a strange look on her face. "And where were you, Seth?" she asked softly.
"Standing in the driveway frozen to the spot, of course. It all happened so fast. I'm sorry. I should have -"
"What? What could you have done? Nothing. Don't even start with that, Cohen." Her tone was sharp, but her hand slid over his gently. "I'm guessing the news about Coop and Ryan isn't good, either." She sighed. "Tell me."
"She was speeding and ran a red light. Two cars hit your car; it rolled and caught fire. The last time I talked to Mom, she was still in surgery and they didn't know anything else. Ryan broke his ankle, has a concussion, and some burns on his arm." He watched her carefully. He had no idea how she would react. "Are you ok?"
She closed her eyes for a moment, then her bottom lip started quivering. She shook her head no, gasping at the pain the movement caused. He reached for her and held her as best he could without hurting her while she cried for a while. "I'm so sorry, Summer. This is a lot to take all at once. Do you want me to go get a nurse? She could get you something for the pain."
Her arm tightened on him. "No. Stay." She continued so softly he barely heard her. " Please."
"Whatever you want. I'm not going anywhere." He rubbed her back gently; afraid that would hurt her too. "How much pain are you in? I think they were lowering your dosage of meds in case they were keeping you from waking up."
"I feel like a train hit me and then backed up over me again. Why? How long was I out? And don't even tell me it's 2005 or some crap like that." She pulled away to look at him, worried.
He laughed. "O-hooooo. I could be so cruel right now. But no, the accident was yesterday. You were out maybe 18 hours. It was rather worrisome. I, quite frankly, hated it, and would like to request that from here on out, you NEVER lose consciousness again unless it's normal sleep complete with the whole REM thing happening."
"Fine by me. This is totally bizarre, waking up in a hospital with like, no memory. It's a blonde moment times 1000." She noticed the other bed next to hers. "What's this? Did I need two beds for some reason?"
Seth looked at the floor. "No. I - uh - slept there."
"You did? Why?"
"I sort of didn't want you to wake up alone and be scared. I'm kind of responsible for you, since your Dad's gone." He stole a look at her. She didn't seem to be mad.
Her eyes softened. "Seth! That's so sweet! I would have, you know. Been scared. What am I talking about? I WAS scared. Wait. What do you mean you're responsible for me?" She watched him warily.
"You didn't have anyone to handle things for you while your parents are out of the country, that I knew of, anyway. I rode with you in the ambulance, and took care of your paperwork and the doctor told me your condition. She's really only supposed to tell a family member or legal guardian. Her husband drove the ambulance and kind of told her what was up with your parents and that mine were out of town. He was completely cool. He even listened in on his radio and sent me a note about Ryan, letting me know he was ok. AFTER I had a meltdown seeing the wreck on the news, but still, it was good to know. What were we talking about? Right, responsibility. So it's no big deal. Oh, my dad said he was going to make some calls and have you put under their care."
Summer laughed softly. "So you're like my guardian?"
"Yes. As a matter of fact, I have complete control over you now; so don't even get mouthy with me. I can send you to your room, or take away your telephone and TV, or even send you back upstairs to change your clothes if I think your skirt's too short. Which, by the way, will never happen. You should be extremely nice to me." He crossed his arms and gazed smugly at her.
She rolled her eyes. "Whatev, Cohen. In your dreams. I'm surprised you didn't mention spanking me."
A guilty look immediately crossed his face. He tried to hide it, but realized she'd already seen it. "Ok. I admit spanking crossed my mind. But under the circumstances I thought it best to keep that to myself. You're in enough pain right now." He shook his finger at her. "But just you wait until you're feeling better, young lady." He slapped his thigh. "Right over my knee."
She gave him a death glare. "If I didn't know it would hurt me worse than you, I would so punch you in the arm right now." She couldn't continue the game, and broke, smiling at him.
"Ha! You were kidding! I really wasn't, but we can discuss that a later date."
She seemed excited at the prospect. "Discuss spanking? Yeah! Let's do that soon! How about, like - never?" She couldn't find the words to tell him, but she was beyond happy he was there with her. Not just someone, HIM. Plus, this was all so surreal, and it felt good to do something normal. Since last summer, other than when they broke up and didn't see each other, nothing was more normal than sparring with Seth.
He went in for another careful hug. "You have NO idea how awesome it is to hear you threaten me and make me feel completely inadequate as a man again. Well. Yeah. You know what I mean." He gestured at her arm. "Just to illustrate what a nice guy I am, since you're in this unfortunate condition, I will now consider myself punched in the arm. Any time you feel like smacking me, just let me know. I'll say "ouch", "ow" or something else appropriate and appear properly chastened."
"Wow. That's such a - sacrifice for you. It makes me feel all kinds of better. But seriously, Seth?" She tried to hug him back.
"Hey, don't hurt yourself. Yeah?" It was so good to put his arms around her and feel her head on his shoulder. He'd wanted to do this since the second he'd seen her hit the ground yesterday. Last night didn't count. This was the real, aware, non-seductive-child Summer.
"Thanks."
There was a quick knock on the door, and Seth slowly pulled away from her as Dr. Mead entered the room.
"Young lady, are you aware that Mr. Cohen hasn't left your side since you arrived in our emergency room yesterday? Not counting the time we tied him to the chair in the waiting area so we could treat you without his interference."
Summer glanced quickly at Seth while he studied the floor.
She approached the bed with a smile. "I'm Dr. Mead. I was your doctor in the ER and will continue until we can reach your family doctor."
"Hi. It's nice to meet you. Actually? It's not, but - " Realizing how that sounded, Summer became flustered. "I mean - um. You know."
Seth jumped in. "Summer is the queen of tact sometimes. It's just part of her natural charm."
Dr. Mead laughed. "I take no offense. I would rather we met under different circumstances, also." She looked to Seth. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cohen, but I have to kick you out so I can examine your friend. Will you go willingly this time or do I need to call security?"
Seth blushed and turned to Summer, smiling nervously. "She's kidding. Mostly," he whispered. He looked back to the doctor. "No, security's not necessary. I still have rope burns from the ER yesterday. And please, it's Seth. I'll just go call Mom and Dad."
Summer was confused. "Aren't they here?"
"No. Ryan and Marissa were taken to another hospital. They stayed there with them. I'll see you in a little bit." He left the room quickly as she started to ask another question.
He walked to the nurse's station and asked if there was a pay phone on this floor. The nurse smiled at him.
"You can use ours here, Mr. Cohen."
He looked up at her questioningly.
"Oh, all the nurses know who you are. It's so sweet, you staying here for that poor girl without parents. You must be very close. Margaret in the ER said you filled out her paperwork perfectly."
Seth's eyes widened. "She has parents. They're just - gone. And we're - uh - friends. Since we were little." Didn't anyone have jobs to do here? Apparently there was plenty of time for gossip.
She winked at him. "Friends. Of course. You just let us know if there's anything you and Miss Roberts need."
He managed a weak smile and used the phone, but both his mom and his dad's cells were off. He left voice mails, and called home, but no one answered there, either. It gave him a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He thanked the nurse as he left.
Dr. Mead was just leaving Summer's room as he got there, and he stopped her in the hall. "Do you have a minute? I'd like to ask you about something that happened last night, if you don't mind."
"Of course, Seth." She looked curious.
"Summer woke up. She was acting weird, and said a lot of unusual things. She fell back asleep, and when she got up this morning, it's like it never happened. Is it possible that anything she said was true, or was it just nonsense caused by the medication?"
"Well, that depends on different things. She had enough medication that she should have slept through the night. First though, how was she acting specifically?"
"Like a child. Her voice and mannerisms were just like she was a little girl again."
"There have been many cases of unconscious people appearing to wake up and talk. Sometimes they regress to an age when a particular trauma occurred in their lives. When they wake up later, they have no memory of it. In most cases they speak about things they might not be able to say in normal life. Sometimes it's buried in their memories or they've blocked it out for some reason. Occasionally, they're just too frightened of the consequences telling it to someone might bring. In one case, a man told his wife he'd been having an affair, but ended it, and begged for her forgiveness. It's not an uncommon thing at all. Was she completely in the past? Did she know who you were?"
He nodded. "She knew me. She was childlike when she woke up, and I assumed it was because of the drugs. She wanted to know what happened to her, so I told her. I apologized for something, and she said someone in her past had never apologized for the same sort of thing. Later on, she mentioned the two of us. Basically, she was a little girl, but she talked about the past like a memory, and about us like she was aware of a conversation we had yesterday before the accident."
"How fascinating. I'm by no means an expert, but I can give you an informed opinion. Since she mentioned specific things about the two of you that were correct, there's a very high probability that everything she said was fact. Was the incident in the past something you're aware of actually happening?"
"No. I'd - uh - never heard this before." His stomach tuned over again.
"Well, if you could confirm it, that would be more proof that it was all fact. But still, I'll stay with my original conclusion that she most likely was speaking truthfully."
Seth nodded slowly. "Thanks for your time. I'm sure you're really busy, but it was kind of important."
"No problem. I'm sure you wouldn't have asked if you didn't have a very good reason." She smiled and headed down the hall.
Seth shook his head, stunned all over again. So her father most likely had abused her. He'd thought she sounded completely sincere last night, but he hoped there was another explanation for the things she'd said. Of much less importance, but still relevant, she might be in love with him, didn't want him to know, and couldn't be his girlfriend. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to feel about any of this.
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