Thank you all so much for reviews...and sorry for leaving you all hanging like that. I couldn't resist myself :P
"Leave it," Vaughn murmured.
"We can't. It's probably Will. I promised him that we'd rescue him from Francie's clutches if need be."
"Fine." Vaughn groaned and then grabbed the phone. "Hello?"
Sydney watched him with a smile. But, as Vaughn's expression turned grave very, very quickly, she felt herself sober up.
"Ok…bye." Vaughn slowly placed the phone back into the receiver, his eyes averting Sydney's.
"Vaughn? Who was that?"
"That was Amy, Syd." Vaughn finally looked her in the eyes. "There's been an accident."
"What?" Sydney gasped. "Is it Dillon? Is he ok?"
"He's fine." Vaughn rubbed the back of his neck. "It was Will, Craig and Francie."
A loud ringing started in Sydney's ears as she put a hand on the chest of drawers to steady herself. "What happened?"
"It was a car accident." Vaughn walked over to her, his own stomach churning.
"Are they ok?"
"I don't know. Amy is on the way to the hospital now."
Sydney looked at him. "We have to go there. We need to go there."
Vaughn nodded. "I'll drive."
"Amy!" Sydney dashed down the hospital hallway, Vaughn by her side. "What happened?"
Amy shrugged, her expression distraught. "We haven't been told much. Apparently Francie was driving and they were hit side on. The paramedics found Will's phone at the scene and that was how the hospital managed to contact mum and dad so soon."
"How are they?" Vaughn asked.
"All I know is that Will is in surgery. They won't tell us the extent of his injuries- and we haven't been told anything about Francie or Craig because we're not family." Amy brought a hand to her face, trying to hold back her tears. "Which only makes me feel as if it's bad."
"Oh god. Do Francie's parents know?" Sydney asked, her own throat constricting.
Amy nodded. "Mum and dad are calling them now, but the hospital is having trouble getting hold of Craig's details."
"I have his parents number." Vaughn spoke up. "I'll go call. I'll let Weiss and Ainz know too." He headed off, thankful that he had something to do.
"I can't believe this," Amy said dazed as she and Sydney slumped down in some nearby seats. "I was just picking up wrapping paper when the phone rang. I just never imagined that it would be mum, telling me…telling me that Will…"
"He's going to be ok," Sydney, said softly, wrapping an arm around Amy's shoulders. "They're all going to be ok."
Robert and Patsy Tippin came back at that point, a few minutes later they were joined by Vaughn, who informed them that Craig's parents were on the way.
The group was soon joined by Eva and Leon, Francie's parents and not long after their arrival, an uncharacteristically solemn Weiss showed up. The silent comfort and support was all they could provide, and in truth, was the only thing that each of them needed.
Craig's parents, Deirdre and Paul, arrived not long before a doctor finally approached the group.
"Are there any relatives of Craig Blair here?" he asked. Tentatively, Deirdre and Paul stood. The doctor gestured off to the side. "Would you care too…"
"No," Deirdre shook her head firmly. "Craig's friends have as much right to know as we do."
"Ok, well, it looks as like Craig is going to be fine." The doctor announced. Paul let out a massive sigh of relief as his wife sagged against him. "He has sustained some injuries- a broken arm and several broken ribs. He does have a concussion, and because of that I would like to keep him here overnight, for observation. But, he should be ready to be discharged sometime tomorrow."
Deirdre closed her eyes briefly. "Thank you," she whispered, almost inaudibly.
"You're welcome," the doctor replied and then went to walk off.
"Wait," Amy jumped up. "Do you have any information on the other two?"
"They are both still in surgery," the doctor replied.
"But do you know anything about the extent of their injuries?" Eva pressed.
The doctor paused, glancing at the group. "Are there representatives from both patients families here?" Will and Francie's parents nodded. "And I can speak freely in front of everybody?" Again nods. "Ok, from the reports I have of the accident, the car in which they were travelling was hit on the driver's side. Mr Blair, who was in the front passenger seat, was spared from the initial force of the impact. But," the doctor glanced at the folder he was holding, "Ms Calfo and Mr Tippin, who were seated in the driver's seat and behind the driver's seat, respectively, have received the brunt of that impact. I do not have full knowledge of their injuries, but what I do know is that they are considerably more serious than those sustained by Mr Blair."
"Oh god," both Eva and Pasty choked out.
The doctor was glancing up and down the hallway. "How about I show you to one of our private waiting rooms. You have a long wait ahead of you and will be more comfortable than sitting out in the hallway. There will be room for everybody, and that way the staff will know where to find you if there is any news.
Time passed at an achingly slow rate, with no news being offered. Sitting on one of the lounge's Sydney felt as if the walls were closing in around her, as she fought the urge to scream. Things in her life had been going great for such a long period of time that she had began to think that she had already been through her fair share of bad times and that life was giving her a well-earned break.
'You should have realized that something was lurking around the corner,' she thought bitterly. Her two best friends, the people she had been so close to for over ten years, fighting for their lives.
Unable to bear the smothering atmosphere in the room anymore, Sydney stood abruptly and walked out. Leaning against the wall by the door, Sydney closed her eyes. It wasn't long before she heard the door open and sensed Vaughn's presence beside her.
"You all right?" he asked. "Or do you want to be alone?"
Sydney shook her head. "I just couldn't breathe in there," she inhaled deeply. "This juts doesn't seem real, you know? It's like we're all living in a nightmare."
"Hmm," Vaughn sighed, rubbing his eyes.
Sydney looked at him. "You must be so relived about Craig."
Vaughn's brow creased slightly. "Well, yeah…but my mind is kind of on Will and Francie at the moment. Craig's fine and that's great, but I'm not going to be 'relieved' until I know that all my friends are ok."
"Do you think they're going to be…ok?"
"I hope so, Syd." Vaughn replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pressing his lips onto the top of her head. "I really hope so."
About half an hour later Weiss joined Sydney and Vaughn out in the hallway. "I'm going upstairs to see if I can visit Craig," he said. "Did you guys want to come?"
Sydney shook her head. "I want to wait here in case we get any news," she explained. "But give Craig my love."
Vaughn looked at Weiss. "I think I'll stay too."
Sydney put a hand on his arm. "Don't stay for my sake. I know you want to see him."
"But…"
"I'll be fine, Vaughn." Sydney said firmly. "After what Craig has been through, he's going to need some friendly faces." Still Vaughn was hesitating, and Sydney forced a small smile on her face. "Go."
"Ok," Vaughn gave her a quick kiss. "I'll be back soon."
Sydney remained by herself in the hallway. She couldn't bear going back into the atmosphere of the waiting lounge. It was easier to deal with the situation by herself.
After sitting down on a nearby chair, Sydney leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes, but seconds later they flew open.
"Syd!" A harried looking Ainsley was rushing down the hallway. "You're ok?"
"Yeah, I'm ok." Sydney said, standing. "Why would you think I wasn't?"
Ainsley threw up her arms. "I don't know what to think. I was at Phase One and I ducked into the office. There was a message on my phone from Eric saying there'd been some accident and that if I got the message I should meet him at the hospital." She looked at Sydney, her eyes wide. "What happened?"
"Will, Francie and Craig were in a car accident," Sydney said gently.
The breath seemed to catch in Ainsley's throat. "Are they ok?"
"Craig is, but Will and Francie…we don't know."
"Holy sh…" Ainsley trailed off as she slumped into a chair, and as Sydney sat down beside her, she couldn't agree more.
Vaughn and Weiss returned back from their visit with Craig about five minutes before another doctor appeared and entered the waiting room. The four of them hovered around the door as he addressed the group inside.
"Ok, both Mr Tippin and Ms Calfo are out of surgery. Both have sustained internal injuries, however Ms Calfo's are considerably more severe."
"Are they going to be ok?" Eva asked.
"Only time will tell," the doctor replied. "They are both still under the affects of the anaesthetic at the moment. It's only when they wake up that we will be able to ascertain the full extent of their injuries."
And then he turned and left, leaving all of Will and Francie's family and friends each and every one of them trying to digest the news they'd just been given.