Author's Note:
I wound up combining two short chapters into one. The next chapter is going to be long...and the last one. It's been long awaited by my Manstead stalker. The final chapter is going to be...hot. That's all I can say. She's seen a line and has been impatiently waiting for over a week haha. After this story, I plan on finishing up the other stories I've left open while I did this story. I already have plans for my next story and another potential story beyond that. Thank you all for your reviews! I appreciate it! Now enjoy and leave me some love by clicking that cute little review button at the bottom!
Say something, I'm giving up on you
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
Anywhere I would've followed you
Say something, I'm giving up on you
And I... will swallow my pride
You're the one that I love
And I'm saying goodbye...
~A Great Big World~ Say Something
Four days passed and Will found himself both bored and saddened. Natalie hadn't been back since that afternoon in the ICU. He had been in a regular room for three days now and was convinced his brain would rot away if he watched any more television. Jay had brought a bag of clothes and such the morning he was transfered from the ICU. Will decided that he would go insane if he stayed in the room a minute longer. He carefully got dressed which proved to be a painstakingly slow process due to the IVs he was still hooked up to. His incisions ached though the pain lessened as each day passed. Will slid on a pair of shoes and climbed out of bed, pausing as he stood and steadied himself. After the first few steps, he found his equilibrium, his movements becoming more steady as he approached the elevators. It was a short ride to the ED. Will stepped into the hallway, the chaos that was typical hanging in the air.
" Will. What are you doing down here?" asked April as she approached him, guiding him to a chair at the nurse's station.
" I'm bored as hell so I thought I'd take a walk. Where is everyone?"
" With patients. It's been crazy trying to balance out the coverage while you're recovering."
" Have you seen Nat today?"
" She's in Exam 3 with a patient."
" Has she said anything to you?"
" No. Is there something going on that I should know about?" questioned April.
" Nevermind. So what's been going on?"
" You haven't heard the big news yet?"
" Lanik's gone?"
" I wish. No. Maggie's in remission!"
" That's fantastic!," replied Will.
Wait...who's in the hybrid?"
" Dr. Marcel. Why?"
" Marcel is down here? He's going to be pissed."
" Why's that?"
" I unhooked all of my LEDs, pulse ox, and came downstairs."
" You didn't tell anyone you were leaving, did you?"
" No…"
" Then that explains why he looks like he wants to kill you," quipped April, looking over Will's shoulder. Will spun around in his chair to find the surgeon head straight for him, looking incredibly angry.
" How hard would it have been for you to tell ANY OF THE NURSES upstairs that you were going for a walk without your telemetry pack? I spent the last five minutes closing my patient 's chest and taking calls from panicked nurses who thought you had flatlined along with my pager going off telling me you had no heart rate or pulse."
" Clearly I do," retorted Will. Crockett opened his mouth to respond, his face turning a deep shade of red as he did so. A very jubilent Maggie entered the ED, interupting what was sure to have been a lecture from Crockett.
" Will! What are you doing down here?"
" The warden let me out on good behavior," joked Will, shooting a look in Marcel's direction.
" You look radiant. What's up?" asked April.
" Oh nothing," Maggie said casually, holding up her left hand, a large diamond ring on her ring finger.
Ben proposed."
" Are you serious? Oh my gosh girl! Let me see that ring!" gushed April. Out of the corner of his eye Will spied Natalie approaching the group.
" What's up?"
" Ben and I are getting married," declared an estatic Maggie.
" Congratulations," offered Natalie, leaning in for a hug. As she did, she locked eyes with Will.
" When's the wedding?" she asked, looking away.
" I had to talk Ben out of just eloping and going to the courthouse. We're thinking of throwing together a simple ceremony in a few weeks," she explained.
" Let us know- we'dlove to help plan things!" April enthusiastically volunteered, Natalie nodding in agreement.
" I've got to get back to my patient, but we'll talk later," said Natalie, walking away. Will stood, giving Maggie a quick hug before heading in the direction Natalie had gone.
" Natalie," he called, spotting her outside an exam room.
" Please. Not now," she said, going into the exam room and closing the door behind her. Will was left standing alone, sadness creeping over him.
" Give her time man." Will turned around to find Crockett standing behind him.
" How do you even know?"
" These walls talk."
" All I told her was that I needed some time," Will lamented, heading back towards the elevators.
" Trust me. I know. It sucks. She'll come around eventually. Now get your ass back upstairs," ordered Crockett.
" Yes mother," Will replied mockingly as the doors shut.
" What gives between you and Big Red?" Maggie asked, approaching Natalie at the nurse's station.
" What do you mean?" she asked, hoping to divert the nurse's attention.
" Girl you could have cut that tension with a knife earlier," stated Maggie.
" We talked about stuff. Us. Our future. I don't know wht I expected. He told me he needs time Mags."
" You two have been through so much though. Maybe time is what you both need." Natalie sighed, still feeling defeated.
" Can we talk about something else? Anything else? How did Ben propose?"
" We can, but you know I'm not going to let this go though...right?"
" I wouldn't expect anything less."
Shortly after Will was discharged from the hospital, a formal invitation to Maggie and Ben's very informal wedding arrived at Jay's apartment. Will ignored it and headed towards his bedroom. The trip home had left him feeling lightheaded and extremely tired. Will sank into his bed, pausing just long enough to burrow under the covers. His bed proved to be much more comfortable than any bed at Gaffney. Within seconds he was fast asleep.
Days passed by, each more boring than the last for Will. He wasn't used to being couped up for so long. The short walks around the neighborhood were the highlights of his days. Will had tried contacting Natalie several times, each one to no avail. He had RSVP'ed to the wedding that was taking place at the end of the week. However Will contemplated not attending since he knew Natalie was one of Maggie's bridesmaids. All of this had blown up in his face. Will hadn't counted on Natalie effectively ignoring him for two weeks.
A loud knock on the front door left Will silently cursing whomever it was as he had just gotten comfortable in bed after a nice hot shower. He waited a few minutes, hoping the person would leave, but the knocking persisted. Will groaned and rolled out of bed, muttering a string of profanities under his breath as he did so. The knocking grew louder as he moved towards the door.
" Hold your damn pants on!" Will shouted. He unlocked the door and opened it, surprised to find Crockett standing in the hallway.
" What do you want?"
" We need to talk. Plus you need your staples out before they fuse into your skin," explained Marcel, walking past Will into the living room. Will shut the door, removing his shirt as he walked into the living room. The dozens of staples in his stomach and chest were beginning to drive him nuts. He flopped down on the couch, waiting for Crockett to tug on a pair of gloves and open the staple remover.
" So what exactly do we need to talk about?" questioned Will, wincing as the first staple was moved.
" Staples first. If I tell you now, you'll be pissed and won't stay still." Will sighed, wondering what exactly Crockett needed to tell him.
A short five minutes later Crockett had removed the last staple, allowing for Will to sit back up.
" So what's going on?" he asked, watching as Marcel disposed of his gloves and the staples.
" When was the last time you talked with Natalie?"
" Not since before I was released. Is something wrong?"
" Word is she plans on moving back to Seattle with Owen sometime after the wedding." Will felt his stomach lurch.
" That's ridiculous. Where did you hear that?"
" I overheard her talking to Maggie. Seems like you've taken too much time."
" She won't return my calls or texts."
" I don't know man. Are you going to the wedding? That might be your best shot."
" I wasn't planning on it, but I sure am now," declared Will.