Nick watched as Demi fell apart in Joe's arms. He watched as Joe just stared at the blank wall while he rubbed Demi's back in an attempt to calm her down. He took a deep breath and stood up.
"Come on," he said, his voice shaking slightly. "We have to go see her."
Joe let go of Demi and they both sat up. Demi wiped her eyes and took a shaky breath, trying to calm herself down. They both stood up and walked over to Nick, who was standing with his car keys in hand.
The three of them walked over to the basement stairs and went up. They walked out through the living room, where Joe and Nick's parents and brothers were. Their mother looked up with a slight frown on her face.
"Where are you three going? It's still pouring outside," she said. She looked at Demi and gasped. "Demi, what's the matter?" She stood up and walked over to Demi, who smiled slightly at her and looked at the floor.
"Um, there's a problem. Miley's had an accident. We'll explain when we get home. We have to go to the hospital now," Joe said. He took Nick's keys. Nick opened his mouth to argue, but Joe raised his hand, signalling him to stop. "You aren't fit to drive. Who knows what'll happen? You could completely break down on the way there. And obviously Demi's in no fit state either, so I'm driving. There isn't going to be another accident today," he warned.
Nick sighed and nodded. He glanced at his parents. "Bye," he croaked. He headed out to his car with Demi and Joe trailing behind.
When they were all in Nick's car, Joe reversed out of the driveway and began to drive towards the hospital. The car was silent except for Demi's sniffling and Nick's shaky breathing. Joe glanced at the two of them. Nick was staring at the window, practically shaking, with tears in his eyes. Demi was sniffling and picking at the nail varnish on her fingernails in the backseat. Joe sighed and focused on the road.
How could this happen to Miley? he thought. She and Nick never even got to tell each other how they feel.
After a few more minutes of driving, Joe reached the road the hospital was on. Nick and Demi realised where they were and sat up straight, staring at the big building in front of them. Joe turned off at the roundabout and drove into the parking lot of the hospital.
He pulled into a space and turned in his seat. He looked at Nick and Demi, who were both looking up at the building with scared expressions on their faces.
Joe cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "You ready?" he said calmly.
Nick looked at Joe and nodded. He then paused, smiled slightly, and shook his head. "I'm not ready. I don't think I'll ever be ready to go in there and see her like that, but I guess we have to, huh?" He took a deep breath and attempted another smile, but he failed miserably.
They both turned to look at Demi, who still had her eyes on the hospital building. Another tear slid down her cheek. She turned and looked at the brothers in the front. She wiped away the tear with the back of her hand and sniffled.
"She shouldn't even be here," she whispered.
Joe sent her a small smile. He reached his hand into her and took her hand. "I know, Dem. But we have to go in there and be there for her when she wakes up. She wouldn't want you to be this upset over it. You know Miley. She hates it when people cry over her," he replied.
Demi bit her lip and nodded. She squeezed Joe's hand to thank him and undid her seatbelt. "Let's go," she said.
Nick and Joe both undid their seatbelts as well. The three of them got out of the car and walked towards the entrance of the hospital. Joe and Demi were holding hands, and Nick was walking a few steps ahead with his eyes in the ground.
When they walked through the front door, they walked straight to the front desk. "Hello, I'm looking for a Miss Miley Stewart?" Joe enquired.
The woman pursed her lips slightly. "Are you family?" she asked.
Joe opened his mouth to reply, but Nick interrupted. He hit Demi and Joe's hands so that they let go of each other. "Yes. We're her brothers, and this is her sister," he lied.
The woman eyed them suspiciously, but tapped something in on her computer keyboard. After a few moments, she turned back to them. "Miss. Stewart is on the third floor. Room 359," she replied.
"Thank you," Demi said quickly. She grabbed Joe's hand when the woman at the desk couldn't see them anymore and giggled. "She actually fell for that." She glanced at Nick. "Nice one, Nick," she commented. She pressed the elevator and began to tap her foot impatiently.
When the elevator doors opened, the three of them got in. Nick pressed the button for the third floor and waited. As the doors closed, a hand stopped them. Jackson and Sara stepped into the elevator. Sara had tears streaming down her cheeks and Jackson had a very serious expression on his face. They were clutching each other's hands.
Jackson grunted a hello to Miley's friends and looked at the ground. Sara sniffled and wiped her tears.
"What are you doing here?" Nick spat at her, remembering what Miley had told him about her.
Sara glared at him. "I am here to support my fiancée as he grieves for his sister, and I am here to wait for my future sister-in-law to wake up and make it through this like the strong girl she is," she replied through gritted teeth.
"Somehow, I don't think Miley would want you here," Nick replied, his voice cold and harsh.
"Nick!" Jackson snapped.
Nick shook his head. "Whatever," he muttered before turning back to face the elevator doors.
When the elevator doors opened, Nick was first out into the hallway. He walked straight to the woman at the desk there. "Could you tell me where Room 359 is? I'm looking for Miley Stewart," he said.
The woman smiled softly at him. She pointed down the hallway. "Go down there, take a left, take another left, then go straight to the end of the hall. Her parents are in the waiting room there already," she replied.
Nick thanked her quickly before leading Joe, Demi, Jackson and Sara down the hallway. All five of them were practically running down the hall to get to Miley.
When they were on their way to the end of the hallway, Nick stopped abruptly. He was staring straight ahead at the waiting room in front of him. He shook his head as a few tears came to his eyes.
Joe placed a hand on his brother's shoulder. "You okay, bro?" he murmured.
Nick shook his head and looked at Joe. "I can't do this. Going down that hallway is like admitting that this is all real and that she's really hurt. It's like admitting that this isn't a horrible, horrible nightmare," he replied.
Joe patted Nick's shoulder. He glanced at the other three and nodded. "You guys go sit down in the waiting room, we'll be down in a minute." He watched Demi, Jackson and Sara go to join Miley and Jackson's parents in the waiting room before turning back to Nick. "Nicholas, come on. Do you think Miley would want you to be standing here thinking like that? Of course she doesn't want to be in this position, but she more than likely doesn't want you to be acting like this because of it," he said. Joe paused for a moment. "Nick?" Nick looked up at Joe, who was looking at his brother with an expression that Nick had never seen before. "Are you ... Are you in love with Miley?"
"I like Miley," Nick said slowly.
Joe shook his head. "You aren't answering my question. Do you love Miley?" he asked.
Nick didn't reply. Instead, he looked at the ground. He didn't know what to say. On one hand, Miley was an amazing girl. She made him feel special inside. She gave him butterflies in his stomach. She was smart, beautiful, funny, everything he wanted. But on the other hand, he couldn't love her. Sure, she was amazing, but he couldn't be in love at such a young age. It was absurd. Nick looked at Joe and sighed.
"I wish I knew, but I don't. I don't know how to describe how I feel for Miley. It isn't love quite yet, but it definitely friendship any more," he said.
Joe smiled at Nick and patted his shoulder again. "That, my friend, is the feeling of falling in love. Not quite love, but definitely not friendship? Yeah, you're falling for her, little brother," he said. He sent Nick a wide grin. "Now, come on. I'm sure you'll be the first person Miley will want to see whenever she wakes up."
Together, the brothers walked down the hall to the waiting room. When they reached the end of the hall, they entered a room with chair against the walls, with two coffee tables covered with magazines. There was a water fountain in the corner and a door to the toilets on the left. Facing the entrance was a pair of double doors, which obviously led to the operating rooms and private rooms for patients.
When they saw Joe and Nick, Miley's parents stood up immediately.
"Nick!" The woman rushed over to the teenage boy and engulfed him in a bear hug. "Thank God you're here. She's in surgery now."
Nick gulped. "S-Surgery?"
Mrs. Stewart opened her mouth to reply, but her husband placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "I think Miley should be the one to tell Nicholas her news, don't you, dear?" He stuck out his hand to Nick. Nick shook it. "Good to see you again, Nick," he said.
"Good to see you too, sir," he replied. He glanced at the double doors. "Um, what happened exactly?"
"Well, the driver of the car said that it was raining really heavily, and he could barely see the road. He was trying to find a place to stop and wait until the rain calmed down a bit, but all the parking spaces were full, so he kept driving. He was trying really hard to see the road, but it was getting harder and harder. Then, he said he was almost home when Miley ..." Mrs. Stewart's words caught in her throat and she turned around, starting to cry.
"That's when, uh, Miley ran into the middle of the road. She didn't see or hear him coming. Then ... he hit her," Mr. Stewart finished, looking down.
Nick bit his lip and looked at the ground. Her parents were in so much pain and there was nothing anyone could do for them. He and Joe sat down beside Demi. Nick quickly wiped away a stray tear and looked at his brother.
"Joe, this is all my fault," he whispered.
"What? Of course it isn't. You mustn't blame yourself, Nick. Miley wouldn't want it," Joe replied.
"Stop talking about her like she's already dead, Joe," Nick snapped. "And yes, it is my fault. If I hadn't argued with her, she wouldn't have run off and she wouldn't have run into the road and she wouldn't be here right now!" Nick buried his face in his hands. "I was stupid enough to make that comment about girls in the first place."
Joe patted Nick's back comfortingly. "Nick, come on. How were you supposed to know that the rain would get that bad? You didn't know that she would go into the road. You didn't know that the driver was going to hit her. It was all an accident," he said. He paused for a moment. "You know, I remember when we were little, you and I were arguing over who broke some toy car." Joe chuckled and smiled at the thought of his story. "I remember you blamed me for everything. And do you remember what Miley said to you?" When Nick didn't reply, Joe smiled again. "She said, 'Not everything has to be somebody's fault.' Just like this. This is nobody's fault. It's just a case of bad weather and bad timing. Miley was in the wrong place at the wrong time, that's all."
Nick nodded and looked up. "I guess so. Thanks, Joe," he replied.
Joe grinned at his younger brother. "You don't think so, you know so. And you're welcome, little bro," he replied. He stood up and walked over to Miley's parents. "So, what injuries does she have?"
"Way to be blunt, Joe," Jackson snapped from his chair. "We're worried sick about Miley, and all you want to know is what injuries she has? Never mind her injuries. I'm more worried about her life." Jackson stood up and stormed out of the waiting room. Sara jumped up and scuttled after him with a worried expression on her face.
Mrs. Stewart glanced at her retreating son's figure before turning back to Joe. "She has a severe head injury from when she hit the ground. She has a broken leg, a few broken ribs and a broken arm."
Joe nodded and sat back down in his seat. Nick bit his lip. She sounded as though she was going to be in a lot of pain. But none of that explained why she would be in surgery. Sure, the head trauma would be bad, but, depending on the type of injury, she may not even need surgery for that. It had to be something else. Otherwise, Mr. and Mrs. Stewart would have just told him.
As Nick was thinking, the double doors opened. The five remaining people in the waiting room looked up and saw a man in a white coat. They all stood up and looked at the doctor. The doctor cleared his throat and held his clipboard to his side.
"Miley Stewart?"
"That's our daughter," Mrs. Stewart said quickly. "Is she going to be okay?"
"Your daughter is going to be just fine, ma'am. Hopefully, she won't remember the accident happening. Sometimes people black out when it comes to these things and the only remember up to a certain point on the day of the accident." The doctor glanced at his clipboard again. "Miley is still unconscious right now from the surgery, but she should be awake in a while. Whenever she wakes up, one person at a time can go in and see her." He looked at Miley's parents and motioned for them to come closer. He murmured something to them before backing away and walking back through the double doors.
Mr. Stewart smiled at Nick. "I think Miles would like to see her best friend first, don't you, Nick?" he suggested. He gently pushed Nick towards the double doors.
Nick glanced back at Demi, Joe and Miley's parents. He sighed and turned back to the double doors. He slowly pushed the right one open and began to walk down the hallway. He soon found Miley's room and opened the door.
His jaw dropped when he saw her. Her leg and arm both had casts on them. She had bandages on her head. She had cuts and bruises all over her. She looked like the accident had been pretty bad.
Nick slowly walked over to the chair by her bed and sat down. He gently took her hand and placed a soft kiss on it. He watched her as tears came to her eyes. Even in her worst state possible, she still managed to look beautiful.
"Look at you, Miley. You're a mess. How did this happen to you?" he whispered, his voice shaky as he squeezed her hand slightly. "Why did you have to run away? If you had just come inside, you'd be fine. But we had to fight, didn't we?" He chuckled slightly, even though there was nothing funny about the situation they were in. "We had to fight over something stupid, just like we always do ..." He trailed off and looked away.
When he looked back at Miley, she was still lying peacefully in the bed, still not awake, much to Nick's disappointment. He squeezed her hand and leaned over her. He kissed her forehead and stood up. He smiled to himself as he gently ran his fingers through her long, brown curls.
"I love you." he whispered.
Those three words were simple but behind them, there was a world of meaning. A lifetime of memories and reasons as to why they were said.
Moments after the words escaped Nick's lips, he turned on his heel and walked out of the room. He walked down the hallway and out through the waiting room without so much as a word to Joe, Demi and Mr and Mrs Stewart. He walked back down towards the floor's reception and to the elevator. He passed Jackson and Sara as he walked through the lobby on the ground floor. He passed a crying little girl, carried by her father, in the parking lot. He passed an old woman who was hobbling towards the hospital with only a smile on her face.
Nick got into his car and sat down in the driver's seat. He slammed the door behind him. He went to get his keys from his pocket, but he remembered Joe still had them.
He didn't know why, but at that moment, everything that had happened affected him. He pressed his forehead against the steering wheel and let all his emotions escape as the tears began to cascade down his cheeks. The only noise that could be heard in the car was the sobs coming from his shaking body.
HELLOOOOOO. Aw, poor Nick :( Tell me what you thought in a review (: Questions ... hmmm. Okay. 1) What did you think of Nick and Sara's little ... encounter in the elevator? I don't really know what else to ask about the story other than what you thought about it, so just leave me your thoughts and opinions. Any things that you think I could improve on, let me know. Sha, so now a person question ... Okay, what is your favourite movie(s)? Mine's probably A Cinderella Story (: I freaking love that movie. Sorry it's been like nearly two weeks. But I was in Lake Tahoe with my friends from last Friday until like Wednesday morning, so I didn't really write then. Then when I got home I just had to add in the finishing touches and voila (: Here it is. I think that's it.
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