Chapter 2
A/N: This story will be most likely…unrealistic. Though I myself would love it if it was possible. Also, at moments there might be some doubts that this is actually a NickxGatsby story but please rest assured that it is.
Also sorry for the wait… I just saw this movie called "200 pounds beauty", a Korean movie. It was really good. Please watch it everyone!!!
Nick rose from his slumber with a drowsy slowness. The sky was clear and shone brightly through his open window. Summer was here, yet the wind from the river blew nicely, making the heat all but disappear. He sat there for minutes until a nurse came in to fix his bed and check up on him. Apparently, everyone deemed him someone important to know both Gatsby and Tom. As she bent over him to reach the other side of his bed she made a kind attempt at small talk.
"Good Morning, Mr. Carraway. Is everything comfortable?" Nick turned to her, ripping his eyes from the breathtaking scenery.
"Yes. Everything is wonderful." The nurse turned to him and smiled softly.
"Would you like to take a stroll in the hospital garden? The weather is perfect." Nick smiled at her suggestion and nodded slightly.
"That would be perfect." Two doctors came into the room shortly after Nick confirmed the nurse's suggestion to move him to a wheelchair. Lightly, they lifted him from his comfy bed to the stiff chair. Soon, Nick found him and a helper nurse strolling dreamily through the garden, admiring the summer atmosphere. They made one round before Nick shockingly spotted Tom. Wanting to avoid him, Nick asked the nurse for one more round who nodded in agreement. Another round was taken but came to an end all too soon. Nick sagged back into his wheelchair in defeat.
"Is something wrong Mr. Carraway?" He looked straight up to find the nurse staring down at him in worry. Smiling he laughed softly, careful not to move too much.
"It's nothing. I'm just being childish." As he said this, Nick brought himself back up, preparing for the encounter. They came to the entrance doors but saw no sign of Tom save for the imprints of his expensive shoes left on the grass. Relieve seeped into Nick but was soon stopped when a nurse came up to him with her arm outstretched. She was holding a note written in sloppy, practiced handwriting. Taking it, Nick read,
"I had to go, but I was here. I keep my promises.
-Tom"
Nick scrunched his nose in mild disgust knowing that even with this childish confirmation of his presence he couldn't forgive Tom. Nick was put back into his bed and left, but didn't catch any of the words of the nurse, focused on his thoughts of his life. He couldn't forgive Tom for nearly killing Gatsby but to him it was entirely justified. After all, Gatsby had pursued and confused his wife. Everything about Tom was careless and confused. Suddenly, Nick thought of how Daisy was involved too and how they were both careless people. Sighing in frustration Nick laid back to try and get some more rest.
"Hey there, old sport." The smooth, cheery voice invaded his peace. Nick sat back up and faced Gatsby who was leaning against the door. Knowing that he got his attention, Gatsby walked forward and sat on Nick's bed. Gently, he stared at Nicks stomach for a while then brought his eyes up to Nicks face. "Did Tom come?" Nick glanced sidelong and stared into the garden regretfully.
"Have you seen Daisy recently?"Gatsby stared at Nick in all seriousness. Moments passed in strangely comfortable peace which was broken when Gatsby spoke.
"No. I think she's done with me, old sport." Sorrow laced his voice and Nick couldn't help himself from getting angry with both Tom and Daisy. Nick, once again too enveloped in his thoughts, missed Gatsby's words.
"Sorry. What?" Gatsby smiled slightly and repeated himself.
"When you're done getting better, how about a ride in my hydroplane?" Nick glanced up hesitantly but saw no emotion other than hope in Gatsby's face. Smiling genuinely, Nick nodded cutely.
"Sure." Both sat in ethereal serenity , merely enjoying the others company.
"Nick! I'm sorry I couldn't come earlier. I was…caught up in something." Nick rose his face to stare blandly at Daisy. Her fullness lit up the room in sunshiny goodness. She was fumbling a little with her bags of presents until Tom came up behind her and took the bags. Absently, she said, "Oh, thank you honey." Then rushed forward to Nick, completely ignoring Gatsby. "How are you? Does it hurt awfully?" She bent and hovered over Nick in false worry. Peeved to a degree, Nick grabbed Gatsby's hand and rose it to her face.
"Gatsby came to visit, often." Then he smiled mockingly, showing his inner malice toward Daisy. Unable to comprehend further than Gatsby's presence, Daisy turned to him and smiled nervously.
"Hello, Gatsby. How are you? You encountered an awful lot of trouble." Daisy troubled her gloves as she addressed him with downcast eyes. Gatsby smiled in understanding, and replied cordially.
"I'm fine, Daisy. Thank you for worrying." Nick sat in the bed and simmered. Daisy refused to acknowledge that it was her fault that Myrtle died and Gatsby didn't care whether he was blamed or not. He opened his mouth to state the truth and settle his moralistic emotions but a nurse ran in to the room slightly out of breath.
"Mr. Gatsby? There is a phone call for you, it seems to be urgent." Gatsby rose as soon as he heard and rushed out the door, stopping to turn back and stare at Nick.
"I'll be back." Then he left. Daisy seemed to realize that she was dismissed and fell into a chair, on the verge of tears. Taking pity on her, Nick reached forward and attempted to console her. His hand brushed her hair and was about to rest on her shoulder until she suddenly threw herself shamelessly onto the bed, now sobbing relentlessly.
"He hates me. He hates me for leaving him." Nick glanced up at Tom to see his reaction but found him glaring coldly down at his wife. Continuing her pointless rant, Daisy buried her face farther into the bedding. "How could he not hate me? I couldn't wait for him, I just couldn't." Then, as if remembering Tom, she lifted her face and dabbed at it with a handkerchief. Her eyes still brimming with tears she turned to Tom and smiled. "But I still love you Tom, you know I do." Tom concealed his bitter expression and nodded grimly, knowing that all she said was nearly a lie. Nick, feeling pity for her in her well deserved isolation, hugged her close to his chest. Automatically, she froze in surprise but soon relaxed into his warm embrace. Tom took a step forward but stopped, as if realizing that Nick didn't really like Daisy or that Daisy would never fall for him.
They stayed that way for a couple minutes until Daisy gently pushed away, smiling. She stared at Nick for a moment with eyes of love, but then dropped her eyes to his shirt and the bed sheets. "Oh dear, I'm sorry Nick, I got your bed all dirty." Fervently, she began to wipe futilely at the bed, smearing her marks. Nick almost reared back in disgust but instead, reached out to still her hand. Calmly, he said,
"It's alright. The nurses will clean it later." Daisy looked at him and Nick felt a sense of disaster about to come until Tom reached out and caught Daisy's subtly rising hand. He grunted with discomfort and pulled her to her feet. She turned to met his eyes with silent understanding. Quietly she began to pack up and walked to the door.
"I'll come back next time, Nick." Nick smiled and rose his hand in a loose wave.
"I'll be discharged soon so just come over." She smiled politely and left to go wait in the car. Nick turned to Tom after she left with a frown on his face.
"Why are you acting like that? Your making her suffer more than necessary." Disprovable was plain in his voice. Tom, angered and beyond annoyed, rushed to Nick as become the usual routine and whispered harshly in his face.
"If you think I didn't have my share of suffering- look here, when I went to give up that flat and saw that damn box of dog biscuits sitting there on the sideboard I sat down and cried like a baby." Nick gazed at Tom like he was a bad child. Tom stared back at Nick in sorrowful anger. A feeling of pity welled up in Nick which he didn't like one bit but slowly he rose his hand and rested it on Tom's wide shoulder. Sighing heavily he pulled back to make some space between them.
"I understand." Tom pulled back, acknowledging that Nick wanted some room. Nick turned to once again stare out the window, but spoke up when Tom made a motion to leave. "Do you still love her?" Tom paused mid-motion and shivered slightly. Nick nodded slowly comprehending Tom's bitterness to Daisy. Regretting his earlier truth Nick stared at his sheets. Suddenly a rough hand lifted his chin, bringing his face up to be level with its owner's. Tom, in severe seriousness, stared at Nick. In a moment of unusual sharpness he said,
"It's not your fault." Nick jolted back, uncomfortable with the proximity. Wanting to avoid any further closeness Nick glanced at the door nervously while saying.
"Daisy is waiting for you." Tom rocked back on his heels in surrender and waved as he left. Soon after, a nurse came in to check for any discomfort and to say that Gatsby arranged for his discharge to be at his house. Nick nodded detachedly and leaned back to rest for the remaining part of the day.
Gatsby came back into the room only to find that Nick had fallen asleep. He sat in the chair beside the bed and stared at the sheets where marks of Daisy's makeup still rested. Gently he reached his hand out to caress the mark and whispered to himself in a low tone.
"Daisy." His hand stopped mid- motion as his eyes climbed the sheets to rest on Nick. The bandages were slightly visible beneath the shirt that he was wearing and Gatsby surprised himself by getting a bit angry. Abruptly Gatsby rose from his seat and walked elegantly out of the door.
Two days passed by before Nick was discharged from the hospital. An ambulance carried him comfortably to the west egg. He stared at the trunk double doors with a blank mind during the ride due to the multiple pain killers that he had taken. The ambulance finally came to a stop and soon the doors were opened, letting in the bright afternoon sunlight. Right before his momentarily blinded eyes, stood Gatsby. He was clad in a sea foam green suit with a bright yellow dress shirt. Gently, Nick was helped out of the bed in the car and carried slightly to one of the many guestrooms. As he was passing by a room he was greeted warmly.
"Why, hello Nick." Nick turned his head in greeting and saw the lonely man standing in the center of the room. He smiled shallowly as he saw who it was.
"Hello, Mr. Klipspringer." Mr. Klipspringer rubbed the back of his head nervously and continued the short conversation.
"You know… I'd just love to stay but I have to go, you know. I hope you'll understand." Nick nodded in dismissal but continued to stare at the shaking man.
"I see. Well, have a nice time." Mr. Klipspringer bowed narrowly and left, heading off in the opposite direction of Nick.
Soon Nick was settled and comfortable in the grandest room right beside Gatsby's. A maid came in to reconfirm his happiness once more before he was left alone for the rest of the day.
A couple more days passed in silence as Nick spent his days sleeping in his bed or walking slowly around the large mansion. By the end of this boring length of recuperation Nick saw not Gatsby, Tom, Daisy, or even, Mr. Klipspringer. He was out by the pool when he heard a car drive up the driveway. He walked slowly to see who it was and hoping that it was some decent company when he saw Gatsby climb out of the car with Meyer Wolfstein. The man was fingering his molar cufflinks in thought as they both walked solemnly to the house. Nick decided to stay outside for a while more before he headed in to talk with the unpleasant man.
He had stayed out for quite a while before going into the house. As soon as he stepped in he saw Meyer Wolfstein and cursed his rotten luck for finding him alone. The man waltzed over to him in a casual manner yet Nick saw some underlying tone of stress about the man.
"Hello." His dreary voice floated to Nicks ears in discomfort. Nick smiled cordially and bowed slightly.
"Hello, Mr. Wolfstein. It is a pleasure to meet you once more." The man nodded in approval and seemed just about to walk off when he startled as if an idea had struck him. He leaned up to Nick and swung his large arm around his shoulders.
"Mr. Carraway. I hear that your in the bond business." Nick felt a sensing danger and backed off lightly. He smoothed away from the sinister man and said,
"Why yes. I am." Wolfstein persisted in his manner and once again leaned close. He opened his mouth in a smooth way and was about to speak when Gatsby's composed voice broke all thoughts.
"Good Afternoon, Nick. I apologize for not being able to meet with you even though your resting in my house. There was some trouble." Gatsby had walked up to Nick and placed an arm on his arm while he was talking. Nick relaxed ever so slightly yet the release of tension because of his presence made Gatsby smile. "I'm sorry to have to leave you once more. Wolfstein and I have some matters to discuss." Nick smiled tiredly and nodded in understanding.
"I know. I'm going back to my house today though." Gatsby turned to face Nick directly and frowned.
"You don't have to. You can live here if you want." His invitation nearly tempted Nick but then he remembered the days of loneliness while he was alone in the vast house.
"I'm sorry, but I think that I really should go home." Gatsby stared at Nick in disappointment but nodded never the less.
"I see. Then I'll come to visit soon." Nick nodded and turned away to head to the guest room where some of his things were. As he stayed at Gatsby's house the maids had brought some necessities over.
Soon Nick was back at his house but he felt restless. Deciding to go to the city for a change of pace Nick prepared himself and stepped out of his front door only to find Tom and Daisy driving up the dirt road.
A/N: Sorry that the chapter was so slow. I want to go at a faster pace but if I do then I think everything will feel rushed. A few notes.
-When Tom says that he cried like a baby after seeing the dog biscuits and all the other stuff it's cause they were myrtles.
-Meyer Wolfstein and Gatsby are committing something like bonds fraud to make big money. I wanted to incorporate that even if it was only a little bit… I don't think that there'll be any more of that.