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*Italic indicates thought
Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Waiting Game
A/N: Hey guys! I've got another chapter! Hopefully with break this week I can get some good writing done! Enjoy!
"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life. It goes on." -Robert Frost
It was close to three hours later when Mike finally got to Panorama City. He went straight to the emergency room waiting area. He walked in through the automatic doors and looked around. He walked into the waiting area and found Serena sitting in a chair, playing with her hair. Mia sat next to her. He wasn't really surprised to see Lauren was there as well. She was sitting across from Serena, playing with her fingers. The girls all looked up as he entered.
"Mike." Serena hugged him as he got closer.
"Is she-" Mike began.
"In surgery," Lauren answered. "We have to wait for more information."
Mike sat down on the other side of Serena and held her hand. "It'll be ok Serena. You know Emily. She's strong. She'll make it."
"I hope so."
Mike caught Lauren's eye and she sighed. It was almost mid-night, yet all of them were still wide awake. The doors to the emergency room opened again and two more familiar faces came in. Mike nodded at them. "What're you guys doing here?"
"Same as you," Kevin answered. "We're here to see Emily."
"Well get in line. She's in surgery and we're still waiting for some information."
"How'd this happen?" Antonio asked.
"I don't know," Serena replied. "The police have to talk to her when she's awake and coherent. And out of surgery!"
"Serena calm down," Mia said, pulling her back down into her seat. "Try to relax, it's going to be ok-"
"Relax?! How can I relax?! My little sister is dying and-"
"Hey," Mike interrupted. "She's not going to die. She'll be ok."
"I hope so." Serena put her head in her hands. She started crying quietly. "It's not fair! Why her?! Why her?!"
Mike and Mia each wrapped an arm around her. Kevin and Antonio sat near by and leaned close to them. "She'll be ok," Mia reiterated. "She's going to be ok. Just hold on."
"I knew I should've called her. She wouldn't have been on that road in that moment if she hadn't been coming to see me! I knew she was coming...and I didn't tell her I wouldn't be home! I thought it wouldn't matter!" She just kept crying. "She's my baby sister. I can't loose her! I just can't!"
Mike and Mia rubbed Serena's back. "Em is going to be fine," Mike told her. "She's going to be ok."
Kevin sat back in his chair and sighed. "Damn. Why her? Why now?"
Antonio shrugged. "Fate is not our friend."
"Seems like it. You think we would've deserved some good lives after all we did. Not something like this."
"I know it."
Everyone lapsed back into silence; except for Serena who kept crying. Mike heard the door slide open again and looked up. "Looks like everyone's here," he observed.
Lauren frowned and turned. She gasped a little. Jayden looked worried and solemn as he walked into the waiting room, followed by Lorrie. "Any news?"
"Not really," Mia answered. "She's in surgery. We have to wait for news."
Jayden nodded and sat next to Antonio. "How long you been here?" he asked his best friend.
"Not long." Antonio sighed and stretched out a little in his chair. "But something tells me we are in for a long wait."
Jayden held Lorrie's hand anxiously and she patted it. They leaned their heads close together, they way they did a lot recently when around other people. "It'll be ok, Jay," Lorrie said quietly. She could feel the anxiety and tension coming off of him. "Relax."
"I can't," Jayden whispered tensely. "Emily is my friend. I can't-"
"Shh. It's ok." Lorrie pulled her legs up into her chair and leaned against him more. She rubbed Jayden's back the way she did when he woke up in the middle of the night because another nightmare had shown its face. She could feel the muscles in his back slowly starting to loosen up. She leaned in close and kissed his neck gently. "Try to relax. We're probably going to be here for a while."
Mike meanwhile was ten times as tense as Jayden. He had his head in his hand and was grabbing at his hair. He could feel his heart beating in his chest. Mia noticed this and frowned. She got up and crouched down in front of him. "Mike?" she asked cautiously. "Are you ok?"
"Uh-huh," Mike managed. "Just-Just-"
Mia sighed. "Come on." She grabbed his arm gently and made him stand. She put her hand on the back of his shoulder and lead him out of the room. They walked down a deserted and silent corridor of the hospital. The fluorescent lights seemed to bright to Mike. They stopped at a door and Mia pushed him in. She turned the dead-bolt type lock and had Mike sit on the toilet.
"Why are we-"
"You needed to be away from all that tension," Mia told him gently. She got a short length of rough paper-towel and turned the water in the sink on with cold water. "You looked like you were going to break down and have some kind of meltdown."
"Was not."
"You were shaking." She finished wetting it and turned the water off. She knelt down in front of her friend and started dabbing at his face. Mike closed his eyes briefly. The cold water felt good against his skin. "So, you going to tell me what's wrong? Or do I have to tickle it out of you?"
"Tickle me?" Mike asked her in disbelief. "We're in a bathroom."
"So?" She smiled mischievously. "You really think I wouldn't do it?"
Mike laughed a little as she continued to dab at his face. "It's just...Emily."
"What about her? Besides the obvious."
"I've spent the last couple of years trying to get over her. And I've met someone else, and everything is going great. But then I get that phone call from Serena. And just like that, I drive three hours to get down here without even thinking about it."
"Do you think it means something?"
"I don't know. I have all these conflicted feelings. I was sure that I didn't love her anymore."
"You were sure? As in past-tense?"
"As in I'm starting to think I'm not as over her as I thought I was."
Mia nodded sympathetically. "Relationships can be hard."
"What am I supposed to do?! I don't know what I should do! Or say! It's been over two years. She's with that Justin guy now. Maybe she doesn't love me anymore."
"The only way to find out is to ask. I know it's scary, but remember that we're samurai. Scary is what we do."
"Sometimes I think scary is what we are."
Mia nodded solemnly. "That too."
Mike sighed and stood up; Mia joining him only a second behind. "We should probably go back and join the others. Serena is going to need all the support she can get."
"Yeah. Come on."
"And Mia?" Mike asked as she threw the paper-towel away.
"Yeah?" Mia asked, as she unlocked the door. She pulled it open and looked back at him.
"Thanks."
"Samurai forever."
"Right. Samurai forever."
-Samurai Ranger Life-
A few hours later, everyone in the waiting room was silent and sleepy. It was around mid-night and the stress of the evening was weighing heavily on them. Serena was carefully draped across several chairs, strategically laying under the armrests, with her head in Mike's lap. She wasn't asleep though. She couldn't even imagine sleeping at a time like this. She stared out at the entry-way of the waiting room, willing a doctor to walk through and bring her good news. Mike felt a shudder pass through her and stroked her hair. "It's ok Serena," he said quietly. His voice sounded a little loud in the silence of the room.
"But it's not," Serena answered back, voice stained with tears. "After everything she's done, everything she did for me, I can't help her. All I can do is wait here for news."
"The doctors are going to tell us as soon as they can. And you are doing something. You're waiting here, in these uncomfortable chairs, listening to the hum of fluorescent lights and breathing in the strong chemicals of a hospital, so that you can be here for Em when she wakes up."
Serena turned and looked up at him. "You make it sound so heroic when you say it like that."
"Well someone should."
She gave his hand a squeeze. "Thanks Mike."
"No problem." Serena turned back to look at the entryway and Mike looked around the room. Jayden and Lorrie had relocated to the far side, along with Antonio. Presumably to get away from Lauren. Said former red was still in her same place she had been with Kevin and Mia. Kevin was stretched out in his seat, staring out dully at the world.
"What could be taking so long?" he asked to no-one in particular.
"I don't know, could be any number of things," Mia told him. "When Seth and his surgery we were waiting for sixteen hours."
Kevin straightened up. "Seth?"
"My boyfriend."
"Ah I see. And he had surgery?"
"Yes a few weeks ago. He has cancer and they had to remove some tumor. Very risky brain surgery, but he pulled through ok."
"That's great."
"Yeah. He's still hospitalized on account of how much chemo and radiation he's going through. That's why I was here already when Mike called me. I spend moat do my time where visiting with him."
"Wow. And I thought my problems were bad."
Mia smirked. "I've heard about your problems."
"Have you now?" Kevin replied, amused.
"Everyone has. Terry applauds you by the way."
"Why?"
"I don't know. Said you were the last person he expected to break tradition and harm your family's reputation."
"Well when you say it like that."
Mia chuckled. "It's not so bad. I'm sure the Kīpā are making this out a lot worse than it actually is."
"Thanks. It's pretty bad though. Brooke hates me. He fiancée hates me. I hate me."
"Don't be so hard on yourself." She put her hand in his and gave the latter a gentle squeeze. "It could be worse."
He thought about how he and Antonio had become roommates and nodded. "Yeah. I suppose."
-Samurai Ranger Life-
Lorrie smiled as Jayden nodded off on her shoulder for the hundredth time. So far they'd been waiting for four hours. It was now 2 am and still no word on Emily's condition and reached them. "Maybe you should just go to sleep Sweetie."
"No," Jayden mumbled, eyes half open, head resting on her shoulder. "Should...stay...awake..."
Antonio smiled form where he was a few seats away. He leaned forward. "Nice try Chica. But mí amigo here never does what's best for himself when one of his friends is in peril. Very heroic, but suicidal in the end."
"Shut up."
Lorrie smiled. She lifted one of her hand and played with Jayden's light brown hair. "It does seem like something you would do."
Jayden groaned. "Not you too."
"Jay, you're practically a zombie right now. Just sleep for a couple hours. I'll wake you up when we get some news."
"Aren't you tired?"
"I'm a college student. Sleep is a luxury, not a necessity."
Antonio laughed. "I like your motto."
Jayden gave him a look. "Don't encourage her."
Lorrie smiled and kissed the crown of his head. "Sleep Jayden. You know you want to. You've worked nearly twelve hours everyday this week. You need to sleep."
"Least I'll get a good paycheck..." Jayden mumbled. "Maybe just a few minutes."
Lorrie nodded. She held one of his hands as his eyes closed all the way and his breathing evened out within the seconds. She settled herself in for a long night and looked at Antonio. "He's so stubborn sometimes."
"Amiga, you don't even know the half of it."
-Samurai Ranger Life-
Another three hours later, everyone was sore and even more exhausted. Serena carefully slid herself out from her resting place and stood up. "I'm going to talk to a nurse."
"Want me to come with you?" Mike asked her.
"No it's ok. I can do it."
"Ok." He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and she left the waiting room. He stood up for a minute to stretch and looked around. He went over to Kevin and tapped his friend on the face. "Kev. Kev."
"Huh?! Oh. Is there-" Kevin began, but Mike shook his head.
"No news yet. You wanna go get some coffee? I think they have some of those instant machines kicking around here somewhere."
Kevin nodded. "I could go for some right about now. Lauren, want one?"
"No thanks."
"Mia?" Mike offered.
"I'm good."
Mike and Kevin wandered over to the other side of the room. "We're going to get coffee. Care to join us?"
Antonio nodded. "Yeah. I'm feeling unbelievably sluggish."
"I'll join you guys."
"Since when do you drink coffee?" Kevin asked him. He'd honestly been expecting Jayden to say no.
"Since I've actually grown up and become an adult." He looked at Lorrie as he stood up. "Want one?"
"You know how I like it."
"Black. Like your soul."
"Exactly."
Antonio shook his head as he threw his arm around his best friend's shoulders. "Let's get energized."
"I feel like, you have enough energy," Jayden informed him as they left.
"Ah, but the truth is I don't."
Lorrie chucked and shook her head. She glanced over at the other two girls and discovered that Lauren was glaring at her. She shifted a little uncomfortably, then suddenly felt annoyed. She told up and waltzed over to the two former rangers. She stood there with her arms crossed. "You got a problem with me?"
"Yeah, actually I do. What're you even doing here?"
"I was with Jayden when he got the call. I came because he was upset and I knew he needed someone to be with him."
"He has his friends. He doesn't need you."
"You don't like me, don't you?"
"Like you?!" Lauren demanded. "Of course I don't like you! You stole my brother from me!"
"I didn't steal anyone. Jayden chose his own path."
"A path you led him down!"
"I helped him, yes! But that's because he deserves his own life. I don't know what he's been through in the past, but whatever it is I can tell he wants nothing more to do with it. I love him. I will do and support whatever it takes to make him happy. I'm sorry that means he doesn't want to have contact with you. I know what it's like to be estranged from family members, and I want him to have a good relationship with him. But I also want what's best for him. And as his sister you should want the same thing."
Laurie didn't say anything. Lorrie turned and walked away. She returned to her seat and sat patiently, waiting for Jayden to return with coffee.
Meanwhile, the four boys had found an instant coffee machine. Mike went first, since it was his idea. He watched as his cup was filled. Once the stream of dark liquid sputtered to a stop he took the cup and stepped back as Kevin stepped up. He raised the cup to his lips and took a since. "Ugh!"
"Bad?" Antonio asked him.
"Awful."
Kevin took his own and sipped it. "Yup. Definitely bad."
Antonio put his money into the machine and pushed the buttons. "It beats falling asleep in one of those waiting room chairs again." He took his cup and drank it as he stepped to the side. "God it tastes like Mia's cooking."
"That's why it was so familiar," Mike nodded.
Jayden smiled as he got Lorrie's coffee first. "Isn't she dating a chief or something?"
Antonio nodded, taking another sip of his awful drink. "If they have kids, I hope they inherit his cooking skills."
"We can hope." Jayden got his cup and took a sip. He made a face. "I've had some terrible stuff in my day, and this beats all of it."
Mike nodded as they headed back to the waiting room. "At least it'll keep us awake."
"If not it's a total ripoff," Kevin said. "If it tastes this bad, it should at least keep us awake."
"Hopefully we'll get some news soon." They walked back in and Antonio and Jayden went one way, while Kevin and Mike went the other way.
Jayden handed Lorrie her coffee as he sat down. "Anything interesting happen while ai was gone?"
"Not really." She took a sip. "That's awful!"
Mike had just sat down when Serena came back. "Well?"
"Still nothing."
"I'm sure we'll know soon."
"I hope so Mike. I really hope so."
-Samurai Ranger Life-
One hour and a half later, a doctor walked into the room. Serena stood up. "Is my sister ok?!"
"Your sister is-"
"Emily! She was brought in last night! Car accident!"
"Yes. I can take you to her now. Only one or two visitors at a time though."
"Ok." Serena looked around at the others. "I'll come back for the rest of you to see her."
"Ok. We'll be right here," Lauren said.
"Right this way Miss," the doctor said. "I'll fill you in on our way."
"Thank you," Serena said as she followed him down the corridor.
