For The Love of a Greaser
Chapter 41
As The Rain Pours Down
For hours, the guys sat there, just sitting and waiting. There wasn't much that they could do save for talk a bit from time to time. Two-Bit even went as far as going down to the gift shop and buying a pack of cards, that way he'd have something to do, tossing a card at Steve every now and then.
"Would you stop it!" Steve groaned, kicking Two-Bit's chair, nearly knocking it over.
Two-Bit just chuckled, before throwing another at him, this time ending up on the floor.
"Would you guys stop it?" Darry asked, his voice raising in annoyance.
That seemed to shut them up long enough for Darry to think.
"Mr. Curtis?" a doctor asked, coming down the hall.
"Y-yes?" Darry stood up in a heartbeat, eyes going toward the doctor.
"As you know, the surgery went well for the most part," the doctor started, holding his clipboard in hand. "We took a few x-rays among other things."
"And?" Two-Bit interrupted, sitting up on the floor.
"And," the doctor continued. "Over all, she has two broken ribs on the right side, a fracture to her upper leg arm, and a broken bone at the base of her neck," he explained, before taking in a breath.
"There's something else, isn't there?" Darry asked hesitantly, swallowing the lump in his throat.
"In the fall, she managed to crack her skull and there was a bit of swelling," he admitted, sending their hopes crashing. "But," he continued. "We're handling it as we speak."
"So, what do we do until then?" Soda asked.
"Well, young man, I'm afraid all anyone can do is what," he told him. "Just wait and pray."
It was silent for a moment, no one speaking a word, until the doctor said one last thing.
"You may see her now if you wish. She's just down the hall."
After that, the doctor walked off, leaving them standing there staring at each other.
"I'm goin for a smoke," Dally mumbled, pushing off the wall and walking down the hallway, leaving the others behind.
"Eden?" Darry reached out, holding his hand out to her.
She look up at him, her eyes red and puffy from crying. There was so much wrong with this picture in Darry's mind. Granted, this girl was no angel, but she still didn't deserve this, none of them did.
T
The rain still poured as Dally stood outside, his dark suede jacket covering him, shielding him from some of the rain. This meant little to him though as he stood there, cigarette hanging from his lips as he leaned against the building, head tilted toward the dark stormy night sky with his eyes closed.
He could feel the rain roll down over his skin as he stood there, mind drifting away from him. So much had happened in the last few months and now he was left standing, not knowing what to do. He'd known that something bad was going to happen from day one, but he never imagined that it'd end like this. Regardless of what the doctor said, he still felt like he might lose something, something precious. He knew that it'd be far worse for Darry though. After all, the big guy was in love with her with the chance of marriage in the future. Dally on the other hand, he was nothing. Yes, he was tough and strong, but they had no clue what all this really did to him. He was just good at hiding it. Hiding behind the cold and dismissive facade of his. Almost like a wintery wasteland.
Dally could feel himself shake as he stood there, slowly sliding down to the ground, the water splashing slightly on impact. His hand then found its way into his hair, raking through it, before gripping and pulling at it slightly. He was a mess.
"Of all the people..." he whispered, his cigarette slipping from his mouth and falling to the ground, the small flame disappearing in a short stream of dampening smoke.
As he sat there, he felt himself reach up, subconsciously gripping the necklace around his neck, the cold metal making contact with the palm of his hand.
"Why'd it have to be her?"
T
Darry stood there in the room, watching Eden cry, her hands clutching the bed.
"I'm sorry Abby," she choked out, burying her face in the sheets. "I-I gave him my key," she admitted. "None of this would have ever happened if it weren't for me," she cried.
Darry wanted to reach out as he stood there listening to her pour everything out, but he held still, watching, listening. She was the one that had technically allowed him in, but it wasn't completely true, she didn't know any better. It's not like she could have known that something like this would happen. None of them would have guessed it. True, they knew that Abigail's father wasn't any good, but they still wouldn't have pictured something like this happening with her laying there in a hospital bed again. Although, this time, they didn't know what would come of it.
To Darry though, it was almost as if everything before him was just a bad dream, a nightmare that he would soon wake from. After all, something like this couldn't be real, could it? No, it had to be a dream, but deep down he knew it wasn't so. Yes, it was a nightmare, but it was also an unfortunate living reality playing out in front of his eyes.
T
As more time passed, the others feel asleep, leaving only Darry and Dallas awake. It also left both men to their own thoughts, something that was better left alone instead of ventured, but was still hard for both. Even harder that certain questions couldn't be answered and certain answers couldn't be told or revealed. That too would soon change though if others didn't, nonetheless, the truth would still have to come out. Although, from who's lips were still to be decided, even though Darry had a feeling that in the end it might be coming from him. These were the thoughts that went through his head as he sat there by Abigail's bed, her hand in his, his fingers wrapped around hers.
"What am I going to do with you?" he sighed, letting a breath escape his lips.
He felt a faint shiver run down his spin after that, a tingling sensation flowing through his fingertips. At that, Darry pulled the sheet up on Abigail a bit more, wanting to keep her warm. After all, it was bad enough seeing her in the shape she was in. At this point, she had a tube down her throat to make sure that she kept breathing, bruises around her neck, and a cut on her forehead. She looked terrible and that fact tore away at him. Probably more so though because he hadn't been there to stop it. In fact, the only reason why he hadn't been there to stop it was because he'd made a little pit stop to grab a snack. If it weren't for that, then she probably wouldn't be in the hospital like she was.
With that thought in his mind he stood up from his chair, walking out of the room and into the hallway. He could see down the hallway to the curtained window, rain pouring down it from the outside. It was almost like the weather was mimicking his emotions, painting them out for everyone to see.
At this point though, Darry just needed a way to unwind and try to get away from things. He even considered going out and getting a strong drink, but he knew that it wouldn't do him any good. Besides, he wasn't the type of person to really do something like that anyway. Not to mention, he'd promised Abigail that he'd never do something like that, and he wasn't going to break that promise to her.
"Hey, Dar, how's she doin man?" Dally asked, walking down the hallway.
He'd actually just come from upstairs at Johnny's room.
"Still the same," Darry replied quietly, running a hand through his hair.
Dally merely shifted in his spot, chewing at the inside of his cheek.
"What are you gonna do?" he asked finally, his eyes meeting Darry's blue, now red rimmed eyes.
It was obvious how tired he was, the stress finally starting to take hold. Point blank, he needed sleep.
"I don't know Dal," Darry sighed, leaning up against the wall, his head tilted toward the ceiling.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the others laying about at odd angles. Two-Bit was laid out in two chairs with Eden curled in his arms. Strangely enough, Steve was laid up in two chairs, his back down in the seats while one of his legs hung up over the back of the other chair. How he could be comfortable like that, Darry had no clue. As for Soda and Ponyboy though, they were in their own chairs sitting next to each other asleep again the other wall.
"Johnny will probably be down to see her at some point," Dally commented.
"That's fine," Darry breathed, pushing away from the wall and grabbing his keys off the floor next to Two-Bit.
"Where ya goin?" Dally asked, giving him a curious look.
"I don't know, out somewhere," he said after a moment. "Keep an eye on her, will you?" he asked, turning his head to look at Dally.
"Yeah, sure man, sure," Dally nodded, looking back into Abigail's room for a moment, only to turn his head back around to find Darry walking down the hallway and out of the hospital.
Dally wasn't even able to say anything as he watched Darry walk away, his back to him as he left. Truth be told, Dally felt sorry for him, but he also felt sorry for everyone right now.
"I guess it's just me and you now Princess," Dally sighed.
Alright everyone, that was chapter 41. I really hope that everyone liked it? At this point, I feel sorry for poor Darry. Now they have to sit back and wait for things to change. Anyway, please REVIEW and MESSAGE me with your thoughts, opinions, ideas, and feelings on this chapter/story. I LOVE hearing FEEDBACK. It helps me WRITE which also makes a HAPPY READER. The more you REVIEW the QUICKER I will write. Thanks everyone and let me know what you think? IDEAS are ALWAYS WELCOMED!