Everyone was quiet. Some crying silently. Some just staring off into the distance. No one knew what to say.
The waiting room was filled with people. People who loved Beca and who were preparing themselves for the news to come.
Chloe and Stacie sat together. Crying, holding each other. Becas father, Warren was standing near the door with is wife. Not speaking. His eyes red rimmed. Cameron and his wife Avery were together. Avery cried silently while Cameron did his best to console her. John and Aubrey sat together on the other side of the waiting room. Aubrey was trying to keep it together. John had the decency to look upset.
All they knew was Beca had been in a car accident. Her car and the other driver's car were totaled. Pulled away on tow trucks while their drivers were taken away in ambulances.
It had been nearly seven hours since they all arrived at the hospital. Almost ten since the accident.
Warren had been told, by Aubrey's Dad about the pregnancy. About it being twins. All warren could do was cover his mouth, his eyes full of tears, as he walked away. Aubrey didn't know what to say to him. Or anyone for that matter. They all had their questions. Why had this happened? Where was Beca going so late? She couldn't answer them. She couldn't tell them that she had assaulted Beca. Scared her from their home. She couldn't tell them this was her fault.
XXXXXX
It was almost ten the next morning. A full Eleven hours since the accident when Becas doctor finally came out, calling her name and half the waiting room stood up.
"Is there a spouse?" He asked and Aubrey's heart dropped as she stepped forward.
"I'm her Wife."
Warren also stepped forward. "And I am her father."
He nodded. "Beca is alive." He said and a collective sigh of relief and some sobs, from Chloe and Stacie were heard throughout the room.
"And the babies?" John asked stepping forward and Aubrey tensed. Cameron glared at him. The doctor looked at Aubrey.
"We are monitoring them closely. As of right now, they are both stable." A collective sigh of relief could be heard throughout the room.
"What happened to her? My Wife, is she going to be, okay?" Aubrey asked.
He frowned. "She is in bad shape. We have put her into a medically induced coma. Her left leg is broken. She has a serious concussion from the air bag, a collapsed lung, we had to perform a thoracotomy." He said and Aubrey held up a hand.
"Wait, you…you cut into her? How could you do that without asking me first-"
"Aubrey!" The blonde jumped as Chloe marched over to her. "She could have died, and you are worried about them asking your permission to save her life what is wrong with you?!"
Aubrey looked at her dumbfounded. Stacie hurried up along side her and took Chloes arms gently pulling her away.
"I assure you; we wouldn't have done it unless it was absolutely necessary and it was. It is just a small incision. And it is helping her breathe as we speak. She has multiple contusions on her face, arms, legs, chest and stomach."
A sound echoed through the room and they all looked to see Warren was throwing up in a trash can. Chloe buried her face in Stacie's shoulder and cried.
"I want to see her." Aubrey said, her voice shaking.
"She is in the ICU. We have only just gotten her stable. I would recommend not seeing her just yet. Maybe, go home, get some rest and come back when you have had some time to process."
Aubrey nodded slowly. "Okay."
He nodded. "I'll contact you if anything changes." He said before walking back through the door.
Aubrey slowly turned, to face all the people in the room. "How did this happen?" Chloe cried, her eyes landing on Aubrey, and Aubrey could see something in them. Anger. Blame.
"The doctor is right. We all need to get some rest."
"I'm not going anywhere." Chloe said stepping away from Stacie and walking over to sit down.
Aubrey felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see her Dad frowning down at her. "I am sorry Aubrey." He said.
She nodded as he walked out of the waiting room. Cameron jumped up and followed after him. Avery watched him go, her red rimmed eyes landing on Aubrey for a second before she stood and walked over to Warren, trying to lend a comforting hand.
Aubrey wasn't sure what to do. Go home? Stay and wait until she could see Beca? It wasn't like she could speak to her. She was in a coma. This is what became of Aubrey's temper. Of her not being able to control herself. She looked around the room. All the people that loved Beca. That would hate her as soon as they found out the truth. Why Beca had been out so late. Why she crashed.
She felt dizzy and took a step back before running her hands threw her hair and heading for the doors.
XXXXXX
Chloe sat in the same chair she had dropped into after snapping at Aubrey. She felt bad, knowing Aubrey was just as scared and worried as the rest of them. But something was telling her that her longtime friend knew more than she was telling. And the way Cameron went after John was alarming as well.
Something happened and she wanted nothing more than to find out what, and to be there when Beca was brought out of the coma. She wanted to make sure Beca knew she wasn't alone. No matter what.
XXXXXX
It was another three hours before Aubrey and Warren were led back to Becas room in the ICU. They were both silent, as they took in the sight. Bandages, tubes, IV's. She didn't look like Beca. She didn't look like anyone they knew. What they could see though, that told them exactly who she was, was her protruding belly.
They were informed that Beca would be kept in the coma for at least another day or so. Giving her body time to heal. Keeping her pain at bay.
Aubrey took her left side, while Warren took her right. Neither of them knew what to say. What to do.
Aubrey reached up, gently running her fingers down Becas face. There were tubes in her nose. Specs of dried blood could still be seen on her skin.
"I am so sorry, Beca." She whispered. "I wish I could take it all back." She was crying, her voice cracking and Warren slowly looked up at her.
"I love you so much, Becs. You're going to be okay. We are going to be okay." She said. "I promise."
Warren had questions, but he stayed quiet. Looking down at his only child. He didn't know how bad a person could look after an accident. He didn't know his daughter could look like someone he didn't recognize. He carefully took a couple of her fingers in his own.
XXXXXX
That night, Aubrey, her father, Chloe and Stacie sat in Becas room, forcing down some Chinese takeout that John had ordered to the room. No one was particularly hungry, but they knew they had to eat. Becas monitor steadily beeping was the only sound in the room, next to plastic forks and chopsticks scrapping the sides of paper takeout boxes.
"Aubrey, you should get started on the insurance in the morning. Talk to the other driver, and exchange info. Get everything sorted before she wakes up." John said and Chloe glanced up at him, before looking over at Aubrey.
"I will." She said. "I already spoke to the officer that was at the scene and the other driver claims Beca ran the stop sign and that is why she got hit. So Beca is at fault. We are going to end up paying a load of money." She sighed and Chloe took a breath to speak but was gently nudged by Stacie. She looked over at her and the girl subtly shook her head.
"But the other driver is, okay?" John asked.
"She is in better shape than Beca. A broken leg, broken nose and whiplash. She will be released in a day or so."
"When did you find out all of this information?" Chloe asked.
Aubrey looked up at her. "After we spoke to the doctor. I didn't go home; I went and spoke to the other driver and her doctor. She isn't going to sue, but she isn't happy about her truck. I'll be paying for that too."
"At least all four of them are alive." Chloe said, before standing up and dropping her nearly full dinner into the trash. Aubrey watched as she walked over to Becas bedside and gently leaned down, kissing her cheek, before stroking her hair and whispering something to her. Then she walked out of the room.
Aubrey looked at Stacie. "What is her problem? She has been short with me since the minute we got here."
"She is just worried." Stacie said carefully. "We all are. This was a close call."
"Tell me about it." Aubrey sighed, setting her dinner to the side and moving her chair over to be next to Beca. Stacie looked at John, feeling awkward being the only one left sitting with him. However, he too stood up and discarded his food.
"Call me if there are any updates on the twins." He said and left the room.
XXXXXX
It had been two days and Beca had remained stable. A doctor from pediatrics also stopped by every couple of hours to check on the babies and kept them up to date on them as well. They were doing just fine, and this made John happy. Aubrey didn't say much about the twins and that had Chloe and Stacie a little put off.
They were told that the doctors felt comfortable enough to bring Beca out of the induced coma, and everyone returned to the hospital for that. Chloe and Stacie were at the foot of the bed. Warren and his Wife Sheila on Becas right, and Aubrey and her dad on her left. They were just waiting for her to wake up.
After an hour, John left back to the office and Aubrey had taken to pacing the room, talking on her cell phone to a client.
Warren and Sheila had gone to the cafeteria to get something to drink and Stacie and Chloe remained next to Beca. Her scraped fingers held gently in Chloes and the girl silently cried. She was doing her best to keep her temper under control. Aubrey seemed to be more interested in talking to a client than sitting at her wife's bedside until she woke up.
Stacie could feel the anger radiating off of her and glanced over at Aubrey, feeling he own anger bubble up. She was just about to say something when a small gasp left Chloes lips and she looked to see Becas eyes slowly flutter open.
She shifted just slightly, her eyes looking around and she swallowed painfully before letting her gaze settle.
"Chloe?"