Maurice and Delilah sat next to an unconscious Cree in the back of the ambulance. Delilah was shaking like a leaf with a traumatized look on her face, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I.. I'm so sorry, Cree-Bear.. please wake up.." Delilah choked out, gently rubbing Cree's still wrist. "Maurice, I'm s-scared.. w-what if she never wakes up?.." Maurice just pulled her into a side hug, ".. I.. I'm not sure right now. The best we can do is pray.." Delilah simply leaned her head into his shoulder and let out a few half-suppressed sobs as Maurice just let out a soft sigh, lightly shaking his head as he stared at the floor in silence until the ambulance pulled into the hospital. Paramedics rushed over and lifted Cree onto a stretcher, carrying her into the emergency room with Delilah and Maurice following behind. They suddenly heard a shout from behind them - it was Cree's little sister, Abby. She raced past them while Mrs. Lincoln desperately tried to catch up.
Soon they were all seated in the waiting room as the doctors took care of Cree. Abby and her mother sat huddled close to each other and softly wept into each other's shoulders. Delilah clung tightly to Maurice's shirt as fat tears trickled steadily down her cheeks. Maurice sighed through his nostrils as he took out his phone and texted the other teens about the current situation at hand. When Chad and Stacey saw the text, their stomachs dropped. They instantly made a break for the hospital. After checking in as visitors, they made their way down the hall when they heard quiet, but heavy sobs from the room before them. Delilah and Abby were both emotional wrecks at this point. Chad sat next to Delilah and pet her soft, golden hair and wolf ears. Delilah rubbed her wet eyes and looked up at him, "H-hi, Chad.." to which he simply gave her a gentle expression. "So.. what exactly happened here?" After a few moments, Delilah composed herself enough to clearly speak.
"W-we were takin a walk in the woods by the park when we saw a bird with its feet frozen stuck to the icy road.. Cree went n saved 'im, but then some crazy guy drivin a pickup hit her and didn't stop or even slow down.. I-I tried everything I c-could, but.. sh-she just wouldn't wake up.." after that explanation ended, Delilah hung her head as a stray tear trickled to the tip of her nose, which Chad gently wiped away.
Just as Delilah finished explaining, none other than Mr. Lincoln walked in. "Dad is she gonna be okay?? Please tell us!!" Abby frantically yelped, only for her mom to hush her a little. "Well as it turns out, Cree has suffered a couple of severe bruises from the accident, as well as broken bones in her left leg and right arm, along with a few fractured, but thankfully not broken ribs. She is currently in a comatose state as of now.. we're doing all that we can to keep her alive, but with the severity of her condition, it may take a miracle for Cree to recover.." hearing this, Delilah felt like a thousand knives had pierced her heart, and she was unable to speak due to the sudden shock. "Visiting hours ends in five minutes, so if any of you would like to visit her, you are free to do that," Mr. Lincoln added, to which Abby, Mrs. Lincoln, Maurice and Delilah instantly got up and followed him down the hall to Cree's room.
As they entered the room, they froze for a moment at the sight before them, trying to process the fact that Cree was in a coma, unlikely to wake up again.. the sight of their loved one completely unresponsive, all those IVs, hoses and wires hooked up to her as she laid motionless in her bed.. Abby and Delilah's eyes filled with tears as they trudged up to Cree. Abby softly grasped her sister's still hand, holding it to her cheek as tears dripped from the tip of her nose.. "sis.. p-please wake up.. I p-promise I won't f-fight with you anymore.. I'm so s-sorry for everything I did.. please.. just wake up.." she whimpered as Mrs. Lincoln rubbed her back. Delilah let out pathetic sobs as she stood at the side of Cree's bed, hardly able to speak as she stroked Cree's dread locks, barely able to speak coherently. Big tears rolled off her chin as they hit Cree's face, wishing that she'd wake up and wrap her in a comforting hug like she always did when Delilah was sad. Maurice remained rather stoic compared to the weeping girls, but visually frowned as he gazed at his unconscious girlfriend. The quiet mourning went on for a bit until Mr. Lincoln spoke up again.
"Visiting hours are now over. It's best if you all went back home, but we'll keep all of you updated as much as possible," he said, gesturing them out the door. The four of them left the room and made their way out of the hospital. While the Lincolns drove off in their car, the teens flew off into the darkening, snowy skies using their armor. Delilah flew above them in the form of a hawk. "I swear, if I EVER find the drunk bastard who did this.." Delilah muttered under her breath, a bit of anger mixing in with her sorrow. "Now, Delilah, I'm sure police will find them sooner or later. Besides, reacting with violence isn't gonna bring Cree out of her coma," Chad interrupted as Delilah grumbled. It went silent for a few moments before Chad felt a warm drop of water hit him on the head, and then another. He looked up and frowned: Delilah, once again, had warm, glistening tears making tracks down her muzzle as she sniffled and hung her head until they got to their hide-out. Once inside, Delilah shifted back to normal, rushed to her dorm and shut the door tightly before bursting into a fit of loud bawling. Chad, Stacey and Maurice winced a little at what they were hearing. It was much worse than her crying at the hospital earlier, it sounded more like Delilah was being forced to push her arms into a wood-chipper, the crying was so violent and hysterical. Chad shook his head in sympathy before he opened Delilah's door and wrapped her in a tight hug. Accepting the embrace, Delilah sobbed into his shoulder as Maurice and Stacey joined in.
After around 5 minutes, her sobs died down to hiccups and sniffles, and after that, the poor girl had finally managed to cry herself to sleep. Sighing to himself, Chad gently tucked her under the blankets of her bed, then he and the others left for their own rooms, preparing themselves for a long future ahead..