Greg and Lisa checked into the hotel after Lisa ran back into the mansion and stuffed some clothes in a bag and ran back out the door saying that they will be in touch with them once James felt better. Blythe gave her a quick hug before she left, "how is he? What's going on with him?" she asked in a hushed voice, "I hope he's okay… I didn't even hear the ambulance coming, I'm a heavy sleeper dear, otherwise I would've been there to help,"
"It's okay, Blythe, it was an emotional, scary time and everyone was extremely upset. It was probably for the best that you didn't see or hear anything. He was very, very unwell. But he's stable now, so Greg and I are going to stay in Aberdeen for a few days while he's in hospital for observation," Lisa confessed quietly.
"Oh, poor James, he really didn't seem like himself last night either, He was acting a little bit off, not like his usual happy, bubbly self," Blythe frowned, "and Greg? How is Greg handling it? Is he okay?"
Lisa thought to Greg sitting in the truck where she'd left him, sobbing and wailing like crazy. How much he'd wanted them to turn around and go and fetch James, get him out of there, how much he already missed him, and how obviously and utterly heartbroken he was; "he's stressed and he's handling it about as well as you'd imagine," Lisa was careful with what she said here, and Blythe nodded "it's… it's James, you know? He's probably the most important person to Greg in his life. But the important thing is, is that James is stable now and he's going to get better- he should be out of hospital in a few days, and then Greg will be back to… well, Greg,"
"Of course," Blythe nodded, "and are you okay, dear?"
Lisa felt a little taken aback by this, but quickly nodded, "yes, of course, I mean, it was very stressful, but your training and instincts kind of take over in a situation like that and you don't really think too much about what's happening while you're doing it,"
"Can I come out and see Greg? See how he's going? Only if he's able to of course," Blythe asked.
"Umm, sure, he's not really talking much at the moment, he's pretty quiet and subdued now, but you can come out of course, you're his mom," Lisa led her out.
"That's okay dear," Blythe followed her, "I'll come to see how he's doing, but if he doesn't want to talk, then he doesn't want to talk. He's always been like that really, he's always kind of shut down and gone quiet and isolated when he's stressed and wants to be left alone,"
"Yeah, he does tend to do that," Lisa continued as she walked out to the car, opened the back door and put the bag in the back seat, "Greg? Your mom wanted to come say hello, she knows that James isn't well and we're going to go stay by the hospital for a few days until he's well enough to be discharged. That's all that she knows,"
Greg pressed the button to put the window down and spoke flat and monotonal, "hi mom,"
"Honey, I'm so sorry to hear that James isn't very well, I totally understand that you and Lisa are going to stay in the city and make sure that he gets better, and you'll be able to see him. We'll still be here when you get back. I know how special and important James is to you," Blythe comforted, and Greg just nodded, holding his tears back, "it'll be okay, Greg, he knows that you love him. He's a strong man, Greg, whatever this is, he'll manage to pull through it. I love you, Greg,"
"I love you too, mom," Greg mumbled, "give our apologies to everyone, we'll be back in a few days once James is feeling better, keep in touch with us,"
Blythe nodded and stepped back from the truck as it turned around and headed back down the long, winding driveway, sighed and made her way back inside.
Greg went completely radio silent as soon as they had checked into the hotel, closing himself in a separate bedroom, and all Lisa could hear throughout the room was the heartbreaking sound of the cries of a man whose life partner had nearly died, and was now locked away in a secure hospital ward, with no visitors allowed. Lisa couldn't even remember a time that the two of them had ever been apart for three days, and now it was thrust upon them, and while it had been James' choice to take the pills, she knew that Greg felt entirely responsible. For three full days; Greg was pining in a way that Lisa had never seen before; he didn't leave the bedroom, only coming out to use the bathroom or get a drink of water and take the glass back to his bed, and he slept all day and all night. I wonder how James is doing as well, they have to be together, they're just absolutely incomplete without the other.
Three days passed, and Lisa got a call from the hospital ward saying that James was being released, she went and knocked on Greg's door and found him lying there, wide awake but not moving, this was the deepest depression she'd ever seen in him to date. "Greg, we can go pick James up now," she whispered, and he immediately perked up and just about ran out of the room, bursting with excitement.
Greg could barely sit still in the ride over to the hospital to pick up James; Lisa smiled to herself, it's honestly just too cute that he's just so wildly excited.
They pulled up out the front, and Greg grabbed his cane and just about dove out of the car and headed as fast as his legs could carry him across the parking lot. I just hope that James is fully recovered, that they're not just discharging him because the 72 hours is up. Lisa had to trot to catch up with Greg, clicking the lock button on her key as she trotted up to him, please let him be okay.
James was sitting on a stool facing the entry/exit doors of the short-term psych ward in the supplied scrubs that he was given, with the pyjama pants and one of Greg's old shirts that he'd been wearing when he was admitted in a plastic bag as he anxiously tapped his foot, staring at the door.
It hadn't been all bad while he was in here, he'd made acquaintances with one of the doctors who was on shift for the period of James' stay, and they often spoke about life, medicine, and love. He'd told the doctor all about the love of his life, Gregory, and how he'd realised in the past few days for certain that this was the man who he wanted to marry, how he'd never been happy in any of his past relationships or marriages with women, but Greg was different. Greg had been the one constant of his life.
James heard a click, and heard Cuddy's distinctive teasing laughter at Greg, and the sound of Greg limping, as he would have had his cane taken away before being able to enter this area of the hospital. James heard a doctor interrupt them and start speaking to the both of them outside the doors and let out a quiet whine of frustration, like a dog who was waiting at the door to go outside. They seemed to be talking forever; although they were likely not talking any longer than about five or ten minutes until the door clicked open and James barrelled out, just about jumping onto Greg in excitement as he wrapped his arms as tightly as he could over his shoulders and kissed him, Greg staggered slightly, having been pulled off balance for a moment; before righting himself and returning James' affections. "I've missed you so, so much, don't you ever leave me or do that to me again, you got that?" Greg mumbled, stroking the back of James' hair still clutching onto him as if he were terrified to let go and have James fly away out of his grasp.
"I promise, I promise I will never hurt you again," James whispered back, and he finally let go. Cuddy smiled sweetly at the two little lovebirds in front of her. The two lovebirds who could never find lasting happiness with anyone else no matter how many times they tried; yet they had totally, and utterly found it with one another.
Greg wrapped his right arm around James' shoulders and leant slightly on him as they walked out, laughing and joking like nothing had changed whatsoever, because in Greg's eyes it hadn't; James was back and that was the singular important thing. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" Lisa smiled at the doctor who had passed her the discharge summary; "such a beautiful, intense love. They're perfect for one another,"
The doctor said in a flatter, more monotonal voice than Lisa was expecting; "James' partner is a doctor too, isn't he?"
"Yes, he is, why?" Lisa queried, her stomach feeling a bit queasy and knotted in anxiety.
"He might want to also take a look at the discharge summary and diagnosis as well, and do some research and learn about it… unfortunately relationship outcomes, especially intimate relationship outcomes, are very poor, and the risk of suicide is very high- especially considering that he almost had a completed suicide attempt- and that there are reported opiates in the home," the doctor started, and Lisa dropped the envelope out of her hands as though it were on fire and looked up at the doctor in horror, before her pager buzzed and she glanced down at it, "I'm really sorry, I have to get this," she walked through the doors and left Lisa standing there, suddenly terrified for the future. With no other support, she bent down and picked up the envelope and followed the guys outside; suddenly feeling a lot less confident and enthusiastic about the future, and curious about what exactly was written in that letter. What was wrong with James?
Concerned, Lisa walked out of the hospital and across the parking lot to the truck to see both men excitedly waiting beside it; she chuckled quietly to herself as she unlocked the doors from across the parking lot and watched them jump into the car- she felt almost as if they were her children and excitedly waiting to go to the water park; instead of two men practically her own age, and one was being discharged from the psychiatric hospital after he'd attempted, and very nearly succeeded in taking his own life. They had one night left in the hotel; Lisa was under the assumption that they'd check out now and return to the creepy ranch.
"Greg, don't you want to talk to your mom?" Lisa questioned as they walked along the halls of the hotel to their room, the key card in between her fingers as they approached the door.
"Nope," Greg grinned, and snatched the key card out from in between her fingers while James laughed and teasingly waggled his hips at Greg who grinned back.
"No!" Lisa called out after Greg raced off, chasing after James to reach the door, "No! Stop right there, you two!" she yelled in her most authoritative tone, which did succeed in pausing the two men; maybe I have them better trained than I thought Lisa smiled to herself, but only for a moment before the whining cry of "but mom! I wanna play with James!"
"Shut it! You're in public!" she hissed, as she raced over, unlocking the door and closing it behind her once she let them in, "don't you think we need to talk about what happened?"
"We could," James sighed, before glancing cheekily at Greg, "or… we could play wrestling, and I'll let you wrestle on top," followed by a sly wink as he grabbed cheekily at Greg's crotch.
"Oh, shit yeah," Greg grinned, turning away, "bye Lisa!"
"STOP!" Lisa yelled, louder this time, before she lowered her voice, "and don't make me yell again, or someone is going to come investigate why a woman is yelling 'stop!' in a hotel room,"
"Maybe they'd like to join," James waggled his eyebrows at Greg, "kind of like a pornographic 'Human Centipede',"
"Oooh, a three-way, definitely on the bucket list," Greg grinned, as James pulled off his shirt, and pulled down his pants so he was standing there in his underwear.
"Hmmm," Greg grinned, eyeing James' body.
"The psychiatrist said we need to discuss your results, James," Lisa continued.
"My results, Lisa, mine. See how it says 'James Evan Wilson' on the envelope, that's me. Unless you're secretly a man, in which case want to play 'human centipede'?" James continued, grabbing Greg by the wrist and dragging him towards the bedroom, kissing him aggressively and rubbing his hand on his crotch, "oh, and by the way, you're not allowed to read that- HIPPA and all," he winked cheekily at Lisa.
"James! You nearly died! I think that constitutes some form of discussion, don't you?" Lisa cried out in frustration.
"Honestly, Lisa, no I don't think it really does. Greg and I will go over my results later. But first of all, we have some catching up to do," James growled sensually at Greg.
Greg shrugged, "the man makes a good argument, Lisa, see you on the other side," as he followed James' 'come hither' finger movement from the bedroom door frame.
Lisa sighed deeply and sank into the couch, tossing the envelope carelessly onto the coffee table in defeat as she did so.