NOTE: Special thanks to all those who've written in support of this little tale... It gets kinda shaky for me after this chapter, I've been suffering from serious writer's block for weeks now... Probably time to set this story down and work on another for awihle... Anyway, I greatly appreciate all your support and kind words... Really has helped bring things along. Enjoy!
B-Boys by Skyler -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Twelve:
He's been very restless lately, especially at night. Seems like he barely sleeps anymore. I'm one of those people who require so much sleep every night to function properly. So most every night I hit the sack by eleven. And I'm a very light sleeper to boot. Just the other night I woke suddenely around 2:30 in the morning, only to find Brock still going. He was hunched over the desk, writing madly in the dim lamplight, totally absorbed in his work. I said something to him about coming to bed, like I always do, but he didn't even seem to notice. Never does. I wonder why I bother to even open my mouth. It's really not worth the effort.
The thing that gets me is he won't tell me what he's doing. I've asked repeatedly, but he just tells me to go back to sleep and not worry about it. I'm sure he's writing songs, new stuff for the band. After Bill's accident, the rest of us decided not to even talk about the music for a while. We cancelled some shows and recording sessions and that was that. It just didn't seem the same now. Brady's fire had definitely burned out. He was so depressed, at the hospital every day, spending any spare moment at Bill's side. Always talking to him, reading to him, singing to him. Often crying for him. My cousin seemed so lost, so scared and lonely. Bill was still unconscious, his body slowly repairing itself. The doctors offered little encouragement. They still couldn't ascertain brain damage or if any part of him would be permanently affected. We were all scared for him, as things were not looking very promising.
During this time, I made an important decision. I decided not to go back to work, just to take some time to be with my friends and think about life. I have the money to last quite awhile and no good job prospects anyway, so it seemed like perfect timing. Besides, with the arrival of spring and warmer weather, I was looking forward to improving my golf game and spending weekends fishing on my boat.
All this was fine and well, but I began to realize how pointless my life was becoming. Nothing I was doing really accomplished anything and I felt as though my life was just standing still, while the world moved on without me.
It is another warm, beautiful spring day outside. The sun is shining; birds sing in the trees, the temperature is quickly approaching ninety degrees.
I couldn't care less. As I sit here in the hospital room, watching him, I am depressed, filled with fear. He's been this way for almost two months now, with no apparent sign of change anytime soon. They've taken out a few of the tubes and monitors since Bill is breathing on his own now. A slight improvement, I guess. All I want is to be here with him. I wonder if he knows I'm here. I think so. I talk to him a lot and read to him. My mind wanders frequently to happier times. I think about his laughter, the pure sound of its joy. His loving smile, bestowed on me effortlessly and often. His eyes. The way they dance and sparkle with life when he is happy.
God, he is so beautiful. Even being here with Bill is no longer enough. I am so lonely. I need him to come back to me. I need to feel his warm embrace, hear his soothing voice, see that incredible smile and taste his sweet kisses on my lips just one more time. I wish I could have been there for him, to protect my sweet boy from that dangerous day. I could've stopped it, I know. I finally caught up with Nick, one of his attackers, a few weeks ago. Turns out I had broken his nose that afternoon at the high school. Good... I took a bat with me this time. Messed him up good. I was so angry, yet after the fact, it occurred to me how I didn't feel any better after having exacted revenge. Quite a disheartening conclusion, really.
"Ow..." A soft whisper says beside me, waking me from my nap. His eyes flutter, attempting to focus. His hand twitches in mine. Oh my God!
"Brady? Where are we? I can't move. What's going on? Brady? Are you still here with me?" That sweet voice! I'm so happy to hear it again! Thank you, God!
"Yeah, babe," I squeeze his hand tightly, "I'm right here. We're in the hospital. You got busted up pretty bad. I'm so happy to see you again, baby. I was so scared..." I'm beginning to cry again, what a goof I must look like.
"Thank you for staying with me, Brady. I could feel you in my sleep. You make me feel safe. How long have I been out? A couple days?"
"Almost eight weeks, buddy. Its May 2nd today."
"Oh, man. You're kidding, right? Geez!"
Things are getting better again. Finally Bill was released from the hospital last week and seems to be feeling pretty well. He is excited about getting back to the music, though his parents want him to stay home and rest just a little bit longer. Thanks to Bill's recovery, Brady is back to his old self again. For a while, we weren't sure what to do with him. He was so incredibly depressed. If anything had happened to Bill, I don't think Brady would've survived it, either. But nothing did, and it is good to see my friend smiling and laughing again.
Blake remains my best friend and the love of my life. He has been bumming around a lot lately. Since he doesn't work or go to school, he is playing a lot of golf. Must be nice to not worry about anything more than keeping your daily tee time. Outside of my classes at college, my boyfriend really is my entire life. I thank God every day that Blake is with me.
Okay, there you have it. Yet another short chapter. Oh, well, when I write, I take what I can get and work til I have nothing more to say. I guess I've hit the proverbial brick wall for the time being. Please feel free to write me with any questions or comments you may have (skypro21@yahoo.com)... In the meantime, be on the lookout for some of my other stories, as I'm pushing for further development of those while I wait on new inspiration for this one. Peace and love! -Skyler