Crossing Paths (28 page)

When we arrive at the hospital, I purposely place June in between Liam and me. I’m dreading what I might find when I see my brother, and I don’t feel up to answering questions about my new relationship just yet.

The halls of the hospital are long. Staring down the last distance to the ICU, my eyes adjust to the bright fluorescent lights, white ceiling tiles, white vinyl floor, and white walls. I see my dad sitting in a chair outside the waiting room with his head in his hands. I have to stop myself from running to him like a lost child who is seeing her parent for the first time in months. It’s a struggle to keep my steps steady and measured as I try to act normal. As we get closer, my dad lifts his head, and I can see his tired eyes and his sad face. When he recognizes us, his mouth turns up into a small smile.

“Care! Oh, I am so glad to see you. June, thank you for coming.” He hugs us both. “You must be Liam. Vivian told me you were coming also. It’s nice to meet you.”

Dad and Liam shake hands. For a moment, I forget about everything around us, and I’m proud to see them together. I feel like they would get along, like they might understand each other.
Maybe I will have a chance at love.

“Dad, can I see him?”

“Sure, the ICU staff is only letting family in, so you two will have to stay here. I’m sorry,” he says to June and Liam.

“That’s alright. We’ll just sit tight,” June says, giving me a quick hug.

I follow my dad to a phone on the wall. He picks it up and announces his name and then my brother’s name. I glance back quickly to see that June has already entered the waiting room, so she’s out of earshot.
Thank God.
A couple seconds later, the large double doors swing open, and we walk side by side into the ICU. Nurses are walking back and forth between patient rooms and the main nurses’ station. I can hear a soft hum and several different patterns of beeping from the machines. I don’t know how patients get any rest in here.

As we walk through the hallway, I can see visitors gathered in patient rooms. I catch sight of one woman, probably in her fifties, crying into her hands without a sound, and I wonder what kind of news she might have gotten. It saddens me to think that many of the patients in this unit have family members who are full of worry.

Dad stops in front of two large sliding glass doors, and my mom is leaning against the hard metal of the door frame with her eyes shut. The curtains are closed, blocking the view of the inside of the room. A large number 8 is on the door.

“They were finishing some dressing changes,” Dad informs me.

Hearing his voice, my mom opens her eyes. When she catapults herself into my arms, I have to brace myself to keep standing upright.

“Hey, Mom. Good to see you, too.”

The curtain flies open, and a nurse opens the door. “You can go in. I just gave him some pain medicine, so he should be feeling better soon.”

“Thank you,” my dad replies in a kind tone.

I reach my hand around the curtain and pull it back a little more. My brother is sitting up in bed.
He looks…good.
I can only see one tube that is lying across his upper lip with small pieces going into each nostril. It’s connected to a gadget on the wall and appears to be providing oxygen. He’s wearing a loose hospital gown, and a blanket is covering his lower body.
Thank God. He’s okay.

As I walk past the curtain, he opens his eyes and a huge smile erupts on his face.

Saturday

I’ve never dealt with death. I’ve never even stepped foot in a hospital. When the revolving doors of the main entrance came into view, I felt sick at my stomach. I know that good things happen here and people do get better, but all I ever see when I look at a hospital is death.

I keep praying this won’t be true for Caroline’s brother. She still hasn’t said anything about what happened to him. I don’t know if he has a disease or if maybe he was involved in an accident.
Hell, I don’t know that much about him.
Maybe he’s a drug addict and overdosed. I keep thinking I should ask, but I can’t come up with a polite way of saying, “Hey, Caroline. So, what’s your brother dying from?”

As Caroline and her dad walk through the ICU doors, Liam and I walk into the waiting area. It’s a strange space. All four sides are glass walls. Two sides meet with other waiting areas. Each area is about half full of people. In one waiting area, pallets of blankets are on the floor, and a coffee pot is sitting on a counter. I think about how tough it would be to have to spend nights in the hospital waiting room while wondering if a loved one would make it through the night or even through the next hour. My heart is heavy for my friend and for all these people.

“June, are you doing okay? I know you hate hospitals,” Liam says, pulling me into a hug.

“I’m okay. I’m just sad, and I want to know what’s going on.”

“Yeah. Me, too. Caroline has been really quiet, and from what I know of her, that’s not normal.”

“No, it’s not normal at all. I’m guessing she’s just scared. I hope seeing her brother will help.”

“Maybe when she’s done, we can go grab some food. I don’t think any of us ate much on the plane.”

“That sounds amazing. I didn’t want to say anything until she got to check on him, but I am starving.”

We sit in the waiting room for another thirty minutes before Caroline and her mom come out, smiling.
That’s a good sign.

“Hey, guys. June, you’ve met my mom, Vivian. Mom, this is Liam, June’s brother.”

“Good to see you, June, and it’s nice to meet you, Liam.” Smiling, she places her arm around my waist and kisses me on the cheek. “Thank you for coming to be with my baby. She has good friends.”

“So, how is he doing?” I hope I’m not making a mistake by bringing it up, but I just can’t stand not knowing anymore.

“He is doing great. They said that he hit his head pretty hard, but he shouldn’t have any permanent damage. He has some bumps and bruises, but he should be out of the ICU tomorrow, and then he can go visit Julie. She is down on the fifth floor, and I know her parents are anxious for them to see each other.”

“That is so great,” I say.

“Yes, it is. Listen, I know you kids must be hungry. You should get out of here before you get desperate enough to eat in the hospital cafeteria. John will be here soon. He’s going to stay here with me tonight. Your dad will be heading home soon.”

“Alright, Mom. Call if you need anything or if something changes even if it’s in the middle of the night,” Caroline says.

“I will. I love you. I am so glad you’re here.”

Caroline gets one last hug from her mom, and then we head out to find some food.

At Caroline’s request, we pull through a fast food restaurant and then head home. I know I’m tired, so she must be really pushing it to keep her eyes open at this point. Even though we got good news today, I’m still feeling a little down from our visit to the hospital.

We sit on stools around her kitchen island and eat our food. The first few minutes are awkward. I look at Liam. Liam looks at me. Liam looks at Caroline. Caroline looks at me. Then, I can’t help it. I giggle once and look at Caroline, grinning. Caroline tries not to smile without success, and then she starts howling with laughter. Of course, Liam, being a man, has no clue what’s going on.

“What’s wrong with you two?” Liam asks.

“Don’t you ever have those moments when things get so chaotic you have to laugh?” Caroline asks, still chuckling.

“No, I don’t, but whatever works for you,” he says, throwing a french fry at her face.

This one small act incites a thirty-minute food fight with every piece of food we can get our hands on. At one point, I feel like I’m sliding into home base as I slip on some mustard, spin past the kitchen island, and land on the floor. When it’s all over, we are covered from head to toe in disgusting amounts of food as we sit side by side with our backs against the refrigerator.

“Well, now that we’ve gotten that off our chests, maybe we should get some sleep before we all decide to go toilet paper the neighbor’s house,” Caroline says, out of breath.

“Probably a good plan. I call dibs on the shower,” I say.

Caroline gathers a towel and other items, so I can take a shower. I start the water, get undressed, and throw my dirty clothes into a plastic bag. Giggling at the absurdity of what we just did, I step into the shower and let the water soak my body.

The laughter of tonight brings back thoughts of my time with Cohen. I don’t understand why I can’t stop thinking about him. I start to consider that maybe I should text him and just say something, anything, to try and get him off my mind.

I dry off, throw on some pajamas, and pick up my phone. Sitting on the floor in the bathroom, I contemplate what kind of message I should send. I want to be rude and say something like, “Thanks for the fun time. Don’t ever call me again,” but instead, I settle on a generic message.

Haven’t heard from you since you left. Wondering how you are. —June

Now, if he doesn’t respond to that, I’ll delete him from my phone. It’s as simple as that.

Saturday

Visiting with my brother was a huge relief, but to be honest, standing in this pile of ketchup, flour, and who knows what else is probably one of the best feelings I have had in the past twenty-four hours.

“I guess we should wait in here until June’s done in the shower. I wouldn’t want to track this stuff all through your house,” Liam says, taking off his shirt.

I walk to the sink to wash my face and hands. “That’s a good idea.”

Liam leans against the counter next to me. “Funny how my favorite moments with you all happen in the kitchen.”

“Uh-huh.” I’m not sure what to say to him right now. For one, I can’t talk because he has his shirt off. For two…well, he has his shirt off.

“Hey, I’m really sorry about your brother. I hope that I’m not making it harder by being here,” he says, misreading my silence.

Finding my voice, I finally speak. “Listen, I know things were kind of crazy last night, but I really appreciate you setting up my flight and coming with me. I know I’ve been a little reserved, but I was just worried.”

“So, you’re not mad at me?”