***** Morgan was washing the last of her dinner dishes that night when the phone rang. She sighed, not really wanting to answer it. Slowly washing the suds off her hands, she dried them and still the phone rang. “ Hello?” “ Mor? Hey, listen, I was wondering if you knew where Nick was? He spent the night at some hotel last night because of the storm and I would think he’d be back tonight,” Gabrial asked, sounding slightly concerned. “ Why would you ask me?” She asked, her heart speeding up. “ Because you guys were friends back in New York, I thought he might have dropped by?” “Oh...No, he hasn’t. I haven’t seen him...” There was a pause as Gabrial thought. “ Should I be worried, Gabe?” She asked slowly. “...Listen, if he shows up or calls by tonight, I’ll give ya a call. If I don’t call, then ya, I guess. I’m starting to worry about him,too...Ok, well I’ll let ya go, allright?” “ Ok, bye,” She hung up, feeling slightly light headed. Where could he be? Was he really that upset over this morning that he’d just leave town? That didn’t sound like him. She looked out at the cloudy moonless sky and felt a flicker of doubt. Maybe something happened...Maybe his car ran out of gas or something and he was stuck on the highway...She shook her head, as if trying to clear them of the thoughts haunting her now, each one more perilous than the last. Morgan cast one last look outside before getting her daughter’s bottle and taking her to the sofa. She turned on the TV and took Friends, eager to leave behind the worries of Nick’s whereabouts...
***** Gabrial had finally drifted off to sleep when his mother woke him up at three that night, insisting he answer the phone call. “ Who is it, Ma?” He asked, getting annoyed. “ I don’t know,” She replied before he heard her footsteps carry back to her bedroom. Yawning, he got out of bed and went to the phone downstairs. “ Yeah?” “ Is this Gabrial Valenci?” “ Yes, who’s this?” “ I’m Officer Rhyme. I am calling on behalf of a young man brought into Kerry Falls General-” “ Kerry Falls?” “ Yes. Someone reported a car slid off the main road and was stuck in a ditch and EMS got there as soon as they could, we found your number on the car’s registration,” “ Is he ok? He is-” “ Mr. Valenci, the man brought in here is blonde, medium features?” “ Yeah, that’s him. Is he ok?” There was a pause and Gabrial winced. “ Your friend is suffering from massive head trauma, Mr. Valenci. That makes his condition unpredictable. They haven’t stabilized him yet so he’s in the critical condition unit. It’d be best if you came down here to at least give us information,” Gabrial listened as the officer gave him some more details before finally hanging up. Kerry Falls? How the hell did Nick end up there? It was a good hour and a half away. Feeling numb, he remembered his promise to Morgan and dialed her number. Morgan had fallen asleep on the couch, Amelia in her playpen, and didn’t hear the phone at first. Cursing whoever was on the other line, she finally picked it up. “ Hello?” She mumbled, still trying to get fully awake. “ Morgan, Nick’s in the hospital-” This woke her up fast and she nearly dropped the phone. “ In the hospital? Why-” “ His car got turned over in Kerry Falls...” Morgan listened in shock, her mind unable to register too much. “ Is he ok? He’s alive, right, Gabrial?” “ Mor, he’s in critical condition. They don’t know if he’ll be ok,” Her heart pounded as waves of guilt swept over her. Tears stung at her eyes as she frantically tried to squash the image of him lying in some ditch somewhere. “ I’m heading to the hospital over there, I just thought I should let you know,” His voice broke through her thoughts. “ Hospital? I’m coming too,” “ What for? You can’t talk to him-” “ I don’t care, Gabrial, I’m coming too,” She insisted, near breaking down on the phone. He sighed heavily. “ Fine, you’re closer to Kerry Falls, anyway. I’ll be there as soon as I can, ok?” He hung up and Morgan sat down, her brain deleting all thoughts except ‘He’s gonna die.’ She let the tears fall, but still too numb to really cry. She felt hopeless sitting there so she bundled Amelia up in her coat and some blankets before putting her in her baby seat. She went upstairs and changed quickly before going back to the living room. Time sped by and before it even felt like twenty minutes had passed, Gabrial was outside, honking the horn. She picked up the babyseat and walked outside, getting inside the car after she had Amelia strapped in. Gabrial eyed the sleeping infant before starting the car...
***** Morgan looked through the small window at Nick’s lifeless body on the bed. There were various machines around him and an IV was trailing off his arm. She closed her eyes, wishing time would take them back to last night, back to where they were safe in each other’s arms. She sniffled back against the tears that threatened to fall and was startled when a nurse swept past her and walked into the room, shutting the door softly. Morgan looked up when Gabrial walked over to her. “ Come on, the forms are done,” He said emotionlessly and careful not to look through the window seperator. “ You’re not staying?” She asked, making sure Amelia’s coat was zipped up as he shook his head. “ Doctor said he’d call if there was any change in his condition,” He replied impatiently. Morgan glanced at him and they started walking outside. He looked at her as he unlocked the door. “ What’s the matter with you? You act as if he’s gonna die,” He shot before climbing in the car. Morgan fixed Amelia back in the carseat and Gabrial watched, his impatience more apparant than ever. As soon as she had buckled her own seatbelt, Amelia started crying. Gabrial stopped and looked at Morgan. “ Amelia, honey, right now isn’t the time, ssshhh,” She said, stroking her cheek. “ Why the Hell are you going to bring an infant to the hospital?” He snapped angrily and Mor looked at him. “ Gabrial, what is the matter with you?” Mor asked warily, near breaking point and constantly on the urge of tears. “ The baby is crying all over the place,” He said defensively. “ She’s quieting down, Gabe,” Morgan said softly, looking back at her daughter so Gabrial wouldn’t see the tears. There was a pause and his expression softened. “ I’m sorry, Mor. It’s just this is really hard,” She turned back around, her lower lip trembling as she looked out the window. “ Mor...” He reached out and touched her arm. “ What’s wrong? He’s going to be ok,” He said, trying to reassure himself also. He pulled her closer to him and tucked her in an embrace. “ He’ll be allright, Hon.” He murmered, holding her while she cried silently and though he had a lot more on his mind, he couldn’t help but wonder later why she had been crying so hard. It wasn’t as if she knew him very well or for too long...
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