Page 123 of Bloom: Part 1

“What is he right about?”

“You’ve been spending too much time at the hospital. He asked us to check on you.”

“Well, you’ve checked, and I’m fine. Now, out of my way.”

He didn’t budge. I sidestepped him, only to be stopped by the bald, tattooed man who had his arms crossed.

“Not so fast. How about we go back inside and have a chat?”

“We don’t have anything to talk about. Bloom needs me.”

“Bloom’s still unconscious.” Saint moved to stand next to Crowe. “It’s been eight days, and you spend all your time in his room. This is not what Bloom would have wanted.”

I gritted my teeth. “You’re going to stop me from going to the hospital?”

“Not permanently,” Crowe said. “But for a few hours until you get proper rest, yeah. Look at you. You haven’t shaved, and your clothes are all rumpled. This isn’t the man Bloom fell in love with.”

“You expect me to worry about my clothes when he’s lying in the hospital still unconscious?”

“Yes.”

“On what grounds?”

“On account of when he wakes up and sees you looking like shit, he doesn’t request my head for not having fulfilled my promise to him that I would take care of you.”

I scowled, pulling my shoulders up to my ears. What did they take me for? “I’m not a child. I don’t need you to take care of me.”

“You might as well be one from the way you’re acting and not listening to reason. If you go to the hospital, will you get Bloom to wake up?”

I opened my mouth but found myself lacking an answer. Or rather, I knew the answer but didn’t want to voice the truth. My presence at the hospital frustrated the staff. I got in the way of their job, questioning everything they did while taking care of Bloom. I had seen the exasperation in their eyes more than once but refused to acknowledge it, didn’t want to admit my presence wasn’t helpful at all.

I wasn’t used to feeling this helpless. So many years of experience under my belt and all I could do was sit next to him, hold his hand, and make promises about a future we weren’t sure of. But he was already off the sedatives and would wake up at any moment. I wanted to be there.

“You don’t understand. I have to be there.”

In case something went wrong. In case it was the last time he took a breath. I didn’t want him to feel alone and afraid. I wanted him to know I would never leave him.

“Look, no one gets it quite like we do. We all had a hand in raising Bloom. He’s family. Our little brother. And we know how much he cares about you, so we can only carry out his wishes. Please go back inside the house. After you’ve had a decent rest and some food in you, you can go to the hospital.”

Could I make a run for it?

Bay cracked his knuckles. “I don’t want to do it, but if you leave me no choice, I’ll have to knock you out.”

Huffing a sound of disgust, I marched back inside. True to their word, they followed me until I walked into my bedroom. I couldn’t even feel upset about it. I was so exhausted. The minute I lay on my bed, I drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

When I woke up, the sun was high in the sky. My limbs felt heavy and lethargic, not from exhaustion but like someone who’d overslept. The time on my phone showed I’d only slept for an hour, though. Why then did my body feel so weighed down?

I dragged myself out of bed and trudged to the mirror. Crowe hadn’t been wrong. I looked like a wreck. My usually smooth hair was disheveled, and my eyes were red and puffy from lack of sleep and constant crying. The stubble on my cheeks resembled an overgrown lawn. I barely recognized the man staring back at me.

My throat was parched, so I headed down the stairs. Why was it so quiet? Had the bikers left? The aroma of something sweet and spicy hit my nostrils. My stomach growled in response, surprising me. I followed the scent into the kitchen and found Bay sitting on one of the stools, feeding a baby.

“Where did she come from?” I didn’t remember Crowe, Saint, and him bringing a baby with them. Had I been more tired than I’d thought?

Bay spooned carrots into the baby’s mouth, making a ridiculous face that had his child giggling. The sweet sound somehow felt wrong when the whole world should be black. God, he loved black. My throat thickened.

“Ger had to go to the urologist, so I brought her with me. He’ll pick her up once he’s done. By the way, I heated the food we made for you yesterday.”

“Yesterday?”

---