Page 37 of In the Shadows

Chapter

Seven

Everything was dark, I could hear Joey’s screams, at least I thought it was him, but I couldn’t get to him even though he was right beside me when I’d fallen asleep.

Someone else was moaning. Diamond? Mickey? I needed to get up, my brothers needed me.

Can’t move…

What happened?

Why can’t I move?

I yelled for Joey, at least I think I did but I couldn’t hear my own voice over the sound of grinding metal.

Muffled voices filled the air around me, but at least the grinding sounds had stopped.Thank fuck. Sirens blared in the background. Someone was hurt, I could hear their screams, they need me.I must get to them.

Blackness…

I woke to bright lights streaming overhead. Was I onstage? Oh shit, should I be playing? I reached down to strum the chords…Fuck that hurts. Where’s my guitar?

“Joey?” I mumbled.

“Dr. Stone!” I heard my mother yell.

“Mom?” I opened my eyes, blinking profusely to gain focus. When I glanced her way, her red, swollen eyes took my breath away. My throat burned as I began coughing to try and clear it.

“I’m here, baby, just stay still. Wait for the doctor.” She placed her hand in mine and gave it a light squeeze while reaching over to push the call button on the panel beside me.

She took the cup from the bedside table, pressing the straw to my lips, “Here, drink.”

My throat was so dry, I couldn’t get enough liquid in to coat it. I sucked the cup dry before trying to speak again. “Where am I?” I groaned as my eyes took in my surroundings when it dawned on me that I was in the hospital. “Fuck.” I winced trying to move my left arm again.

“Massachusetts General Hospital. Don’t move, your left clavicle is broken. You’ve got bruises all over where the bunk collapsed on you, but other than that, you were pretty lucky,” she told me, brushing the hair off my forehead.

The doctor came in before I could ask any more questions.

“Mr. Branson, I’m Doctor Stone.” He took out his pen light, flashing it into each of my eyes in turn. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“My arm hurts like hell.” I tried to move it, but my mom kept her hand on my forearm reminding me not to.

“Yes, you have a broken left clavicle and multiple contusions and a beautiful goose egg on the left side of your head where the bunk above collapsed on top of you. You have a tough skull, Mr. Branson.” He smiled, eyeing me over his reading glasses.

“Ugh, that explains the headache. Where’s Joey?”

Dr. Stone looked to my mother and she nodded. “Mr. Hayes is in a medically induced coma.” At those words, I moved to stand, whipping the sheet off me and throwing my legs over the side of the hospital bed. “Stop,” he commanded. “You’ve been in bed for four days and need to stay put.”

“I have to get to Joey, he needs me.”

“Joey isn’t aware of who’s there right now, Ricky,” Mom chimed in. “Joe is with him. Dr. Stone is there any way we can get Ricky moved to Joey’s room?”

“That’s a bit unorthodox, we strive to provide our patients with private rooms.” He scooped my legs up, setting them back down on top of the bed. I moved in protest, but his firm hand held me in place.

“I understand that, Doctor, but Joey and Ricky aren’t just bandmates, their partners in life as well and I know my boy,” she gave me that motherly glare, “you’ll have to strap him to this bed to keep him from his boyfriend which would break my heart. Anything you could do to put them in the same room would be appreciated not only by us, but I’m sure it would be by your staff as well because he will become patientzilla.”

Fuck, I love my mom.

“Let me see what we can do, I’m sure security wouldn’t mind having one less room to guard.” He finished his assessment, making a few notes on the chart before hanging it back up and leaving us.

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