Hazel

Chapter 3

Hazel POV

"If you didn't want her to be here, why did you invite the roommate here too?" Aiden asked. It stung to be referred to as 'the roommate.' It was clear they didn't even know my name.

"Bro, you know Chloe wouldn't have come if I didn't. Dude, you should help me out. You know that roommate of hers has the hots for you. She's always looking at you with puppy dog eyes. She even dressed up for you. She's always a mess, and look how she came to the party," Spencer said.

"Never going to happen. Have you seen her? I have caught her looking at me from time to time, and it's a bit creepy. I mean, Chloe is hot. If she looked half as good as Chloe, I would think about it but no. Sorry, Bro," Aiden replied.

I felt mortified, but before I could even react, my phone began to ring. I quickly took it out of my pocket, fumbled with it, and accidentally dropped it. I picked it up, and with shaking hands, I rejected the call.

Spencer opened the closet door, and both of them stared at me. "Oh um, Hazel, what are you-" Spencer tried to say.

"Excuse me," I interrupted, and I ran past them. I couldn't get away fast enough. I pushed through the crowd and made it to the elevator. I saw that Chloe had called me several times, so I texted her and said, "I'm tired. Stay and enjoy the party."

When I got back to our apartment, I locked the door, not wanting Chloe to see me like this. I broke down as soon as I hit the bed and wrapping myself in the blanket. After a few minutes, I heard the door open. "Hey, what's wrong?" Chloe asked, trying to open the door.

I tried to steady my voice. "Nothing, Chloe. I was just tired and wanted to get into bed."

“That’s complete Bull. Open the door right now or I’ll break it down,” Chloe threatened. Knowing her, I knew she meant it. I reluctantly opened the door, and Chloe saw me and pulled me into a hug. "What happened, Hayz?" she asked with concern.

Chloe sat me down on the bed and I rested my head on her lap. I couldn't keep anything from her, so I spilled everything. "Those assholes," Chloe said bitterly. Chloe stood up, ready to do something about it.

"Please don't do anything," I begged, feeling humiliated enough. "Just stay with me." Chloe sat back down and played with my hair as I cried. When I finally calmed down, I asked her to promise not to do anything or say anything to them. "I don't want to give them the satisfaction of knowing they actually hurt me," I explained. "I'll get over it. I've overcome worse things." Chloe hesitated but eventually agreed.

That night, Chloe stayed with me, and I felt comforted by her presence. She never left my side when something happened to me, and I always did the same for her.

The next morning, Chloe was still asleep when I left for the hospital. I had promised Alice I would be there, and I wasn't going to break that promise. Penny stopped me on the way and mentioned that the children didn't want Dr. Anderson to check them. "It's Dr. Anderson's fault. He's a new doctor and he's very stubborn. Maybe you can give him some tips on how to work with kids," Penny suggested.

I agreed, but Penny also noticed that I looked down. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I didn't get much sleep last night," I lied.

I made my rounds, handing out presents to all the kids before stopping at Alice's room. "You came!" Alice exclaimed, and I hugged her.

"I told you I would be here," I said, relieved to see her looking better. Alice mentioned that her brother was coming to visit her for the first time in two weeks. "You can finally meet him!" she said excitedly.

We went to the play area and divided the children by age. I played games with them and promised to be there when Dr. Anderson checked them. When it was time for the children to leave, they made me promise to be there when Dr. Anderson came.

As I walked Alice back to her room, I saw a man sitting there with his back to us. Alice ran into the room and yelled, "Aiden!" I froze in horror as Aiden Jameson turned around and hugged Alice. He was the last person I wanted to see after what happened last night. Alice introduced me to Aiden, and I forced a polite smile.

"Aiden, this is Hazel, the friend I was telling you about on the phone," Alice introduced me again as I returned from the bathroom.

"It's nice to finally meet you," Aiden said, but I couldn't bring myself to make eye contact with him.

Alice wanted us to spend time together, but I knew I couldn't handle being around Aiden for too long.

"I promise to be here when Dr. Anderson comes," I said, using it as an excuse to leave. "I'll make my rounds and come back."

"Ok" she sighed in defeat.

I left the room as quickly as I could, still feeling uneasy around Aiden. As I made my way through the hospital, I tried to focus on the children and their needs, pushing aside my personal feelings.