Three Cheers for Sweethearts [Frerard AU]

PART III: Chapter 21

                  

CHAPTER 21 – THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ACCIDENTS AND SUICIDE IS PRESS COVERAGE

I woke up naturally at nine, but sensed something was wrong immediately. Somewhere in the back of my subconscious, I must have picked up the sound of my mother crying downstairs.

I didn't bother getting dressed – who gets dressed on Sundays anymore if you don't have to? – but seeing my mom packing her purse with tears in her eyes made me realize I might need to anyways. It scared me; I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen her cry, because if I ever had, it was when I was very small.

"Mom, what's going on? Are you okay?" I hurried toward her to put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Mikey got in an accident last night," she whimpered, "and I feel terrible leaving him all alone in a dark hospital all last night just because I was sleeping when the phone rang."

"Oh, God – don't feel bad, mom. Is he okay?"

"I don't know. Go get dressed – we'll go visit him right now."

I didn't know I had the physical capacity to run as fast as I did in that moment, nor did I know I could get dressed so quickly. I wasn't thinking (which was probably for the best); I needed go see him and to know he was okay. That was all I needed to be thinking about. First he was feeling emotionally numb, and now he was on morphine, no doubt. I'd really never stop worrying about him, would I?

Our mom was crying too much to drive safely, and I'm sure being in a car at all would be upsetting after Mikey's accident. I took the keys from her hand and drove, absolutely numb, unable to fully comprehend that Mikey got hurt, how severely we didn't even get to know.

I swung into a parking space less than legally and was out of the car the instant the keys were out of the ignition. I took my mom's hand and we speed-walked into the hospital.

There were a lot of people crying in the lobby, and our mom only added another. I tried to ignore it as I approached the front desk.

"Is there a Mikey Way checked in? I'm his brother, and this is our mom," I said quickly, starting to get apprehensive about seeing Mikey. The lady at the desk had better say yes, I thought, not even fully understanding what the fear was that she might say no.

"Yes, there is. I'll need an ID from both of you and then you can visit," she said kindly.

"Would you happen to know how well he's doing?" I asked as I produced my temporary license and signed whatever the lady had put in front of me.

"I don't know anything but the names and corresponding room numbers, sorry," she said, and she really did look sorry. "He'll be in room 221A, right up the stairs."

After lots of debate between the nurses over whether we were allowed to go up alone or if they needed someone to go with us, eventually we made it up there with a nurse to escort us. Words of encouragement and luck and wishes for good health followed us.

Finally, finally, the door opened for us and we could see him. Mom was still crying, and when she ran forward to give him her best attempt at a hug, her sobs got even louder. "My baby!" she wailed, leaving me vaguely embarrassed.

"Hey, kid," I said when I got to him, "Nice driving."

He cracked a smile, and that's all I could really hope for.

"What happened? Are you okay? Where are you hurt?"

"Car accident last night around one a.m., driver's side crossed over the left side of the road and hit a car coming the opposite direction at about 25 miles an hour," one of the nurses in the room answered for him. "Passenger's fine, just a little shaken. Mikey has two cracked ribs, but after a day or so he'll be free to go home with a nice few pounds of medication. He'll be okay soon enough; no permanent damage."