Friend-Zoned (Friend-Zoned 1)

The nurse and doctor work together and I gag on the tube as it comes up and out of my throat. I breathe deep and even that hurts. The doctor asks me, “How are you feeling?”

I whisper, “Tired. Sore. Confused. ”

Wowza, that hurts.

I put a hand to my throat and my face pains. The doctor looks at me sympathetically and says, “You’ll be sore for a while, sweetie. Getting shot is never an easy thing for the body to recover from. ”

Oh my god, I got shot.

The memories drift back.

Omarr kidnaps me. Nik comes for me. I get shot.

That’s all I can remember.

I whisper, “Nik. ”

The doctor smiles softly and says, “Maybe you should wait for your friends to get here. I called Natalia Kovac as soon as I was told you were awake. ”

I nod but I can’t help the anxiety that coils in the center of me.

She didn’t want to talk about Nik. I hope he’s okay.

I’m left alone to my thoughts for a while. Just when I feel at peace the door bursts open. Nat stands there and when she sees my smiling face she collapses to her knees in the doorframe and sobs hard.

Seeing my friend in pain hurts me, too. I can’t stop the tears from falling down my cheeks and my throat hurts like a mother. Ghost appears behind her and picks her up. He places her next to me on the bed and I hug her weakly. She sobs into my shoulder. I look up at Ghost. He smiles and pushes my hair behind my ear.

Nat straightens and bellows, “Don’t you ever, ever do that to me again! Or I’ll beat your ass so hard you’ll wake up into next week!”

I chuckle but no sounds come out. My lips are splitting and cracked but I don’t care.

I whisper, “Nik. ”

Nat looks at me and tells me, “We can only visit two at a time and the others want to see you so I’ll come back after everyone’s seen you. ”

I nod. Ghost and Nat leave the room as Lola and Trick come in. Lola holds my hand on one side of the bed and Trick hold the other on the other side of the bed. Lola tries to be brave but tears run down her forced smile and into her mouth. Trick kisses my forehead. As they leave, Max and Mimi come in.

Max smiles but his eyes are bright. He sits on the bed, hugs me gently and whispers, “I’ll never forget you took a bullet for Nik. I don’t care if we don’t have the same blood; you’re a member of my family. ” I smile but tears are streaming down my face.

The only conclusion I’ve come to is that Nik has passed away. This is why no one will talk to me about him.

I’m completely devastated at this but won’t mourn him until I’m alone. I want to mourn Nik privately and I’ll have time to do that later. I don’t want to disappoint my friends who are so happy to see I’m okay.

Mimi smiles big at me and accuses, “You never told me I’m friends with a total badass who jumps on the backs of bad guys with guns. ”

I whisper back, “I didn’t know either. Total badass. ”

Mimi smiles and whispers, “Righteous. ”

Max holds me around the shoulder and I take in the warmth he offers. After a few minutes they both kiss me and leave.

After seeing everyone, I’m exhausted. I close my eyes and take comfort in the darkness.

I hear shuffling in the doorway and open my eyes. I take in Nik.

I smile and hope this dream is a good one. He’s wearing sweats, a t-shirt, and sneakers. He has a cane in his left hand and he limps over to me.

I frown.