Fighting Our Way (Broken Tracks 2)

After leaving the office, I know I need to talk to Tris about his case so I message him while stuck in traffic on the way to the hospital. I couldn’t think of anywhere else I wanted—or needed—to go other than to see Amelia.

As I park in the lot, my cell beeps and I pull it out as I exit the car and walk toward the front doors of the hospital.

TRISTAN: I’m on my way to the hospital, too, I had a spare hour or two from work. See you there.

I don’t bother replying, sliding it back into my pocket and greeting the receptionist with a small wave as I head toward the ward Amelia is on.

“Come to see your girl?” Freda, one of the nurses, asks as I walk toward the desk.

“Yeah. You’re looking lovelier than ever.” I finish with a wink and she blushes, shaking her head.

“Oh stop, you!” She taps my forearm gently.

I give her a tentative smile. “How is she?”

The one she returns is strained. “Still no change I’m afraid.”

I sigh. “Can I go in?”

“Sure.”

Walking down the hallway to her door and opening it, I paint a bright smile on my face but Amelia doesn’t turn her head toward me, choosing to stare out of the window as I close it behind me.

“Hey.” Her shoulders stiffen at the sound of my voice but I ignore her reaction and sit down on a chair, picking up a magazine off her nightstand and flicking through it. “I don’t know how you can read these things.”

I throw it back down where it was and she jumps at the little slap it makes against the wood, finally turning to look at me for the first time with a glare on her face.

The dark circles under her eyes tell of the sleepless nights she’s been having and the sallowness of her skin adds to my need to scoop her into my arms and hold her.

I look around the room; apart from a TV that’s sitting in the corner of the wall and a few magazines and books scattered on a unit, there’s not much here for her to do; she must be going out of her mind.

“Is there anything I can get you?” I find myself asking. “Drink, food, entertainment?”

Her lip twitches and I see her gaze briefly flick over to her empty glass before moving back to the wall in front of her, refusing to talk to me.

“If you’re thirsty, you only have to ask.” This is our routine every time I visit. I try and coax her into snapping at me because it’s the better alternative to sitting in tension-filled silence with all the questions and things I want to say to her rattling around in my head. “Come on, just say, ‘Yes, I’m thirsty,’ and I’ll go and get you a drink.” Her hand clenches around the blanket and I smirk; any reaction is better than nothing. “No? Then I guess we’ll sit here and I’ll tell you about my day then.”

I go into a detailed account of my boring day, leaving out the fact that I’m taking a little time off work. I don’t want her to know just yet, I don’t want that burden put on her because I know how she’ll react. If she knows I’ve taken time off to be with her then she’ll only blame herself and possibly push me away more—if that’s possible.

After my speech, she lies with her arms crossed over her chest, chewing her bottom lip as she stares ahead.

I stand and get a flick of her gaze before it’s back on the wall. “I’ll get you that drink, but only because I don’t want you getting dehydrated.”

I grab the glass off the nightstand and walk out of the room, leaning back against the door as I close my eyes.

“Rough day?”

Tris’s voice has me opening my eyes. “She still won’t talk to me. I had to leave the room before I blew a fuse.”

He motions toward a few seats and we walk over, sitting down. “I know you’re trying to spare her feelings but I don’t think she realizes how much she’s hurting you by freezing you out.”

I wait a few beats before saying, “I’m taking time off work.”

He shrugs and crosses his arms over his chest. His reaction isn’t what I expected from him. “I’m surprised it’s taken you this long.” I raise a brow at him and he chuckles. “Understandably you’ve been a little out of it since the accident and I know you’ve wanted to be by her side every second of the day.”

“I’ve been here as much as I can.”

“And it isn’t healthy for you. You can’t be in two places at once.”