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“Thanks.”
With that, he leaves the flowers on the counter and walks away—only looking back once to smile at me before stepping into the elevator. I hope it all works out, too.
THE CHAIR NEXT TO Knox’s bedside is hardly what I would consider comfortable, but no part of me intends on leaving. The beeping of his heart monitor is the only thing that assures me he’s still with us. Otherwise, he’s as lifeless as he was when they pulled him out of the ambulance.
“How’s our guy today?” Z asks as he comes into the room.
I shrug. “No improvement, but nothing negative either. Same as yesterday.”
And the day before. And the day before that.
Knox has been in a coma for almost a week with no change. The doctors keep reminding me that his body went through a lot, and that there’s still a good chance he’ll wake up, but every day I go without hearing his voice sends me slipping deeper into my fear and grief.
“Has his mom been by today?”
“Not yet.” I look down and check the time on my phone. “She said her shift finishes at three. She’s coming straight from the diner.”
Zayn nods, walking over to Knox. “Hey, buddy. Why don’t you try waking your lazy ass up today, okay?”
I chuckle, knowing he’s only playing around. Z has been a shoulder to lean on through all of this. All the guys have, really. With my parents flipping out, rightfully so, my dad put his differences with the “delinquents” aside for the sake of his daughters. Easton has been picking Tessa up for school in the mornings, since she can’t seem to be alone, and he’s actually allowed in the house when she has instances where the nightmares just won’t stop.
Meanwhile, Grayson and Savannah have been bringing me all my schoolwork. If Knox wakes up and finds out I lost valedictorian because I was too busy sitting with him, he’ll be so mad at me. Therefore, I spend my days doing all my studying by his bedside. It’s a difficult schedule, but I make it work. I’ll always make it work.
MY PHONE BUZZES ON the counter—three texts from Zayn, coming in one after another. I wrap my hair in a towel and pull on my robe as I open them.
Zayn: Delaney.
Zayn: You need to get here.
Zayn: NOW!
“Shit!”
Dread fills my stomach. This is it.
AS I RUN THROUGH the hospital and into the elevator, all possible worst-case scenarios run through my head. I’m too late. He died without me. He needs another surgery. The doctors and his mother want to take him off life support.
My finger slams into the button and then repeatedly jabs at the one to close the doors. I’m a nervous wreck the whole time, watching the numbers rise on the screen. When it finally opens to the ICU floor, I book it out of the elevator and through the double doors.
It only takes seconds before I get from the elevator to Knox’s door, but when I do, I can’t believe it. Two gorgeous blue eyes stare back at me, the corner of his mouth turned up in a smirk. I can’t even acknowledge all the guys in the room. It’s just him and me.
“Hey, Bambi.” Tears come so quickly it becomes hard to see. Knox looks to both Gage and Stone, who are sitting on the sides of his bed. “You fuckers are great and all, but if you don’t move so my girl can get over here, we’re going to have some issues.”
Everyone chuckles as they both jump up. Our gazes stay locked as I walk over to the side of his bed and place my hand in his. He’s really here. He’s really awake.
The second I’m close enough, he grasps the back of my neck and pulls me in, molding his mouth over my own in a well-needed and long-overdue kiss. Gage makes some obnoxious whooping sound, only to get smacked by someone else, judging by the sound and the whining that comes after. By the time we pull away, I’ve passed through fear and elation and now I’m just pissed.
“You almost died on me.”
“Yeah.”
I turn to Zayn and throw pack of wet wipes at him. “You asshole! You made it sound like he was fucking dying!”
He laughs. “He told me to get you here as soon as possible. I figured you’d like the surprise.”
Looking back at Knox, I glare playfully. “Did you know about this?”
“I may have.” He gives me his best innocent grin.
