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MADDOX
Shifting in my seat, I ran my damp hands down the top of my legs, trying to stop them from bouncing rapidly.
I hated hospitals: the bright fluorescent lights, the smells, the beeping sounds. Everything about a hospital made me nervous.
I brought Addison straight to the hospital from the airport and dropped her off at the door. She'd told me I didn't need to wait, but leaving her felt wrong, especially not knowing her mom's condition.
That was two hours ago.
"Excuse me." A young blonde nurse in dark blue scrubs smiled.
"Yes," I said, pushing to my feet.
"Are you here with Ms. Wright?" she asked.
"Addison," I answered. She nodded. "Yes."
"She shouldn't be alone right now," she said. I jerked forward to head to her but stopped. I had no idea what I was walking into. I didn't want to interrupt her time with her mother.
"Is her mother awake?" I asked. She shook her head, sorrow covering her face.
"Room 2224," she said, pointing towards the open hallway.
When I reached the open doorway, there was no beeping machine, no doctors or nurses, only her mother's lifeless body and Addison standing next to her.
"Addison," I whispered, stepping into the room. My chest ached for her. Her mom and she weren't close, or at least they hadn't been, and if she hadn't gotten the chance to by now, she never would.
Her gaze twisted over her shoulder. My heart squeezed at the pain etched into her face.
"She's gone," Addison whispered, her gaze turning back to her mom. "I don't even know what to do." I was behind her before I even realized I'd moved. Sliding an arm over her shoulder, I twisted her into me.
"We'll figure that out," I said, sliding my hand into her hair and holding her tight against me. I'd never lost a parent or anyone. I had no idea what to do either, but I wouldn't let her figure it out alone.
"Addison Wright," a woman said, stepping into the room.
"Yes," she sniffed. "That's me."
"Hi, Addison," she smiled. "My name is Crystal Fuller, and I was your mother's hospice nurse." She reached into her bag. "Your mother asked me to speak with you after she passed." She pulled a large envelope out of the bag. "Do you want to talk now?"
"Yes." Addison sighed. "Please."
"You're mom found out she had stage 4 renal failure right after a few months ago."
"Why didn't she tell me?"
"She didn't want you to know because she didn't want you to come back to take care of her. She said you'd had to do that for too long, and she wouldn't do that to you this time."
"She'd stopped drinking..."
"Yes." Crystal nodded. "But it was too late. Your mom was very proud of you. She wanted me to give this to you." She handed her the envelope. "She also wanted me to let you know that all her arrangements have been taken care of, and the paperwork is all in that envelope. She wanted to ensure you didn't have to take care of her anymore." Addison's throat flexed on a hard swallow. "The landlord where you grew up agreed to give you until Friday to get anything out you may want. Anything you don't want, just leave it. Your mother hired a cleaning crew to take care of the rest on Friday."
"Thank you." Addison forced a smile.
"I'm so sorry for your loss," Crystal said. "Your mother was one of the sweetest people I've ever worked with. She will be missed. My card is in the envelope if you have any questions later."
Crystal left, and I knew they would soon be here to remove her mother's body.
"So that's it," she said, her gaze meeting mine. A tear streaked down her cheek. "I just leave her here, and she has everything already taken care of."
