Page 95 of Attractive Forces

I creep down the stairs as quietly as I can. I don’t want a confrontation with my parents right now.

My hands clutch the metal keys in the dark of the kitchen, and I ease my way out the back door, shutting it quietly behind me.

The cold stabs at me. The stars are still bright in the sky, and my feet crunch on the frozen grass.

It’s freezing in the car too. I crank up the heater, but it takes a few minutes before it makes any inroads into the chill.

I’m shivering, not just because of the cold. I’m shivering about what I’m going to find when I arrive at Dunedin hospital

Please stay alive, Aaron. Please stay alive.

The roads are empty, besides the odd dairy truck. The hour drive goes by in a blur.

Because it’s so early, I easily find a car park near the hospital. A softly spoken woman at the reception desk directs me to the waiting room attached to the surgical ward.

I hesitate outside the double doors. Then I take a deep breath and push open the door. Jake, his mum, and Annaliese are all sitting on plastic chairs, staring into nothing.

Everyone’s gazes swivel to me, but I only have eyes for one person. Jake’s eyes are red-rimmed and full of pain. I’m at his side instantly.

I instinctively reach out to touch him when I’m suddenly filled with doubt.

Does he want me to hold his hand? How much does he want to reveal in front of his mum? I don’t want to add more stress to this situation.

But Jake cuts through my hesitation, grabbing my hand like it’s a lifeline.

“How is he?” I ask, sitting down next to him, swiveling my whole body toward him.

“He broke some ribs and his leg, and there’s lots of internal bleeding.” Jake blows out a shaky breath. “They’re operating now, trying to stop the bleeding.”

He blinks back tears as he finishes, and I can’t help putting my arm around him. He leans into my shoulder, and I press a kiss to his forehead. Just a brief peck, his skin smooth and warm under my lips.

When I lift my eyes, I find Jake’s mum’s gaze on me. She flicks a look over at Annaliese, then back at me.

“Do we have to correct the record about whose bedroom you were trying to climb into?” she asks tiredly.

“Ah…yeah…” I stumble, and Jake’s mum gives a slight upward tilt to her lips.

Jake doesn’t seem to care that he’s just come out to his mum. He stays exactly where he is, nestled into me.

A tight ball in my throat grows as the minutes tick by.

Anyone walking in will be able to see me with my arm around Jake. Nurses. Orderlies. There could be people from Heath Valley, people who know me and my family.

But despite the panic gripping me, I don’t move my arm.

And when a nurse comes out to update Jake’s family and uses phrases like “extensive blood loss” and “transfusions,” my fear seems unimportant.

Daylight creeps in the windows, and Aaron’s still in surgery.

My phone beeps.

I move my arm from around Jake and rub my eyes to clear my vision before I look at the screen.

It’s a message from my father.

Where are you?

Shit. As much as I really don’t want to have to deal with him right now, the last thing we need is another concerned parent trying to hunt down their kid.