Page 121 of Chasing the Sun

“El,” she whispered into my hair, “thank goodness you’re here.”

I clung to her. “How bad?”

She pulled back just enough to look me in the eye. Her own were bloodshot and tired. “Hayes is banged up but stable. He has a concussion and a few bruises. Mom and Dad just saw him.” Her voice cracked. “Wes is still in surgery. His leg is badly injured.”

I sucked in a breath, my heart bottoming out. “Do they know anything yet?”

She shook her head. “They won’t tell us much. Just that it’s ... serious. And long.”

I nodded, arms still around her, grounding us both for a moment longer. “Can I see Hayes?”

Kit’s mouth pressed into a line. “He’s beating himself up pretty badly. Maybe you can talk some sense into him.”

I squeezed her hand and moved across the room to my parents first. My dad stood when he saw me, pulling me into a quiet, fierce hug. No words. Just solid warmth and trembling strength. My mom’s eyes were glossy as she touched my cheek.

“We’re holding it together,” she said softly. “But I don’t think Hayes is.”

I swallowed hard, nodding. “I’ll go see him.”

I felt Cal’s gaze on me as I turned, but I wasn’t ready for him yet. Not until I saw my brother and knew for myself that he was okay.

The hallway leading to Hayes’s room was silent, every step echoing in my ears like a heartbeat. I knocked gently before pushing the door open.

Hayes sat on the edge of the hospital bed, a white bandage on his temple, his hands clasped tightly between his knees. His eyes were bloodshot, his jaw clenched so tight I could see the muscles twitch. He didn’t look up when I entered.

“Hey,” I said, keeping my voice soft.

He didn’t move.

I took two steps closer, hoping my movements wouldn’t scare him away.

Finally, his gruff voice broke through the silence. “I should’ve seen thecar coming.”

I walked closer, resting a hand on the metal bed rail. “Sounded to me like you didn’t have time.”

He shook his head once. “That’s not true. I saw it. I froze.” His voice cracked like something fragile and furious. “He pushed me out of the way, El. I didn’t even warn him. He just ... reacted.”

I moved around the bed and sat beside him.

“You’re alive,” I whispered. “That means something.”

Hayes dragged a hand through his hair. “Not if he loses his leg because of me.”

I didn’t argue. I didn’t tell him it wasn’t his fault or try to offer comfort that would feel like sand in his mouth. I just reached for his hand and held it.

We sat in silence, shoulder to shoulder, the beep of the heart monitor next door the only sound between us. Eventually, Hayes leaned against me like he used to when we were kids and the world felt too sharp.

I didn’t move. I just let him lean.

When I made my way back to the waiting room, the ache in my chest had bloomed into something unbearable. I needed air.

Cal was still near the hallway. His eyes tracked me the second I reappeared. I nodded for him to follow and stepped into a small alcove just off the main corridor, a quiet nook near a vending machine and a gumball machine with a crack in the globe.

He followed, the lines in his face deeper than I’d ever seen them.

“I saw Hayes,” I said.

Cal’s jaw flexed. “How is he?”