Once in a lifetime.

13

"No. I was not going to have sex with your sister, in a rental car, in broad daylight."

"Good." We kept walking staying silent. I don't know what to say to him, so I didn't say anything at all. We rounded the corner and I smelled the French fries. "Are you staying at a hotel?"

"I was, Jules, invited me to stay with you guys, but since she's in the hospital I'm going to have to get another room."

"That's okay, you can stay with us. How long do you think you'll be here?"

"You want me to stay?" I looked up at him. "In your house?"

Aaron shrugged, keeping his eyes straight ahead. "I mean if you're willing to spend hours in my sister's blood while you cry by her side, and tell the bitchy nurse to 'fuck off' I think you're okay to stay."

"How did you know about the bitchy nurse?"

"We walked in and that's all she was talking about. We had to wait five minutes just to ask her where Jules's room was." He rolled his eyes.

"Mmh."

"Dalton." He stopped walking, so I stopped walking. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For coming back." I nodded my gaze landing back on my feet. He clapped his hand on my back. "She's going to be okay."

"Yeah."

"No really, she is. She's a pain in my ass and she wouldn't give in that easily."

Coming back to the room made me feel better, I didn't want to be too far from Juliet in case she woke up. As soon as I walked in I could tell she hadn't. Elenore was in the same spot she was when I left her. I walked over to her other side and brushed away the hair on her forehead.

Eleanor stood, "We should be going, I have an appointment across town." I nodded not looking at them.

"Dad, mom, and Frank should be up sometime today." Aaron grabbed her hand.

"Who's Frank?"

"My mom's boyfriend."

I nodded. "Okay, thanks."

Eleanor came over and turned me around hugging me. "I'm still excited to have you a part of the family." She said before pulling away and walking out with Aaron.

I walked around the room, flipped through channels, and looked out the window. I tap tap tap on my leg wondering what I can do that will keep me entertained. My phone buzzed and my mom's picture was smiling back at me. "Thank you, Jesus." I voice verbally before saying "Hey Mom."

"Is everything okay?" I missed her first call, and we always made a deal to answer each other's calls, every Tuesday we'd talk. I hadn't missed a phone call in a year, no matter how I was feeling. That was the deal, if I wanted to fly across the country I needed to answer the phone every Tuesday when she called.

"Yeah, I uh. I'm actually with Juliet right now and she's in the hospital."

My mom gasped, "How is she?" I had been dodging questions about why my mom hadn't met Jules for months, especially with her thinking that we were engaged.

"I don't really wanna talk about it, mom."

"Will she be okay?" I leaned against the wall looking at Jules.

"I don't know mom, she lost the baby and there are more complications than they expected."

"Dalton I'm sorry."

"How is everything?"

"Fine, we're doing fine, waiting for you to come home."

"I'm ready to come home."

"Just make sure she's okay before you do."

"Actually mom, can I bring her with me? When I come home?" I knew the answer was obvious, but I felt the need to ask anyways, mostly because it didn't feel like my home anymore.

"That would be a wonderful idea! We are all so excited to meet her!"

There was a knock at the door and an older version of Jules walked through the door.
"Hey mom I gotta go, but I'll call you back okay?"

"I love you."

"Love you too mom."

"Hello, it's, Dalton right?"

"Hello Ms. Jacobs, it's good to see you again." The tension in the room was thick. "Yes, well I wish it was for a better reason."

I rub the back of my neck looking at Jules because she seems the safest place to look right now.

"Hello," an older man with salt and pepper hair stretches out his hand to me. "My name is Frank, I'm Carrie's boyfriend."

"Pleasure to meet you, sir." He held himself with pride, chest out, chin out, looking back I saw Juliet's mom had moved beside her.

"Any updates?" She asked.

"No, not yet." I tried to shove my fists into my pants pockets but then remembered that I had short on, instead I crossed my arms over each other and tapped my elbow. "They have been giving her fluids but she hasn't woken up yet." It felt wrong for me to be here as if I was taking a moment from them. I started to walk out of the door when someone else walked in. Nic, Juliet's dad. Now it was definitely wrong for me to be here, this was a family thing, I wasn't family. I intended to move past Nic but he stopped me and brought me into a hug. "Thank you for staying with her." He said.

As I hugged him back I responded with, "No problem, I'll come back when you guys are done."

"No stay, Juliet would want you here."

I appreciated that, but I couldn't, it was too weird in here, too tense. "Thank you, sir, but I think I'm going to go get some water, maybe food. Do you need anything?"

Her dad shook his head, and with that, I walked away.

Who was I kidding I wasn't hungry. I sat in the cafeteria cradling a water bottle. I saw a girl running down the hall and I recognized her, jogging to catch up with her I met her when she got to the door. "Tori hey,"

She breathed heavily, "Hey, wow, you really are back. This is weird." I force a smile, "How is she?" Everyone keeps asking the same questions.

"She's doing okay, I'm sure you don't wanna be standing here talking to me though so I'll let you go."

She smiles politely, "Just so you know I will kill you if you hurt her again."

I nod, "I won't, it was real then and it's real for me how."

"We'll see." She sounds like Juliet when she says it like that. "Okay, see ya." I nod again letting her go inside and get treated by Juliet's mom.

I finally decide to walk outside to the rental car. I stare at my phone and call my mom, the moment I hear her voice I start weeping and tell her about how she lost her first grandchild, and how it's all my fault.