BLACK ROSES

Chapter 20; Fireworks

*Ellie's POV*

"Wait, what?" Andy mutters, still rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Andy, the fireworks," I say, a smile slowly spreading. "I remember fireworks."

"Oh, my god, you're not kidding," I hear him mutter. I sit up and he automatically stood to sit across from me. "What do you remember?"

"Well," I started, "I thought it was a dream at first, but it was way too vivid and...and it felt like I was going through déjà vu. But, I saw this boy and he started running towards me. He said something about how 'it was going to start soon' or something, and I run towards him against my will, but it still felt like it was supposed to happen. We run over this hill and there's picnic blankets for miles. But we don't stop there. We run between them and we get really close to where fireworks were shooting off. It was so loud, man, I felt like my ears were gonna burst. But the colors filled the entire sky, it was beautiful. When I looked down and saw your eyes, I knew it was you." I didn't stop for breath until I had finished retelling my dream. Andy's mouth was stood open, eyes wide and bright.

"I remember that," he whispered. "That was the Fourth of July neighborhood barbecue, where Mom made us go and wash the watermelons right before the show started. We were mad about not being able to find a good spot before, but we still did it. I heard cheering and knew it was about to start, so I called you over." I look down at my crossed legs, smiling.

I was remembering.

"I think that was the day I knew my love life would be over," he muttered to himself. I blushed, nonetheless.

We were interrupted by two nurses entering the room. One was short, much shorter than the other, with a blonde pixie cut and freckles adorning her cheeks and nose. The other was taller, with bright, red hair and wide-brimmed glasses.

"Oh, you're awake!" the shorter one chirped. She was cheery, a little too much for me. "I'm Heidi, and this is Sophie. We're your nurses, and we're just here to check up on things for Dr. Weekes!"

"Yeah, just pretend we're not here," the other one, Sophie, said. She seemed more mellow and calmer than the other one. I liked her more. The two bustled around, checking machines and flipping papers on their clipboards. I couldn't help but have noticed that the short one, Heidi, kept stealing glances at Andy, who, of course, wasn't paying attention to her. Whenever I saw her do this, a twang of jealousy appeared in my chest, and my face felt hot. I made sure to mess with his hands whenever she looked over, which usually made him smile and entangle his fingers with mine, which made Heidi look away and back to her work.

Thankfully, they were soon finished, and Sophie said, "Sorry to be awkward and ruin your moment, guys."

"Yeah, sorry about that!" Heidi exclaimed, sending a smile to Andy and Andy only. I rolled my eyes and she sent me a dirty glare.

When they were both out of the room, Andy murmured, "Was it just me, or was the short one giving me the eyes?"

"The eyes?" I ask, laughing slightly.

"Yeah," he whispered. "Like, the bedroom eyes."

"Oh," I say, the smile wiping from my face and the laugh dying in my throat. "Yeah, I noticed that."

"Is that why you made me hold your hand whenever she looked at me?" Andy asks, a smile creeping it's way onto his face.

I blushed and looked down at my sock-covered feet and muttered, "Maybe..."

He just laughed and said, "You don't even remember me asking you out, but you still get jealous, huh?"

I smiled a little, but eventually stated, "You asked me. I said yes. Whether I remember or not, the decision still stands."

Andy let out another chuckle, and said, "Alright, whatever you say. But, I think you should get back to sleep." I nodded, but stopped when he made to slide out of the bed.

"No, wait!" I exclaimed, receiving a raised eyebrow from him. "Um, could you maybe, I don't know...stay with me? In here?"

I looked back into his eyes, which were filled with mixed emotions.

"Of course I will."

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*Andy's POV*

((one week later))

The doctors made the band and I continue the tour. I argued and fought for hours, but Ashley had to eventually lift me and walk me out, quite literally. I had to pace and take deep breaths before I could calm down a little. And it was very, very little.

Dr. Weekes assured me that Ellie's memories should be coming back to her at a faster pace now.

That was good, I knew that.

But I wanted to be there.

I wanted to be the one she wakes up next to when a memory comes back.

I want to be the one who she excitedly retells what happened in her 'dreams'.

I wanted to hold her hand until she fell back asleep, ecstatic at the thought of more thoughts to think about.

I liked the nurses, Sophie and Heidi, they would probably be the ones she would talk to. But it wasn't fair.

"Andy!" I heard a voice snap me out of my thinking. I whipped my head up to see the guys filing out of the bus. It was CC who had called to me, and who continued to speak, "We're at the venue. Ronnie and the guys are already here."

Oh, yeah. The managers had signed Falling in Reverse to continue the tour until Ellie is well enough to play.

If she'll even be able to.

As I followed CC out of the bus, I saw Jacky and Ashley talking and leaning against the side of the vehicle.

I sent Jacky a small smile, but kept walking towards the building. I just wanted to get this over with.

I could see that the crowd could tell I was agitated. It made me feel better that there were some signs concerning Ellie and her health, and I made sure to thank them. I apologized for seeming off to everybody, and explained the situation to everybody who might not have heard.

And I ran offstage.

I went straight to the bus and sat in my bed.

Dr. Weekes had agreed to give Ellie her cellphone, which had received minimal, fixable damage.

me: how are you feeling?

🌸ell🌸: i'm alright. i remembered some family members, some cringeworthy events at social gatherings, the like. Heidi will not stop talking and i just want to sleep.

me: it's good that you're remembering stuff still. i just had to do our first show without you guys and it was awful.

🌸ell🌸: i'm sosososososo sorry, andy i feel so guilty about all this

me: don't. it was fine. i saw some signs that said, 'get better soon, Ellie!!!' and, 'Pray 4 Ellie!', etc. it made my night.

🌸ell🌸: stop i'm gonna start crying

me: alright, i should probably get to sleep, anyways. sweet dreams, ell.

me: goodnight, andy.