2 days later...
I was finally free. Free from my bedridden chains, the strangely unsettling peeling white walls, the awful stench of blood and vomit that never dissapated. However, being free wasn't the main priority on my mind.
Patrick squeezed my hand as the engine of his car revved softly, and we pulled out of the parking lot as the hospital building rolled out of sight in the rear-view mirror. I wasn't sure what was going to happen next. We both realized our feelings for one another, and now we were spending all of our time making out and cuddling, but now the main concern was this: were we going to tell everyone?
"How's your leg feeling at the moment? Are you okay to walk?" Patrick questioned as he pulled the car into the rough gravel driveway of Joe's house, removing the keys from the ignition.
"Uh," I looked down at my thigh, swaddled in pink-tinted gauze that the nurse had tied so tight that it was beginning to throb with pressure. "It hurts a little, I should be okay-"
"No, I'll help you." He smiled and walked to the opposite side of the car to help me out. I slung my arm around his shoulders while he wrapped his around my waist, and I hobbled toward the front door. "The guys are gonna be so happy to see you!" However, when we opened the door, and after exploring the realms of the house, we found it empty, which was explained by a note that had Pete's messy handwriting scribbled all over it-
We went out for lunch and some guitar shopping. There's pizza in the fridge. We'll be back around 3.
-Pete
"I guess nobody's home," Patrick said, shrugging as he ran his eyes over the note.
"Why don't you head to bed? I'll make you some soup."
I smiled, but shook my head. "Nah, I'm not hungry. Let's just... cuddle."
After the words slipped my mouth, I decided I had never seen Patrick smile so big. He had a gorgeous smile that made me feel like I had no choice but to smile as well. "Sounds good to me." He laced his fingers with mine and carefully assisted me to his bedroom. I kicked off his flip flops and slipped under the soft covers as I watched him remove his shoes, glasses, and fedora. He moved softly toward me, wrapping his arms around my body as he pulled me close, our arms and legs a tangle of limbs.
"Should we tell them?" I whispered as he brushed back a stranded tendril of my dark hair. "Y'know, about..."
"I'm not sure... I don't know how Joe would react to this. Let's wait a little longer. It'll just be our thing." I nodded my head against the pillow and squeezed his hand.
"Get some sleep, beautiful."
-
I fluctuated to and from sleep for the hour, conscience enough to realize that Patrick had fallen into a deep, gentle sleep before I had. My eyelids grew stiff with grogginess, but shooting open immediately as I heard the abrupt creak of the door opening, the thick odor of nicotine, and quiet chatter amongst the three guys. Shit, I thought, scrambling out of bed.
"Melanie? Patrick? You guys home?"
"Shit, shit..." I muttered under my breath, crawling toward the door, propping myself up as I ever-so-gently snuck out into the living room.
"There she is!" I heard Joe announce, and I froze.
"Uh, hey.."
"How are you feeling?" asked Pete.
"I'm good... Much better... than before." He smiled.
"Where's 'Trick?" I clenched my teeth together.
"He's... uh, sleeping. In his room."
"Have you had dinner?"
"No, neither has Patrick. I'll go wake him..." I padded toward Patrick's bedroom door and opened it nearly silently. He lay on his back, his arms forming a halo around his head as he snored softly.
"Patrick!" I whispered, shaking him a little. He groaned and rolled over. I blew out a stressed puff of air and tried again. "Patrick, get up...." I crawled next to him and knelt on the side where I had previously slept, shaking him again. Patrick's left eye peeked open, and I gasped as he stealthily wrapped his strong arms around me and pressed my body against his.
"Hello," he greeted me hoarsely. I giggled and planted a kiss on his cheek. "How did you sleep?"
"Good, you?"
"Excellent." All I really wanted to do was just lay there with him and waste the whole day away in his presence, but I knew we had an audience waiting just outside the door.
A loud knock rapped on the door twice, followed by Joe's voice,"What are you two doing in there...?"
"Nothing!" I replied, grimacing as I crawled off of Patrick. "I was just waking him up."
"It shouldn't be takin' that long... We've got an Xbox tournament to get to!" I rolled my eyes and tossed Patrick his fedora as he groggily slid out of bed, smoothing his messy dark hair over his forehead.
Patrick pecked me on the lips, for we were both sure that was the last kiss we were going to share for the evening. I didn't like keeping secret relationships, but if Joe got upset, I probably wouldn't be going on tour with them, and the whole thing was shatter to pieces.
"So, Black Ops, Destiny, or Grand Theft Auto Five?" Pete surveyed as he knelt in front of the television in the basement, flipping through Joe's games. "Oh, there's also Forza 5."
Patrick, Andy, and I agreed on Grand Theft Auto, while Joe and Pete were more into Call Of Duty.
"But have you even tried it?" Pete whined. "It's better!"
"Nice try, Petey!" Patrick giggled. "It's three against one." Patrick and I sat a foot distance apart on the couch, our hands resting next to one another, begging to lace with one another. My fingers traced the intricate details on the couch, the fabric tickling my finger tips to distract me.
"Who's going first, then?" Pete asked. "Not me."
"I'll go," Andy volunteered. Now everyone's attention drifted to the television, everyone but Patrick and I sitting cross-legged on the floor, dangerously close to the TV screen. And the whole time, I was only thinking of being alone with Patrick, but at the same time, how we had shifted from just friends to something far more complicated. I really didn't know what we were- still friends? Boyfriend and girlfriend? I couldn't figure it out, but it almost seemed as if we were fireworks- an explosive duo that was a beautiful thing to us- but we had gone off too soon. There wasn't much of a chance for us to get closer mentally. The more I thought about it, the worse I felt. I couldn't be rushed into something like this.
I wasn't even in the correct mental condition to be trusted with anything. Not even him.
