One of the Guys

Chapter 38: It's a Crazy Life

"Hush," she commands as she opens her bag of chips. "I gave you over two hours. Now, your time is up."

"How about one more?" I bargain.

"No," she denies.

I huff and sink into my chair. She laughs at me and continues eating happily. I squint my eyes at her. "Why are you so happy?"

"She is a fighter, and if anyone can pull through, it's her," she explains.

"I wish it was that easy," I complain tiredly.

"You can't expect it to be the same way for you," she informs me with a munch of her chip.

"Why not?" I huff.

"You care for her on a completely different level, and I don't just mean because you've known her longer. I love Cece like she's my sister. You, on the other hand, you're in love with her. It is impossible for you to see reason. You are blinded by love," she explains to me.

"If I wanted a therapist, I would've found one," I mutter.

"Please, you can have me for free," she scoffs.

"No thanks, I would rather pay," I deny playfully.

She bumps her shoulder against mine. We fall into silence, but it's comfortable. I can hear her munching on her chips and Emmet talking rather loudly with my parents. He has always been able to get along with them like they were his own. It's weird.

"You know, I'm scared too," Caroline says.

"Hmm?"

"Just because I know she's strong, doesn't mean I'm not scared. In fact, I'm terrified. We have no control," she explains.

"Only time will tell," I offer solemnly.

"I have to tell you something," she informs me and twists her body to face me.

"What's-"

"Grace Mcallister?" The doctor interrupts.

Caroline and I are up instantly. I shake Archer awake and he stands groggily. I stand impatiently as he looks over something on a chart. Couldn't he have done this before?

"The surgery went well," he finally tells us. I physically feel relief sweep through my body and I lean on Emmet. He squeezes my shoulder and smiles at me.

"The knife didn't hit anything vital, but the wound was bleeding heavily and it was hard to stop. She's in ICU right now. It's just a precautionary measure and in an hour I'm hopeful to see her getting moved to recovery," he adds.

"When can we see her?" I ask.

He looks at me almost apologetically. "For now, only Grace. When she's moved, she can have visitors."

I just nod and everyone besides my mom takes a seat. I'm just glad she's out of surgery. As long as she's okay, I can wait one more hour. I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. I look over at Caroline and see her in deep thought.

"You were saying before?" I prod, trying to bide my time.

"Hmm?" She asks distractedly.

"You said you had something to tell me," I explain.

She turns and stares at me with narrowed eyes. I raise my eyebrows questioningly. I catch Emmet staring at us from the corner of my eye and make a help me motion. He turns his head with a devious smirk. What a jerk. I hesitantly look back at her and smile.