Joining the Band

Mystery Girl

Ronnie's POV

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I stared at Jo's crumpled body in shock. What the fuck just happened? Her dad came, he's a huge dick. He shattered what I assumed was her guitar, it was gorgeous. Then she launched herself at him and I just barely held her back. He said something about her not being able to commit suicide, then walked out. She collapsed on the floor and started screaming and pulling at her hair, saying that she wanted to die. Then she stood up, reaching for a table, I think, then passed out. Derek just barely caught her. 

"What just happened, man?" I looked at Derek. He was handing her to the doctor, who put her back in the hospital bed and re-did her IV, which she had ripped out. 

"Was she reaching for something?" Derek asked while looking at the table that she had thrown herself at. 

"Surgical tools. Knives. She was saying that she wanted to die. Was she gonna kill herself?" I looked at her fragile body in shock. She was too young to die. 

"Oh my god..." Derek mumbled at the thought. "Probably." 

Wow. I wasn't sure how to wrap my head around this. I just saw a girl try to stab herself. She didn't get very far, granted, but she was still trying. I kinda understand though... Obviously she doesn't have a reliable father figure, I didn't hear anything about a mother, abused. Poor girl. She had nowhere to go. I looked at the doctor.

"Does she have any other family?" I asked him. He checked the file.

"A mother, lives with her father. I'm assuming that's not a great relationship. That's about it." He looked up at me with a blank expression. 

"Thank you. Can Derek and I have a moment alone with her?" I asked the doctor, wanting to talk to Derek about what had happened. 

"I guess, but she probably won't wake up anytime soon." He walked out. He acted like he didn't care at all. Dick. 

"And, uh, why exactly did we want to be alone with her?" Derek asked me.

"What are we gonna do? She obviously can't go back to her parents. You heard him. She has no one. She's suicidal, so we can't just leave her alone to kill herself." I stared at her bruised face.

"Dude, why do we care? She's just some chic who hit us on the road. It's none of our business what happens to her." Derek said. "I say we leave some money and leave her." I couldn't believe he was being so heartless! I stared at him in shock.

"Are you fucking kidding me Derek? Out. Now." I pointed at the door. I needed some privacy.

"Damn, Radke got his period." Derek mumbled while rolling his eyes and walking out of the room. I made a mental note to kick his ass later for that comment. But in the meantime, I had work to do. I pulled out my phone, dialing a familiar number. 

"Hullo?" A familiar voice answered. 

"Hey man-" I was cut off.

"Ronnie?! Where the fuck are you man? You and Derek went to go get food and never came back!! What the hell?" I turned the volume on my phone down as the speaker blared with his screaming. 

"Look dude, we got in a car wreck. We're fine, but the girl who hit us-it's complicated. Grab the guys and get them down to the Denver hospital. Now." I hung up and stared at the screen, blinking the name of my lead guitarist and best friend, Jacky. British fuck. Where does he get off, yelling at me? 

I sat down in one of the chairs by the hospital bed and stared at Jo. Her face was a wreck. She had a cut on her forehead, stitched up, a busted lip, a black eye, and cuts and bruises all over. She was still very pretty though. Not in a weird way, she was like 15 years younger than me. She was just pretty. She shifted in her bed. 

"Jo?" I whispered. She groaned in response.

"Are you awake?" I asked, grabbing her hand. 

"Where am I? What happened?" She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She saw me and her eyes got wide.

"Oh my god.. What happened? The last thing I remember was trying to attack my dad, him leaving, and having an anxiety attack. And now my head hurts like a bitch." She pulled her hand out of mine and rubbed her temples, moaning at the same time. 

"Well you stood up and then passed out. The doctor put you back in your bed and you've been asleep since then." I reminded her, not bringing up the fact that she stood up to try and kill herself. 

"Oh god. Where did Derek go?" She realized that he was no longer in the room. 

"He, uh, needed some air." I didn't wanna tell her what a dick he had been. She looked pained, and I hated to bring this up, but I needed to know. 

"So, Jo." I started gently. "Do you have anywhere to stay?" Her eyes filled with tears, and she sighed. I instantly felt bad. 

"Um, I'm not sure honestly." She wavered. "I guess I'll get an apartment somewhere.. My parents kicked me out when they saw my cuts. That's why I was driving so late at night. But I have a job. And, uh, I think I'll have some money left after paying the hospital bills. I hope." She mumbled the last part under her breath. I didn't know what to say, which part to reply to. 

"Well, Jo-" I was planning to bullshit my way through this, but thankfully I didn't have to. I was interrupted by a knocking on the door frame. I looked over to see the guys, including Derek. 

"Hey guys. This is Jo." I stood up and started introductions. "Jo, this is Ryan, Jacky, and Derek you know." I said pointing to the guys. "Wait, where's Ron?" I realized he wasn't with the guys. 

"He's with Hayley, and you said to come quickly, so I couldn't get him." Jacky replied. I shrugged.

"Well, usually there would also be Ron, our bassist. But these are the guys." I turned back to Jo to see her staring at Jacky and Ryan, looking like she'd seen a ghost. 

"Are you ok, Jo?" I walked over to her bed. 

"Tha- Tha- That's Jacky Vincent- An- And- And Ryan Seaman." She stuttered, pointing at them. 

Ryan giggled and bounced over to her, kissing her hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Miss Jo." She looked like she was going to die. 

"Uh, yea. N-Nice to m-meet you, too." I wondered why she was so nervous. Jacky walked over to her bed.

"Nice to meet you." He said shyly. She just stared in awe at him. "Are you ok?" He asked, looking concerned. 

"Y-Y-You're J-Jacky V-V-Vincent... Y-You're the r-r-reason I learned t-to play g-g-guitar." She stumbled over her words, turning tomato red. Jacky blushed and smiled.

"Really? That's awesome. What kind of guitar do you have?" He asked. Her face lit up.

"I have a- Oh god." She looked horrified. "Wait.. My dad?" She looked at me, as if asking if it really happened. I nodded slowly. 

"My guitar!" She cried, tears welling up in her eyes. "My baby..." She looked at her hands and fiddled with her fingers, humming and trying not to cry. 

"What happened?" Jacky questioned innocently.

"I had a-a beautiful Fender-That I got detailed and-and all decorated--but my dad-he shattered it." She didn't look up at all, and I saw drops of water hit her blanket. Jacky looked horrified.

"I'm so sorry, Jo." He said, awkwardly patting her shoulder. She just sat there. I motioned for everyone to follow me into the hallway. 

"Hey, Jo? We'll be right back. Need anything?" She shook her head, still staring down. We all walked into the hallway. 

"Alright guys. We need a game plan." I said.

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Sorry this chapter took so long for me to update! It's been a hectic week. Hope you enjoy! Please like, comment, and vote!