[Old Version] Playing for the Other Team [Old Version]

Chapter 14

After flickering between a few channels – realizing Jonathan wasn't a fan of sports programs – they had a quick lunch before leaving the house. Jonathan slid into the passenger seat of the Ford, giving a satisfied sigh.

"Seatbelt." Nathan reminded him, as he turned the engine on.

"Oh, right." Jonathan quickly buckled up.

Nathan backed out of the driveway and drove the long way to the hospital, knowing Jonathan liked the drive. "Here we are." He said when he parked the car outside Fortwhile Hospital. "Do you... um... want me to come with you?" he offered.

Jonathan was frowning, but he nodded. The two boys got out of the car and walked into the hospital. They both walked up to the reception desk. The nurse there seemed to recognize Nathan and smiled brightly at him. "My, my!" She chirped. "Nathan Bone. What a lovely surprise!" She smiled.

Nathan smiled briefly at her. "Yes, very lovely."

"What brings you here?" The young nurse asked, leaning against the desk, and batting her eyelashes at Nathan.

Nathan pushed Jonathan forward slightly. "I'm here with my friend, we're picking his mother up." He said, and the nurse turned her attention to Jonathan.

"Hello." She smiled at him. "May I have your name, please?" She asked.

"Meade. Jonathan." Jonathan replied. "My mother's name is Maria. The doctor should be expecting me." He added.

The nurse went through some papers and clicked a few times on the computer. "Yes, I see." She hummed. "She's in room 234. Second floor, third corridor to the right." She smiled at Jonathan again.

Nathan followed Jonathan to the elevator, and up to the second floor. They found Maria sitting on a hospital bed, looking a lot better than she had the last time Nathan had seen her. She lit up like a candle when she spotted her son.

"Hi, mom." Jonathan smiled back and gave her a tight hug. "How are you feeling?" He asked.

Maria nodded. "I'm feeling so much better." She said.

Jonathan took a step back. "That's wonderful, mom." He smiled happily, then turned to the doctor. "Anything we should think of?"

"You're doing great as you are." The doctor assured. "Just keep it up, and everything should be fine."

Nathan smiled to himself, and just then Maria seemed to notice him. "Hello, dear." She smiled at him. "Aren't you the young man who gave Jonathan a ride to school the other day?" She asked.

Nodding, Nathan stuck out a hand for her to shake. "I am. I'm Nathan Bone." he introduced himself.

Jonathan's mother gawked at him. "B-Bone?" She asked.

"Yes. Bone." Nathan confirmed.

"Oh." Maria blushed. "I'm sorry, Mr. Bone. I didn't realize it was you. I'm afraid I look a bit... indecent." She patted her tousled hair and straightened out her wrinkled shirt.

Nathan smiled politely and shook his head. "Not at all, Mrs. Meade." he chuckled. "And please, call me Nathan. Mr. Bone's my father." He said.

Maria smiled. "All right." She nodded. "Nathan."

Jonathan went to the doctor for a short moment to talk but soon came back. "Are you ready to go home, mom?" he asked and hooked arms with his mother. "And don't worry, we've no bus to catch." He squeezed his mother's arm. "Nathan's promised to give us a ride home."

"Oh, really?" Maria asked.

"I didn't like the idea of you taking the bus, so I offered to drive you," Nathan explained.

"Why, thank you." She gave Nathan a loving smile.

"It's no problem." Nathan glanced at Jonathan. "Shall we?"

Nathan didn't drive the long way to Jonathan's house, even though he knew that Jonathan would have liked that. He parked the car in the driveway and got out of the car. Jonathan was already helping his mother out of the car and then went to unlock the door.

"Thank you so much, Nathan." Maria smiled when she stepped into the house.

"You're welcome, Mrs. Meade." Nathan chuckled.

"Oh, Nathan. How rude of me." Maria smiled. "Would you like a cup of tea?" She asked.

Jonathan groaned silently. "Mom, people don't drink tea." He muttered. Nathan pretended he didn't hear Jonathan.

"If you'd have me, I'd love to." He said, giving Jonathan a small smile.

The blond sighed again but returned the smile. "I'll go and make tea, then." He said. "Why don't the two of you have a seat and I'll be right with you." He suggested.

Nathan and Maria both sat down at the small kitchen table while Jonathan went ahead and made tea. "Thank you, sweetie." Maria gushed when her son put a cup of steaming tea in front of her, she gave his cheek a gentle pat.

"Here you go." Jonathan placed a cup in front of Nathan before sitting down next to his mother with a cup of tea for himself.

They small talked for a while, mostly about Jonathan's night alone. "Jonathan, sweetie. Did you eat properly when I was gone? Did you sleep okay?"

"Mom, you were only gone for the night." Jonathan blushed. "And I spent the night at Nathan's place." He added.

"You did?" Maria asked, looking a little angry.

Nathan decided to step in. "It's fine, Mrs. Meade. Jonathan's my friend. We happened to meet up in the library last night, and I invited him over. Then I guess we forgot about the time, and I didn't want him going home in the dark." He explained.

Maria looked at him. "I hope he wasn't any trouble." She pouted her lips.

"Not at all. He was a great guest." Nathan chuckled.

"You're such a good boy, Jonathan." She smiled at her son and gave his cheek another pat.

Jonathan blushed, glaring at the table, but he let her do it without complaining. Nathan didn't stay very long, he could tell that Maria seemed to be a little under the weather, and saw it as a cue to leave.

He was followed to the door by Jonathan. "I think I've stayed long enough." He said lowly, glancing over Jonathan's shoulder at Maria. "She looks like she could use some peace and quiet."

"Yeah..." Jonathan nodded. "I'll walk you out." He offered and nudged Nathan's arm. "Thank you." He mumbled once they were outside. "For everything. Letting me stay at your place, and driving my mom and me around..." He averted his eyes.

"I-It's fine. That's what friends are for." Nathan said nervously.

Jonathan gave a light chuckle. "Yeah... friends." He mumbled.

It was quiet for a while, both boys avoiding the other's eyes. "So... um... I should go home. Jennie should be home by now." Nathan said.

Jonathan nodded. "Yeah, uh... tell her I said hi. And thank her for everything." He added.

"I will," Nathan promised. "And I'll see you in school on Monday. Should I... pick you up?"

Jonathan looked up, smiling. "You know... it's slowly becoming a habit to be driven around by you." He chuckled. "If you want to, you may."

"Then I will pick you up by eight." He said.

Jonathan nodded happily. "All right, I'll see you then."