Life Cycles (COMPLETED)

Chapter 18

Zoë's POV
I was sitting on the sofa under blankets with Alfie, watching old Disney movies. Again.
I was counting down the minutes till the phone call from the hospital which could change everything for Joe and I.
The doorbell rings, and Alfie gets up to answer it. A few minutes later Joe and Katherine walk through, depressed smiles on their faces, and come and sit on the sofa with me.
"Hey." Katherine says, rubbing my arm.
"Hi." I reply, hugging up to her, checking my phone.
We didn't say anything else, and Alfie made us all hot chocolates with whipped cream and marshmallows and we all huddled under multiple blankets as The Little Mermaid played on the tv.
Then the dreaded noise started.
I look down at my phone screen and see the hospital phone number.
"Hello?" I answer it, putting it on loud speaker so everyone could hear.
"Good afternoon Miss Sugg. Would it be possible for you to come down to the hospital or would it be more suitable for you to tell you the news on the phone?"
"Just tell me now and then I will come down afterwards.." I anxiously answer, biting my finger nails and grabbing Alfie's hand.
"Very well. Well, I really really don't know how to say this, but," I immediately feel a stabbing pain in my chest like my heart had been shattered into a million pieces, "your father did not survive the survey, sweetheart. I am so incredibly sorry." She sorrowfully says, and I look at Joe, who's jaw was dropped and he was crying.
"That- that's okay. I'll- I'll get there-" I say, and with that I drop the phone. Everything went black.
••••
"Zoë wake up! We need to get to the hospital! Are you okay?" I hear Alfie shouting, shaking me awake.
"What happened?" I ask, looking around me, spotting a sobbing Joe by the front door.
"Zoë babe you had a panic attack. The hospital called." That's when it all came flooding back to me- my dad died during open heart surgery.
"Oh." I whisper, sitting up and gathering all my things before we all head out the door to the cars.
We figured it would be best if we went in different cars so each couple could have time to talk and mourn.
"See you at the hospital." I throw my arms around joes shoulders, crying into his chest.
"I love you." We say in sync with each other, then get in our separate cars.