Miles Away | Nick Mara

Thirty Eight

One week passed. Then two, then three, then four. It'd been almost a month since I'd arrived in Jersey. Day after day, I stayed by the hospital bed, driving back and forth between the house and the hospital. I didn't have time to think about myself. The doctors were constantly updating us on how she was doing, suggesting treatments, surgeries. I couldn't keep up. Every so often Zion or one of the boys would call, asking for an update. I'd sometimes miss the call by accident, and they'd worry, but when I called them the next day, they'd answer with a sigh of relief.

It was the same cycle every day, and without even knowing, I'd become accustomed to a sort of routine. Get up, drive to the hospital, come back home, sleep. It was the same things in the same order. Over and over again.

But the routine stopped when she passed away. We all knew it was coming. The doctors had warned us, saying that she most likely wouldn't make it through the night. We spent every last moment with her, talking to her, even when we knew she probably couldn't hear us. But at 02;34 AM, she left.

I didn't cry. It wasn't sad. I did everything I could, and so did she. My dad locked himself away at home, always behind closed doors in his room. He'd take his meals up with him, leaving me by myself downstairs.

I didn't realize how sad I was until I saw Nick.

Once he'd heard the news, he decided to fly over. He didn't call or text me to tell me beforehand. One morning, when I opened the door, he was standing there, clutching a bag in his right hand. I smiled and greeted him with a hug, telling him to come in.

We sat in the hallway between mine and my dad's room. He sat across from me, picking at his fingernails as we both tried to find something to say.

"How're you holding up." He said slowly.

"I'm okay." I sighed. "Let's talk about something else."

"Okay."

"What'd I miss?"

He smiled a little. "Brandon and Char broke up."

My jaw dropped open. "What? When? She never told me."

He shrugged. "A few days after you left. She said she tried to call but you never picked up."

That was true. Many of them had called, but I knew what they were going to say. Are you okay? How've you been? I'm so sorry to hear about your mom.

"Nothing else happened." He said, looking down at his hands.

"How is she?" I asked, my voice breaking.

"Who?" He looked up, a hint of fear in his eyes.

"Kaylee Rodriguez."

"Aubri..." He sat up. "I promise you I didn't d--"

"It's okay." I cut him off. "We're not together. You can do whatever you want. But it's a genuine question. How is she?"

He looked at me, his eyes watering. Seeing him tear up made me tear up too. I wiped them away quickly with the sleeve of my hoodie before smiling. He shook his head, as if in disappointment, and a tear dropped from his cheeks onto the wooden floor.