Cover uptop is by NeymorhNderitu. Thanks love for the wonderful cover.
PIERRA'S POV
The guys had just sent the waitress away to get them another round of drinks when my phone rang. I checked to see who was calling and it was Whitney. My brows furrowed in confusion wondering why she was calling me as we never talked. We might have grown closer during the family trip but it didn't make us best friends. We were just civil with each other. It was probably Bishop calling me from her phone so I excused myself from the group to go pick the call. The guys were too loud for me to talk in their presence.
I answered the phone before she could hang up"Hello?"
"Pierra?"Whitney's voice called out and it sounded like she was crying.
I immediately went into defense mode hoping she wasn't calling me to talk about her relationship problems with my brother. We were definitely not that close so whatever had happened to them I would not intervene. They would have to deal with it like adults.
"What's up Whitney? Why are you crying?"I asked.
That question seemed to make it worse as she broke into heavier sobs making me freak out.
I didn't have any close girlfriends so I had no idea what to do in such a situation. How do you console a moping girl?
"Hush now Whitney? What's wrong? Is it Bishop? What did he do?"I asked breaking my own rule about intervening.
The poor girl just broke down harder so I consoled her best I could letting her cry it out until she calmed down enough to tell me why she was crying. Finally after a few minutes her sobs reduced to hiccups before she was finally able to string a coherent statement.
"Bishop got (hiccup) into an accident(hiccup)and is at the hospital(hiccup)."She rambled out face and I froze immediately.
"What?"I snapped unable to say anything else.
Whitney composed herself so that her next statement was fluent and hiccup free. My brain refused to register what my ears were hearing.
"He got into a fight with some really bad people and was terribly injured. He's at the hospital right now and its really bad Pierra."She chocked out.
I felt my throat clog up with emotion and the overwhelming urge to cry. I took a few calming breaths pacing the quiet verandah I had run off to. I tried to lock out all negative images out of my head but Bishop lying dead in a pool of his own blood sneaked it's way into my brain and I pinched my nose to keep it out.
"Pierra you there?"Whitney asked and I nodded until I realized that she couldn't see me.
"Yeah."I croaked out.
I cleared my voice before continuing to talk. "Text me the details what hospital you're in and I'll be there as soon as possible."I informed her.
"Okay."She confirmed and I hung the call my arm dropping heavily to my side.
I tried to hold them in, I really did but the tears dripped from my eyes and fell over my dry cheeks. That's what I got for not applying lotion on my skin after I took a shower when I was done swimming. How could I be worried about the state of my skin when my brother was fighting for his life. Whitney said it was bad and by the state of her she was not exaggerating. I didn't want to think anything terrible just yet but I couldn't help it. Bishop was my big brother, who even though was a royal pain in the ass most of the time, I loved him with all my heart. I didn't want to loose my brother.
My phone vibrated with an incoming message and it was from Whitney with the name and location of the hospital Bishop was in. I wiped off my tears as best I could before heading back to the table where the guys were gathered. I felt bad cutting their fun off but I felt even worse about my brother, so my family won over them continuing to have fun.
Andrew was the first to notice me and he immediately jumped up when he saw my puffy and wet eyes.
"Ivy what's wrong?"He asked holding me at arms length.
"Bishop got into an accident and is at the hospital. I need to go see him."I sobbed and he hugged me to him caressing my still damp hair.
"I'm so sorry baby. It'll be okay."He assured me.
"How do you know?"I asked clutching onto his shirt for comfort.
"I don't but I have faith."He replied and even though I didn't agree with that answer I nodded nonetheless.
"What's wrong?"Ned asked with a slur to his tone.
"We're leaving so everyone go get changed, grab your stuff and let's meet at the car in ten minutes."Andrew replied.
"What do you mean we're going home? The fun is just beginning and its only four in the afternoon."Cass argued.
"Cass I said now, don't argue with me and you're already pretty wasted."Andrew demanded shutting him up.
I didn't want Andrew arguing with his friends because of me but in the situation I was in I couldn't care less.
"Pierra are you okay?"Alfred asked and I nodded even though I clearly wasn't.
"The issue seems like a couple problem, why don't you guys leave and we'll find our own way back home."A very drunk Cliff argued.
Cliff was a jerk when sober but when drunk he upgraded to an even bigger jerk.
"Guys when I said go get changed I meant go get changed right fucking now so we can leave. May I remind you that you're only having this fun because Pierra made it happen. So stop being a dick for once in your life and think about someone else for once."Andrew whisper shouted and I cringed.
I knew he was just looking out for me but I'd never heard him talk like that to anyone. His friends probably hadn't either and were all looking at us shocked by his outburst.
"It's okay babe."I sniffed caressing Andrew's arm to calm him down.
"No it's not okay, they are being inconsiderate."Andrew argued quietly.
He was right but he was also approaching the whole situation wrong.
"I'll talk to them."I assured him patting his arm comfortingly before turning to his friends"Guys it's my idea to leave now, I just got news that Bishop is in the hospital after getting into a terrible accident so I have to go check on him. I'm your designated driver so I'll have to drive you home now."I explained trying to hold myself together.
"Why didn't you just say that dingus?"Ned exclaimed shooting daggers at Andrew.
He would never use such words while sober but he had taken the half priced drinks literally and probably had a little too much to drink.
"I did."Andrew retorted with a huff.
"We'll go change."Cass declared.
He got up helping the rest of his friends who were drunker than him leaving Andrew and I alone. I realized that I had to change too as I was still in my bikini.
"Ivy you can't drive in your emotional state."Andrew argued.
"I have to, I'm the only one who didn't drink."I replied not really in the mood to drive but I had no choice.
"I'll drive. I didn't drink much."
"What if we get pulled over?"I asked already giving into the idea just wanting to be safe.
Andrew would never put me or his friends in danger so when he said he was really good to drive then I believed him.
"We'll quickly swap seats."He suggested and I nodded.
"Fine with me. I'll go change too."I said picking up my bag with my dry clothes.
Andrew held me back and lifted my face up to his.
"It'll be okay."He assured me kissing my forehead before letting me go.
It didn't immediately make everything better but I was assured that everything would be okay with him there. I got changed while in robot mode and by the time I found my way to the parking lot all the drunks were piled up in the middle and back seats so I sat in the passenger seat next to Andrew.
"Pierra, your brother will be okay. Bishop is a tough bastard." Cass reassured me in his slurring voice.
His words made me smile amidst my freak out mode. Cass was right, my brother had always been tough and strong, he'd pull through.
When we got to the hospital Andrew got out the car with me and walked me to the door. Everyone else had passed out during the drive. I couldn't blame them, I was exhausted too but I was too stressed to even think of sleep.
"I'll just go drop this other guys off and I'll be back as soon as I can."He instructed shrugging off his hoodie and putting it on me when he noticed I was cold.
"Okay."I whispered feeling scared of walking in there on my own but I didn't say anything.
It would be selfish of me to demand all his attention when his friends needed him too.
"Be the strong Ivy I know you can be for just a little bit longer, I'll be here before you even know it."He assured me kissing my lips before rushing back to the car.
I watched him drive out of the parking lot before heading inside. I made my way to the waiting room on the ground floor where Whitney told me she would be waiting for me. It was getting dark so the hospital was spooky and too quiet for my liking smelling my bleach and disinfectant. The posters on wall about all sorts of illnesses did not make anything better.
Whitney rushed to me when she saw me and crushed me into a hug. I hugged her back because even if we weren't close we both cared for Bishop in our own way and that was all that mattered.
"Where is he?"I asked once we'd composed ourselves long enough to say anything coherent.
"He's already out of surgery but the doctor won't tell me anything since I am not family. I'm really worried Pierra."Whitney said and I felt for her.
She was shaking, her always flawless make up was smudged and for the first time I saw Whitney in sweatpants and a tank top as compared to her usual skimpy clothing.
I would have given the hoodie I was wearing but it was Andrew's and his smell was comforting me so I instead gave her a flannel shirt I had in my bag. It was better than nothing.
"Show me to this doctors office."I instructed and she nodded before pulling me with her.
We took the stairs to the second floor and she led me to an office at the end of the hall. I knocked and a voice called out for us to walk in and we did exactly that. The doctor frowned when he saw Whitney and I did not appreciate the disapproving look he gave her. He was old and wrinkly but seemed wise and capable of his job.
"Miss I already told you, I can't disclose any information to you unless you are a family member."He said.
Whitney opened her mouth to speak up but I stopped her.
"I'm his sister."I informed the doctor.
He looked me up and down probably looking for a resemblance but he would not find anything.
"I need to see some identification to prove that claim."He demanded and I nodded already used to it.
I reached for my bag and showed him my ID and a copy of Bishop's that he always made me keep as he lost his a lot. Who knew it would come in handy someday. I had hoped it would be in better circumstances but life sucked.
"Identity proven. In that case why don't you sit down, we have a lot to discuss."He said pointing at the seats in front of his desk.
"Is there any way to get in contact with your parents, this is really serious?"The doctor asked and I immediately froze.
I knew Whitney hadn't told them about my brother getting into a fight with whoever he fought with otherwise the police would have already been involved. I couldn't tell our parents, my dad would wait for Bishop to get better before killing him personally so I opted for an alternative version of the truth.
"My parents are dead. It's just me and Bishop here on campus. We take care of each other so please tell me what's wrong with my brother."I requested politely.
I hadn't lied, well not technically. My parents were dead, just not mine and Bishops parents. We also did take care of each other in university as our parents were very far away.
I felt Whitney squeeze my hand, probably pleased at how I'd played it out. I gave her a tiny nod, assuring her that I was in charge of the situation and it would be okay.
"Well then, I'm sorry to hear that, so about your brother. He's in a medically induced coma right now. He was injured really badly and will be in the hospital for a while."The doctor stated.
Whitney and I squeezed each others hands as the word coma got to us.
"Medically induced means you can take him out of it right?"Whitney asked.
"Yes but only after we're sure his body is healing properly. For now he needs to stay under."The doctor replied.
"Whitney mentioned surgery and you said he was badly injured. How bad is it?"I inquired scared of the answer.
"He had internal bleeding when he got here that had to be treated with surgery. I still don't know the details of the accident but he must have hit his head pretty hard against something that caused the swelling in his brain. That's what we're hoping the coma will fix. He has a broken leg, a broken arm and seven broken ribs. He's in a lot of pain but we have medicine to take care of that. We have to keep him under intense watch for the next forty eight hours and hope he pulls through."The doctor explained and my facade fell.
I'd been trying to be strong but I couldn't anymore so I broke into tears. Whitney reacted immediately and pulled me into her arms for a hug. She rubbed my back as I cried it all out. It sounded so bad and I was really scared for Bishop. What if he didn't pull through? I was also stressed out by the fact that my parents had no idea their son was fighting for his life. I couldn't tell them, Bishop would never forgive me when he woke up but I could also never forgive myself if he died and my parents never got to say goodbye. It was a very tough decision.
"Why don't you two go home and rest? There's lots of paper work to be filled but you can do that tomorrow."The doctor advised.
"We can't see him?"Whitney asked.
"I'm afraid not, visiting hours are over and he was in a pretty intense surgery and is in the ICU. You can see him tomorrow as he needs to rest too."The doctor answered.
I was too tired to fight and I didn't think I could handle seeing Bishop like that so I nodded. Whitney begrudgingly gave in and we both got up to leave.
"Thanks for everything doctor. We will be back tomorrow."I said and he stood to shake our hands.
"Bishop seems like a really strong guy. Have faith that he will be okay. We are doing the best we can to make that possible."He assured us but it didn't really work.
Whitney and I made our way back downstairs where we found Andrew pacing holes on the floor.
He ran to us immediately he saw us.
"How is he?"He asked.
Amidst my still flowing tears I managed to give him a run down of what the doctor had told us.
"He'll be okay. Like Cass said, Bishop is one tough bastard."He reassured us and Whitney managed a small smile.
"Do you have anywhere to go?"I asked Whitney not wanting her to be alone.
"Yeah, I have a friend I can go to."She replied.
"That's good we'll walk with you."I insisted and she nodded even though she seemed like she wanted to argue.
I was seeing Whitney in a whole different light and I didn't want her to be alone.
Andrew and I made sure she got to her friends safely. There was much to talk about but we were both tired so we tabled it for the next day.
When we got back to Andrews room he helped me take another shower and insisted that we have supper before we sleep.
Andrew held me when I broke down as we got into bed and whispered reassuring words to me. I was glad to have Andrew when I was going through such a crisis. I would not have been able to handle it on my own.
Before I drifted off into a troubled sleep I whispered a prayer to God to make Bishop better even if he wasn't the best of humans. I didn't have the heart to loose any more family that I loved dearly.
😩😩