Chapter 37
~11 Months Later~
I waited with anticipation as the plane landed onto the long asphalt runway. The sun was high in the sky, shining brightly down on the airport. I glanced over at Chloe. She was looking out the window with a wide grin on her face.
"Ready?" I asked her. She nodded without looking at me. Of course she was ready. A hundred yards away from us in the airport were her family and Daniel. But I knew exactly how she felt. My family was probably with hers. Everyone was there- everyone except Elliott. We both agreed before I left Italy that he would see me later that night. My parents still didn't know about him, and I knew that it would come out sooner or later.
The plane finally landed and stopped next to the airport. Chloe and I got up, retrieved our bags from the overhead shelf, and followed the line of people out of the plane. We walked next to each other along the tunnel, and my stomach had butterflies in it. I was finally back in Ohio- hell, I was finally back in America, where I could speak English and not have to struggle with the difficult Italian words.
We made it to the edge of the gate and looked around. I was surprised to see how crowded it was. People from behind us got frustrated and went around, giving us dirty looks as they passed. I was too tired to return the looks, though. Crabby travelers didn't deserve the satisfaction of me returning a dirty look.
"Avery!"
I looked to my right just in time to be tackled by a boy about six feet tall. He was tan and had brown hair.
"Ah!" I exclaimed, taking a few steps back. I looked at the boy and widened my eyes. "Josh?"
"How could you not recognize your own brother?" he laughed. I laughed with him and gave him a tight hug. From over his shoulder I could see my parents weaving through the crowd of people, and Chloe's parents followed with Daniel trailing.
"Mom, dad!" I shouted, releasing Josh and running to them. I almost halted from slight astonishment. My mom's hair had grey hair, and my dad's stubble went from pitch black to salt-and-pepper color. They also earned a few wrinkles, but they weren't a big thing. Then again, I hadn't seen them in a year.
"Avery!" my mom said, throwing her arms around me. She squeezed me, and I returned the embrace. My dad was next, and I hugged him just as hard. Next to us, Chloe and her parents were hugging, and then she finally got to Daniel. From over my father's shoulder, I saw them kiss. My smile became smaller. I longed to see Elliott, but I knew he had to wait.
My mom grabbed me by the shoulders and looked me up and down. She put her hand to her mouth and looked as if she was about to cry. "Look at you! You've changed! You're tan, and you're hair is lighter! And you grew!"
I laughed and hugged her again, grateful to be reunited with my family after a year.
~
"So how was Italy?" my dad said from the driver's seat.
"Fantastic!" I said brightly. "I had so much fun!"
"Did you learn any Italian?" Josh asked.
"You mean did I learn Italian?" I laughed, correcting him. "Yes, I did."
"Well do on," my mom said, looking back at me. "Say something!"
"Uh, okay..." I said, thinking of what to say. "In Italia, sono andato alla Cappella Sistina e vide Leonardo de Vinci bellissimi dipinti dal Rinascimento."
"What'd you say?" Josh asked eagerly.
"I said: In Italy, I went to the Sistine Chapel and saw Leonardo de Vinci's beautiful paintings from the Renaissance," I replied proudly.
My mother clapped. "Well done, honey! I'll have to get Italian lessons from you later."
"It's harder than you think," I sighed. "It took me a few months, but Alphonso helped me a lot."
"Who's Alphonso?" my dad intervened.
"Alphonso was one of our 'tour guides', for the lack of a better term," I explained. "We became really good friends. His dad owned a little inn that we stayed in for the first few weeks."
"That's cool," my mom said. "And he helped you with Italian?"
I nodded. "And Chloe. We all had a great time."
"That's fantastic," my mom said, smiling.
My dad pulled into the familiar driveway and turned off the car. I got out and inhaled the fresh air. My dad carried my suitcase inside, and I followed behind closely. We walked inside and I looked around. I missed the house so much, I forgot what it looked like. My dad set the suitcase at the foot of the stairs and walked into the kitchen, but this time I didn't follow him. I grabbed my suitcase and ran upstairs to my room.
It was exactly how I left it. Bed in the corner, TV opposite of it, dresser by the bathroom door. I left my suitcase by the door and flopped down on my bed. It was soft, and I had forgotten how much I had missed it. My phone vibrated from inside my pocket and I took it out. It was a text message from Elliott. I opened the message and read it.
I'll meet you at our place in a hour, it said.
I smiled and replied 'okay', and put down my phone on my bed. Only an hour until seeing Elliott. It felt like a hundred years, but then I thought to myself that if I could spend an entire year in Italy, I could wait another hour to see him. I ran into my bathroom and brushed through my hair. My mom was right- I did look different. I was taller and my skin went a few shades darker from being out in the sun.
When I finished in the bathroom, I decided to change my clothes. During the flights back, I wore sweatpants and a loose t-shirt, considering I'd be sleeping most of the time. I took them of and threw on a loose green t-shirt and faded jeans.
"Avery, are you going somewhere?"
I jumped and spun around. My mom was standing outside my door, holding a pile of sheets- probably taking them to the closet in the hallway.
"Um, yeah. Chloe said she had some of my clothes and I was going to pick them up," I lied, turning away from her to put my hair in a messy bun. "Is that okay?"
She heaved a sigh. "I supposed. But come back as soon as you can. I'm making you a welcome home dinner."
I tucked a stray hair behind my ear and turned to her. "I promise," I said. I grabbed my keys off of my desk- exactly where I had left them before the trip- and walked over to my mom. I planted a kiss on her cheek and padded down the stairs. "Love you mom, bye!"
"Bye Avery," she called back. Before I walked out of the front door, I heard her humming a song as she put the sheets in the hallway closet. I closed the door behind me and resumed walking to my car.
~
The smell of ginger ale and French fries filled my nostrils as I opened the big mahogany door to the diner. The interior on the inside was exactly how I remembered it. Wooden tabled and booths, small counter in the front with stools, and the same bartender that gave me drinks a year ago. When he saw me he smiled and waved. I walked over to the bar and sat in the same seat I always did.
"Avery," he said in a deep voice. "It's good to see you."
"Good to see you, too," I said back cheerfully.
"Meeting Elliott here?" he asked, winking.
I smiled. "Maybe."
"He's been in here every week by himself for almost a year. Did you have fun in Italy?"
"I had a great time," I replied. "I learned a lot."
"Can I get a Coke down here please?" a random lady said from a few stools down from me.
"Sure," he said. He turned to me. "I'll catch up with you later."
"Okay," I said. "See you later."
He walked away to get the woman a Coke and I waited patiently. I checked the time on my phone. Elliott should've been getting to the bar soon. The door opened from behind me and I turned quickly, anxious to see if it was Elliott.
To my disappointment, it was only a small family coming to the diner, probably for a late lunch or early dinner. I turned back around and sighed. My stomach felt like it had rocks in it. I wanted to see Elliott so badly it hurt. Noises from the TV on the wall in front of me became louder as the bartender turned it up. I glanced at him and then the TV. It was a breaking news story about a gas truck that blew up after colliding with two cars.
"Hey, turn it up," someone said from behind me. It was the lady from before, staring at the TV. I didn't really care for it, though. My dominating concern was seeing Elliott. The bartender picked the remote back up and turned up the volume, but I looked away. I didn't want to hear about the car crash.
"Breaking news," the reporter on the TV said. "A semi-truck containing gasoline crashed head-on with one car, impacting many cars around it. Approximately twenty-three people are being rushed to the hospital via helicopter, some in critical condition, and they have found both drivers of the original crash dead..."
I tuned out the reporter, staring outside at the darkening sky. Becoming frustrated, I took out my phone and dialed Elliott's number. It went straight to voicemail. I groaned, dialing his number again. Again, it went to voicemail. It occurred to me that he was probably in traffic since it was five-thirty. For a brief moment, I thought about him being in the crash, but pushed the thought away. Where the crash happened wasn't even on the way here from his house. It was completely the opposite way.
I waited forty-five more minutes and finally decided to call it a night. The bartender wished me a goodnight and cleaned off the counter. I left in a depressed state. I felt like crying. Had Elliott really forgotten about me? No, he wouldn't- he couldn't. Something must've come up- maybe a meeting at the college and he was unable to call me. I got into my car, turned it on, then drove home, managing not to cry the whole way.
~
My phone rang from on top of my bed and I rushed to grab it, hoping it was Elliott calling to tell me he was okay. I answered it without looking at the caller I.D.
"Elliott?" I said quickly, putting the phone to my ear.
"No, it's Chloe. Avery, have you seen the news?!" she exclaimed. "That huge crash was near my house! We saw the smoke from the huge fire and everything!"
"Yeah, I saw it on the news at the bar," I sighed, disappointed that it wasn't Elliott.
"What's wrong? Did you see Elliott yet?" she asked.
"He didn't show up," I whispered, blinking back tears. "Chloe, he didn't show up."
"Why not, honey?" she said in her sweet, motherly voice. "Did he forget you existed?"
"I don't know. The last I heard from him was a text an hour before I was supposed to meet him," I explained. "At first I thought of the crash, but then I remembered he didn't live near there."
"Yeah, he wouldn't be apart of that," she assured me in a soft voice.
"Avery," my mom said, coming into my room. She had the phone held against her chest and a worried look on her face. I narrowed my eyes.
"What is it mom?"
"Remember your teacher from last year? Elliott Taylor?" she asked.
I nodded, trying not to looked too eager to hear about him. She still didn't know how much I knew him... "What about him?" I stammered.
"Well, I was just talking to Marie Anne. She said that he was apart of the crash that happened a little while ago. He was rushed to the hospital after his car flipped over twice."
I gasped, finally letting the tears escape my eyes. Chloe was yelling at me through the phone, but I couldn't hear her. It went through one ear and out the other. I dropped my cellphone, blankly staring at my mom, feeling as if I was just punched in the stomach.
Elliott was in the crash... he was at the hospital. That's why he... wasn't at the diner... But why would Elliott be over there? That was nowhere near his house or the college.
"Avery?" my mom asked worryingly. "What's wrong?"
I grabbed my cellphone off of my bed and quickly rushed out of my room, keys in hand. My mom called after me but I ignored her. I put my phone to my ear, hoping Chloe was still on the phone.
"Meet me at the hospital," I said. I hung up and slipped my phone into my pocket. I threw the door open and slammed it behind me, ignoring my mom's desperate calls to me.
~
The drive to the hospital seemed to go by in a blur. I had even forgot to put on my seat belt I was in such a rush. My phone rang from inside my pocket multiple times, but I kept my hands on the wheel. I parked the car as close to the hospital as possible and sprinted inside. By the time I had made it to the desk, dodging other patients and doctors moving throughout the hallways, I stopped crying. I was in too much of a hurry that I didn't even care about crying at this point.
"Can I help you?" the nurse said, glancing at me up and down worriedly.
"Um," I panted. "I'm here to see Elliott Taylor. He was in the car crash just a little while ago."
"Oh, yes, let me-" She was interrupted by a young-looking man in a white doctor's coat putting his hand on her shoulder.
"I heard you were looking for Elliott Taylor?" he asked me. "Are you his sister?"
"No, I'm his girlfriend," I breathed. "Is he alright? What's his condition? Can I see him?"
"Mr. Taylor just came out of surgery," the doctor explained, clicking his pen closed and placing it on his clipboard.
"What?" I whispered. "Is he okay?"
"Amy, Dr. Normani needs you in room four-fifty," he told the nurse. She nodded and walked away, then motioned for me to follow him. I followed behind him closely, wondering if he was going to take me to see him. I felt desperate, and needed to know he was okay. We came to one room with a huge window. I looked inside and saw the man on the bed, with many tubes and monitors hooked near him. I gasped, putting my hand over my mouth and finally feeling the tears again.
It was Elliott, laying on the bed with his eyes closed. There was a white bandage around his head, along with cuts and bruises all over his arms and face. "Oh my God..." I whispered.
"I'm sorry to tell you this," the doctor said. "But Mr. Taylor is in a coma from the crash."
My legs finally gave way from underneath me and I fell onto the white, tile floor. The doctor kneeled next to me and put his hand on my shoulder.
"No," I cried. "No, this can't be happening!"
The doctor shushed me gently. "I'm sorry..."
"Will he ever wake up?" I said, looking at him.
He looked like he was in an uncomfortable position. "It's too soon to tell right now."
"Avery?"
The sound of Chloe's voice echoed in my ears. I turned around and saw her walking down the hall with Daniel. She saw me and began running.
"Avery, what happened?!"
I collapsed into her arms when she kneeled down next to the doctor. "It's Elliott," I whispered. "He's in a coma, Chloe."
"Oh my..." she whispered. She stroked my hair gently, putting her chin on top of my head.
"Can I see him?" I asked the doctor, still hugging Chloe. She helped me up off the floor after the doctor nodded. We walked into the room and I held my breath as I approached his bed. The beeps from the monitors echoed throughout the quiet room. A nurse was checking his pulse when we walked into the room. She smiled sadly at me and nodded, then walked out of the room.
"Elliott?" I whispered, brushing my fingers along his limp hand. His chest rose and fell faintly, and his eyes were closed. I hardly recognized him with everything that happened. His body was almost all black and blue. "Elliott, if you can hear me, please open your eyes."
I waited and watched his face, but he didn't open his eyes.
"We can't determine how long he will be in his current state," the doctor explained. "But you're welcome to stay with him."
I nodded thankfully. "Thank you," I whispered. Chloe came up behind me and rubbed my shoulders. The doctor nodded and left us.
"Do you want us to stay with you, Avery?" she asked.
I sniffled. "Only for a little bit. Please."
She nodded. "Of course."
I pulled up one of the chairs to the bed and sat down in it. Hesitantly, I weaved my fingers through Elliott's and squeezed. I held his hand and rested my head on the bed, closing my eyes. How could this happen? The day I come back from Italy, and I still couldn't see Elliott. I couldn't kiss him, or hold him in my arms. He was lying in the bed, broken and fragile. I couldn't talk to him, I couldn't tell him how much I had missed him... I couldn't even tell him how much I loved him without him not hearing me. It broke my heart into a million pieces.
I prayed that I would at least get to talk to him- to hear his voice one time. I didn't want to think it, but something inside me said that I wasn't going to hear him for a long time.