Run Away With Me

I arrived at the hospital just as visiting hours started, and a few nurses smiled at me, recognizing me from the times I'd sat in the waiting room, willing for Frank to become well enough for people to visit him. I stepped into Frank's room and started. A man and woman sat on either side of him, both crying. I paused, wondering if I should leave. But the man spotted me before I could go.

"Kalli?" He asked, hesitantly. I shook my head, offended. "Astrid then?" I nodded. "I've heard all about you from Frank, when he came to visit last time."

I nodded again, and looked to the woman. I knew that she was nasty and mean to Frank, but now she looked like a broken woman, crying and clutching Frank's good hand.

"My other son-"

"Our other son," cut in Frank's Mom. "Just because he lives with you doesn't make him yours!" She sounded hysterical.

"Sorry," the man looked chastised and he lowed his eyes. "Our other son, is with a friend. We had to stay here overnight, we were too worried."

I merely kept nodding, wondering why he was telling me this. Maybe he wanted to make me think he was a good Dad. Ha! Whatever.

I sat down on the stool in the corner, and Frank's Dad went back to his previous position, at Frank's bad side, looking pale and bland. I shivered. His parents looked ghastly, positively horrible.

I opened my journal, and wondered how to write it.

Dear Frank,

so, it's around the fourth day you've been in this stupid coma, and it's the second day I've been able to see you. Don't look at me like that! The first time you were here, was when you were actually hit. You need some surgery, since some bits of you were you know, ripped open or ripped off. Nobody could see you. I waited for hours in the waiting room. So did Jake.

The next day was when they knew you were in a coma. They didn't know how stable you were, if you were going to live or die. They spent all day hooking you up to machines and doing tests. I spent most of they day waiting, again, but at home I freaked out a bit. It was scary.

The next day it was family only allowed, so I stayed at home, sleeping, pretty much. Kind of boring, huh? Your family are her now. Your Mom and your Dad. It's obvious they're divorced. They're arguing in whispers right now, I don't know what about. To be honest, I don't like them much. I doubt they like me. Your Dad thought I was Kalli.

I miss you Frank, and all you do is lie there and make tiny movements with your chest to show you're still breathing. Most of your breathing is done by a machine now. That's scary. The Doctor is sure you'll get better though.

Love, Rosie.

I closed the notebook over and stuffed it back into the bag, pulling out the James Underground book. I started reading happily. It was the sixth book in the series, and the main character had just lost her lover to the Demon Master at the end of the fifth. Now, as I started the new book, she was heading straight for the Demon's lair, ready to fight.

I was about halfway through the book, a few hours of Frank doing nothing, when a loud jangling ring tone interrupted the silence of the hospital room. I knew the song, it was Kara Kare's new pop song, "Don't Need No Man." Catchy the first time, annoying the next.

"I thought you said you'd turned it off," Frank's Dad hissed to his ex-wife as she pulled her cell phone out her pocket. She ignored him, and flipped it open.

"Hello? Oh, hi Ger," she said, sounding confused. "What? You're kidding! What? Oh for God's sake. You did? Yeah, he turned it off, the tosser," she sent a dirty look to her ex-husband. "Okay, just, wait a while, we'll be there soon. Bye, bye, bye."

She snapped the cell shut, and glared at Frank's dad.

"Great, your son has attacked and killed, Ger's cat. She tried to call you because he's attacking her kids, but you didn't have your phone on. I'll get him, don't you bother," she snapped, and got to her feet, leaving the room in a storm of rage.

"Ignore her," Frank's dad said quickly. "She's upset because Frank is in hospital again. He told you about when he was younger? The car was hit by a truck and he was in a minor coma... It's like history is repeating itself."

I frowned, and returned to my book.

"Kalli?" He interrupted.

I looked up, ready to correct him. But the real Kalli was in the doorway, nodding to Frank's dad.

"You'll be wanting some alone time. I should go check on Dan anyway," he scurried out the room and I sunk into my chair, hoping idly that Kalli wouldn't see me.

Once again, I had no luck.

"We need to talk," she said in a low voice, staring straight at me.