The Sun Also Sets

Hayden smiled as Camille O’Callaghan set a chocolate cake in front of her, eight candles a fire. She held back her hair and closed her eyes, making the wish she had been thinking about all day.

She said it in her head, clear and concise, so whoever was going to grant the wish knew exactly what she wanted.

I wish Eric Halvorsen would like me.

She began to exhale slowly but before she could even blow out one candle Eric and John beat her to it, laughing and hi-fiving when all of the candles were out.

“John Cornelius!” his dad shouted.

John cowered under his dad’s voice, “Sorry, dad,” he mumbled.

“Don’t apologize to me,” he said before walking away.

John and Eric rolled their eyes, looking at the girl with tears filling up in her eyes. She could feel them looking at her and she turned away, praying that she wouldn’t cry. Mrs. O’Callaghan began cutting the cake into pieces for all eight of the kids at her birthday pool party.

They sat down on either side of her, just looking at her. She picked at her nails, not meeting their eyes.

“Hayden,” Eric said, dragging her name out so he was almost singing it.

She stayed silent and John spoke, “Come on Hay, we’re sorry.”

“No you’re not,” she muttered.

“Come on nothing you wished for could have been that great anyways!” Eric said.

She looked at him, biting her lip, “Right.”

He smiled, obviously pleased with himself, before patting her on the back and walking away. John stayed next to her.

“He likes you, too, you know,” John said.

Hayden met his eyes, “W- what are you talking about?”

“I know you like Eric. It’s obvious,” he said.

“It is?” Hayden panicked, “Does he know?”

John shook his head, “He’s Eric.”

She smiled to herself, but noticed John only staring at his feet, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” he said, “Are you having a fun birthday?”

She smiled, “I am. I kind of wish it was just us three, I don’t really care about anyone else.”

He shrugged, “I wish there were more girls here.”

Hayden looked around, realizing it was all boys and giggling, “Sorry.”

John looked at her and she stared into his eyes. Before he even thought about it he kissed her cheek. She instantly blushed but then looked at him, confused. She opened her mouth to speak but before she was able to question why, she was being taken from him. Eric and Garrett Nickelsen picked her up as she kicked and shouted, getting louder as they got closer to the pool.

They threw her in and when she came up from under the water she was laughing. He watched her as she and Eric splashed each other and flirted. John didn’t notice he was glaring at them, but he felt so jealous. Sure, Halvo was his best friend but Hayden was so cute.

“John!” she called, “Come in!”

He plastered a smile on his face and jumped in, joining Hayden in fighting against Halvo in the splash war. Hayden smiled at him before taking his hand and pulling him underwater.

He opened his eyes and saw her grin before she kissed his cheek softly, smiled once more, and floated back to the top.

John could not wipe the smile off his face as he joined her above the water. He had a feeling he hadn’t felt before surfacing. He didn’t feel like a third wheel anymore, or like Eric had the upper hand.

And he would never feel like that again.

“…and many more, on Channel 4.”

“Eric, please,” Hayden laughed.

He sighed in defeat after his wonderful rendition of Happy Birthday, “Open my gift!”

She took the tissue paper out of the bag and took out a brand new sketch pad along with pencils and pastels, “Wow.”

“You haven’t made anything in a while. You’re probably going to have a lot of free time,” he said.

“Thanks, Halvo,” she said.

He winked, “I love it when you call me that.”

“You’re so dumb,” she laughed.

“How do you feel?”

“I do not feel any older,” she told him, “I am so ready to get out of this bed.”

“Once the nurse checks you out we’ll be off! I may have arranged for a stop off for some burgers and fries,” he winked.

“Well, happy birthday to me,” she smiled.

“I knew you would be all smiles today. You love your birthday,” he said.

She grinned, “I really do.”

“I hate them,” he said, “Do I need to remind you that you’re getting older every second?”

Before she could respond, the nurse that had been essentially in charge of Hayden for her time here, Emily, walked in and stood on the opposite side of the bed from Eric. “Okay, Hayden, we just need you to verify your address for us to send the bills to.”

“3125 Mulberry Avenue,” Eric said.

“Eric,” Hayden hushed.

“Nope, that’s right,” he said. Hayden sighed as Eric gave his address to what she assumed was his new apartment.

“All right, have a nice life. I don’t want to see you in here again,” Emily said before walking out.

Eric laughed, “Man, they hate you around here.”

“Just help me up,” she mumbled, holding out her hands.

He lifted her up and handed her her crutches. She still had a cast on one leg and a boot on the other, being able to walk on the boot.

Eric drove them to her apartment, choosing to carry her up the stairs so she didn’t have to attempt to climb them.

She went off to the bedroom to pack a bag for the rehab clinic, and Eric surveyed her living room. It was pretty bland except for the pictures on the wall that she had drawn and painted.

There was one picture frame on the mantle, hidden behind a pot of dead flowers. It was the same picture John had picked up in Eric’s room on the night of their show a few weeks ago; the picture was at Hayden’s eighth birthday party.

He smiled, remembering how jealous he felt when he saw John kiss Hayden on the cheek. She told him about her wish when they were thirteen. He gave her her first kiss right after.

But even then he knew that it would always be John and Hayden. Always.

“Ready?” she asked as she joined him.

He smiled, slipping the frame underneath his shirt just in time, “Yep. Let me get your bag.”

Eric put the picture in her bag as he put it in the car. They stopped for food and Eric got the waiter to sing happy birthday to her.

When they arrived at the rehab clinic, so aptly named Mountain View Rehabilitation, Hayden grew nervous. Eric took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly, giving her a smile.

The woman at the front desk greeted them with a welcoming smile, “You must be Hayden Reynolds.”

“That’s me,” Hayden replied.

“My name is Lorelei. You’re Eric, right?” she asked.

“Wow, I didn’t know I was that famous, but yes, I am,” he grinned.

She laughed, “Kelsey told us we should probably get very comfortable with you. Is this your boyfriend?”

Hayden couldn’t help but snort a laugh, causing Eric to narrow his eyes, “No, just my best friend.”

“Well, let me show you to your room,” Lorelei said.

She led them to a room about the same size of her bedroom at home. The walls were empty but the large window in the room letting the sun shine through made it less desolate.

“We’ll let you just settle in today. You are allowed unlimited visitation, however you can only leave three times a week with someone approved by your therapist. You’ll meet doctor Roberts tomorrow. Eric, you are welcome to stay for however long you would like,” she smiled.

“Thank you,” he said before she left.

Hayden lay back, closing her eyes, “I don’t want to be here.”

“I know. But you promised you would try,” Halvo said.

Hayden opened her eyes when she heard a knock at the door. Kennedy and Kelsey walked in, all smiles. Kennedy put a vase of flowers on her bed side table.

“Happy birthday!” Kelsey smiled, handing her a gift.

She studied the bright wrapping paper and perfect bow, “You really didn’t have to-”

“Oh, please, I don’t mind at all. Open it!” she said.

Hayden tore open the wrapping paper, smiling when she saw the book in her hands.

“Garrett helped me pick it out. He said you liked to read and that was your favorite author,” Kelsey said.

“Thank you,” Hayden smiled before looking at Kennedy, “Thanks for the flowers.”

“I heard you like daisies,” he said, giving her a cute smile.

She chuckled softly, “You would be correct.”

“Eric, want to go get some coffee with me? They make a mean latte in the kitchen,” Kelsey said.

“I don’t really drink coff-” Eric began but Kelsey cut him off.

“Just come with me,” she said, taking his hand.

Kennedy shook his head, a laugh falling from his lips, “She’s really smooth.”

“I can tell,” Hayden said.

“How does it feel to finally join the twenty-two club?” he asked, sitting on the bed next to her.

She shrugged, “You make it sound much more glamorous.”

“You seem to be a little bit happier today,” he commented.

“I like birthdays,” Hayden said, “And apparently you like partying… have a little too much to drink last night?”

Kennedy laughed, “That obvious, huh?”

“The bloodshot eyes and aversion to sunlight gave it away.”

“Well if it justifies anything I think the last shot we did in honor of you is what pushed me over the edge,” he said.

“Well then, you are welcome. Christ, I need a drink,” she said.

He frowned, “I think this will be good for you, I really do.”

“I don’t really have a choice,” she said.

“Maybe you’ll only have to stay for a couple of weeks before they let you go home. It’s all about how much the therapist sees you improve,” Kennedy said.

“It sounds like a lot of talking about feelings and sharing, which I am really not into,” she said.

He sighed, “You better get used to it.”

She bit her lip, wishing to change the subject, “Hey, Kennedy? Has John ever said anything… about me?”

He looked at her, unsure, “Well… sure. He told me to not get involved with you… that you would bring me down with you.”

“We used to be friends, you know? Best friends for most of our lives,” she said.

“He tried to tell me that he barely knew you, but I kind of assumed that was a lie,” Kennedy told her.

“He might be right about that. But he used to know me better than anyone,” Hayden told him honestly.

“First love?”

“Only love,” Hayden said.

“Maybe you guys can reconcile soon. I guarantee your therapist will tell you it is necessary.”

“It’s not really up to me. I stopped trying years ago,” she said.

Kennedy began to speak but his cell phone rang. He excused himself, speaking for about a minute before frowning as he joined her again, “I have to go. My girlfriend needs me.”

“Right, your girlfriend,” Hayden said, “Thanks for the flowers again.”

“No problem. I’ll stop by later this week. Maybe we can go feed those giraffes like I promised a few weeks ago,” he winked.

She laughed, “Sounds like a plan.”

He hugged her goodbye and she couldn’t deny that it felt good to have a friend. Maybe more than one visitor would help her go less crazy. She loved Eric but she felt guilty that he spent all his time with her.

Hayden lay down on her bed, finding it much more comfortable than the hospital bed. Her booted leg was killing her and she was already getting tired.

She must have fallen asleep because she woke up to a kiss on the top of her forehead.

She found Eric smiling, “I’m going to go home, you look pretty beat. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thanks for everything today, Eric. I appreciate it,” she told him.

He nodded his head, “I’m glad we got to spend this day together. You almost missed it.”

“I thought you didn’t like birthdays?”

“This one I don’t mind so much,” he smiled, “See you.”

She couldn’t fall asleep again, thinking that she did almost miss this day. She almost wasn’t here and this day would have been hell for Eric, and that made her feel guilty.

Hours later, Hayden heard the scuff of boots across the tile in the hallway. She didn’t turn around, she was getting used to the fact that she lived in a “community” now, so it probably wasn’t for her. She was reading the book that Kelsey had given her, lying in her bed.

But when she heard the footsteps stop she looked up, and she tried to pretend that her breath wasn’t snatched from her throat by the mere sight of him.

She closed her book slowly, the smell of the new pages filling the air around her. He stared at her, not at his feet or at anything else, just right into her eyes.

They stayed silent as she sat on the edge of her bed. He stood in the doorway just in case he lost the nerve. His senses were sharpened; he could hear the therapist in the next room speaking to the patient, the footsteps at the other end of the hall, but mostly the sound of his own heart beating.

Hayden waited, biting the inside of her bottom lip nervously. She honestly didn’t expect to see him, and she was almost shaking at how nervous she was. She was scared, almost wanting to just burst into tears with all of the memories of the last time they saw each other.

She didn’t want to feel that way again. She wasn’t necessarily feeling any different, but that night she saw him, well, was the last straw before she tried to kill herself.

He was wearing a leather jacket even though it was probably too hot outside, with jeans that were too skinny and scuffed up boots. His hair was a mess and he looked so gorgeous.

Hayden was in sweats, her brown hair falling in loose waves, framing her face. She wore hardly any makeup, and she had taken off the boot she was wearing for her fractured ankle, and it was bruised and ugly.

He didn’t know why, but he had expected her face to still be cut up and bruised, all that was left was a few barely visible cuts turning into scars. But she still looked beautiful.

John took one step in and Hayden wondered if he would dare to go any farther. But he didn’t. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and only spoke two words before turning away and walking down the hallway towards the exit.

“Happy Birthday.”