You Can't Tell Me to Heal

I looked over at Avery while I drove. She didn’t look so well, and she was just glowing this morning. What the fuck happened? The drive was silent and stressful. I was dying to ask her what was wrong, but I felt like if I said anything she would cry. She looked like she was about to. When I parked, she got out the car so fast I had to actually run to keep up with her. She ran straight to the ER and up to the desk. “Hello, could you please tell me where I can find Mariella Lassiter?”

Oh, god, Avery’s mom?

“Can you tell me who you are?” the receptionist asked. “And I’ll need to see some –“ Avery impatiently slammed her driver’s license down on the desk before the receptionist could finish talking. Well, damn. The receptionist arched and eyebrow, but typed something into the computer. “She’s in room 303.”

Avery shot past the double doors and I had trouble keeping up with her again, despite the fact that my legs were like twice as long as hers. Three flights of stairs and several hallways later, Avery and I reached her mother’s hospital room. Halvo was asleep in the reclining chair by her mother’s bed. Avery went to him first, skirting around her mother, and gently shook him awake. “Halvo…Halvo, I’m here.”

He woke up with a start, rubbing his eyes and yawning. “Dammit, Avery, where were you all night? I was calling and texting and calling and-“

“I know, I know, I’m sorry,” said Avery, and her voice cracked as she looked at her mother. Avery was the spitting image of her mother, but Avery’s mother was so pale now, and her chest was bound up. “C-Can you tell me what happened?” Ah, fuck, there she goes with the crying.

“Somebody broke into your house,” Halvo told her, and Avery gasped. I gritted my teeth. “He shot your mom, but she stabbed him a few times in the shoulder with a kitchen knife.”

Avery brushed her tears away and took Halvo’s seat, pulling up the chair by her mom and taking her hand. Her mom didn’t wake up. “Hey, mom…I’m sorry I didn’t come home last night, but I-I’m here now,” Avery told her mom, crying hard now. I wanted to go to her, but...Halvo wouldn’t let me.

“No, man, not yet. Just give her some time alone with her mom,” he muttered, pushing me back out into the hallway and gently closing the door behind him. “…She was with you, wasn’t she.” It wasn’t even a question, it was a statement. I just smiled sheepishly, feeling my cheeks burn up. Halvo shook his head indulgently. “Get you some!” He joked, playfully punching my shoulder as we sat down in the waiting area.

“Seriously, though…the guy that broke in – can you take me to him?”

Halvo’s face fell, but he nodded and took me to the ICU. A police officer was sitting in the room Halvo took me to, but thanks to the windows, I didn’t need to go in. I already saw that he was the guy that got away the last time Avery’s house got broken into. I wanted to hurt him so bad, but I knew he would get what he deserved... “Fuckery,” I breathed, hanging my head and clenching my hands into fists. I felt responsible for what happened to Avery’s mom now. “Alright, I wanna go back to her now.”

“Ok…you know your way back, right? I just really wanna go home and chill for a bit. I’ve been here with her mom since four in the morning.”

“Oh, snap…ok, bro, sure. I’ll tell Avery, I’m sure she’ll understand. Bye.” Halvo waved goodbye before taking the elevator downstairs. I heard Avery before I saw her, arguing with some man I didn’t recognize. Behind him stood his wife and son, I assumed. The man just sighed and stopped talking to Avery. He put his arm around the woman, and they walked past me to the elevator. I didn’t like how the son lingered to speak to Avery, because he looked close to her age. I walked over to her. “Avery?”

“John,” she sighed in relief, pushing past that guy to throw her arms around my neck and kissing me hard. I didn’t complain. It was good to show that guy who Avery belongs to…not that she’s an object or anything, just that she’s not single, and…fuck it. “Sorry, you had to see that, Renzo,” Avery apologized to the guy, but she didn’t sound sorry at all.

“It’s fine,” he laughed, and I could detect a faint accent in his speech. “I need to go, anyways… it was nice to finally meet you, Avery.”

“Same, Renzo,” she sighed, shaking his hand even though he was obviously trying to hug her. He waved goodbye awkwardly to the both of us before trotting over to the elevator. “Ugh,” Avery groaned, burying her face into my chest.

“Who was that?” I asked, wrapping my arms around her and kissing the top of her head.

“My father and his new family,” Avery hissed. “You know why he’s here at all? He said he was worried about us. Ha! Yeah, right! You know who that boy is? That’s my stepbrother. My dad married some Italian lady with a young, talented soccer player for a son. Way to add insult to injury. I mean, seriously? Douche bag move!” Avery ranted as I led her towards the waiting area.

“Forget about them,” I told her firmly, even though I was a little worried, too. What were they doing here? “Halvo went home for a bit, but how’s your mom? Did she wake up?”

Avery instantly saddened again, and I regretted ever bringing her up. “No…I wanna be here when she does wake up, though…stay with me?”

I wrapped an arm around her again, pulling her into my side and kissing the top of her head. “You don’t even have to ask, babe.”

I’d tell her about that no good, two bit, filthy, rotten criminal later.