The Middle

It had been a week since the gala, and I was getting more and comfortable living with Pat. We hadn’t gone on another date yet, but I wasn’t rushing anything. A big part of my mind was convinced that I was only here for Ryan. I decided it was time I should talk to someone. Pat was going to be out all day with a practice then a team meeting. He wouldn’t be home til after dinnertime. So I grabbed my car keys and decided to go for a drive. I wasn’t sure where I would go, but I’m sure I would find someone to talk to.

Minutes later, I found myself at the hospital. Walking through the doors, I could sense something was wrong. Nat met me in the hallway, just before I reached Ryan’s room. She had concern written all over her face and that wasn’t helping my state of emotions.

“Claire, I was just about to call you.”

My breath got stuck in my throat and for a moment, I couldn’t come up with a response. When I finally found the words, the concern on Nat’s face echoed in my voice.

“Oh? What’s wrong? Is Ryan okay?”

Nat tried to smile a small smile, but the concern overpowered her facial features.

“Come with me. I have some news and I’m not sure how you’re going to take it.”

The only thing that was running through my head was that Ryan was fading faster. Nat was right; I wouldn’t know how to handle that.

Nat and I walked into an office just off to the side of nurses’ desk.

“What’s going on, Nat? This is freaking me out. This better have something to do with Ryan and not part of some secret plan of Pat’s. I’ve had just about enough of those.”

Nat shook her head.

“No, this is about Ryan. The doctor was going to tell you, but I asked if I could since I know you a little bit better.” I nodded my head, allowing her to continue. “There’s this new medication that just became available. We’re not sure how effective it’s going to be, but we’d like to try it out on Ryan.”

I raised my eyebrow at Nat, knowing that there was more to this then just new treatment.

“Okay, but what else is there? I know you enough, Nat, that there’s more to this than just new treatment. You know I would agree to it if it meant there was a chance to prolong Ryan’s life.”

Nat sighed.

“The closest place for Ryan to get the treatment is in Pittsburgh.”

My eyes went wide. I finally realized why Nat wanted to be the one to tell me. She knew how close Ryan and I were getting with Pat. It would be difficult to leave him, but if it meant helping Ryan, I couldn’t stay here just for Pat. I would feel guilty, and I’m sure deep down, so would Pat.

I looked to Nat, and sighed.

“How long do I have to think about this?”

“Well, the sooner you decide the better. On the bright side, you’ll only be there 3 weeks. It’s just a trial run. If it works,then you may have to make bi-monthly visits back there, but those would only be for a couple days at a time. Who knows, we might get the treatment in our facility soon, so you wouldn't have to make so many trips. Ryan’s name was first on the list and I didn’t want the oppourtunity to go overlooked.”

I nodded.

“Thanks for telling me, Nat. Does Ryan know about the offer?”

She nodded.

“Yeah, he does. He’s not overly happy about leaving, but he asked for you to make the final decision.”

“Okay, I’ll go talk to him, then I’ll come back to you with the final decision within the hour.”

I walked into Ryan’s room. He was just staring at his TV. My heart broke for him. I knew he didn’t want to leave, but we both knew it was best for him if he did.

“Hey buddy.”

Ryan looked over at me and gave me a small smile.

“We’re going, aren’t we?”

I sighed.

“Well, I think it would be best. I mean, it’s only a trial. We won’t be gone that long.”

“What about Pat? What are we going to tell him?”

I ran my hand through my hair.

“I don’t know. I don’t really think we should tell him much of anything. We don’t want to scare him or anything.”

“Claire, he’s your boyfriend. You gotta tell him.”

I gasped.

“He is not my boyfriend. We went on one date, and I only live with him because he’s the only friend I’ve felt comfortable around and I can’t stay here anymore.”

Ryan rolled his eyes.

“Whatever, you like him, you just have a hard time telling yourself. You gotta tell him at least something about what we’re doing and where we’re going, though. He needs to know why when he comes home, you won’t be there.”

I chuckled and in my head, decided he was right.

“Okay, when I go home and pack, I’ll leave him a note, okay? He’s busy and I don’t want to bother him.”

Ryan nodded.

“Okay, I’m gonna go tell Nat that we’ve decided to go and get everything sorted. I’ll see you in a bit,okay?”

Ryan nodded.

“Hey Claire?” I turned to look at him, “thanks. I know it’s hard for you to leave after you’ve finally felt comfortable. You’re doing this for me, and I thank you for that.”

I smiled. “Anytime, buddy.”

I left Ryan’s room and walked up to the nurses’ desk.

“Hey Nat, we’re going to go.”

She smiled and came around from behind the desk to give me a huge hug.

“I know how hard this is for you, but trust me, it’s worth it.”

I nodded. “So, what do we have to do? When do we leave and all that jazz?”

Nat chuckled. “Well I’ll deal with everything here, get Ryan situated and everything. You go home and pack, call Pat, do what you need to do. Meet me back here in about an hour. Your flight leaves in 3 hours.”

My eyes widened, but Nat continued.

“I know you, Claire. You would overthink this, but once you talked to Ryan, you would decide to go for it. I booked your flight as soon as you went into Ryan’s room.”

I gave Nat a huge hug.

“Nat, thank you so much, for everything. You know me better than I know myself at times. I’ll see you in a bit, okay?”

Nat nodded and I walked out of the hospital.

I made my way back to Pat’s condo in record time. I packed everything that I thought I would need for two weeks. I packed a little extra just in case. I debated on whether I should write Pat a note or not. I knew that Ryan had asked me to, so the moment he found out I didn’t he would freak. So I wrote a small note, telling Pat to phone me when he gets home. By the time he got home, Ryan and I would be in Pittsburgh. That way, he wouldn’t be able to talk me out of it, whether he knew he was doing it or not.

On the drive back to the hospital, I kept telling myself I was doing the right thing. I had told so many people telling me that I was, but I was finding it hard to believe. My mind kept drifting to Pat. I was praying that he didn’t think that Ryan and I were abandoning him. But then again, he was Patrick Kane. He could easily find someone else to spend his time with.

Walking back into the hospital, I saw the Ryan was sitting in the hospital with Nat. There were a few bags packed on the floor beside Ryan. Seeing the smile on Ryan’s face was all the reassurance I needed.

“Okay, so shall we head out, buddy?”

Ryan nodded and I brought him to my car. Nat helped us get everything in the car and off we went. This was bound to be a life-changing experience, for everyone involved.