Sequel: For All I Know ›
Status: completed!!! sequel on the way...
The Middle
Chapter 23
Pat’s POV
I was sitting in the hospital for a good 3 hours waiting for Claire to come back to tell me what was going on. I knew that she was mad at me, but she knew how much Ryan meant to me. She wouldn’t hold information from me if it was really serious. At least, I had hoped she wouldn’t.
Nat came over and sat beside me. “She still not back yet?”
I shook my head. “No, and ever since last night, she hasn’t been the same.”
Nat raised her eyebrow at me. “What happened last night?”
I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “We got in a little argument on whether bringing Ryan back to Chicago was the right thing or not.”
Nat let out a soft sigh and nodded. “Okay, and what did Claire think? Did she think it was a good idea?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m still stuck on that. I never really got a straight answer because I freaking blew it.”
Nat gave me a quizzical look. “Um, Pat, I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but Claire is crazy about you.”
“So people keep telling me, but I just had to bring up Jordan…”
Nat cut me off, “wait a minute, you brought up Jordan. Oh Pat, why? That was a really hard decision for Claire to make.”
I looked down at the floor, “I know, but I just felt like it needed to be said. She was blaming me for coming back to Chicago. She said that if she stayed in Pittsburgh, she could’ve been sitting in Ryan’s hospital room with him rather than stuck in the apartment with me.”
Nat put a hand on my shoulder. “Oh Pat, I’m sure she didn’t mean it like that. She was really tired last night.”
Suddenly, I jolted off the bench and turned to Nat. “You know what, I think she did.”
I didn’t take a second look back as I walked out of the hospital.
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Claire’s POV
I was standing beside Ryan’s bed holding my hand in his and he looked up at me. I tried to stay as strong as I could, but it was shocking to see someone who not even a week ago was at a hockey game now being confined to a bed with tubes coming out of him and looking so fragile and weak. He gave me a small smile and whispered.
“Hey, where’s Pat?”
I squeezed his hand and returned the small smile. “He’ll be here to see you soon. I just wanted to come in alone first.”
He looked at me with a scared look in his eyes. I saw the tears begin to well up in his eyes.
“Claire, what’s wrong?”
I raised my eyebrow at him. “What do you mean? Nothing’s wrong?”
“Between you and Pat, something’s wrong. I can tell.”
I rolled my eyes and lightly chuckled. “Oh, really? And tell me, oh wise Ryan, how can you tell?”
His face stayed serious. “Well, normally you both would be here. I know that the Hawks don’t have a game today.” I gave him a small smirk, Of course he would know that He continued, “and you find out that I’m dying really soon and he’s not here. Why?”
I felt my breath get caught in my throat. I didn’t know what to say to that. I tried to take the easy way out and think of something simple, to prove to him that nothing was wrong.
“Nothing’s wrong, Ry, I promise. Pat had a morning skate.”
He shrugged his shoulders and smiled. “okay, just as long as you guys aren’t fighting again.”
I put on my best smile, not wanting to make the atmosphere in the room any worse and shook my head.
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Pat’s POV
After I left the hospital, I tried to find somewhere to go. I couldn’t face Claire right now. I didn’t know what to say to her. She was mad at me for bringing her back to Chicago. To be honest, I was mad at me, too. I didn’t want to be a burden on Claire anymore. She wouldn’t have listened to Ryan had he not have gotten so attached to me.
I ended up back at the apartment. When I walked into the door, my phone began to ring. I looked down at the caller ID, and saw that it was Claire. I hesitated before finally picking it up.
“Hello,”
“Hey! Where did you go? Ryan wants to see you.”
I could hear the concern in her voice. I felt a rush of guilt come over me. I shuffled on my feet as I answered her.
“I’m sorry, Claire. I just wanted to come back to the apartment to make some lunch for us.”
I didn’t mean to lie to her, but the conversation I wanted to have with her had to be in person. She lightly chuckled to herself.
“Okay, well you can stop that and come back here. Ryan really needs to see you. Please Pat, it would mean a lot to him.”
I let out a soft sigh and heard her scoff. “You’re seriously not going to avoid coming here because I’m still here, are you? Yea, I get it, we’re not on the greatest of terms. If you could just put that aside for about an hour of your day and realize that this could be the last visit you have with a boy who has grown really close to you, I’d really appreciate it.”
I fiddled with my keys in my hands. I was battling with myself whether or not to go. I didn’t know what to say to Claire, but I did want to see Ryan. My mind latched onto her last sentence and my eyes-widened. “Wait, what do you mean that it might be the last time I see him? Are you guys leaving again?”
She let out a long sigh. “Pat, just come down to the hospital and all will be explained.”
I threw my keys on the end table beside the couch. “I’m not going to come there if you’re just going to tell me you’re leaving again.”
She scoffed. “Pat, please! I need a ride home anyways. Ryan’s asking about you. I’ve convinced him that we’re not fighting and he thinks you’re coming into see him any minute.”
I sat down on my couch and threw my head back with my phone still in my head, against my ear. I whispered into the phone. “It’s almost time, isn’t it?”
I heard her sniffle on the other end. My heart ached for her. I felt like this was my fault. I made her choose between Jordan and me. If only I would’ve just given her time, she could’ve taken her time and made sure that Ryan was more healthy before coming back to Chicago. I got off my couch and grabbed my keys. I didn’t wait for Claire to answer. “I’m on my way.”
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Claire’s POV
I wasn’t sure what had gotten under Pat’s skin to make him leave the hospital. He couldn’t lie to me. I knew that he didn’t leave just to make us lunch. Something made him leave the hospital. I was just happy that he was coming back. Ryan had been asking for him.
I stood outside his room, waiting for Pat to appear. When he turned the corner, I felt the tears well up in my eyes. I latched onto Pat and he wrapped his arms around me. I pulled away and whispered to him. “Be prepared. He’s not the same. He still has his wit and all, but I’ve never seen that many tubes and machines in his room before.”
He nodded. I wanted to ask him if he wanted me to go in with him, but he silently let me go and walked in on his own. I looked at the floor as I leaned against the wall and slid down to sit on the floor. I felt like I had done something to Pat, and I didn’t know what I could do fix it. I just sat there, waiting for him to come out. I was hoping to get the chance to talk to him about what was bothering him. I didn’t want to go home and have every second be awkward. I looked at the time and noticed that I had an hour to get to work. My eyes widened and I jumped up from the floor. I walked over to the door and knocked. Thinking that it was okay, I walked in. I looked between Pat and Ryan and noticed that I just interrupted something important. Pat gave me a sympathetic look while Ryan gave me a small smile.
“Hey, I don’t mean to leave you hanging or anything. But I need to be at work in about an hour. Did you want to come with me and then come back, or can I take the car and you’ll stay here for a while?”
Ryan’s face lit up at the thought of spending the day with Pat, but Pat didn’t share the enthusiasm. He looked over at Ryan and gave him a small smile.
“I should probably get going. I’ll come back tomorrow, okay bud?”
Ryan’s face fell a little bit, but he nodded nonetheless. “Okay. I love you both. Claire, you’ll come back tomorrow too, right?”
I nodded. “You can count on it, buddy. I might even come back when I’m done work.”
He smiled at me as Pat and I left Ryan’s room. We walked out to the car in an awkward silence. I wanted to say something to Pat, but I didn’t know how to come about it. When we got in to the car I turned to him.
I need to say something…
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Pat’s POV
Claire and I walked back to the car in complete silence. I didn’t know how to do, but I knew that I had to say something. With the way things looked with Ryan, there wasn’t much time left. Claire and I couldn’t be like this when the time came. It wasn’t right. When we settled into the car, I turned towards her.
I must say something…
I was sitting in the hospital for a good 3 hours waiting for Claire to come back to tell me what was going on. I knew that she was mad at me, but she knew how much Ryan meant to me. She wouldn’t hold information from me if it was really serious. At least, I had hoped she wouldn’t.
Nat came over and sat beside me. “She still not back yet?”
I shook my head. “No, and ever since last night, she hasn’t been the same.”
Nat raised her eyebrow at me. “What happened last night?”
I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “We got in a little argument on whether bringing Ryan back to Chicago was the right thing or not.”
Nat let out a soft sigh and nodded. “Okay, and what did Claire think? Did she think it was a good idea?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m still stuck on that. I never really got a straight answer because I freaking blew it.”
Nat gave me a quizzical look. “Um, Pat, I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but Claire is crazy about you.”
“So people keep telling me, but I just had to bring up Jordan…”
Nat cut me off, “wait a minute, you brought up Jordan. Oh Pat, why? That was a really hard decision for Claire to make.”
I looked down at the floor, “I know, but I just felt like it needed to be said. She was blaming me for coming back to Chicago. She said that if she stayed in Pittsburgh, she could’ve been sitting in Ryan’s hospital room with him rather than stuck in the apartment with me.”
Nat put a hand on my shoulder. “Oh Pat, I’m sure she didn’t mean it like that. She was really tired last night.”
Suddenly, I jolted off the bench and turned to Nat. “You know what, I think she did.”
I didn’t take a second look back as I walked out of the hospital.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Claire’s POV
I was standing beside Ryan’s bed holding my hand in his and he looked up at me. I tried to stay as strong as I could, but it was shocking to see someone who not even a week ago was at a hockey game now being confined to a bed with tubes coming out of him and looking so fragile and weak. He gave me a small smile and whispered.
“Hey, where’s Pat?”
I squeezed his hand and returned the small smile. “He’ll be here to see you soon. I just wanted to come in alone first.”
He looked at me with a scared look in his eyes. I saw the tears begin to well up in his eyes.
“Claire, what’s wrong?”
I raised my eyebrow at him. “What do you mean? Nothing’s wrong?”
“Between you and Pat, something’s wrong. I can tell.”
I rolled my eyes and lightly chuckled. “Oh, really? And tell me, oh wise Ryan, how can you tell?”
His face stayed serious. “Well, normally you both would be here. I know that the Hawks don’t have a game today.” I gave him a small smirk, Of course he would know that He continued, “and you find out that I’m dying really soon and he’s not here. Why?”
I felt my breath get caught in my throat. I didn’t know what to say to that. I tried to take the easy way out and think of something simple, to prove to him that nothing was wrong.
“Nothing’s wrong, Ry, I promise. Pat had a morning skate.”
He shrugged his shoulders and smiled. “okay, just as long as you guys aren’t fighting again.”
I put on my best smile, not wanting to make the atmosphere in the room any worse and shook my head.
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Pat’s POV
After I left the hospital, I tried to find somewhere to go. I couldn’t face Claire right now. I didn’t know what to say to her. She was mad at me for bringing her back to Chicago. To be honest, I was mad at me, too. I didn’t want to be a burden on Claire anymore. She wouldn’t have listened to Ryan had he not have gotten so attached to me.
I ended up back at the apartment. When I walked into the door, my phone began to ring. I looked down at the caller ID, and saw that it was Claire. I hesitated before finally picking it up.
“Hello,”
“Hey! Where did you go? Ryan wants to see you.”
I could hear the concern in her voice. I felt a rush of guilt come over me. I shuffled on my feet as I answered her.
“I’m sorry, Claire. I just wanted to come back to the apartment to make some lunch for us.”
I didn’t mean to lie to her, but the conversation I wanted to have with her had to be in person. She lightly chuckled to herself.
“Okay, well you can stop that and come back here. Ryan really needs to see you. Please Pat, it would mean a lot to him.”
I let out a soft sigh and heard her scoff. “You’re seriously not going to avoid coming here because I’m still here, are you? Yea, I get it, we’re not on the greatest of terms. If you could just put that aside for about an hour of your day and realize that this could be the last visit you have with a boy who has grown really close to you, I’d really appreciate it.”
I fiddled with my keys in my hands. I was battling with myself whether or not to go. I didn’t know what to say to Claire, but I did want to see Ryan. My mind latched onto her last sentence and my eyes-widened. “Wait, what do you mean that it might be the last time I see him? Are you guys leaving again?”
She let out a long sigh. “Pat, just come down to the hospital and all will be explained.”
I threw my keys on the end table beside the couch. “I’m not going to come there if you’re just going to tell me you’re leaving again.”
She scoffed. “Pat, please! I need a ride home anyways. Ryan’s asking about you. I’ve convinced him that we’re not fighting and he thinks you’re coming into see him any minute.”
I sat down on my couch and threw my head back with my phone still in my head, against my ear. I whispered into the phone. “It’s almost time, isn’t it?”
I heard her sniffle on the other end. My heart ached for her. I felt like this was my fault. I made her choose between Jordan and me. If only I would’ve just given her time, she could’ve taken her time and made sure that Ryan was more healthy before coming back to Chicago. I got off my couch and grabbed my keys. I didn’t wait for Claire to answer. “I’m on my way.”
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Claire’s POV
I wasn’t sure what had gotten under Pat’s skin to make him leave the hospital. He couldn’t lie to me. I knew that he didn’t leave just to make us lunch. Something made him leave the hospital. I was just happy that he was coming back. Ryan had been asking for him.
I stood outside his room, waiting for Pat to appear. When he turned the corner, I felt the tears well up in my eyes. I latched onto Pat and he wrapped his arms around me. I pulled away and whispered to him. “Be prepared. He’s not the same. He still has his wit and all, but I’ve never seen that many tubes and machines in his room before.”
He nodded. I wanted to ask him if he wanted me to go in with him, but he silently let me go and walked in on his own. I looked at the floor as I leaned against the wall and slid down to sit on the floor. I felt like I had done something to Pat, and I didn’t know what I could do fix it. I just sat there, waiting for him to come out. I was hoping to get the chance to talk to him about what was bothering him. I didn’t want to go home and have every second be awkward. I looked at the time and noticed that I had an hour to get to work. My eyes widened and I jumped up from the floor. I walked over to the door and knocked. Thinking that it was okay, I walked in. I looked between Pat and Ryan and noticed that I just interrupted something important. Pat gave me a sympathetic look while Ryan gave me a small smile.
“Hey, I don’t mean to leave you hanging or anything. But I need to be at work in about an hour. Did you want to come with me and then come back, or can I take the car and you’ll stay here for a while?”
Ryan’s face lit up at the thought of spending the day with Pat, but Pat didn’t share the enthusiasm. He looked over at Ryan and gave him a small smile.
“I should probably get going. I’ll come back tomorrow, okay bud?”
Ryan’s face fell a little bit, but he nodded nonetheless. “Okay. I love you both. Claire, you’ll come back tomorrow too, right?”
I nodded. “You can count on it, buddy. I might even come back when I’m done work.”
He smiled at me as Pat and I left Ryan’s room. We walked out to the car in an awkward silence. I wanted to say something to Pat, but I didn’t know how to come about it. When we got in to the car I turned to him.
I need to say something…
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Pat’s POV
Claire and I walked back to the car in complete silence. I didn’t know how to do, but I knew that I had to say something. With the way things looked with Ryan, there wasn’t much time left. Claire and I couldn’t be like this when the time came. It wasn’t right. When we settled into the car, I turned towards her.
I must say something…
♠ ♠ ♠
Here's chapter 23 =).. we're near the end of this story, sadly.. but i'm going to split up the next chapter into two parts. One from Pat's POV, and one from Claire's.This is kinda of a filler... but it's leading up the end.
Hope you enjoy!!