Lily Baby.

Second update of the day.

Open POV

“Where is she?” a woman screamed, running along the halls of a hospital. The cleanliness was overwhelming and she hated everything she saw as she ran. These places often angered her, the doctors were incompetent and the nurses were stupid.

“Mrs Way! Calm down, we have everything under control!” another one of those stupid men in white coats got in her way; she had many opinions on them.

“You say that, yet you are still giving me no information on my daughter!” she cried in anger, “Why aren’t you people listening to me?”

“Mrs Way! Calm down or we will have to escort you off the premises- ”

“Mrs Way?”

The woman turned quickly to see a small woman, who looked about 60, wearing a grey suit and holding a notebook close to her chest. Mrs Way noted that the woman seemed to resemble an owl.

“Yes?” she replied, anxiously.

The woman gave her a knowing look and said, “Follow me… we need to discuss something.”

“Discuss what? When can I take Lily home?”

“Not yet.”

“Not yet? For Pete’s sake, she’s probably scared out of her mind, not knowing who any of you are! She probably doesn’t know why she’s here! She’s only a child, she’s only nine!” Mrs Way cried, running her hands through her hands.

“She hasn’t woken up yet, Mrs Way… we don’t know if she ever will…” the woman said abruptly, disturbing Mrs Way’s thoughts like a bullet.

“What?”

Donna Way sat patiently in the waiting room, reading a magazine. To anyone else, she would appear calm, poised. Under control.

But inside she was a wreck. Her worst fear had happened. Twice. And even after she had vowed never to let it happen after the first time, it still had. She did not like it at all.

She had no idea that little Frank Iero, the boy who used to hate Lily, had made the very same promise.

“Mrs Way?”

She looked up to see a woman who looked oddly owl-like.

“Yes?”

“Your daughter is awake…”

♣

”Mikey?”

A small boy was sleeping soundly underneath the arts and crafts table.

“Where’s Mikey?”

“I don’t know? He was there just a second ago…”

“We need to find him; his brother is waiting in reception with their father.”

“Why? What’s happened?”

“I really can’t tell you that, Miss Jones.”

Mikey stirred, his eyes flicking open. He sat up quickly. Too quickly for someone under a table.

“Ow!” he cried, rubbing his head, trying not to cry. He was a big boy now. His father had said ‘Big boys don’t cry.’ So he would not cry.

“Miss Sanchez… I think I’ve found Mikey…”

Mikey Way was asleep. He was in an odd position to be sleeping in but he didn’t seem to mind. He was glad that he had a chair at all. Many didn’t.

Someone made a loud noise which woke the sleeping boy, who didn’t know he was being watched so intently. In the few seconds between waking and sleeping, Mikey looked the spitting image of his 10 year old self, which his observer couldn’t help but notice.

Ever since a very young age, Alicia Simmons had been afraid of death, ever since her grandfather died in his sleep. She would often spend hours watching her brother, Zacky, for fear he might pass away. She had suffered from insomnia, but only Zacky knew that, and he still didn’t understand.

“Hi,” Mikey muttered, catching sight of her, still cross legged on the floor in the exact spot he’d last seen her in.

“Hey…” she said, exhaling in relief as she did so, extremely pleased that Mikey was not, in fact, dead.

“Are you alright on the floor?” he asked, the knight in shining armour gene kicking in at that very moment in time.

“Yes,” she nodded, but shivered. The floor was even colder than it looked, which was saying something.

“No, you’re not.”

“Yes, I am,” she said, teeth chattering slightly. Mikey wasn’t convinced, and showed Alicia this by getting up, lifting her up in a very bridal style to her protest and sitting down with her on his lap.

“Stop wiggling. Sleep,” he mumbled, resuming his position in the chair and stroking her head until it fell into the crook of his neck perfectly.

And, weirdly, she fell asleep.