A Helping Hand

Over 4 hours later, Zacky walked out of the ER, painkillers in one hand, and a brand new cast covering the other. The doctor had reset the arm after his x-rays showed that his fall had undone at least 2 weeks of healing, meaning he would be stuck in the cast at least another 4 weeks. The bright side was that the painkillers were really good!

He looked around, his gaze searching for Indy. Though he hadn’t heard any news that she had left, he hadn’t expected her to hang around for the past 4 hours waiting for him. He was surprised when he saw her in the corner of the room, curled up in one of the plastic chairs like a kitten. He couldn’t help but grin.

Zacky made his way over to her, trying to juggle the painkillers and assorted paperwork, x-rays and scripts so they were in his left hand. He reached out to her, putting his hand on her shoulder and giving her a gentle shake.

“Indy,” he said quietly, not wanting to startle her. “Are you awake?”

Indy let out a large sigh and slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to her surroundings. She looked up, meeting Zacky’s gaze before reality kicked back in.

“Oh, hey. Welcome back,” she said to him, quickly covering her mouth from the yawn that quickly took over. “How’d you go?”

“Eh, all better now,” he replied, playing it all off. Now the pain had subsided, he was feeling a lot less stressed, and a lot more relaxed.

“Oh, that’s great!” she exclaimed, rising to her feel. She could help but wince. Sleeping on a plastic chair was really not the best idea she had ever had. Her muscles were sore, and her joints were refusing to cooperate. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah, please,” he said, happy to be leaving the hospital once again. “What did Brian say when you called?”

“Oh, he didn’t really say too much, just helped me out with a few questions for your form,” she replied. She quickly did a few stretches to relieve her muscles, bending at the waist to twist and stretch. “They all wanted to come to the hospital but I told them that since you were in there alone, there was no real point and that they should keep working. Oh god, I sound just like my father!”

“Uh huh,” Zacky muttered, his attention completely on the tiny sliver of milky white skin between Indy’s black jeans and the bottom of her white and red ‘The Runaways’ shirt as she lifted her arms above her head and extended her spine. It really didn’t help when she lowered her arms in front of her, joining her hands and rolling her shoulders. He tried as hard as he could not to look at her accentuated cleavage in the V-neck, but how could he help it. He was a guy after all.

“Right,” she said slowly, confused by his lacking response. She shook it from her head as she remembered the pain he must be in. “Anyways, let’s get you home.”

With his mind already in the gutter, Zacky didn’t even try to respond to that.

The pair made their way through the room and towards the doors they had entered this morning, both in their own thoughts. Not a word was spoken as they reached the car, sat down, and shut the doors simultaneously. Indy had plugged his address in her GPS as they left the parking lot, having had the forethought to get Brian to text it through to her. Just because she had written it on his patient form earlier didn’t mean she remembered.

As they were taking the turn off the PCH to start along the back streets towards his house, Zacky had decided that the silence was enough. He was quiet on the way over because of the sheer amount of pain coursing through his body, he had left her alone for over 4 hours in the hospital, and she had been kind enough to wait around to take him home once he was mended.

“There isn’t really anything I can say that covers the amount of thanks I owe you,” he said, making sure his voice was louder than the crescendo of Chopin’s etude that was currently filling the car.

“You don’t need to say any more than that,” she replied, quickly glancing over to him and giving him a soft smile before her attention was back on the road. This was the point where she had to pay attention to her GPS, never having been down these roads before.

“No, I do. Not everyone would be this nice,” he objected.

“You’re telling me none of those boys would have done the same for you?” She challenged, knowing how close all the guys in the band were. Behind all the shit they give each other, the pranks they pull, and the clowning around, she was confident that they would take a bullet for each other, let alone take one to the hospital.

“Well, sure they would –”

“See, then there is nothing you need to say,” Indy cut him off. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to hear what he was saying, she just thought that it was unnecessary. It was just part of being a friend.

Indy’s attention went back on the road and her GPS. Apparently there was only 5 minutes until her destination.

“Well, thank you,” Zacky said earnestly.

“You’re welcome. Now no more of that, Zachary James,” she said, sending a cheeky smirk his way. She flipped on her right indicator, turning the corner.

“That better not become a new nickname of yours,” he told her, suppressing a groan as she said his full name.

“Is it really a nickname if it is just your full name?” she asked him, turning her head to show another cheeky smile. “I guess time will tell if it is to become the way I refer to you.”

“Well then I will just have to do some digging around on you to get your full name.”

“Good luck, sunshine. Only Mudrock knows, and he won’t give it up,” she told him, hoping that he wouldn’t call her bluff. It was her father that named her, using not one, but 3 of the family names for his only daughter.

“I have my ways,” he said, trying to sound mysterious.

“As do I,” she replied, being just as elusive.

Silence enveloped the car once again, each of them wearing a small grin from their conversation. The playful banter was a welcome change to the uncomfortable exchanges from the last few days, both of them much preferred returning to their old dynamic.

“Before all this shit happened, did I hear you mention you had made instructional videos for me?” Zacky asked her, motioning to his arm before putting his attention on Indy. While he was waiting in the ER, he couldn’t help but recap what had transpired to bring him back to the hospital, and one thing that stuck out was Indy mentioning these videos. He was intrigued.

“Yeah, I have,” she answered, her attention on the road, making sure it was safe to cross the intersection. “Each song we have recorded, I have made you a tutorial on the techniques to play. Most of it you will be able to get from the tabs I have made, but sometimes I feel that seeing how something is played can help more than tablature. Oh, and I also have them written the sheet music, too, just in case tabs aren’t your forte. Though if you decide to release a sheet music book of this album, I demand royalties!”

Zacky was quiet. Not only had she helped write, record and arrange their songs in the studio, putting in the same 12+ hour days they had been, she had gone home and worked for who knows how long to make sure he would be set when he could play guitar again. He was speechless.

“I was just kidding about the royalties,” she said to him after the joke didn’t land. “I will get the videos over to you once the recording is complete. The sheet music may take me a bit longer as I am a little behind at the moment.”

Indy took a quick look to her right, and couldn’t help but smile at the look on his face. The extra effort was always worth it.

“Am I allowed to say thank you, or will you reprimand me again?” Zacky asked her, finally breaking his speechless silence.

“I will accept it,” she chuckled, grinning widely at him before checking the GPS once more to make sure she was still heading in the right way.

“Well, thank you. That is beyond anything anyone would have asked of you,” he said earnestly, once more in awe of the woman beside him.

“What can I say, I’ve grown a bit of a soft spot for you,” she admitted. Her eyes quickly widened at what she just said, and she was thankful she was wearing sunglasses to hide it. “You guys, I mean. The band. Which one is your house?”

“Oh, right. Just up here on the left. It has the giant maple tree out front,” he told her, gesturing with his right hand to point up the street at his house. He told himself not to think too much about what she just said. She misspoke, that’s all it could be. Right?

Indy pulled into Zacky’s driveway shortly after, the car enveloped in silence once more. Zacky was starting to rearrange his belongings in his arms as Indy shut off her engine and unbuckled herself. She looked over at Zacky through her sunglasses, seeing if he was ok with his seatbelt. After buckling it himself at the hospital, she had assumed he would be fine taking it off.

The pair got out of the car, Indy waiting for Zacky to close his door before locking the car. Even though it seemed like a lovely neighbourhood, she wasn’t ready to be that trusting just yet. She followed him to the front door, taking in the house she was approaching.

It was a one storey brick house, the roof a dark grey and the trim painted white. The front stoop was covered for inclement weather and each of the 4 windows had dark grey shutters, matching the shade of the roof. The front lawn was beautifully manicured, and a few shrubs and bushes lined the driveway on either side, parting for the path that led to the front door. It was an understated house, one that blended in with the rest of the street yet was still beautiful.

“It’s nothing fancy, not like Matt’s,” Zacky said, glancing to her as he unlocked the door.

“It doesn’t need to be fancy. I think it looks cosy, like a home,” she replied, smiling over at him. Having grown up in a house that was very similar, the feel of a home was always more important to her. While she could admire the modern homes, their beautiful crisp lines, the immaculate gardens and the gorgeous interiors, she always felt like they were too antiseptic feeling, their vibe being more for show than comfort.

Opening the front door, Zacky braced as the little black ball of energy that was Ichabod ran for him. With a very ungraceful skid, the dog tried to stop in time, but rammed straight into his legs. Having had this happen to him multiple times in the past, Zacky just laughed at Icky as the dog regained footing and started jumping up at his owner, wanting attention.

“Puppy!” Indy exclaimed, excited to finally meet Icky. She and Zacky had many conversations about their dogs, and as Icky was at the centre of Zacky’s first fall, the dog was now infamous to not only her but to the rest of the band and studio staff.

Indy bent down, opening her arms and getting Ichabod’s attention. He quickly abandoned Zacky after receiving no love, and made his way madly to Indy. He leapt into her awaiting arms, squirming to lick at her face. Indy cooed at the pup, saying all sorts of nonsensical as she rose to her feet and gave the dog lots of love and attention.

“Sorry about that,” Zacky apologised, not really sorry at all. He knew how excited Indy was to finally meet the mutt, and knew that she would be more than fine with him.

“Are you kidding? I love puppies!” Indy exclaimed, following Zacky as he stepped inside his house. She continued cooing at the dog in her arms. “You are so cute, aren’t you? Yes, yes you are. Oh look at that little face! Oh I love you, oh yes I do.”

Zacky couldn’t help but smile at the pair, finding Indy’s baby talk endearing. He watched for a few more seconds before shaking himself out of it, moving further into the house so he could put all the shit he had received from the hospital on his kitchen bench.

Indy followed him blindly, 85% of her attention on the cutie in her arms, 10% on the interior of Zacky’s home, and the remaining 5% on actually noticing where they were heading. She sensed that Zacky had stopped walking and stopped herself. She bent over, putting Icky back on the floor and watched as the dog went straight over to Zacky. Now he had one free hand, he leant over and gave the pup a few scratches behind the ear before his attention went back to Indy.

“Thanks again,” he said, his hand reaching the back of his neck where he rubbed awkwardly.

“What did I say?” Indy asked him, gently reprimanding he man in front of her. “You are more than welcome, and there is no need to thank me anymore.”

“Yeah, sorry. I just really appreciate it. I owe you one,” he replied, giving her a weak smile.

“I will hold you to it,” she joked, smiling back. She looked at her watch realising that it was nearing 5pm. “I better head out. Would you mind if I used the bathroom before I left?”

“Yes, definitely,” Zacky joked, rolling his eyes playfully at her question. “It’s just down that hallway, first door on your left.”

“Thanks heaps. Back in a bit.”

As Indy left the kitchen, she passed quickly through his lounge room. She wasn’t trying to be nosey, but she couldn’t help notice the amount of take away boxes that littered the coffee table. Pizza, Chinese, paper bags stuffed full of burger wrappers, you name the take away restaurant, it was represented. Indy wasn’t totally surprised that it was all take out, but it did make her think.

As she left, Zacky felt his phone vibrate. He reached into his pocket, seeing that Brian was calling him.

“Hey, what’s up?” Zacky asked, deciding to answer the call.

“Just checking in. Indy didn’t answer her phone, so I thought I would try you. You must be out of the ER now,” Brian replied.

“Yeah, Indy just drove me home.”

“She drove you home, hey?” Brian asked, his question seeming innocent when ignoring the amount of innuendo in his voice.

“Yes, I’m on pain meds, I can’t drive,” Zacky told him, having no patience with his fellow guitarist. “That and my car is still at the studio.”

“Sure, sure. I can’t believe she bought that excuse.”

“I didn’t tell her. She just drove me home.”

“Fuck me! She drove you home just because? Oh la la! Zack and Indy sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-.”

“You’re a fucking idiot. There isn’t anything between us like that!”

“Uh huh, yeah, right. It’s just a matter of minutes before you start ripping each other’s clothes off and start-”

Zacky angrily smashed the ‘End Call’ key on his phone, hanging up on the child on the other end. It wasn’t that he was not used to Brian ribbing on him. In fact, they had all given each other their fair share of shit over the years, but there was just something that felt wrong about the innuendo. He didn’t want Indy overhearing the lead guitarist and to get the wrong impression.

“Hey, thanks for that. I’m going to head out.”

Indy returned from the bathroom, once more glancing around her surroundings while she spoke.

“Oh, ok,” Zacky said, his attention away from his phone as he shoved it in his back pocket. He noticed Indy’s small move towards the front door and started leading them through the living area to the door.

“Oh, your car is still at the studio,” Indy said, realising that she really should have thought of this before.

“It’s ok, I will get a lift with one of the guys in the morning,” Zacky replied. It wasn’t really a big deal. They should have been carpooling the entire time, but it was all but impossible to organise all 5 of them to be in the one place at the one time. It wasn’t worth the headache.

“Ok then, I will see you tomorrow,” Indy said, stepping past him and standing just outside the front door. She opened her arms, inviting Zacky in for a hug goodbye.

“See you then,” he agreed, stepping in and half hugging the woman in front of him. The hug was gentle, Indy making sure not to squash the broken arm that was between the pair. That was the last thing that either of them wanted.

They stepped back, each giving a light smile before Indy turned and headed back towards her car.

Zacky let out a long, quiet sigh as he watched her unlock the car and get inside. He leant against the door jamb, waiting until she had started the car up, backed out of the drive and started off down the road, lifting his right hand in a wave as she drove away.