Make You Feel My Love

Michelle held her phone in front of her, answering her twin, who had been leaving a dozen of messages ever since Michelle stepped into the hospital that evening. The woman was settled in a chair outside the emergency room, her elbows resting on her knees and a cup of strong coffee in her hand.

She soon slipped her phone back into her purse, her fingers tightening around the strap and applying pressure, just as Mrs Perez came bursting out from the department, her hand resting on her forehead and her eyes puffy from crying.

Michelle instantly got to her feet, her fist clenching into one firm ball, as she looked at the older woman who had been driven into insanity by all the waiting.

“How is she?” Michelle voiced, realizing how her voice was trembling and how she had to bite back the urge to cry.

Esther inhaled a long breath, crossing her arms over her chest and shaking her head. The older woman soon started crying, her entire body shaking, as Michelle folded her arms around her and pressed her against her chest.

“She just got out of surgery.....” Mrs Perez revealed, burying her face into Michelle’s shoulder and allowing the brunette to hold her for a little while.

“And now?” Michelle asked, the two women finding their seats and staring blankly at the small hallway.

“The surgery went well, but oh my God....” the older woman started crying again, not believing the sight she had just seen. “She’s so beaten up, Michelle…”

The brunette could once again feel the heavy tears that prickled her eyes, as she started rubbing Esther’s back, knowing that she had to stay strong for her.

“But she’s stable, right?” Michelle husked, barely recognizing her soar voice.

“Yes, just barely,” Esther murmured. “I’m gonna go and call Olivia. I bet she will be completely devastated to hear this.” Mrs Perez covered her mouth with her hand, Michelle nodding, as she watched out for Esther’s belonging, trying to give the mother some piece.

Michelle could feel her lips tremble again. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. She hadn’t spoken to Jade since the wedding, and she had been nearly determined that she would never do so either. Now, knowing what had happened, she couldn't help but feel ashamed of her own behaviour.

What if the last thing I told her was to get out of my life? What if the last thing I ever saw of her was her mental breakdown right after what should've been my wedding? What if I never see Jade again alive?

The thoughts were spinning around her head. Her entire throat was dry and her eyes red, as she couldn’t prevent the tears from sailing down her cheeks. Jade had been her best friend, and despite the amount of hurt she had brought upon her, she still loved her ridiculously much.

This couldn't happen.

Michelle leaned back in her chair, watching as nurses rushed into the emergency room, closely followed by surgeons and doctors in long white robes with clipboards sticking out from under their arms.

“Excuse me, ma’am. Is this the emergency room?” a deep familiar voice asked, as Michelle nearly froze in her seat.

A cool shiver ran down her spine, before she glanced up at Brian, who was currently talking to nurse behind the counter.

“Thank you so much.” he mumbled, not even able to smile at the helpful woman, as he walked down the hall.

He had been crying. A lot.

Brian could feel his eyes sting with fresh tears. The lump in his throat got bigger as he caught the sight of Michelle, who was waiting outside the emergency room.

He plumped down a few seats away from her, not wanting to draw any attention or cause any more drama, meanwhile he fished for his phone from the pocket of his jeans, noticing the pile of messages that was waiting for him.

“Brian Haner?” Mrs Perez called, as the dark-haired man looked up at her. Her eyes were red and puffy, and she looked as though she hadn’t slept in ages.

“Come, Michelle is just down the hall.” the older woman announced, as she was still oblivious about the incident between him and her daughter.

Esther grabbed his arm and walked over to Michelle, completely uninformed about the fact that they were no longer a happy couple or a couple at all.

“I found your husband.” Mrs Perez called, making Michelle’s eyes widen, as Brian sat down next to her, not completely sure how Michelle would work her way through this one.

Just as Michelle was about to protest, a nurse arrived from the emergency room where Jade had been placed hours ago. She looked overly stressed with pinkish skin and traces of sweat covering her forehead.

“Are you Mrs Perez?” the nurse asked, quickly glancing down on her clipboard.

“Yes. Is everything all right?” Esther urged.

“Please follow me.” the nurse said and Mrs Perez quickly followed her, not even looking at Brian and Michelle as she left. "Your daughter is awake."

“God, this is a fucking mess….” Brian hissed, bringing his fingers up to his temple and rubbing them into his skin.

“You tell me….” Michelle sighed.

Brian glanced up at her. She was devastated. Her blue eyes were holding unto tears and she looked like she was trying to stay as strong as possible. The brunette shook her head, still not able to grasp what had happened and still petrified for what was to come.

“Michy...” Brian started, his voice rusty, while he glanced over at her.

“Don’t,” she muffled. “Not now, Brian. Not here.” her eyes were pleading him to drop this, but he knew he couldn’t let go of this now. Not when he had her right by his side.

“Please hear me out,” he started. “I’m so fucking sorry about what happened, and I know that Jade’s fucking heartbroken after –” Michelle soon cut him off.

“Don’t tell me how sorry you are, because if you really cared for me at all, you would never do that to me. You don’t do that to people you love.” the brunette stated coldly.

“But I do care about you!” Brian insisted, this time looking into her eyes.

“Stop!” Michelle cried out. She could feel the tears that ran down her cheeks, cursing under her breath for letting him do this to her.

Silence fell over the two of them, as they kept glancing over at the nurses and the doctors that hurried down the hall, still oblivious to what was happening with their friend.

Michelle soon dared to look at him again. He looked genuinely worried. He really cared about Jade that she knew. Brian had always cared about her, even when they were shit kids back in high school. He cared deeply for her because he really loved her, and that was something no one could take away from him. Not even himself if he tried to.

She took his hand in hers, lacing their fingers and applying pressure unto it. Just the right amount to make him glance up at her, somewhat puzzled.

“I will never fully forgive you for what you did to me. I just can’t do that, but I can put it aside now, because I do care about her,” Michelle told him. “I love Jade, even though she doesn’t always deserve it, and I know you care about her as well. So let’s just make this easy for Esther and Jade.”

Brian only nodded, too speechless to press any words out from his lips.

Their friends soon rushed down the hall, all of them looking worried and soon taken aback as they found Michelle and Brian holding hands together in the hallway.

“I swear to fucking God, this is what happens when you use my Netflix in order to watch Grey's Anatomy!” Jimmy said, forcing his finger into Brian’s chest.

“Jim...” Val sighed, obviously not in the mood. “How is she?” the blonde asked, sitting down next to her twin and bringing her arm around her shoulders.

“We don’t know,” Michelle said. “Esther’s been in there for what feels like a whole eternity.”

“In this place, everything can feel like an eternity, sugar.” Lacey said to her friend.

“Do we know what happened?” Matt asked, sitting down across from his wife, next to Zack and Gena.

“It was a car crash,” Michelle muffled. “Esther didn’t mention anything else.”

“But how come this happen? Jade’s always so careful.” Leana mumbled.

Jimmy pulled his arms around his girlfriend, resting his head on top of hers as his figure was towering her.

“It wasn’t Jade who drove the car.” Mrs Perez announced, standing in front of the little group, who all looked up at her.

The older woman sat down, across from Michelle and Valary, still completely devastated.

“But who drove the car?” Johnny asked, everyone looking up at Esther and waiting impatiently for her to respond.

“That was Will.” she held her breath, not wanting to look at them as she said so.

“Michelle and Brian. Jade’s awake and somewhat stable. You should visit her. She’d like that.”

“Thank you.” Michelle whimpered, as she got up, leaving her purse behind, meanwhile Val went to follow Esther out for some fresh air, knowing that the older woman could need the help right now.

Michelle and Brian didn’t look at one another as they walked down the hall. She had nothing to say to him at the moment, and she really didn’t care if he had anything to say to her. All she wanted was to see Jade.

The two of them made their way into the room, the sight of Jade making Michelle’s eyes prickle with tears again. Her forehead was bandaged and five different tubes had been connected to her body.

Michelle glanced at the machine next to her bed, which showed them that her heart was stabilized now.
Michelle stepped closer, noticing the bruises on her bare arms and the intravenous that was connected to the top of her hand. Stained blood covered her nose and her lip had been stitched several times.
The brunette opened her eyes, the light still too strong for her, as she glanced over at the people who were glaring at her, both of them too shocked to utter something.

“Michelle?” her voice was soar and low, and it looked as though it hurt to speak.

Tears started to crawl down from the corner of her eyes by the sound of Jade’s voice. The other brunette walked closer to the bed, her fingers lightly brushing over Jade’s fingers.

“Oh my God...” Michelle whimpered.

“I look like hell,” Jade stated. “I haven’t seen it yet, but judging by the look on your faces….”

“Who the fuck cares?” Michelle sniffled.

“Michelle….” Jade said, her jaw clenching as tears filled her vision. “I’m so sorry about everything….” she started crying, realizing that even the smallest tears caused pain in her face.

“Honey,” Michelle hushed. “Don’t think about it now.” she insured her. “We’ll make things work again, okay? I can’t not have you in my life,” Michelle told her friend. “I love you.”

“I love you too...” Jade whimpered.

Brian just kept glancing up at her. She looked so fragile laying in that bed, her body covered in a white hospital gown as well as some thin sheets. He could feel the lump in his throat grow bigger at the sight of her. She was completely damaged, kept alive by a pair of tubes and a machine.

“I’m gonna go out and look after your mom,” Michelle announced after a while. “I’ll be back in five.” she insured her friend, brushing her hand through her dark brown hair.

Jade’s dark eyes watched as her friend paddled out of the room, leaving her alone with Brian, who soon marked his appearance by pushing out a sigh from his lips.

“Please don’t look at me like that.” Jade tried to chuckle, as she knew he was completely freaked out by the fact that half of her head was bandaged.

“Jade…” Brian sighed again, knitting his eyebrows together and pressing his fingers against his temple. “What the fuck happened?” he just let out.

The brunette looked up towards the ceiling. The last hours had nearly slipped out of her head, mostly because of the narcosis she had slipped into before she went into surgery.

She was still able to trace some of the memories from the accident, as the loud shrieking sound of her own voice chased into the back of her head again, followed by the sensation of shattered glass that cut its way into her skin. Jade remembered the sensation of blood that lingered into her mouth, meanwhile she had been thrown towards the radio, her head hitting it pretty hard, before her vision went blurry and everything turned oddly black.

“Jade?” Brian whimpered, snapping her back to reality, as he looked at the brunette.

“I’m sorry.” she muffled, watching as he sat down on a chair that he drove close to her bed.

“You really look like hell.” he announced, meanwhile Jade chuckled a little.

“You should tell J. K Rowling that I would be interested in auditioning as Harry Potter for the next movie. I believe I can kick more ass than Daniel Radcliffe with my new scar.” the brunette snickered a little, her cheeks hurting as she did so.

“Jade…” Brian sighed. “This is not a fucking joke. You nearly got killed!” he hissed, clenching his fists and glaring at her.

The way he had raised his voice made her turn away from him. She shifted her gaze, not wanting to cry again, as she exhaled.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to get all….” he trailed off, not completely sure how to finish the sentence.

“Serious and terrified? It’s okay, Bri. You’re scared, I’m too. I’m petrified.” she admitted.

“You’re gonna be okay.” he promised.

“Where is she?” someone barked from outside her room, the familiar voice making her eyes widen, as Will made his way into her room, chased down by her mother.

“Jade….” Will sighed.

His dark brown hair was a mess, and his white shirt had been torn and left with bloodstains on it. She could see the bruises on his temple and the stitches on the left side of his face, which terrified her, making her even more worried about how she looked, considering she wasn’t able to move at all.

“What are you doing here?” he all but spat at Brian, who soon got up on his feet, cocking his eyebrows at the British man.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Brian snapped back.

“Gentlemen!” Esther called out, looking at her daughter, who already seemed overly exhausted.

None of the men listened as they started shouting at one another, acting as though they weren’t standing in the middle of Jade’s room.

“What the hell did you do to her!” Brian shouted, clenching his fists and feeling the anger boil in his entire body. He couldn’t believe Will had gotten out of the accident with a couple of scratches, meanwhile Jade had nearly died.

“I’ve been taking care of her, like a boyfriend does!” Will spat back, just as furious and worked up as Brian.

“That’s bullshit!” the guitarist growled.

“Come here and fucking tell me that!” Will was now stepping forward, drawing closer to Brian, as both of them had reached a point were Jade was convinced one of them would explode during any minute.

“Shut the fuck up, both of you!” Michelle sneered at the two men, the power in her voice causing the entire room to go silent, as the only sound that remained as the machine close to Jade’s bed.

“How dare you guys come into her room and start screaming like this? She’s just been through a heavy surgery, and you wanna put her through more?” Michelle snapped at the two men, obviously not done.

“And you!” she pointed her finger at Will. “How come you just burst into her room and start fighting without even asking her how she’s doing? You really are a ridiculous excuse of a man!” the brunette claimed.

Brian sniggered at the sight of Michelle shoving all the guilt straight into Will’s face.

The smile soon faded as his ex-fiancée turned towards him, her eyebrows cocked and her face showing nothing but annoyance.

“And don’t even get me started on you. Out! Both of you! You can come back when you’ve learned how to behave in a hospital!” she crossed her arms, looking at the two men like a mother looking at her son when she was disappointed.

Brian and Will exchanged a look, genuinely unsure how to respond, as they soon decided to leave, both of them walking into opposite directions as soon as they had left Jade’s room.

“Fucking brilliant, Michy!” Jimmy grinned, as the guys had enjoyed Michelle’s little outburst from the entrance.

“I do have my moments, don’t I?” she chuckled, before sitting down into the chair Brian had abandoned.

“How are you doing, sweetheart?” Matt asked, realizing the immense damage the accident had caused, as Jade shifted in her bed, hissing a little from the pain.

“I’m alive,” she shrugged. “A little bruised, but nothing too bad.”

“Jade…” Zack looked at her, narrowing his eyes as he looked at how severe it all was.

“I’m fine, I promise,” she announced. “I have the best colleagues in the world! I’m a living proof that they know what they’re doing.” she tried to smile, wanting to brush off the seriousness of all of this.

“That’s very nice to hear, Jade.” Claire giggled from the door entrance, brushing some of her black dark curls passed her ears, before she made her way into the room, a clipboard resting in her hand.

“I never really thought I’d be the one laying in this bed.” Jade cold her co-worker.

“I can imagine,” Claire stated, her dark eyes glancing up at her papers. “How are you feeling?” she asked.

“Alive, at least,” Jade shrugged. “It hurts a little.”

“I’d be shocked if it didn’t,” the doctor said. “You fractured two ribs and hurt your head pretty hard. You had lots of glasses and injuries in your stomach, which caused internal bleeding. We had to open up in order to get them all out. There’s no trauma, but it was an ugly accident. You’ve already been given some paracetamol, and Molly got you a prescription on it as well.” Claire told her, looking down at her notes.

“I guess I won’t be wearing that robe for a little while.” she sighed.

“No, you won’t.” Claire looked at her friend, feeling terribly bad for what had happened to her.

“How’s Will?” Jade asked, playing with the hem of her sheets.

Claire suddenly went a little mute, and Jade knew what that gaze went. Claire had always been a careful person, and bursting people’s bubble was never her favourite activity, which often made it difficult at work.

“There’s something you need to know about the accident, Jade,” Claire let out. “Considering this is confidential information, we can have a talk alone if you’d like that. That’s up to you.”

Jade pressed her lips together, feeling the pain from her stitches, before she parted her lips. “No, it’s fine. What is it?”

“Will was high when he drove.”