| Four |
| He sat alone in a private waiting room. After more than a month of being someone else, he had almost forgotten the need for security. But Johnny had convinced him to wait there for them. His mom, Johnny, the guys - they were all coming. And he hadn�t told them anything, really. He had dialed his mom�s number, waiting for her to pick up at the early hour. All he had been able to get out was the word �mom� before sobs wracked his body. But she had known, known that he needed her, them, and they were on their way across the country to be with him. Tears were of no use, he reminded himself. But he almost couldn�t help it. It was either that or the blinding anger that threatened to overwhelm him totally. He knew, without knowing, what had happened to her. And he felt so utterly responsible for it. His guilt was almost as devastating as knowing that she hadn�t woken up yet. Gabby, I�ll never leave you again, if you�ll just wake up for me, baby. Please. He hadn�t seen her since they had taken her out of his arms hours ago, but they had kept him updated. Not knowing for himself that she was actually alive was gnawing at his insides, driving him slowly mad. Footsteps made him look up. His mother stood in the doorway. He raised his bloodshot, tear rimmed eyes to meet her worried ones. She paused, letting a small gasp escape before she crossed the room to him. �Oh honey.� The others watched on uncomfortably as his mother comforted him in the way only mothers can. Still, no one was quite sure what was going on, why they were in a hospital. But after a minute�s thought, it dawned on Chris. �Gabriella.� The sound of her name brought him from his mother�s arms. He nodded and motioned them all into the room. Just as Johnny began to close the door, Eric stepped inside. He raised his eyebrows menacingly at the producer. �Why are you here?� Everyone in the room caught his cold tone. They all waited. Eric swallowed and handed Johnny a video. �I just thought you might want to know, to see...� he trailed off. �It was never supposed to get this far. I�m sorry.� He shrugged and left the room. They waited in silence as Johnny found a tv and vcr then put the tape in. �Why didn�t you tell me you have a boyfriend, Gabs?� She sat up straight in her bed. �What are you doing here, Mark?� He moved closer to her, slowly. �I asked you a question, Gabriella. Why didn�t you tell me?� He was at the foot of her bed now, and he kept moving towards her. �Mark, I - I, please, Mark.� She was curled up into as small a ball as she could make. The weight of his body on the bed made her flinch. �Mark, don�t, please.� But he was angry, and her words had no affect on him. He grabbed her arms and shook her forcefully. �Why didn�t you tell me?� She tried to fight back. He slapped her hard across the face and she collapsed onto the bed motionless. He quickly and methodically gagged her and tied her to the bed with the sheets. Finally, he straddled her body, holding her chin so their eyes met. �I think you didn�t tell me because you knew you wanted this.� Tears streamed down his face. He couldn�t watch anymore. He shot out of his chair and knocked the tv off its stand, the shattering sound giving him some feeling of satisfaction. He leaned his head against a wall and sucked in his breath slowly and deeply, trying to control all of the emotions that boiled inside him. His mother finally spoke. �How is she?� �Sleeping.� His voice cracked and he stopped. Slowly, he painstakingly elaborated. �Her body shut down on her. She hadn�t been eating well, didn�t look like she had been sleeping. They say she�ll be fine in that respect. But,� he paused again, swallowing harshly, �all the stress, and now this,� he motioned to the smashed television, �sent her mind into some kind of shock. She�s the only one that knows when or if....� He couldn�t finish the sentence, though the thought ran rampant in his mind, tormenting him. What are you going to do if she decides not to wake up? Huh, Mister Big Shot? What then? Chris�s voice shook him. �Hey, man. There is no if. She loves you too much for that. She will wake up, just give her time to work everything out in her head, right?� He nodded slowly. �Right, Chris.� A doctor came into the room. �You�re all here for Gabriella Hayworth?� Everyone nodded. The doctor looked over at him. �She�s stable now, still sleeping. You can see her, but please, not all of you at one time. Not just yet.� They watched as he composed himself then walked purposefully out of the waiting room, shoulders squared. �He looks like he�s been through hell,� Chris observed softly. �And I�m going to find out why.� Each of the people inside the room knew that this was a sore spot for Johnny. He had been blind before to ministrations and manipulations that had hurt them, making him feel like he had failed to protect them to the best of hs ability. This new situation was beginning to feel hauntingly similar to that past, and they all knew that Johnny would get to the bottom of things and see that someone was held responsible. ******************************************************************************** �This �I�m sorry� song and dance isn�t going to cut it, Eric. Charges will be pressed against this Mark kid, and you�d better believe there will be more, with the story you just told me.� �Mr. Wright, you have to believe that we never meant for anything like this to happen. It was just a harmless bet between two parties-� Johnny cut him off sharply. �If it was just a harmless bet between two parties, why are my boys sitting in a hospital waiting for a close friend of theirs to wake up? If it was just a harmless bet between two parties, why were the two of them put through so much agony?� At this point, he stood up, towering over the other man, backing him agaisnt a wall. His voice was low, his anger barely checked. �If it was just a harmless bet between two parties, why did I have to watch a young woman that I love like my own daughter be tied to a bed and raped? There was nothing harmless about this, Eric. It was calculated and premeditated. You put all the ingredients in for something volatile to happen, and it did, and now you�re going to pay, because nothing you can say or do can ever repair the damage that was done to those two people. But you�re sure as hell going to try.� ******************************************************************************** �Miss Gabby, I wish you�d wake up.� He took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. �I take that back. I wish I could just go to sleep with you.� Gingerly, he removed the chain from around her neck, playing with the ring. Flashback �Close your eyes, Gabby.� She did as she was told without question. He quickly undid the chain from around his neck and draped it across her hand. �Okay.� The chain held a small gold ring, a Celtic knot patterned on the outside, �forever knots,� she called them. He waited as she examined it closely, reading the inscription inside softly to herself before her eyes met his. �You-� he held his hand up, cutting her off. He knew what she was going to say, that he shouldn�t have gotten it, shouldn�t have spent the money on her. But he wanted her to know. He took the chain from her and fastened it around her neck. �It�s a forever knot for my forever girl,� he whispered. Her only response was, �I love you.� End Flashback �Gabby, they did this to us on purpose. Some fat old rich losers who had nothing better to do with their time than think of ways to manipulate me. They just wanted a toy to play with. They set the whole thing up, with the house and everything. Mark knew, Sarah knew, Eric knew.� He hung his head miserably. �I wouldn�t blame you if you never woke up for me, Gabby. I put you here, it�s all my fault. If you hadn�t meant so much to me, none of this would ever have happened. I�m so sorry.� A slight movement caught his attention and he raised his head. Her fingers lightly covered his lips. �Shh,� she whispered faintly. He swallowed hard and kissed her fingers. Gabriella moved her hand from his mouth to the side of his face, bringing him closer so he could hear her words. �I love you. It�s not your fault.� It felt like a goodbye to him, and his eyes widened in fear. �Gabby, you�re not leaving are you?� His voice was panicky, his grip tightened on her hand. She met his eyes and smiled. With her other hand, she worked the chain out of his hand, and slipped the ring on her finger. �Of course I�m not going anywhere. I�m your forever girl, silly.� Misfits ~Home~ ~Plot Mistress~ |