Brian knocked on Nicks hospital room door and waited for an answer. Nick hadn’t wanted to talk to anyone for the past few days.
"Yes," Nick answered.
"It’s Brian."
"Come in." Brian opened the door and walked into the room. He glanced at Nick and Nick returned his stare with confussion.
"What’s wrong?" Brian asked.
"My life."
"What happened?" Brian asked.
"Jen, when she came here," Nick said and paused, "when she came," he repeated. Brian looked at Nick who was struggling to talk.
"Calm down you can tell me."
"She told me that she loved me," Nick said looking at Brian.
"She’s confussed. She just doesn’t know what to feel."
"But she said it so surely." Brian just looked at Nick and didn’t know what to say.
"Nick...."
"Why? What’s wrong with her? Why would she still love me after all of this?"
"Nick it’s probably for Anthony."
"What if it’s not?"
"Talk to her. Straighten everything out. That’s all I can tell you, she hasn’t said anything to me."
"You’ve talked to her?"
"Yeah."
"How she been?"
"I can’t really tell you because I’m not really sure. Anthony’s been sick. She sounds like she’s not getting much sleep," Brian explained.
"Anthony’s sick?"
"Yeah."
"Is he alright?"
"I guess. The doctor said it wasn’t anything serious."
"When should I be outta here?"
"I don’t know. Why?"
"I want to go see Jen and Anthony."
"The funny thing about this is that you always end up back with Jen one way or another."
"What are you saying?" Nick questioned.
"Nothing Nick. It’s just you two have to move on. You and her aren’t going to work out."
"Brian, you don’t know that."
"It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together. First you abused her. That was bad enough. Then you caused her to miscarry because you were drunk and that’s how you ended up here," Brian explained.
"Anthony...."
"Nick you used that excuse already. You just can’t use Anthony to try and make things better all the time," he interupted.
"Just get out Brian, you’re not making things any better."
"Neither are you," Brian said leaving Nick in a hurry.
*Two weeks later*
Nick smiled as he walked out of the hospital. The sun was shinning brightly on his face. He took a deep breath of air, enjoying the fact that he was alive. He looked around, glad that he was finally able to look at something other than the walls that had confined him.
A smiled spread across his face when he saw Jen pull him to him. He was glad that she came.
"Well, are you getting in or are you just going to stand there?" Jen said.
"Thank you for coming," he said getting into the car, "I didn’t think that you would."
"I almost didn’t," Jen said bluntly.
"Why’d you change your mind?"
"Honestly I have no idea."
"So what does this mean?" Nick questioned.
"What does what mean?"
"Your coming. Does it mean anything?"
"Nick, does there have to be a meaning behind this? Can’t I just be doing a good thing?"
"Is that really what your doing?" Jen looked over at him, but didn’t say anything. She just pulled the car out of the parking lot.
"You never answered me," Nick sai breaking the uncomfortable slience that had fallen over them.
"Look, I don’t know what I’m doing alright? I’m trying to figure it out myself."
"Oh. Well, about when you came to talk to me, I want to apologise for being a jerk yet again, I just don’t think that you should be falling in love with me. I’m not worth it."
"If you’re not worth it, then why did you ask me to come get you?"
"I got into an argument with Brian, he isn’t talking to me. I figured it would give us time to work things out because I want to be there for Anthony. Oh yeah, I heard Anthony was sick, how is he?"
"He’s alright thankfully. Nick it’s just how can I trust you? I mean last time you said you were going to change but you didn’t."
"I didn’t almost die last time. Jen being in a coma near death, it changed me. I remember wanting to make things right while I was ‘gone.’ There were so many pictures going through my mind of me and Anthony. I realized I wanted to watch him grow up."
"You’ve missed a lot already."
"Like what?"
"He’s starting to talk. He already knows how to say ‘ma ma.’"
"Really?" Nick asked.
"Yeah," Jen said proudly.
"Can I see him please?"
"Alright," she said after a moment of hesitation.
"Where is he?"
"With my mom."
"You talk to AJ lately?"
"No not, really."
"Oh I thought that maybe you two got back together."
"Nope."
"That’s too bad. I honestly thought that you two looked together. You two seemed as if you really loved each other."
"We did, we were going to get married, but it just wasn’t right," she confessed.
"Oh," Nick said.
Chapter 27