Treebros Oneshots

Whumptober day 3: "Say goodbye"

Our third prompt of whumptober!! I hope you are all liking these so far— I'm trying my best to make up for all the months of no updates! Shoutout to my theatre friends for putting up with me complaining that I had no plot ideas for this oneshot for two days, thanks for letting me force you to sit there listening to me

TW: Mentions drunk driver, character is hit by a car, death

It wasn't supposed to end this way. His life was supposed to be a nice, straight pathway toward the future he had envisioned for himself. Never, in a million years, would Connor think that when Evan left for the store to grab the items on their weekly grocery list, it would be the last time he'd say 'I love you.'

Sure, Connor had noticed his husband was gone far longer than he usually was on his errand run, but he didn't fixate on it too much. There was a chance he had gotten stuck in traffic, or had more shopping to do, right?

Right?

At least, that was his thought process before he heard his phone start ringing from the living room. As Connor dropped his recipe book onto the marble countertop and made his way to see who was calling, he realized it was a number he couldn't recognize.

He knew he probably shouldn't answer it; it was very likely it could just be some bot calling about his car's extended warranty, but there was a feeling in his gut that told him to pick up.

Connor couldn't describe it, but he had to answer, it was like a message from the universe. Besides, it was from the same area code, how bad could it be?

Turns out, Connor really wished that question wasn't answered.

"Umm, hello? Who is this?"

"Are you Connor Murphy?" A deep, scratchy voice came through, causing Connor to realize that this was certainly no one he had ever spoken to.

"That depends, who am I speaking to?"

"My name is Dr. Pomatter. I'm calling from Westborough Hospital; you were listed as the emergency contact for Mark Evan Hansen,"

Evan. His Evan. Stuck in some hospital due to god knows what! "Yes... yes, that-that's me. Is everything alright?" Connor could barely force himself to voice his question, terrified of whatever came in response.

"I'm afraid I can't give too many details, but your partner was hit by a drunk driver close to an hour ago."

Connor hardly processed the words being spoken to him; the few things he caught were "hit" and "drunk driver."

How could this even happen? It was eleven-thirty, there shouldn't be drunk drivers this early in the morning! Evan should have only been gone an hour at most; they only needed cereal, pasta, eggs, milk, corn, and a few sweets to keep around the house.

It was his fault

Evan had only gone grocery shopping that morning because Connor had gotten stuck at work the night before and couldn't go when he was supposed to and now because of him Evan was—

"Mr. Murphy? Are you still there?"

Caught amid his spiral, the sound coming from the other end of the call snapped him back to reality.

"Yes, I'm here... thank you, I'll head down now,"

As he hung up, his mind felt detached from his body, as if he were moving underwater. Connor absentmindedly grabbed his keys, slipped his phone in his pocket, and laced up his hightops.

It wasn't until he pulled out of the apartment parking garage Connor paid attention to his surroundings, horrified at the thought of what might happen if he didn't.

The drive down felt far too long than the actual time it took to get to the hospital. Connor's car was partially still moving when he jumped out of his seat and sprinted inside, running so fast it looked as if the ground was on fire.

"Where is he?" He cried, slamming the door open and beelining straight for the reception desk. "Bring me to him! I need to see him! Please, let me see him!"

The desk worker looked up in horror. "Sir, I'm going to need you to calm down—"

"No, you don't understand, I have to see him! I'm his husband, I have a right to see him!"

"See who, sir? Who are you here to see?"

"Evan. Mark Evan Hansen." Connor was trembling. His breaths were shallow and ragged, coming in spurts. "They called and told me he was here, to come and see him, so please, let me see him!"

Huffing, the woman typed in something on her computer, taking a few minutes before glancing back up at Connor. "I'm sorry, but that patient is currently not available for visitors, you'll have to wait until we get the sign off from his doctor,"

His heart dropped into his stomach. "No... no you don't understand. This is the last chance I may ever see him, you can't keep him from me!" Please—"

"Connor Murphy?" Connor spun around upon hearing his name, spotting a face to match that familiar voice. "I'm Dr. Pomatter, we spoke on the phone?"

The unknown number. "Yes, hi, Dr. Pomatter,"

The two met and shook hands, Dr. Pomatter offering a welcoming grin. The front desk worker sat there, arms folded and jaw hung open. "Sir, he's causing a scene in front of waiting patients!"

"It's alright, Alyssa, I'll bring him back with me,"

He gestured for Connor to follow him down the long, sterile hallway, white walls surrounding him, reminding Connor of a time he did not wish to remember.

It was silent between the two, uncomfortably silent. He could tell the doctor was holding back the truth about the situation, but it didn't matter anymore, he just needed to know.

"I'll be honest with you, Mr. Murphy," He started, turning down a corner and stopping in front of door 132, "your husband is in critical condition, we aren't sure how much longer he'll live. I think it would be best if you... you know, say goodbye."

Say goodbye? Say goodbye?!

How? He had only had him for about seven years and all of a sudden Connor had to lose the only good thing in his life? What was he supposed to do now? What was there to even live for?

It was a struggle to fight back the tears that were trying to be set free, but he held it together for as long as he could. Although the moment he stepped foot into the hospital room alone, shut the door and laid eyes on his husband, the dam collapsed.

There was a plastic chair next to the bed, but Connor decided it wasn't close enough to his lover; he settled for the floor instead.

"Hi, Ev, sweetheart, it's me." Connor gripped his lover's hand with every ounce of strength he could muster. "I'm sorry this had to happen— it's not fair. We were supposed to be together for the rest of our lives, and now it's been taken from us. You've been taken from me. So please, sunshine, stay with me,"

Connor was completely sobbing now, no holding back any emotions. It was a miracle the doctors and nurses that came flooding into the room were able to hear the flatlining of the EKG over Connor's gut-wrenching screams.

Well, that is it for today. I hope you all enjoyed this oneshot! I love you so so much, don't forget it— and take care of yourself! I'm so proud of you <3