"Where did you find him?" questions after question and every single time Ruby would always say the same thing, nothing ever changed. "On his bedroom floor, is he gonna be okay? The doctors won't tell me anything unless I keep asking".
By some odd luck or maybe it was a big coincidence Otis and Eric were both seated inside the hospital, apparently his mother had given birth and was having a few complications afterward. "I could ask, my mom is technically an emergency contact so maybe if I mention that they'll give us an update".
The hospital doors opened and Maeve ran inside with a scared looking Andrew beside her. "Is he alright! I came as soon as Otis texted me, I managed to get Andrew before the police tried anything".
Otis stood up from his chair "they haven't told us yet, I'm gonna find a doctor and get an update" he walked off as Maeve sat down. Andrew wore his backpack as he sat down beside Ruby "I brought my gameboy, dad said it used to be his when he was little".
He clicked on the screen the game chiming loudly as it turned on "this thing will help us with our boredom, Joshua gave me one of his games to play". Ruby smiled as she waited patiently for Otis to return.
It had been ten minutes before Otis returned and the boy for the most part seemed fine. Aside from his constant bickering beneath his breath as he walked towards everyone. "Did they tell you anything?" The boy sat back down beside Eric as he nodded "they for the most part told me James is fine, they had to pump his system clean and give him fluids. But they said he's unresponsive, they think he could have brain damage. But they're waiting for the rest of the test results to determine if it's true or not. We can visit him in a few hours after they tell us".
Andrew kicked his feet slightly "is my dad going to die? I don't wanna live with my crazy aunt, she's the only other family I have that's around here". Maeve sighed "no of course not, your dad is gonna be alright and you can stay with me until he can go home. I'll get you that ice cream you like".
"With sprinkles?" Maeve smiled "yes with sprinkles" Andrew smiled as he looked back down at his gameboy. Everything felt like it was moving in slow motion, Ruby sighed deeply as she stood up and walked towards the restroom.
The inside of it reeked of cleaning chemicals, she set her purse down onto the sink as she grabbed her lip gloss. James would fight, she knew that much and yet part of her felt conflicted. He had promised he'd try to stay sober this time, and for a part he almost did. Until everything came crashing down and Ruby found him on his bedroom floor on the verge of death.
That look in his eyes, it was almost sickening to see so close, he was there and yet at the same time he wasn't. Ruby couldn't breathe, no amount of waiting or patience made her feel any better.
Everything was going to finally be perfect again and it was ruined by the flames of the world. The door creaked open and Ruby turned slightly, Maeve awkwardly looked at her "the doctor said we can see James, figured you'd wanna know". The girl left before Ruby could respond and the door creaked.
Ruby quickly walked out of the bathroom, she could see Otis and Eric both still sitting down in the waiting area. Otis looked miserable as he spoke with Eric, Ruby walked down the hallway towards James' room. For the most part the room looked nice aside from the lack of chairs. Maeve stood beside the bed while Andrew held onto her hand and looked at his father.
"Why are all those machines attached to him?" Maeve kneeled down towards Andrew's level "he's just resting and healing, those machines are helping. What do you say to a sleepover tonight? We can stay up late and watch that cartoon you like, no school tomorrow either, it's like a little adventure".
