A Theatrical Performance Of An Intimate Moment

Part 7

She slowly wakes when she hears a subtle thud on the bedside table. Cracking her eyes open, she sees Matty walking out of her room, rubbing his eyes. There's a steaming cup of tea in an animal head mug, and her phone is next to it, fully charged. She must have left it in the kitchen the night before.

Her eyes feel puffy, and she still has a headache from the tears she previously shed. The air is cold when she pushes the blankets off herself and gets out of bed, and she regrets only ever keeping shorts and a t-shirt in her drawer in the bedroom across the hall.

Matty's making eggs over the stove, his sleeves pulled over his palms as he watches the bacon crackle in another pan. He smiles tiredly, his jetlag evident, when he sees her sit down at what used to be her usual spot at the bench.

Louis stumbles down the stairs, his hair in disarray. He looks just as miserable as the day before when Matty tells him there have been no updates from the hospital but brightens when breakfast gets placed in front of him. He swipes Brittany's cup as he tucks in, and she thinks it's funny how some things never change.

Matty places his half drank mug, a boring grey one Denise reserved for guests, in front of her with a wink, and her heart beats faster.

After Louis disappears to get changed, Matty reminds her of the clothes in his room, offering them back to her if she wants them.

His room looks the same. His bed sheets were still dark navy, and his bedside tables covered in coins and random papers from his pockets. The polaroids they'd taken at Christmas wedged in his mirror, and a little glass bowl filled with multicolored Bic lighters sat on the top of his dresser with a deck of cigarettes.

Opening the drawer, she finds spare underwear (thank god), a few pairs of blue denim, and a jumper of Matty's she'd once stolen and claimed as her own. It smelled like this house and Christmas morning, and calling out Nana Annie's name every time someone kissed.

Matty waits for her by the front door so he can lock up before they leave, and he smiles softly when he notices her (his) sweater.

~~~

The photos of them exiting the hospital the night before begin circulating their way around the morning talk shows, and even more paparazzi line the doors when they arrive. They push through the barricade quickly and rush through the doors, hitting the elevator button repeatedly until it finally opens.

Lincoln updates them with any changes (there are none) and disappears to the cafeteria to get himself a coffee. They return to the grim waiting room, and she and Louis watch the TV hanging from the ceiling. The news anchor repeats their top story over and over again.

"Denise Welch fighting for her life after a horror car crash, more updates to come soon."

It makes her feel sick, and Matty is thankfully tall enough to reach the OFF switch. He sits in the empty chair next to her and moves his knee so they're touching. It's more comforting than she wants to admit.

Denise's doctor comes into the room with Lincoln and gives them a breakdown of everything he knows. He lists the numerous broken bones, the fractures, and the dislocations. He talks about the vertebrae in her back that are out of alignment and the burns to her skin from the airbag deployment.

The most concerning of all the injuries was Denise's fractured skull. Brittany subconsciously moves her fingers over the scar across her head with a frown as the doctor explained further.

"I don't understand," Matty begins. He rattles off a million questions, and she can't keep up. His need to understand is overwhelming, and she watches as his younger brother becomes more distraught.