𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙍𝙎𝙏𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂𝙎, 𝙤𝙘𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩

𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙨𝙞𝙭

Taking a shuddery breath, you press your back against the wooden door, ignoring the tears clouding your vision. Lou was right; you couldn't run forever. Crossing your arms over your chest, you started to walk back to the waiting room. Before you could make it inside, an all too familiar brunette stopped you in your tracks.

"(Y/n)?"

Oh god, not now. Please, not now. Raising your gaze, you immediately recognized the person standing in front of you. "Debbie." You weren't in the mood to fake a smile, so you just stood there, staring into her brown eyes.

Debbie was in the mood to smile at you. "It's really great to see you. Well," she pauses, lightly shaking her head, "not under these circumstances."

"Same to you," you quipped, awkwardly shifting on your feet. Clearing your throat gently, you anxiously rub your arm. "Well, um, how are you?"

Debbie sighs, her features softening ever so slightly. "I've been doing alright. Until the accident," she explains, with you nodding in recognition. "Been a long night of waiting— for everyone." She takes a sudden pause, clicking her tongue. "Well, not everyone."

You raise an eyebrow at Debbie, unamused. "I got here as soon as I could, Debbie."

"I tried calling you several times before remembering you blocked my number. The nice nurse also told me it took a couple of calls before you could bother to answer the phone. Big plans tonight, hm?"

Frustration bubbled in your chest. "I blocked your number because Lou wouldn't leave me alone. I didn't recognize the hospital's number, so I ignored it. Sue me." You held your hands up as you tried to walk away from Debbie, but she follows you.

"Do you even know what's going on with Lou? Were you able to shave her off some of your precious time?" Debbie's voice was raised as she followed you; the sound of both of your heels echoed throughout the fluorescent hallway.

"The first thing I did was see her." You tried to focus on returning to the waiting room — back to the apartment — anywhere but here. But you were infuriated and tired of not standing up for yourself.

"So nice of you to care, hon." Debbie spat.

Spinning on your feet, you face Debbie. "Listen, Debbie, I don't owe Lou anything! She cheated on me while I was in jail, serving time for something I wasn't responsible for!" Debbie tries to interject, but you don't let her. You take a big step close to her and angrily point in the direction of Lou's room. "But worst of all, not even Lou had the audacity to treat me like you're treating me right now. At least she had the fucking dignity to visit me! She understood that I didn't want to have anything to do with her, and she didn't give me shit for not being here 'on time,'" You mocked with air quotes.

"I—" Debbie starts, but you aren't finished yet.

"I'm still trying to figure things out. I was expecting to come back to her and the rest of the gang, but things had already fallen apart," you point your finger to Debbie's chest now, "And the least, the least, you could've done for me was to support Lou instead and to just leave me alone! Lou doesn't deserve my forgiveness, she did this to herself," you bitterly snap, allowing your hand to slap back down to your side as you narrowed your eyes at Debbie. "Now, whatever you're going to say, I don't want to hear it. You had two fucking years to talk to me." And with that, you stormed back off to the waiting room, leaving Debbie speechless behind you.

You let out an exasperated sigh as you sat down next to Rose. She looked toward you with furrowed eyebrows, nonverbally asking you what happened. Rose wasn't too keen on Lou either. Before you can respond, Debbie enters the room, sitting on a chair opposite you and Rose. Rose glances back at you, her eyebrows raised, and you nod. 

Making the difficult decision, you chose to wait for the doctor to tell you what was going on with Lou. You sure as hell didn't owe it to her, and you knew you didn't. But you couldn't help but want to know what was happening with her. Your connection with her was still there, broken and dischevieled, but still there.

In the quiet waiting room, you had bought yourself and Rose a cup of coffee. It served as a tool to help ease your anxiety. Your mouth was glued to the cup as you tried to calm your mind; Rose panned through a fashion magazine next to you. Then there was Debbie, who was scrolling on her phone, ignoring the presence of both you and Rose. Suddenly, footsteps filled the room, causing everyone to look toward the archway, in anticipation of the doctor arriving. 

"Detective Frazier," Debbie spoke. Her voice was ice cold and full of underlying venom.

He nodded at all of you, his eyes lingering on you longer than you'd like. "Hello, ladies," he smiles. "I heard of the accident with Lou and just came to check by." He sits down on a chair next to you, which made you shift uncomfortably. "Just to make sure everyone's alright."

"We're fine, I assure you," Rose sharply cuts in. "I believe that Lou has already spoken to authorities about her situation, but if she hasn't, she's still in her room. The nurse can give you her room number."

"She probably has," John leans back in the chair, scanning the room. "But that's not why I'm here."

You arch your eyebrow, unimpressed. Why can't this jackass leave you alone? Especially now of all days. "Then why are you here, detective?" you irritatingly ask. 

He clicks his tongue on the roof of his mouth. "Lack of evidence," he practically whispers. "Silly thing. Especially since there was video footage." You freeze in your chair, feeling like someone had just dropped a brick on your chest. "But I digress." He smiles, glancing between you and Debbie. "I don't particularly like hospitals. Sure the doctors and nurses are kind, but needles freak me out," he pauses. "There's another annoying inconvenience about hospitals — they are known to carry noise. All those hushed conversations, crying, arguing..."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Debbie interjects. She's had enough of this, too.

"'She cheated on me while I was in jail, serving time for something I wasn't responsible for,'" he repeats with a subtle smirk. "Now, would you like to elaborate on that, Mrs. Miller?" He pauses with a hand over his mouth, faking sympathy. "My apologies, Miss. (Y/l/n)," he corrects.

"Are you threatening me?" you ask, trying hard to suppress the rage threatening to spill.

"No," he pats his knees. "Of course not." He pulls himself to a stand. "I'm only making you an offer," he hands you a card. "Just in case you might remember something that could be useful to rebuilding the case." You look down at the black card. It reads John Frazier and has an attached email and phone number. "Hope Lou is well," he says with a small smile before waving his hand slightly and leaving the room. 

Fucking John Frazier.

Debbie and Rose's eyes were glued to you as you stared at the card. "(Y/n)..." Rose begins but mid word, the doctor walks into the room.

"Are you all here for," he pauses, scanning the clipboard in his hand. "Lou Miller?"