The Boy Next Door

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Megan, Meg, can you hear me?"

"Mmm..."

"Good," the voice sighed in relief. "Your family's on their way up."

My eyes fluttered open and I came face to face with Evan. The first thing I noticed was his arm in a cast and tape on his face, covering cuts and bruises.

"What's going on?"

"Some jerk," his voice turned spiteful, "slammed into my car from the passenger side. Don't you remember?"

"A bit." The memories of earlier that day came rushing back to me. "We flipped, you weren't hurt."

"You were more than me because the impact was closer to you."

"Jerk." I closed my eyes and reached up to rub them. My arms were both okay, so that was good, but my right leg was in a cast.

"You got a small concussion and broke your leg."

"And you broke your arm?"

"Simple enough." He took a few steps back as the door opened and my family came in. Mom was the first to get to me.

"Megan, how are you feeling?" She asked, putting her hand on my forehead.

"You called me Megan." I observed.

"That isn't the point right now. What happened, are you feeling alright?"

Evan said, "I'll go call the nurse, tell them she's awake."

After he stepped out, I saw my sister and she jumped up onto the bed. "Meg, did Evan crash the car?"

"No, someone hit us."

"Was it his fault?" Dad asked stiffly.

"No, not at all. There was a green light." Details were becoming clearer and clearer the longer I stayed awake. "What time is it?"

"Eight forty-five." Mom answered. "You've been out for a while."

A nurse walked in and over to me. "Hello, Miss Jameson. How are you feeling?"

"Okay. Not hurt."

"We're going to keep her and Mr. Walker overnight just to be safe." She told my parents. "Visiting hours end at nine, but one family member may spend the night if it makes you more comfortable."

After checking a few things, she walked out again. "Why'd she tell you about Evan too?"

"His father isn't here, we assumed responsibility of him until Mr. Walker gets here." Dad said.

Nodding, I sat up and heard my stomach rumble. "I'll go get you some dinner," Mom said. "Come with me, Madelyn."

Soon it was only Dad and I in the room. "Why were you downtown with him anyway?" He asked.

I shrugged. "Evan said something about showing me something, I think. Didn't you know that he's been driving me home from school? He offered, and I don't like riding the bus."

"Not again."

"Okay, we'll stick to the route."

"Good girl." He smiled and rubbed the top of my head.

"Da-ad!"

"Mom and I both need to be somewhere in the morning, and Mrs. Chester has offered to take Madelyn for a bit. If you need anything, here's your phone, and Evan's next door. He'll probably stay in here tonight, after all he thinks he could've stopped it."

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks, Dad."

"As soon as your mom and sister get back, we need to go. It's past Madelyn's bedtime anyway, not to mention the visiting hours. I'll be back at noon or so to get you out, okay?"

"Okay."

Evan didn't come back in until my family was gone. Sitting in the chair that was beside me, he asked if Dad was angry with him.

"Not that I can tell."

"Sorry about this," he muttered. "I didn't mean for anything to happen."

"Duh. It wasn't your fault." A moment of silence stretched between us. "You said 'simple enough' when I asked if you broke your arm. What'd you mean?"

"Shattered my elbow on the window."

"Oh." I yawned and laid down. "Are you planning to stay there all night?"

"This chair is quite comfortable."

As I rolled my eyes, he smiled and shuffled around. I was asleep before he stopped moving.