LIGHT ME UP ↝ Lucifer Morningstar

SEVEN.

DESPITE HIS DANGEROUS lifestyle, Benjamin had never faced any dire consequences, although one would expect that from the excessive dancing on tables and illegally fast cruising down the midnight streets. But, excluding the one time he broke his middle finger after flipping it so hard he smacked it against a wall when he was seventeen, Benji had never hurt himself so seriously he'd have to go to the hospital. He was a strong man, and refused to give into weakness and submit to being sick, but at last, the day had come — he was hurt, and quite badly, one might add.

There was a cloud of darkness over his consciousness as he was rolled into the hospital on a gurney, Dan rushing along with the nurses that kept on checking on his pulse and vitals in order to make sure that he wasn't a lost cause. Luckily, his heart still beat and air continued to flow through his system, although painfully and with a heartwrenching wheeze. The wound on his head was already collecting dry blood, and the skin around his eyes was gaining a purple shade to it to confirm that he had smacked his head against the window rather harshly. That was why he had been knocked out, and was yet to regain consciousness.

But, eventually, it happened. It was the pain that caused Benjamin to wake up — with a grimace forming on his lips, the man slowly blinked his eyes open and let out a quiet, pained groan at the discomfort all over his body, like a blanket suffocating him with agony. He was plugged into some kind of a machine — Benji didn't really know what it was for, but he did know that the constant beeping of it was giving him a migraine. Or maybe he was already suffering from it, he wasn't quite sure, but he did recognize the familiar thudding in the back of his skull, like a hammer pushing nails deeper into his head.

"Oh my God", Benji could hear Dan's concerned voice from the other side of the room, and letting out a soft, weak chuckle, the youngest Espinoza forced a sarcastic smile onto his lips.

"Nope", he started, surprising even himself with the hoarse voice, "just me." In any other situation, Dan would have smacked his brother's shoulder, but right now, all he could do was laugh and wipe his eyes as a wave of relief washed over. From that, Benjamin gathered that he had gotten some serious damage — although, at first, he didn't remember why. But once the harsh collision against Chloe's car came back to mind, the man tried to sit up, only for Dan to rush in and gently push him back down. "Where's Chloe? Is she okay? What happened?", Benji worried over his sister-in-law, pain bleeding into his eyes as well, which Dan could see clearly when their stares met.

Luckily, Dan offered a smile, which was a good sign.

"She's okay. Just hit her head, and she'll get home later today. She was lucky. I wish I could say the same about you", Dan shook his head, and eyes widening, Benjamin finally agreed to relax against the mattress and the soft pillow below his head — of course, he didn't like the fact that he was stuck in bedrest, but he was just glad that Chloe was alright. "You have a concussion and a broken rib. You're stuck in the hospital for today at least, but then you'll get home with me. You'll be okay", Daniel explained, and gulping, Benjamin nodded. However, the diagnosis that Dan had clearly asked for many times from the doctor, explained the pain he felt when breathing and the disoriented feeling along with the throbbing in his head.