An Arranged Match // Paul McCartney

=>Your Mother Should Know<=

Paul did keep his word, and stayed with his mum for the whole day. Kathy offered to stay with him, but Paul insisted that she must head back home. He didn't want her to sleep uncomfortably on the couch.

After a few more minutes of persisting, Kathy sighed in defeat and followed. Grabbing her purse, she pecked Paul on the cheek and bid him goodbye.

"Take care, okay? I'll ask Samuel to drive you home." Paul stated, but Kathy declined.

"No need to bother Samuel. He's probably asleep by now. I'll just hail a cab and go home.", she said, but Paul felt uneasy.

"I'll accompany you on the way out.", he mused, getting up and grabbing his coat. He took one glance at Mary and held her hand.

"I'll be back, Mum. Just have to make sure this lovely lady is safe.", he muttered, and Kathy smiled at his comment.

They walked out of the room and as they passed the hallway, there were male nurses who had their attention on Kathy. One in particular, winked at her, leaving her a bit flustered.

Of course, Paul noticed them flirting, and instantly held her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers. He cocked an eyebrow at them as they strolled, and the nurses just scoffed at him.

Kathy couldn't help but smile at his actions. She loved it when he got jealous because of her. She watched him intently and gave him a goofy grin.

"What?", Paul asked, pretending to be pissed. Kathy stiffled a giggle.

"You're cute, y'know.", she stated, and Paul looked confused.

"Why?"

"Being jealous and all.", she said nonchalantly. Paul rolled his eyes.
"I wasn't jealous. I just didn't like the way those guys stared at you like some piece of meat or something.", he spoke, looking straight ahead.

Kathy just wrapped her arms around his arm and lay her head on his shoulder.

"Whatever you say, cutie."

"Oh, great. Is that your nickname for me now?", he asked as thet reached the exit of the hospital. He opened the door for her, and Kathy stepped out, laughing.

"I can take it from here, thank you.", she said, but Paul shook his head.

"I'm not leaving until you get a cab.", he stated, crossing his arms.
"Geez, I'll be fine. It's not like I'm ten or something.", she spoke with an annoyed tone, making Paul grin. They were at it again.

"Gosh, where's the cab? I've been here for a long time. ", she whined as she waited impatiently, amusing her fiancé.

"We've only been here for a few minutes. Stop being a drama queen.", he said, rolling his eyes. He missed this playful banter of theirs.

"Oh yeah? Well- well... stop being a- um... princess!", she finally stated after thinking of a comeback.

"Still better than being the queen.", he replied, and he gave her his infamous smirk.

"Whatever. Just go back up there. I'll be fine.", she said, acting irritated.

"I said no. You might get hurt or something.", he spoke, earning a smack from Kathy.

"I. Am. Not. A. Baby.", she mused, emphasizing each word, with her eyebrows meeting each other.

"Yeah, you're right. You are not a baby.", he responded. Kathy just looked at him with a blank expression.

"You're my baby.", he cooed, and that made Kathy turn red as a tomato.

"Wha-"

Just then, a cab stopped in front of them, and boy, was she glad. She turned around swiftly and walked towards the vehicle, Paul following suit.

He opened the door for her, and she hopped in, telling the driver her address. Before they drove off, Paul asked her to roll her window down.

"What is it?", she asked, the blush on her cheeks still evident.

"You forgot something."

She should have known that line was familiar, but before she realized it, Paul's lips were already on hers and she simply closed her eyes and enjoyed it.

"Good night.", he uttered, loud enough for only Kathy to hear. She smiled, and they stared into each other for a while, until they got startled by the honking of a horn.

"Geez, lovebirds! I don't have all night!", the driver whined, and she bid goodbye to Paul as she rolled the window up.

"Ey, mister, take care of her, alright?", he stated. The driver just gave him a thumbs-up and drove off.

He sighed and went back to his mum's room. He admitted to himself that he already missed her.

He entered Mary's room and there she still was, in bed. The only sounds audible were the beeping of the machines that kept her alive, and the ticking of the clock that hung on the wall.

He sat down beside his mother's bed, and caressed her hand, which was dry, a bit cold, and wounded. His heart ached at her state.

"Oh, Mum. Do wake up. I just proposed to Kathy. We are getting married, not because of the arrangement, but because we actually... love each other.", he narrated to her, wishing she heard.

"And you're not gonna believe this, but Samuel and I... well, I guess you could say that we're starting to get along. I know that'd what you wanted, right?", he continued, but still no response.

"Mum, please give me something. Something for me to know that you're still there.", he pleaded, his voice cracking.

"It's been a couple of days now, but you're still the same. Please, Mum. I can't lose you, too.", he spoke, completely welling up.

He bowed his head down, and continued weeping, still holding his mother's hand in his own. He stayed like that for a while.

He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt his mum's finger twitch, and that instantly made his head snap up.

"Mum?", he asked hopefully, but he saw nothing. He sighed and wiped the tears from his eyes.

He heard a faint groan, but he shook it off, thinking that he was just imagining it.

"P-Paul..."

That caught his attention.

"Mum?!", he exclaimed, and this time, Mary's eyes started opening, and he couldn't believe it.

"Doctor! Hello! My mum's awake!", he yelled as he exited that door, hoping to catch someone's attention.

He hurried back to his mum, whose eyes were still adjusting to the lights. Paul was beaming with happiness.

"Hi, mum! I can't believe you're awake!", he cheered, and Mary, now fully conscious, smiled at her son.

"Of course. You still have a wedding I must attend to.", she joked, and they shared a laugh.

The doctors soon entered, and they were surprised at what they saw.

"This is unbelievable! She recovered very soon! I was expecting her to wake up after a few more days.", the doctor stated, and the others nodded in agreement while they jotted down something on their charts.

"It's a miracle.", another doctor spoke.

Paul grinned at the doctors' comments. He was ecstatic that his mum had recovered fast.

"Kathy would love to hear this. And so will Samuel.", he mused. Mary beamed at her son.

"I missed you. All of you.", she stated, tearing up. Paul was touched at her remark and held her hand.

"Me too, Mum."

"Oh, if you'll excuse us for a moment. We'll just run a few checks on Mary to see if her organs are doing well.", one doctor spoke, and Paul nodded, making way for them to diagnose his dearest mum.