southside trash [shameless]

• Chapter 23 • Rest •

I stir in my sleep, slowly opening my eyes to reveal my surroundings.  I first notice that the hospital is far emptier than it was when I was last awake.  Now the only person in the room with me is Veronica.

"Hey, girly," she scoots her chair closer to me, giving me an affectionate smile.

"Hi, V," I reply with a tired smile, voice groggy from just waking up, "did everyone go home?"

"Reluctantly," she deadpans. "Fiona called me this morning and told me what happened, so we came immediately," she tells me, "when I got here I made them all go home to have a shower and get some rest.  I knew that's what you would want."

"Thanks," I reply gratefully, as I stiffly push myself up into a sat up position.

"Although, the guy, Jonas," she raises an eyebrow at me, "he was only gone for maybe forty minutes, and he's back already.  You've got yourself one committed boyfriend out there," she loosely gestures towards the ajar door.

I stifle a groan, "he's not my boyfriend."

"Okay, okay," she puts her hands up in surrender, choosing not to argue with me.

"Is Kev here as well?" I ask.

"Yeah, he just went to grab some coffee," Veronica explains.

I go to respond but stop when Doctor Halstead walks in with a clipboard in his hand. "Doctor Halstead, hi. What's the verdict then? How soon can I get out of this glamorous gown?" I gesture to the hospital gown I am wearing.

He chuckle slightly, "hopefully soon, Emma.  We will probably keep you here overnight, and then you can leave tomorrow if everything is how it should be."

"Cool," I nod, hiding my irritation as I can't stand being stuck in this bed.

"Would it be alright if I speak to you in private?" Doctor Halstead asks me gently, tucking the clipboard under his arm.

I look over to Veronica and she nods.

"Yeah, sure," I say looking back to Doctor Halstead.

V gets up from her chair, rubbing my shoulder, "I'll just be outside."

I nod and smile at her as she walks out of the room, leaving just me and the doctor.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" I ask curiously.

"Look," he hesitantly takes a seat where Veronica was previously sat and puts the clipboard on his lap. "I don't know everything that happened regarding your pregnancy.  But I overhead some of what you were saying yesterday before I had the chance to leave the room."

I look down at my hands, swallowing thickly.

"I'm not going to tell you to press charges, or make you tell me anything," he assures me, "but I want you to know, that if you do decide to press charges, my brother is a police officer; a detective.  And I can get him to come down here to take your statement, or even just explain what will happen if you press charges."