A Way Back Home | Adopted by Gerard Way (Book Two)

Forever Family (72)

When Emerald enters my hospital room, it's like we're the only two people there. Gerard, Mikey, Frank, Ray, Raven, and Ryder all fade into the background as she steps forward with tears in her eyes and presses her lips gently against mine, like she thinks I might shatter like glass at any amount of pressure.

I reach up and put my arms around her neck, kiss harder to make up for the months we were apart even if I can't remember them. She remembers and that's what matters.

"I missed you so much," she whispers, our foreheads touching. I wish I could tell her how glad I am that she's here. I'd text her everything I have to say if my phone hadn't gotten lost, probably destroyed somehow, during the crash. And, believe me, it'd be a long text. Instead, I grin and I hope it tells her enough.

She pecks my lips one more time, then goes to stand next her mom near the doorway.

It's almost as though I haven't been apart from these people for any amount of time— and not only because I can't actually remember any of that time. Nothing's changed. Not even the machine reading my vitals 24/7, or the fact that I can barely move my body puts a damper on how everyone interacts. Frank's dad jokes, Mikey's witty one-liners, Dad's constant referencing of Star Wars, or comics, or D&D, or Ray's healthy mixture of all of those things.

Throughout the morning I get to know Ryder all over again, quickly realizing why we became friends in the first place and how it happened so fast during that lunch hour at school he tells everyone about. I catch up with Raven too. They tell me a bit about what they've been up to. We avoid the topic of Krash and Zero though. They already told me about Zero before everyone else got here.

It's weird being in a room full of people who are in on this one part of your life that seems to have been deleted from your brain. But every time I begin to get frustrated about it, even so much as a quick scribble on my notepad that says, I wish I could remember that, Dad is quick to remind me, "Your memories will come back, Evie. Just give it some time."

I want them to come back before I have to go back to Rhode Island, though, whenever that may be. Whenever they let me out of this bed without a nurse's assistance. It's embarrassing, almost degrading, how my muscles are useless and I need a nurse's assistance for pretty much everything. I took a bath this morning and I couldn't enjoy it if I tried. Anyway, the reason I need my memories to restore before then is because I don't want to experience going there for the first time all over again. I'm not dreading it any less than I was the first time, even though I'm not showing it.

It's easy to ignore my dread when I'm so goddamn happy at the same time.

It feels like a few days ago that Frank walked in on me. I was sitting on my bedroom floor, barely hanging on by a thread. He took away what I thought was my lifeline and I practically started begging him to let me hurt myself, which of course I knew was a lost cause no matter how much I didn't want to admit it to myself. But I was desperate.

That girl was not okay.

Now, despite everything that's happened, I think I can say that I'm okay. In that regard, anyway.

• • •

When Lindsey arrives, carrying Bandit in her arms, everyone but Dad clears out of the room saying something about going to get food or fresh air. Em kisses me quickly and says she'll be back later with snacks. Fresh air sounds nice, though. Even nicer than snacks, which is not something I ever thought I'd say. But when Lindsey places Bandit carefully in my arms, I immediately decide there's no place I'd rather be than here, holding my baby sister.

She looks up at me with big innocent eyes and I can't help the smile from spreading across my face. She gives me a little smile in return and, I swear, I could cry.