Taming the Street Racer ✔️

47 | white flag

The hospital doesn't look nearly as intimidating in the light of day. The faces of the hospital staff look friendly, and the scent of death and sickness doesn't hang so thickly in the air. Instead of fear carrying us toward Gracie's room, it's hope.

Gracie woke up. She's okay.

When we reach her door, Sadie is waiting outside for us. She lifts her head and beams at us brightly, pulling us all in for a hug. She tells us that Gracie is really groggy right now so the doctor is only allowing two visitors at a time to not overwhelm her senses. She's extremely sensitive to noise and light right now because of her brain damage.

Since Gray refuses to leave, the three of them encourage me to go in first. I hesitate reaching for the door handle knowing that the man who shattered my heart is sitting right behind it. But Gracie's in there too, so I push my feelings toward him aside and open the door.

It's dim, with the only source of light being a lamp glowing softly in the corner of the room. My eyes immediately land on Gracie who is lying awake on the bed. She's hooked up to so many machines and her eyes are barely open but she sees me and smiles. I chest aches just looking at her.

"Hey, Gracie," I say softly, walking toward her bed slowly. "I love your nails."

Gracie glances down slowly at her purple nails and smiles again. When she speaks, her voice is thick with fatigue and drowsiness. "Thank you. I don't remember painting them though."

"Sadie painted them while you were sleeping," a voice next to Gracie says. I force myself to look at the source of the voice and almost wish I hadn't. He looks worse than I'd anticipated.

The odd lighting just accentuates his tired appearance, casting long shadows over his gaunt face. I'm guessing he hasn't taken the time to groom himself, judging from the stubble covering his jaw and the chaotic state of his dark hair. His eyes are rimmed with darkness.

I look at him for a second longer and realize that those aren't bags under his eyes. They're bruises, painted a deep purple around his left eye. I keep my face neutral, taking in the other injuries plaguing his face. A puffy, bloody lip. A deep cut on his left cheek, surrounded by another painful looking bruise.

I don't say anything to him and turn back to Gracie. "I have something for you."

Her foggy eyes light up slightly. "You do?"

"Mhm." I reach into my bag and pull out the card that Liam and the rest of the team signed for her. Gracie struggles slightly to lift her arms but she takes it from me gently, examining the stickers dotting the envelope.

"It's so pretty. Did you make it for me?" She asks, already starting to tear it open. I shake my head. "No, your soccer team did. Liam put a little something in there for you."

The card is blue, covered in tiny sparkles. There's a picture of a teddy bear with a thermometer in his mouth and an icepack on his head. "Get Well Soon" is printed in cursive white letters across the top. Gracie runs her small fingers over the sparkles, smiling. "It's so pretty."

Inside are signatures from the whole team. Liam name is the biggest, covering almost a fourth of one of the pages. Under it, in the same color, he wrote a message. I don't read it but Gracie giggles to herself while looking at it. She takes the three dollars that fell out of it and hold them up, her mouth open in a surprised gasp

"Look, Liam gave me three dollars! He told me he was saving this to buy a bike," she says, pulling the money into her chest. I smile at her. "I guess he thought you were more important than a bike."

Gracie turns to Gray, handing him the three dollars. "Go buy me ice cream, please! If they don't have strawberry, I want vanilla with sprinkles. Please!"