The expression on his face was so peaceful as he slept that I almost wanted to stay where I was so that I didn't unintentionally disturb him. I couldn't stay that far away, though. Quiet as a mouse, I walked to his side. He had small cuts on his face, but other than that he looked perfect. He was wearing a hospital gown, the embarrassing kind that ties in the back, and a bag of his belongings was sitting on the nightstand next to the bed.
Careful to not hurt him, I sat on the edge of his mattress. I was a little scared to touch him, but I needed to, so I gingerly wrapped my fingers over his arm. He was warm. "Kellan," I whispered, "are you awake?" His head moved, but he didn't answer me. I ran my fingers down his arm, cupping his hand. "I'm right here, waiting for you." Tears clouding my vision, I ran a knuckle down his cheek. "I'm not going anywhere, baby."
Minutes ticked by as I waited for whatever drugs they'd used to knock him out with to wear off enough that he'd wake up. It felt like it took forever, and a little bit of guilt crept into me that the others couldn't see him yet. But I needed to be there when he woke up. I just . . . needed it.
I could tell when he was starting to come around. His eyes moved beneath his lids. Then he inhaled a deep breath and cringed on the exhale. I hoped he didn't wake up in too much pain. When he finally opened his eyes, I thought my face might split apart I was smiling so hard. "Kellan, baby?"
He didn't look my way, just slowly blinked and stared at nothing. He had to be confused. I wondered if he even remembered the accident. Tenderly, I stroked his cheek again. "Kellan?"
He finally turned my way, his expression blank. As his midnight eyes searched my face, I began to get the horrid feeling in my gut that he wouldn't remember me. The doctor hadn't mentioned a head injury, but what if he'd struck the concrete too? What if he had amnesia? God, would he still love me if we had to start over?
Kellan worked his mouth, then swallowed a few times. Forehead wrinkling, he said, "Kiera? What happened?"
Relief and amusement flooded through me. Of course he still remembered me. "I got pushed into the street. You raced out to help me, and a truck hit you. You're in the hospital."
Kellan's eyes fixed on the bandage at the edge of my hairline. "Are you okay?" he asked.
Shaking my head that he was still more worried about me, I leaned down and gave him a soft kiss. "You're alive. I'm perfect."
Closing his eyes, Kellan looked pained as he breathed shallowly through his mouth. "I don't feel good."
I smoothed back his hair. "I know. They had to operate on you because your spleen ruptured. They were able to save it, but you're going to be sore for a while."
Kellan cracked an eye open, and a ghost of a smile crept into his lips. "Oh, good, I'd hate to be spleenless." He closed his eyes again. "What the hell does a spleen do anyway?"
A small laugh escaped me. His sense of humor was definitely still intact. "From what I remember in school, it's like the oil filter of your immune system . . . and it was once thought to be the source of anger. I'm not sure about that one though."
Kellan started to chuckle, then froze. "Oh, don't make me laugh."
I kissed his cheek. "I won't. We'll never laugh again, I promise."
Opening his eyes, he chuckled again, then cringed. "I said don't make me laugh."
Resting my head against his, I whispered, "I love you so much. I'm so glad you're okay."
Kellan tried to pull me into a hug, but he was so weak and so sore. I didn't want him hurting himself, so I stilled his hands and crawled into the bed with him. Carefully draping my arm over his upper chest, I gently squeezed the top of his shoulders. He sighed in relief. "I love you too."
Tears rolled down my cheeks as what nearly happened today crashed into me. I kissed his head as I held him tight. "You saved my life," I whispered, my voice warbling.
His words thick with sleep, he told me, "I was returning the favor."
He started to doze off again, and I thought to leave so others could see him. His hand on my back tightened when he felt me move away. "It's okay, I was just going to let the others come see you. They're all so worried."
"Stay . . . just . . . for a minute," he mumbled.
I kissed his shoulder. "As long as you want, Kellan. As long as you want."
He dozed off again after a few minutes. Knowing others needed to see him, I carefully climbed out of his bed. He stirred but didn't open his eyes. When I got back to the waiting room, a surprise was waiting for me. Justin was there, talking to Evan. The nurses who had been hovering by Kellan's room were openly gaping at the new rock star who had dropped into their midst. I figured this day would live on in infamy for them. For me too, I supposed.
Touched that Justin was there, I immediately threw my arms around him. "Justin, thank you for coming. This will mean so much to Kellan."
Justin patted my back in a friendly squeeze. "Our tour was close by. When I heard the news, I had to. Is he okay?"
I nodded as I stepped back. "Yeah. Groggy, but okay." I looked around the band members. "You guys can see him now."
Matt, Evan, and Griffin all looked at each other. The nurse had said one person could go in at a time; they were trying to decide who should go in first. Shrugging, Matt stuck his hands out with his fist on his palm. "Rock Paper Scissors?"
Griffin rolled his eyes. "We're f**king rock stars. When did we start caring about rules?"
Still carrying Gibson, Griffin strode toward the room I'd just left. Matt and Evan glanced at each other, then followed him. Giggling, Anna hurried after her husband. I watched the crowd descending on Kellan, then motioned for Justin and Holeshot to come with me, and we all followed the D-Bags. One for all and all for one.
Kellan was more like himself as the afternoon wore on. He was tired and in pain, but mostly in good spirits. Tory left soon after checking on Kellan; she said she was immediately going to issue a statement to the public that "It was touch and go, but Kellan narrowly escaped Death's dark call, and he is slowly recuperating from his nearly tragic accident." I thought her story was a little dramatic, but by the glow in her eyes, I could tell that framing it that way was excellent publicity. I found it really interesting that we couldn't get her to lift a finger for us when we needed her to, but she was all over it when it benefitted the label.
Rock stars and roadies loitered around Kellan's room as he recovered, much to the delight of the nurses who popped in every five minutes. The doctors and the head nurse, Carly, were less happy about Kellan's numerous guests, and eventually made everyone leave Kellan's room but me. Since Holeshot and the tour crew members had to go get ready for the show tonight anyway, they said their goodbyes and grudgingly left the hospital. Justin stayed, since his band wasn't playing, but he gave Kellan and me some privacy by hanging out in the lobby with Anna and the other D-Bags.
When the sky began to darken, I wandered over to the window to peek outside. I'd heard from the nurses that the crowd of fans outside had swelled considerably since earlier today. As I started to peer through the blinds, Kellan asked, "Have you heard from Sienna? She didn't come by. I'm kind of surprised by that."
I looked back at him in bed. He was sitting up higher with fluffy pillows shoved behind his back, but still at an angle that was comfortable for his stomach. There was a tray of uneaten food hovering over his lap, and he was frowning as he poked at a cup of Jell-O with a plastic spoon.
"I'm kind of surprised by that too," I answered. It wasn't like Sienna to miss a photo op, and her rushing to the side of her fallen colleague seemed like a missed opportunity to me. Even if Kellan and I had come clean about our relationship and no one believed that they were dating-and I was really hoping that was the case now-visiting Kellan at the hospital would still make her look good. And after what we'd said about her, she probably needed a little positive PR.
"She sent flowers." I pointed over to a modest floral arrangement that was resting between an elegant bouquet of lilies from Lana, and a monstrous vase overflowing with cloyingly powerful red roses from Nick. All the card attached to Sienna's said was, "I'm so sorry. S."
Kellan glanced at them, then frowned at me. "A subtle get-well bouquet isn't exactly her style. I was expecting her to hand deliver them to me in a sequined, floor-length gown."
I smirked at him. Yeah, something that outrageous that demanded people paid attention was much more Sienna's style than being virtually silent with anonymously delivered flowers. Shaking my head since I didn't understand it, I turned back to the window and pried open the slits. The sun had set not too long ago and it wasn't fully dark yet, but I could easily see the many pinpoints of lights as fans crowded around the hospital with cups of glowing candles. My throat was thick at the display of love before me. "Kellan," I whispered, "you have to see this."
I knew he wouldn't be up to standing yet, so I raised the blinds in a hope that he could see the lights from his bed. Since he was only a foot or two away, he had a pretty good view. I watched his face as he dropped his spoon to his tray. "What is that?"
"Those are your fans. They're here for you." I waved at the fans. Since the light was on in Kellan's room and it was dark outside, I knew they had a full shot of me. I wasn't sure how they'd react to seeing me here, but surprisingly the candles started moving in unison, like they were waving back at me. I took that as a good sign.
Kellan looked up at me, mystified. "That's for me?"
Walking over to his bed, I sat on the corner and ran my hand through his hair. "You're very loved. And not just because of what you are. Your fans see you. Through your music, they see you. And they love you." I cupped his perfect, right-angled jaw, and stroked his cheek with my thumb. "It's not just this that they love, you know? It's you."
Leaning down, I kissed his forehead.
I looked up when I heard a light tap at the door. When I saw the group of people who were watching us, I thought I was going to start sobbing. Standing just inside of the doorframe were my mother and father, and Kellan's father, Gavin. Hailey and Riley were peeking into the room from behind their dad. I was so surprised, I was at a loss for words. I had just talked with each of them a few hours ago, and none of them had mentioned hopping a plane and flying out here.
Kellan was just as much at a loss as I was. "Gavin, Caroline . . . Martin? What are you doing in New York?"
Gavin approached his son; the worry on his face was as clear as day to me. It warmed my heart. Even if he'd kept his distance for most of Kellan's life, he really did love him. "I'm sorry we're so late. We got on the first flight we could." Standing beside Kellan, Gavin put a hand on his shoulder. "We were all so incredibly worried about you."
Hailey and Riley came up to stand at the end of the bed while Kellan's eyes teared up. "You were worried about . . . me?" He still seemed stunned that they would care.
Gavin's face softened into a smile. "Of course I was, son. When I heard you were in an accident, I was terrified."
Reaching down, Hailey rubbed his foot through the blanket. "We love you, bro." Riley nodded in agreement.
While Kellan swallowed back both physical and emotional pain, my parents stepped up to the bed. My mom was cradling Gibson to her chest, but reached over and put her hand on Kellan's leg. "We came as soon as we could too." Her green eyes flashed to mine. "You're family, Kellan."
Kellan turned to me, and I could see the pain and joy in his eyes. This is what he'd always wanted. Family. A real family. I couldn't contain it anymore, and big fat tears started rolling down my cheeks. Dad looked like he was suddenly worried about my health as he stared at me. Mom simply walked around and gave me a knowing hug. Having my family fully accept my husband was the greatest gift they could have ever given me, and him.
When I calmed down, Kellan relaxed back into his cushions. Even though he cringed in discomfort, he was smiling at me. "So adorable," he muttered.
Ignoring him, I watched my mom as she kissed Gibson's nose. "How is it you are all here together?"