“It’s okay,” I whisper. It’s not.
She reaches for me, winces in pain. So I go to her, take her in my arms. She cries into my chest. I cry into her hair.
“I’m so sorry,” she repeats, and I want to take her pain away. “I don’t know why I said those things. I’m just trying to make sense of everything and I can’t…”
“It’s okay,” I say, and this time I mean it.
“Can he stay?” she asks the nurse. “When you stitch me up?”
“If you’re comfortable with him seeing your wounds, I don’t see why not.”
Mrs. Kennedy leaves while the nurse stitches her up again, changes her dressing. The physical scars that’ll mar her body will be nothing compared to her emotional ones. Brian returns, his reaction the same as the nurses. “What the hell happened?”
“I lost it,” Laney says, woozy from the anesthetic. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
“It’s okay,” he tells her, but he’s looking at me, his eyes worried.
A moment later, Lane’s asleep, and I explain to Brian everything that happened as best as I can. “I think it was just building up and she needed to get it out and this was her way of doing that.”
I motion to the door and he follows behind me. “Is it really costing two grand a day for her to be here?”
He rubs his sad, tired eyes. “That’s just for the stay. I’m in over a hundred.”
“Grand?”
“Welcome to adulthood, son.”
“I have some money my mom left me,” I offer.
He shakes his head, a man of pride. “I’m not taking your money, Lucas. I’ll handle this the same way we’ve handled everything else.”
We stand in silence a moment, a heavy thought hanging between us. It shouldn’t be up to him to cover this. “They should be paying for this, financially and otherwise,” I mumble.
He sighs. “You don’t think I’ve thought about that? But doing that would mean forcing Laney through more hell with the Kennedys. She’s experienced enough of that.” He pauses a beat, looks away and avoids my gaze. “I failed her, Lucas. I was so wrapped up in my relationship with Misty, I never even saw this coming.”
“I was with her,” I admit. “I watched that entire relationship form and continue and break down, and I—”
“But I’m her father,” he whispers.
“And I’m her best friend. I let her go with him that night.” I grasp his shoulder, wait for him to look at me. “We’re all going to walk away from this with regrets, but it’s what we do with those that’s going to change her life. And I think, right now, it’s important to remember that at least she has the chance to live one.”
I leave him to stay with Lane, and I go in search of Mrs. Kennedy. I want to know why she’s here, what the hell it is she wanted. I find her at the admin desk of the recovery ward, two folders in front of her. She says to the clerk, her voice low, “Are you able to make this one out as if their insurance covered it?”
The clerk nods, and I stop next to Mrs. Kennedy. “What are you doing?” I ask.
She flinches at the sound of my voice. “Nothing.” Liar.
I look down at the open folders. Medical bills. One for Cooper Kennedy. The other for Lois Sanders. I don't even bother asking how she has access to the file because she is who she is. Instead, I ask, “How much did you hear in there?”
Her hand’s gentle when she touches my arm, waiting for me to meet her gaze. “I heard nothing. Just like I’m doing nothing. You understand, Lucas?”
I swallow the lump in my throat, realization forming. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Good.” She releases me. “How’s Lois? Or… it’s Laney, right? That’s what you call her?”
I nod.
She smiles. “Like Lois Lane?”
I nod again.
“That’s a sweet name.”
“My mom gave it to her.”
Her grin widens. Then she reaches into her bag, pulls out a pamphlet. “I’ve done some research into some rehab facilities for Laney. The best one is forty-five minutes away, but I figured, you being you, you won’t mind driving her.”
I take the pamphlet from her, pretend like I’m skimming it as if I haven’t done my own research. “Mrs. Kennedy, I appreciate this, but Brian—Mr. Sanders—he can’t afford the best. He can barely afford mediocre.”
“Oh, it’s covered,” she says, winks. “By insurance. Also, expect to be getting a call from your lawyers about us dropping the charges.”
I stop breathing. “I’m sorry?”
She reaches up, cups my face in her hands, looks into my eyes. “I know evil, Lucas. I’ve stared it right in the eyes and wished for death. Evil people belong in prison. You’re not evil. You’re everything Lois said you were.” She offers me one last smile before walking away.
When I sat in the holding cell, I started to question my mother’s belief in fate. Instead, I wanted to believe in circumstance, in justice. But maybe Mom was right. Because right now, there’s absolutely no logical reason why this is happening. “Mrs. Kennedy?” I call out, wait for her to stop and face me. I jog over to her. “Why are you doing this?”
She wipes at her eyes, lifts her chin. “Because I failed my son by not acting, not speaking up, not changing the course of his life.” A single tear streaks down her cheek, and she wipes it with the back of her hand. “But it’s not too late to change yours. Yours and Lois’s. You’re both amazing kids, and Lois is lucky to have you.”
“I’m the lucky one.”
“I knew you’d say that.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. About Cooper. About your husband. You really are a good person.”
She drops her gaze, and when she looks back up, she’s smiling. “Good is the enemy of great, Lucas. I want to be great.”
My lawyers called a few minutes after Mrs. Kennedy left the hospital to confirm what she’d told me. The Kennedys had dropped the assault charges.
I wait for Lane to wake up before calling Dad and asking him to come to the hospital. I want them all here. Even Logan and Leo. Especially Leo.
“He won’t want to,” Dad says.
“Make him.”
I hang up.
Laney says, “What’s going on, Luke?”
“Wait. I want everyone here.”
“Am I pregnant?” she jokes.
Brian’s face pales. “Don’t do that,” he says, and I finally find something to laugh about.
Logan enters the room, goes straight to Lane. Every other time he’s come in, she’s been asleep. “I’m sorry,” is the first thing he says. “I should’ve stepped in—”
“Shut up,” she cuts in. “I don’t want to hear it. Not now. Not ever. You understand?”
“But—”
“Logan.”
“Yeah?”
“Shut up.”
“Okay.” He chuckles. “You look really pretty, even in a hospital gown.”
She reaches for me, winces in pain. So I go to her, take her in my arms. She cries into my chest. I cry into her hair.
“I’m so sorry,” she repeats, and I want to take her pain away. “I don’t know why I said those things. I’m just trying to make sense of everything and I can’t…”
“It’s okay,” I say, and this time I mean it.
“Can he stay?” she asks the nurse. “When you stitch me up?”
“If you’re comfortable with him seeing your wounds, I don’t see why not.”
Mrs. Kennedy leaves while the nurse stitches her up again, changes her dressing. The physical scars that’ll mar her body will be nothing compared to her emotional ones. Brian returns, his reaction the same as the nurses. “What the hell happened?”
“I lost it,” Laney says, woozy from the anesthetic. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
“It’s okay,” he tells her, but he’s looking at me, his eyes worried.
A moment later, Lane’s asleep, and I explain to Brian everything that happened as best as I can. “I think it was just building up and she needed to get it out and this was her way of doing that.”
I motion to the door and he follows behind me. “Is it really costing two grand a day for her to be here?”
He rubs his sad, tired eyes. “That’s just for the stay. I’m in over a hundred.”
“Grand?”
“Welcome to adulthood, son.”
“I have some money my mom left me,” I offer.
He shakes his head, a man of pride. “I’m not taking your money, Lucas. I’ll handle this the same way we’ve handled everything else.”
We stand in silence a moment, a heavy thought hanging between us. It shouldn’t be up to him to cover this. “They should be paying for this, financially and otherwise,” I mumble.
He sighs. “You don’t think I’ve thought about that? But doing that would mean forcing Laney through more hell with the Kennedys. She’s experienced enough of that.” He pauses a beat, looks away and avoids my gaze. “I failed her, Lucas. I was so wrapped up in my relationship with Misty, I never even saw this coming.”
“I was with her,” I admit. “I watched that entire relationship form and continue and break down, and I—”
“But I’m her father,” he whispers.
“And I’m her best friend. I let her go with him that night.” I grasp his shoulder, wait for him to look at me. “We’re all going to walk away from this with regrets, but it’s what we do with those that’s going to change her life. And I think, right now, it’s important to remember that at least she has the chance to live one.”
I leave him to stay with Lane, and I go in search of Mrs. Kennedy. I want to know why she’s here, what the hell it is she wanted. I find her at the admin desk of the recovery ward, two folders in front of her. She says to the clerk, her voice low, “Are you able to make this one out as if their insurance covered it?”
The clerk nods, and I stop next to Mrs. Kennedy. “What are you doing?” I ask.
She flinches at the sound of my voice. “Nothing.” Liar.
I look down at the open folders. Medical bills. One for Cooper Kennedy. The other for Lois Sanders. I don't even bother asking how she has access to the file because she is who she is. Instead, I ask, “How much did you hear in there?”
Her hand’s gentle when she touches my arm, waiting for me to meet her gaze. “I heard nothing. Just like I’m doing nothing. You understand, Lucas?”
I swallow the lump in my throat, realization forming. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Good.” She releases me. “How’s Lois? Or… it’s Laney, right? That’s what you call her?”
I nod.
She smiles. “Like Lois Lane?”
I nod again.
“That’s a sweet name.”
“My mom gave it to her.”
Her grin widens. Then she reaches into her bag, pulls out a pamphlet. “I’ve done some research into some rehab facilities for Laney. The best one is forty-five minutes away, but I figured, you being you, you won’t mind driving her.”
I take the pamphlet from her, pretend like I’m skimming it as if I haven’t done my own research. “Mrs. Kennedy, I appreciate this, but Brian—Mr. Sanders—he can’t afford the best. He can barely afford mediocre.”
“Oh, it’s covered,” she says, winks. “By insurance. Also, expect to be getting a call from your lawyers about us dropping the charges.”
I stop breathing. “I’m sorry?”
She reaches up, cups my face in her hands, looks into my eyes. “I know evil, Lucas. I’ve stared it right in the eyes and wished for death. Evil people belong in prison. You’re not evil. You’re everything Lois said you were.” She offers me one last smile before walking away.
When I sat in the holding cell, I started to question my mother’s belief in fate. Instead, I wanted to believe in circumstance, in justice. But maybe Mom was right. Because right now, there’s absolutely no logical reason why this is happening. “Mrs. Kennedy?” I call out, wait for her to stop and face me. I jog over to her. “Why are you doing this?”
She wipes at her eyes, lifts her chin. “Because I failed my son by not acting, not speaking up, not changing the course of his life.” A single tear streaks down her cheek, and she wipes it with the back of her hand. “But it’s not too late to change yours. Yours and Lois’s. You’re both amazing kids, and Lois is lucky to have you.”
“I’m the lucky one.”
“I knew you’d say that.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. About Cooper. About your husband. You really are a good person.”
She drops her gaze, and when she looks back up, she’s smiling. “Good is the enemy of great, Lucas. I want to be great.”
My lawyers called a few minutes after Mrs. Kennedy left the hospital to confirm what she’d told me. The Kennedys had dropped the assault charges.
I wait for Lane to wake up before calling Dad and asking him to come to the hospital. I want them all here. Even Logan and Leo. Especially Leo.
“He won’t want to,” Dad says.
“Make him.”
I hang up.
Laney says, “What’s going on, Luke?”
“Wait. I want everyone here.”
“Am I pregnant?” she jokes.
Brian’s face pales. “Don’t do that,” he says, and I finally find something to laugh about.
Logan enters the room, goes straight to Lane. Every other time he’s come in, she’s been asleep. “I’m sorry,” is the first thing he says. “I should’ve stepped in—”
“Shut up,” she cuts in. “I don’t want to hear it. Not now. Not ever. You understand?”
“But—”
“Logan.”
“Yeah?”
“Shut up.”
“Okay.” He chuckles. “You look really pretty, even in a hospital gown.”
