Realization came suddenly; he was choking. Eyes flying open, Miles sucked in a breath â the faintest of sounds escaped his lips, not quite a sob. He sat up, kicking at the covers. They felt like they were going to wrap around his form and completely constrict his movement and breathing if he kept them over him a moment longer. It took him a few seconds to recognize he was in a hospital bed, in a hospital room, just like the day before.
   His hand searched frantically for the remote that would call the nurseâs station â call Laura â and found it under his pillow. Practically yanking to his person, his fingers hovered over the buttons. They shook, and no amount of concentration could get them to stop. Staring past them to the controller, he dropped it and pushed his head into his palms.Â
   How many times had he called Laura when he felt lonely, scared, confused? How mad were the nurses for his incessant buzzing, tired of his every whimper for company? He couldnât do it again.Â
   Lifting his head, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and shoved himself into an upright position. Sudden displacement of equilibrium had him stumbling and reaching for the wall. Shadows played against his fist, dancing along the line of his arm and beyond his periphery.Â
   He didnât dare glance over his shoulder and instead focused on locating the bathroom. In the split second his gaze crossed the room, he became aware of Timâs bed not too far from his own, but he didnât take the time to see if the other man was awake to witness this.
   A few unsteady steps hastened into a near run for the bathroom where he crashed against the sink and bent over it. He hadnât bothered to turn on the light, too afraid to see what shrouded his form in the glare of the florescent. Seeing it play across his vision during the day disturbed him plenty, he didnât need it to haunt him at night as well.Â
   Glancing at the bathtub just beyond the handicap accessible toilet, Miles pushed away from the sink and crawled inside. He drew the curtain closed and sank into the shallow tub. Head resting against the lip, he pressed a hand over his eyes and tried to breathe. He didnât hear the quiet sobs that shook him, only felt the wet trails down his face.Â
   Firmly pressed lips tried to muffle the sound, and he hoped no one could hear him. He could pretend the shower curtain would block out the rest of the world, shielding he from it, and it from him. The idea of sleep was impossible, and even as he pulled his arms tight around himself and pushed himself against the floor of the tub, he found no semblance of rest or peace.Â
   He curled in, feeling as lost as a kid in the woods. He didnât know what to do, only hide himself â covering his head with his arm.Â
        Maybe it would go away if he wished hard enough.Â
                        Not likely.Â
   Even though Miles had told her time && time again that he would
   be  fine---  that  she  could stay home ---Laura still found herself
   returning  back  to  the  hospital. All she wanted was to be able toÂ
   make  sure he really was there. Some sort of confirmation that he
   had  made  it  out  of  that place alive. She just couldnât shake theÂ
   fear  that she would wake up to realize it was all a dream, && that
   she  would  have  to  dress  in  black  for his funeral rather than toÂ
   visit him at the hospital.Â
   Laura  hadnât  slept  much, && it showed in how there were dark
   circles  under  her  eyes. Her hands moved to rub the drowsinessÂ
   away,  only  to  feel  a  sudden  sense  of  dread  in  the  pit of herÂ
   stomach.  Something  was  wrong.  She  didnât  know  how, butÂ
   even  at  a  young  age,  Laura  was  able to know if Ruben was inÂ
   danger.  That  seemed to transfer to Miles when she met him, sheÂ
   was  able  to  feel if  something  was  wrong.  && right now, herÂ
   mind screamed that nothing was right.Â
   She  didnât  hesitate  for  a  second  longer.  Laura  ran  down  theÂ
   hallway,  her  hand  pushing  opening the door to Miles && Timâs
   room  only  to  see  an  empty  bed.  âMiles??  Miles, where are
   you---â  Her  heart  sunk  down to her feet. What if he had gottenÂ
   hurt  or  someone  had taken him? So many things raced throughÂ
   her mind, that when she finally pushed her way into the bathroom
   to see him in the bathtub, all she could do was cry.Â
   It  was a relief. âOh, thank god, youâre here...â The light was on
   && she had just moved to wrap her arms around him tightly. HerÂ
   lips  pressing  into  the  side  of his head to offer some comfort asÂ
   she  slowly  got  into  the  tub with him. â...Lousy bathtub, huh? It
   doesnât  really  compare  to  the one back home...â Laura tried toÂ
   offer a smile, her hand wiping at her eyes as she gestured for him
   to come in closer.Â
prguitarman
romaincrisis
turnnoffyourmind
ellievsbear
tangentwithtanner
