“Somebody take me home,” Jack sobbed. “I don’t wanna be here then the doctor comes to tell us the bad news.”
“Come on,” Leonie said as she helped Jack up. She had been the only one who managed to stay composed while the others crumbled. She led Jack out of the hospital and to her car. “You wanna drive for a little while before we go home?”
Jack nodded. “Anything, it doesn’t matter.”
Leonie turned onto the highway and just headed straight into the darkness.
“This can’t be happening,” Jack said.
Leonie shook her head trying to stay composed. Her heart felt as if it had been ripped out of her chest the moment she found out her best friend was dead. ‘No! He’s not!’ her mind screamed. ‘He can’t be! He just can’t be!’
“I’ve never met anyone as strong as you,” Jack told her. “Back when I could still play sports, I thought I was strong. I turned from a block of ice into a puddle of water the second I lost everything. I’ve never felt so lost and helpless.”
Leonie couldn’t take it anymore and pulled off the road. She rested her head on the steering wheel and started to cry. “I’m not that strong,” she bawled. “Darren was my best friend. How can he be gone just like that? It’s just not possible. And I didn’t even get to say goodbye to him.”
“You’re not the only one. I didn’t get to say goodbye either. I didn’t want to. I couldn’t. I wanted to believe that this was just another bad dream and that I would wake up soon,” Jack replied. “You’re lucky. You don’t have to live with the fact that he killed himself because of you. I have to live with it everyday for the rest of my life, and I just can’t take it. I feel like I wanna die.”
Just as Leonie was about to reply, her cell began to ring. She looked at her caller ID before answering. “It’s Dan. Should I pick up?”
“Don’t. We’re already crying. We don’t need to shed anymore tears,” Jack replied as she took the phone and turned it off.
~~~~~~~~~~
“Did you get a hold of her?” Nadia eagerly asked as she looked over Dan’s shoulder.
“No, she turned off her phone. I got her caller ID,” he replied as he put his phone away.
“Try again!” she pestered. “Jack needs to know that Darren is okay. You have to get a hold of Leonie.”
“Calm down, Nadia,” Dan ordered. Dr. Anderson was still in the waiting room waiting to tell them what happened. Dan turned to him and said, “So, explain what happened to Darren because I don’t understand.”
“We have no idea,” Anderson replied.
“Why would Jack think he was dead?” Dan asked.
“The sensors did go off. It has been known to happen once in a while when the machines malfunction or when there’s a power surge. But this time we have no idea what happened. The doctors and nurses on call ran to see what was wrong, and they found him awake. I think this is the most wonderful news I’ve ever given anyone in my entire career. Would you like to go up and see him?” Anderson answered.
“Duh,” Nadia sarcastically replied. Anderson led them to the third floor past security to Darren’s room.
Dan, Ben, Angi, and Nadia filed in quietly. Darren was asleep when they first saw him, but he definitely looked more alive than before. Nadia sat down on the chair beside his bed and took his hand.
“Jack?” Darren groaned as he opened his eyes.
“No, it’s me, Nadia,” she said. Her heart felt as if it had leapt out of her chest. ‘He so loves her,’ she thought. “Jack and Leonie went home. They thought you were dead.”
Darren smiled weakly and shook his head. “That’s Jack for ya,” he replied.
“You scared the crap out of us,” Dan said from the foot of the bed. “We really did think you were dead. Jack said she came up here to tell you a few things, and that’s when she thought you died. Nadia, care you explain further?”
“Uh…” Nadia began, not expecting the question. “Well, she said she came up here to tell you that she loved you.” She turned to Dan and asked, “You wanna tell him the rest?”
“Hell no! I had to tell her. Someone else tell him,” Dan protested.
“Tell me what?” Darren asked.
“Ben, you tell him. You haven’t said a word all night,” Dan ordered.
“You gotta be kidding me!” Ben objected.
“God! Men are so childish sometimes,” Angi finally stepped in. “I’ll tell him.” She turned to Darren and added, “This is definitely gonna come as a shock to you, so don’t pass out, okay?” Darren nodded. “Well, a couple of days ago, just after you were admitted to the hospital, Jack passed out in the waiting room and everyone got freaked out, so we had a doctor take a look at her. Boy, did we get the surprise of a lifetime. Turns out that Jack is three months pregnant. And yes, it’s yours.”
“She’s pregnant?” Darren asked in a hoarse voice.
“Yeah,” all four answered in unison.
“Oh, my God,” he slowly replied. “And it’s mine?”
“Yes,” Nadia said. “You’re going to be a father!”
“This is probably the best day of my life,” Darren told them. “I’m alive, Jack loves me, and she’s having a baby. Does this mean I have your permission to marry her?”
“Yeah,” Dan said. “I’m glad you finally asked.”
~~~~~~~~~~
After nearly an hour of crying, Jack and Leonie were finally on the road again. Leonie turned on the radio and scanned the stations for a good song, but it seemed as if none of them were playing anything good at the moment. She left it on one channel in the midst of commercials and continued driving.
Jack had just curled up in her seat and was about to fall asleep when she heard the DJ say, “This just in, Darren Hayes, lead singer of the group Savage Garden…” Jack quickly turned if off and snuggled back into her seat.
“You want me to drop you off at home?” Leonie asked.
“Yeah, I’m falling asleep over here. I’d really appreciate it,” Jack replied.
“I’m gonna head back to the hospital and begin the paperwork for the you know what. I know it’ll take me forever now that the public knows,” Leonie said. “I’m gonna go home first and get some sleep.” She pulled into the driveway and stopped. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Bye, Leo,” Jack replied as she got out of the car and went to the front door. Leonie pulled out of the driveway when she saw Jack close the door behind her.
Seconds after Jack set foot in the house, she broke into tears. It was more than just Darren’s death that was making her cry. There was a horrible pain in her stomach that just wouldn’t go away. She felt as if she’d drop to the floor any second, but managed to stumble into the kitchen and open the fridge. She found some left over pizza from dinner a few nights ago and scarffed it down. The pain in her stomach lessened as she ate more.
Jack was done with her late night meal around three and headed upstairs to her room. Too exhausted to take off her clothes, she dropped into her bed and instantly fell into a restless sleep.