Brooks. My anchor. My strength.
“Maggie,” Calvin choked out, standing from the private waiting room. “You—you’re here,” he stuttered, walking over to me. His arms wrapped tightly around my body. “You’re here.”
Within seconds the twins joined the hug, and we stood there for some time.
“He’s in pretty bad shape,” Calvin said, standing around Mama, Daddy, and me, filling us in on all the information. “The propeller sliced him pretty bad up his side. The doctors said he might lose two of his fingers. It also slightly hit his throat, but…I don’t know. Everything happened so fast. In a blink of an eye, everything changed. We were just out on the water having a good time. Everything was fine. But now…” He pinched the bridge of his nose, like Daddy always did. “Now everything’s changed, and all we can do is wait to see by how much.”
Mama and Daddy wandered off to get coffee for everyone, since we had a long night ahead of us. After coffee, they drove Mrs. Boone to the closest motel for the night to rest. In the corner, Rudolph was having a fit, blaming himself for the accident. Oliver stayed by his side, telling him otherwise. I nudged Calvin with questioning eyes.
“Brooks saved Rudolph from going overboard. The storm rocked the boat, and Rudolph almost fell overboard, but Brooks managed to pull him back. After he yanked him away from the edge, the boat rocked again, sending Brooks over.”
Wow…
“Rudolph is having a hard time with it—blaming himself. It was a freak accident, though. There was no one and nothing to blame except timing.”
After a while, I found a chair in the corner and curled up in a ball, waiting.
As I waited, I saw and heard everything. Every person’s movement, every person’s voice, every object in the room. Everything felt so close, so real since I’d left home. If a nurse dropped a pen, my head would shoot up to where the sound came from.
It was harder than I’d imagined, leaving home, but it was even harder not knowing if Brooks was all right.
So whenever the devil tried to take over my mind, I closed myself and took a few breaths, remembering that our love was louder than my past moments.
“He’s out of surgery,” I overheard the doctor telling Brooks’ parents. I sat up straighter to eavesdrop. “He’s doing okay. He was very lucky that the cut to his side wasn’t too deep. Any deeper and we could’ve lost him.”
“Oh my God,” Brooks’ mother muttered, tears filling her eyes.
“The troubling news was with his hand.” The doctor shifted around in his shoes before crossing his arms over his white coat. “I’m sorry. We tried our best to save his two fingers, but the damage to them when they hit the propeller was too great. We were hoping to salvage them both, but were unable to. We had to amputate them both in order to improve the overall hand function.”
Which hand? I wondered, my stomach in knots.
“Which hand?” Jamie called out from behind his parents.
The doctor raised an eyebrow, looking over at Jamie. “I’m sorry?”
“I said which hand.”
With hesitation, the doctor looked at Brooks’ parents, unsure if he should say anything in front of us all. When they gave him the right to speak freely in the room, he said the left hand. The room all groaned together.
“Shit,” Rudolph hissed, pounding his hand against the wall. “Shit!”
Brooks used his left hand for frets on his guitar. He’d be unable to play with his injury, and everyone in the room felt that devastation.
“I know how hard this can be, being his career, but we’re really happy to have him still here with us. I fear it might be nearly impossible for him to play the guitar again. With his throat injury singing might be tough, but I believe he’ll fall back into place with his vocals over time. It will be hard, but I think with the right physical therapy and vocal work, he should be able to get his voice back to normal.” The doctor gave everyone a sad smile. “He’ll probably be resting for a while, but when it’s time to see him, I’ll have the nurses come get you.”
As he left, the room went silent, except for the sound of Rudolph pounding against the wall and cursing. “Shit, shit, shit.”
When they moved Brooks to another room we were allowed to see him two people at a time. I held back, waiting to be the last one in to visit. He was asleep when I entered the room, and I was somewhat thankful. I stood in the corner of the room, watching him sleep. His breaths were heavy and seemed hard to swallow. The scar across his neck ran from his collarbone up to his jawline. His left hand was bandaged up, and he had a few bruises on his body, but he was alive. Therefore, nothing else mattered.
“You won’t hurt him,” a nurse told me as she checked his vitals.
I hadn’t moved from the corner for the past thirty minutes I’d been allowed into the room.
She smiled. “If you hold his right hand, you won’t hurt him. They gave him some sleeping pills to help him rest up a bit. He’s been a bit restless while sleeping, which makes it harder for him to heal. So, he’ll be asleep for some time. But, if you wanted to sit beside him…” She gestured toward the chair to Brooks’ right side. “You can hold his hand.”
Nodding, I moved to his side, sat down, and slowly locked his fingers with mine. I’m here, Brooks. I’m here.
The nurse grinned. “I’ll be back to check on him in a while.”
Once she left, I scooted in closer and laid my head on his arm. His chest rose and fell every few seconds, and I counted each time it happened. I moved in even closer, wanting him to feel my heat against his skin, wanting him to know I was there. I’m here.
I couldn’t stop staring. I couldn’t take my eyes off him, because if I did, I worried he’d stop breathing.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know—” a voice started, making me lift my head from Brooks’ bed. I twisted around to see a woman standing there, with a vase full of flowers. “I…” Her words stumbled off her tongue, and she frowned. “They didn’t say anyone was in here.”
Sasha.
I’d seen her before due to me stalking her online and staring at every photograph she ever posted on Instagram. She was beautiful, and it seemed effortless. No makeup. No fancy clothes. Just her, and her flowers.
Her eyes shifted to my hand, which was still holding Brooks’.
I dropped it quickly.
“Sorry. I’ll just drop these off and get going.” She grimaced as she placed the vase on the countertop. As she turned to leave, she paused. “You’re her, aren’t you?” she asked.
I narrowed my eyes, confused.
“Oh, don’t play stupid. You’re the girl. The girl who sent him the books.”
I stood up, feeling awkward, unable to communicate with her.
“So nothing? You have nothing to say? I’m not trying to be rude. I’m just…” She paused. “You’re not the only one who really cares about him, you know.”
I tapped against my throat, and she narrowed her eyes confused.
“What?”
Looking around the room, I searched for something I could write on. When I looked up against the wall, I saw the nurses’ white board and hurried over to it.
I don’t have a voice.
Sasha crossed her arms. “Like just today or…ever?”
Ever.
She frowned. A level of guilt rocketed through her eyes. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know. What’s your name?”
Maggie.
“Maggie.” She pushed her fingers through her chocolate brown hair, then placed her hands against her hips. “You’re crazy about him, aren’t you?”
I didn’t know how to answer, because I felt as if anything I said might hurt her.
She smiled. “It’s okay, I know. It’s hard not to be. I’ll get going… If you could please not tell him I stopped by? Not for him, but just for me. I’d rather him not know.”
Are you sure?
“Yeah, I am. Just take care of him, all right? He’s going to be a bit broken, not being able to play his
guitar anymore. It’s his life. Other than, well…” Her words faded, and she gave me another tight smile. “Anywho, I’m gonna go. Just don’t let him on the Internet, all right? The media can love you one day and hate you the next. It’s easy for a celebrity to lose themselves after something tragic happens. This time the media was shockingly quick to turn their backs on Brooks. You know how gentle his heart is...I’m not sure he could handle the backlash. Just watch after him. Even though it seems like you’re never alone in the limelight, no one ever really speaks out about how lonely it truly becomes. Remind him that his worth isn’t decided by the leading headline of the week.”
I promised I’d look after him.
She stepped out of the room, and I erased the board. I sat back beside Brooks and took his hand in mine once more. My cheek fell against his arm, and I went back to taking in every slight movement he made.
“Oh, and, Maggie?” Sasha said, stepping back into the room. “I just want you to know that I see it.” She shifted her feet and gestured toward Brooks and me. “You look at him the same way he looked at those books. Thanks for not being the monster I built you up to be in my mind. I just wish you were a bit ugly, that’s all,” she said with a hint of charm.
I smirked. Ditto.
31
Brooks
Mom, Dad, and Jamie told me I’d be okay. They told me how lucky I’d been to come out of the accident with only minor injuries. Minor—bad word choice from my brother, and when he said it he realized his mistake. “Sorry, I don’t mean minor, I just mean…” His words faltered. “I’m just happy you’re here to see another day.”
My eyes darted to my hand, which was wrapped in bandages. I hadn’t spoken a word. People kept coming in and out of the room, smiling at me the kind of grins they gave to kids who lost their puppies.
Pathetic.
I felt pathetic.
The band came and sat with me awhile, and the air was thick with guilt. What hurt the most, though, was how they reminded me of music. How they were a reminder of the thing I’d lost in one moment’s time. When the managers came, I’d almost lost it.
“We have to come up with a plan of attack. The media is going bonkers. We need a statement,” Dave ordered.
“We need a break,” Calvin said, short with Dave. “You’re acting like Brooks didn’t just go through a major trauma.”
“But he survived,” Dave said with his sly smile. “Which is the message we should push. We should showcase how strong he is and how for his comeback—”
Comeback?
I huffed and grumbled.
Everyone’s eyes shot to me.
Hours before, I’d been in an accident, and now they were expecting a magical comeback for me.
Dave furrowed. “You know what, let’s give it a day or two. We’ll give it some time.”
When everyone left the room, I sighed, not even knowing where my mind was. I still felt as if I were in that water. When I closed my eyes, I swore I could feel the waves.
The door to my room opened once more, and I wished it hadn’t. I was sick of seeing people, sick of hearing them talk about what a miracle my life was—how lucky I’d been.
My body rotated to the door, and I almost fell from my bed.
Maggie.
She was standing in my hospital room, staring at me, with her hands wrapped around her body. Her blue eyes were bloodshot as if she’d been crying for hours, and her hair was pulled up into a messy bun. She never wore her hair up.
Then again, she never left home.
Was it a dream?
If so, I hoped not to wake.
I parted my lips to ask her what was happening, but my throat burned. It hurt to open my mouth. It hurt to move to my left and turn to my right. It hurt to breathe.
She gave me a tight smile and walked over to my bedside. Taking my right hand, she kissed my palm, and I shut my eyes. I kept trying to clear my throat to speak, but she squeezed my hand once, ordering me not to. So we stayed there, my eyes closed, and Maggie May holding my hand.
She hardly left my hospital room for days. When they offered her a visitor room, set up like a hotel, she declined, holding my hand tighter. She’d curl up into a ball on the small sofa each night and fall asleep. Maggie smiled at me daily, but at night, when she was one with her dreams, I’d watch her twist and turn, and sometimes waking in a sweat. Her demons weren’t gone simply because she left home—but she was trying her best to keep them at bay.
“All right, it’s about that time to get you up and moving around, Brooks,” a nurse said, walking into my hospital room one afternoon. I hated that time of the day. They forced me to walk around the hallways using a walker. Maggie always took the laps with me, and when my left side felt like giving up, and I’d start to fall, she’d leap over to help me, but the nurse ordered her not to save me. “You can come to support, but you can’t help. Don’t worry, I won’t let him fall.”
Halfway down the hall, my chest felt tight, and my breathing grew short. “Back,” I coughed out, my voice hoarse. I wanted to go back to my room and lie down.
“Nope, remember? We’re gonna complete a whole lap before—”
I slammed the walker up and down, my neck throbbing with pain. Back. Back. Back.
It was embarrassing, feeling so weak. My hand hurt. My side burned. My mind was a mess.
The nurse gave me a tight smile, before looking over at Maggie. “I think it’s a good time for a nap.” She winked at Maggie. Maggie frowned, and her worry was loud and clear in her stare.
I grumbled some more. We started back to the room, and after I was placed back into bed, Maggie grabbed a notepad and sat beside me.
You okay today, Brooks?
I squeezed her hand once.
Truth was, I was angry. I was angry at my management team asking what the plan was for the remainder of the tour—even though I wouldn’t be able to play. They brought up all kinds of different plans that included the guys touring without me, replacing me with another performer for a while, and having me hammer out my voice in intense vocal courses.
The scars on my body were nowhere near healed, and they were already treating me as if I didn’t exist anymore. To them, even after ten years of dedicating my life to them, I was nothing more than a paycheck in their eyes.
“We won’t do that,” Calvin argued. “We’ll wait until he’s better,” my best friend told them over and over again.
“Yeah. Without Brooks we’re literally just The Coo. And who the fuck wants to listen to The Coo?” Oliver said.
Rudolph hadn’t said much of anything. He hardly looked at me. I had the feeling he blamed himself for the accident. What I hated the most was the dark corner of my brain that sort of blamed him too. Each day I was becoming less and less of myself. Each day I was a little more bitter. I hated that Maggie sat there watching it happen, too. I hated that she witnessed my destruction.
When the time came for me to leave the hospital, Maggie and I sat in my hospital room while the nurse went to get a wheelchair. My parents had plans for me to come stay with them for a while. To get a nurse to watch over me, so I could focus on healing. But that wasn’t my plan.
“I’m going back to the cabin,” I whispered, because everything I said came out in a low tone. My voice always sounded hoarse whenever it came out, and I hated it.
Maggie arched an eyebrow.
“I don’t want to go home. I don’t want to sit with people’s pity. I don’t want that.”
No one pities you.
“Everyone does. They act like I’m deaf. I hear them. And they blame me, too. At least the media does. I don’t know. I just need a break to get away. To be by myself.”
I know what that’s like. To be in a crowded room where everyone speaks as if you’re a ghost. I’ll come with you.
I frowned. “No, Maggie. You have a to-do list to get started. I’m in no shape to be able to…” I sighed. To be able to have you. “Why does it feel like our timing’s always off?”
Her head lowered to her board, and she began to write as tears fell against her words.
Please don’t leave me again.
I lifted my left hand to console her and paused, looking down at my hand wrapped in a bandage. I wanted her. I wanted her so much, but I knew where my mind was. I knew about the panic attacks I had at night, remembering the accident. I knew about the panic attacks I had during the day, realizing I was the one holding back my band, disappointing my fans, losing promoters for our tour. Losing hundreds of thousands of dollars because of my idea to force myself out on a boat.
I didn’t want to leave Maggie May, but I knew I had to. She had a lifetime of her own panics. The last thing she needed while she was becoming better was to deal with mine.
32
Maggie
“Guess who’s back? Back again? Cheryl’s back!” Cheryl hollered, walking into the house with two suitcases and dreadlocks. It had been a week since Brooks sent me home and gone up to the cabin without me. Everyone tried their best to convince him not to go alone, but he wouldn’t have any part of it. He had his nurses who checked in on him and cared for him each day, but otherwise, he was out on his own in Messa.
Daddy, Mama, and I sat down at the dining room table eating dinner as Cheryl came charging into our house, unannounced. Last I heard she was on some island with her boyfriend.
“Cheryl,” Mama said, surprised, but still happy to see her world traveler. “What are you doing here?”
“What? Can’t a girl come visit her family?” She pulled the chair out beside me and sat.
“Always,” Daddy replied. “But last we heard, you were deeply in love with a boy named Jason, and getting dreadlocks on some sandy beach.”
The Elements Series Complete Box Set Page 73
