The Friends Zone

by Tarrah Anders

  “I cannot confirm nor deny sir. We have someone attending to the individual right now.”

  “Thank you sir. I’ll contact their families and be on our way to the hospital.” Dane hangs up the phone and takes a deep breath. His eyes are glassy, and the color in his face has yet to return. My hands begin shaking as he steps closer to me. He wraps me up and hugs me as I sob into his chest. He’s holding me tightly and rubbing my back in an up and down motion.

  “Go get changed and a bag ready in case we’re at the hospital awhile. I’ll call Max’s parents and I’ll ask they call Betsy’s parents as well.” He says and he pulls away and holds me by the arms.

  Still unable to speak, I nod my head and I’m walking into the bedroom in a daze. Tears are still falling from my eyes as I change out of my work clothes and into yoga pants and a sweatshirt. I grab a backpack from the closet and stuff a pair of pants and shirts of both of our wardrobes inside. I make the motions to the bathroom and put our spare toothbrushes into a toiletry bag. I grab our deodorants and a brush and I’m leaving our room. I walk back to the kitchen and Dane is quietly speaking to Max’s parents. He finishes up the call and turns to me again.

  “It’s going to be okay.” Dane whispers.

  “No it’s not. You hear the officer, he couldn’t confirm or deny, she was thrown from the vehicle. Something bad happened.”

  “Let’s get going. Max’s parents are meeting us at the hospital. They’re going to call and get Betsy’s parents there too. C’mon.” He wraps an arm around me as we make sure everything in the kitchen is turned off. We close up the house and Dane opens his passenger door for me as I slide in.

  Driving to the hospital seems to take forever. We enter the emergency room to find out that the ambulance carrying our friends is roughly 5 minutes out. Shortly after we took a seat, Max’s parents ran inside, they headed to the counter but stopped and turned when they saw us sitting there.

  “Mr. & Mrs. Matthews should be here any minute; they were probably leaving as soon as we said hospital. Have they arrived yet? Do we know anything yet?” Mrs. Hunter asks finally taking a breath.

  “Not yet, ETA is under 5 minutes. I reckon we should get comfortable, since they’ll whisk them back and will assess the situation before we will have any details.” Dane says evenly.

  As we move to sit in the corner along the wall, with an open view to the front doors, Betsy’s parents rush in. Mrs. Matthew’s face is flush as she steps in front of us.

  “Anything?” She breathes.

  We shake our head as they join our group. No one has said a word, we’re all too afraid to speak as the front doors slide open and two gurneys are rushed in. There’s so many EMT’s, nurses and a few doctors that we couldn’t get a good look as they were rushed through another set of double doors.

  It feels like we’ve been sitting and waiting for hours until someone comes to speak to us. When someone does, a nurse, she approaches us slowly.

  “Max Hunter’s family?” She asks. We all stand up and Max’s parents acknowledge the nurse.

  “Max has suffered an open femur shaft fracture, he broke his thigh bone. They have taken him into surgery since we want to ward against any infection, a surgeon was on call and is currently scrubbing in. He has a concussion, but overall he will be fine.”

  “The surgery, what does it entail?” Mr. Hunter asks.

  “The type of surgery he will be having is called Intramedullary Nailing. He will have a metal rod inserted to his marrow canal and this will help with keeping his fracture in position. Then an intramedullary nail will be inserted through a small incision and it will be screwed at both ends of the bone to assist with proper placement for full healing and recovery.” She states holding her tablet against her side. “He’ll be admitted for a few days to oversee and instruct on some weight bearing and physical therapy from his doctor, then he will need some assistance with driving if he needs, but overall we urge for the patients to place as much weight as they can manage on the leg.”

  The Hunters nod, ingesting the words being provided.

  “Is there any word on Betsy Matthews? I believe she was the driver.” Betsy’s dad asks.

  “I’m sorry sir, at the moment I do not have any information on that patient, someone will be out shortly once they have a clear indication on the injuries.” She offers a smile and turns as a doctor walks out the same doors she emerged from.

  “Betsy’s Matthews family?” He asks solemnly.

  “Yes!” Mrs. Matthew’s exclaims.

  “I’m Doctor Jenson, I accessed your daughter and spoke with briefly the gentlemen she arrived with. According to the officer’s report from the scene, she was ejected from the driver’s seat and through the windshield of the vehicle. Her injuries include internal bleeding in her abdomen as well as it appears that she may have a ruptured blood vessel in the chest cavity. She also has a compound fracture of the leg. She is currently unconscious and on the way to the OR and we have a vascular, orthopedic and a general surgeon scrubbing in. I cannot say how long it will be until we have another update, but I wanted to inform you of her status before we start.”

  Mrs. Matthews is sobbing loudly while clutching to her husband who is standing still as a statue. Mrs. Hunter is rubbing her back and whispering something to them.

  “I will have someone update you as we go along. Now, if you would excuse me…” He turns his heel quickly and returns through the double doors.

  Dane and I haven’t said a word; our vocal chords seem to have froze. Dane’s eyes have reddened and turned glassy, I notice as he turns to me and squeezes my hand tightly.

  “I need to call Lukas and Talia. I don’t think Max will be making it into the office for a bit, and I need to make sure Lukas or myself cover any meetings on Max’s schedule for a few weeks. Have a seat, I’ll grab us something to eat from the cafeteria as well since we missed dinner.” He kisses me on the cheek and gives my hand one more squeeze before he’s walking away and putting his phone to his ear.

  DANE

  We’ve been sitting in the waiting room of this hospital for at least 5 hours. It’s close to midnight and no one is about to fall asleep. Max’s surgery went well and he was admitted to his own private room. We’ve each taken turns to visit him. Visiting hours is over, but we’ve been granted two at a time permission for 15 minute intervals. He’s not talking and he looks worse than I did when I got into the fight with Ryan a few months ago. His skin is ashen and his face is busted. If this wasn’t a time where we were in limbo with news of Betsy, we would be joking about how he looks like Quasimodo from the Hunchback. But since we don’t know of anything we’re sitting ducks and sitting in silence as no one knows what to say.

  I called Lukas and Talia to rearrange schedules, but to let them know that I would be also taking the rest of the week off, it was Wednesday, so that wasn’t too bad. Lukas came to the hospital about an hour after I called him and he’s now currently sitting on Sterling’s other side talking quietly to her about music, to keep her focused on something other than what we’re sitting in this sterile waiting room for. I’m afraid to open my mouth, in thinking that I might miss something that someone will say that will give us an indication of Betsy’s condition.

  I take a deep breath and as I release the air, three doctors emerge from the double doors. That’s never a good sign when they do that on television. I think to myself as they approach.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Matthews?” They ask looking at the older folks sitting with us. Betsy’s parents stand slowly. Her father is bracing his wife tightly as they nod. The doctors motion them to a few seats away from our group and sit them down. I move my body towards their directions, however they aren’t whispering.

  “I’m sorry. During the surgery, your daughter suffered a complication when we were attempting to stop the rupture in her chest. Her heart stopped pumping blood. I’m sorry…. but she didn’t make it.”

  What happened next was my hearing disappeared, my hand was clutchi
ng onto Sterling’s and I’m not sure which one of us was squeezing harder. My vision blurred and I felt moisture on my cheeks. I turned my head to Sterling, wrapped my arm around her shoulder and brought her to my chest. She shook in my embrace as she sobbed uncontrollably. I looked over to Betsy’s parents and they sat the same way that we did. I glanced at Max’s parents and Mrs. Hunter was sobbing while her husband leaned over and rubbed her back. Lukas was staring at the wall, while he didn’t know Betsy as well or as long as we did, it’s obvious the news is affecting him as well. I still couldn’t hear anything that was occurring around me, but my eyes were taking everything in. My mind is racing with all kinds of thoughts none of which are coherent.

  I’m unsure how long we’ve been sitting so stoically, time stands still, and there’s crying all around us. Slowly my hearing comes back and I hear sniffling from Sterling. I kiss the top of her head and suggest that we stand. I walk us over to where Betsy’s parents are sitting. Max’s parents have gone to sit beside them as well. I note the time and it’s 2am.

  “Max?” I ask his father, my voice hoarse.

  “He’s still sleeping son. We’re going to let him sleep and then tell him when he wakes.” He says.

  “Do you want….?” I start, but Mr. Hunter is shaking his head.

  “We’ll do it together, but we aren’t going to wake him. You’ve done enough for us tonight Dane. I thank you, we thank you.” He says nodding at Betsy’s family as well. “You guys should head home and try to get some sleep. I’ll see that we call you as soon as Max wakes.”

  “Thank you sir. And please call me. I’m going to get Sterling home.” I step tentatively in from of Betsy’s parents and lower down so I’m on my hunches.

  “I’m really sorry for your loss. Betsy was an integral part of Sterling and mines life. If you guys need anything, any help, whatever it is – please let us know. Mr. Hunter has our numbers.” Mrs. Matthews eyes are puffy and red as she nods, her lips quivering. Mr. Matthews shakes my hand and mouths thank you as I stand.

  Lukas has taken position standing against the wall and Sterling is staring at the window in a daze. I approach Lukas extending my hand. His eyes flicker to me at my movement.

  “Thanks for coming. Go head on home. Let’s everyone know that Max will be out for a bit longer potentially than expected. I’ll touch base by email for the remainder of the week, but yeah…” I run my hand through my hair.

  “Hey man, no thoughts on work right now. This sucks, but I’ve got it. You take care of your people.” He offers a smile and he grasps my hand.

  “Thanks buddy. I’ll call you tomorrow at some point.” I assure taking his hand.

  I turn to Sterling, she’s still staring at the window, her shoulders hunched as her arms are hugging her body.

  “Come on baby, let’s get you home.” I say reaching for her hand. She slowly turns her head to me. It pains me to see her like this. The last time I’d seen her hurt this bad was when her childhood dog died, but I know that this was her best friend and how much worse it is this time. She reaches for my hand and I pull her up and to my side as I wrap my arm around her shoulder. She turns to grab the bag she had packed before we left the house and we exit the hospital waiting room in silence.

  The car ride home was also silent, as was when we entered our house.

  Sterling stills as she steps beside the couch. I take her stuff and set it aside and lead her to our bedroom, through it and to our bathroom. I have her sit on the ledge of the tub and I start the shower. I pull her to stand up and start undressing her slowly. When she’s fully undressed, I undress myself and pull her into the shower.

  Under the warmth of the water spray she leans into me and buries her head against my chest. I take a deep breath as she lets out more sobs. I run my hands up and down her back. Her arms are tightly secured around my back and I just lean with my upper back against the wall of the shower. The water falls over us for several minutes.

  I reach around her and start to lather up soap on her loofah. I rub it across the skin on her back and her arms, I adjust back so I can reach her front and then I lower myself to capture her legs. I then rub the loofah on myself to wash the stink of the hospital off of my skin as well. Loofah’s are nice I stupidly think as I finish my leg. We still haven’t spoken since leaving the hospital and I’m not going to press it. I have no words right now, all I want to do is be there for Sterling and I want to be the person present with Max when he’s told that his girlfriend of 3 years is dead. Instantly, my vision blurs but I use the water to wash the feeling away. With one last spray of water on our bodies, I turn off the water and reach for Sterling’s towel first. I wrap her in it and she steps out of the shower. She hands me my towel and I smile in thanks as I start to dry off. Sterling is just standing in front of the bathroom vanity on the bath mat. Her hair is clumped against her head and she’s staring at her image in the mirror. Or she’s staring blankly, I see her shiver. I wrap my towel against my waist and I go to her side and start to dry her off. Her eyes focus and she looks at me, I see her eyes soften and she lifts a hand to my cheek and runs it down towards my jaw.

  “Thank you.” She whispers as her teeth chatter from being cold and wet.

  “Let’s get you in some clothes and go to sleep.” She nods.

  “I want to go back to the hospital.” She meekly replies.

  “We will, let’s get a few hours of sleep first. Trust me, I want to be there too, but we won’t be of any use if we haven’t slept.”

  I pull on a pair of boxers, she puts on shorts and a tank top, and we crawl into bed. She snuggles into me and we fall asleep.

  My phone vibrates on my nightstand wakes me. Sterling is on the edge of the bed on her side and her breathing is even.

  Jacob Hunter: Max is awake. We will wait for you to get here. The text from Max’s dad comes through. I lift my head and note that it’s still dark outside. It’s 5:25am, we got at least a few hours of sleep.

  I lift the blanket off of me and shake Sterling’s shoulder. She moves and mumbles something incoherently.

  “Max is awake, let’s get dressed and head over there, if you want.” She nods her head, her eyes only halfway open as she starts her slow movements to dress as I do the same.

  We thought alike and dress comfortably, assuming that we’ll be sitting in hospital chairs for a few hours. She emerges from the bathroom with shadows under her eyes, which she’s still smoothing out the concealer. Her hair is pulled back into a ponytail and she’s wearing a matching Adidas tracksuit, like one from the late 90’s with the stripes. She’s beautiful even when she’s this sad. I’m wearing a zip up surf sweatshirt over my favorite grey star wars vintage shirt, worn jeans and flip-flops. I grab a ball cap and slip it on my head. I motion towards the hallway and place my hand on the small of her back as we walk through the house. I go into the kitchen and grab a few bottled waters and we exit.

  We arrive at the hospital within 20 minutes and we go to the waiting room where Max’s parents are seated. They both look like they could use a few hours of sleep, but I can understand if they haven’t.

  “The Matthews just left. They couldn’t bring themselves to stay when we told Max. Are you sure you want to do this?” Mr. Hunter asks me.

  “No doubt about it.” I say as Sterling squeezes my hand for encouragement.

  “The staff hasn’t told him anything, but he’s been asking. He’s going to be discharged in a few days, he’ll be on crutches and he should completely heal in 4 to 6 months, but every recovery period is different they say. His doctor said he should be off work for a few weeks, but you know him – he’ll make up his mind on what he needs to do.”

  “I have all his meetings rescheduled to myself or Lukas for the next few weeks, and we have the coverage now at the office if he needs longer. Don’t worry sir, I’ve got this. Lukas is covering for the rest of this week and next week – I’ll start tackling things. We’ll see if Max wants to stay with us for a few weeks or so too.”


  “Well…” Mr. Hunter exhales. “Let’s get this over with. Ladies, you are welcome to come but I understand if you want to remain here.”

  I look to Sterling and she’s holding Max’s mom’s hand. “We’ll sit out here.” She says as they sit.

  I wink at her and try to offer her a smile as I go and tell my best buddy that his girlfriend is dead.

  STERLING

  It’s a week after the accident, and tonight is the funeral services. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve broken down and cried, I’m surprised that any tears come out at all. I’m slowly regaining my own composure with the support of Dane, but from what I’ve seen, Max hasn’t cried once that I’ve seen.

  When Max woke up in the hospital the day after the accident, Dane and Mr. Hunter told Max the bad news. Max didn’t believe them at first, he was on some pain meds, so he thought they were fucking with him. He kept insisting that they wheel him to her room, and then he got angry. His anger morphed into extreme anger, he lashed out at anyone who came near him. Dane held it together for his friend, but I knew each time he came out of the room that this was taking a toll on him. When the hospital was discharging Max, we had agreed that he would stay with us for a bit. We had the spare room, and if this was anything like what generally psychology textbooks say, he has a few more stages of grief to go through.

  I’ve taken bereavement from work and I’m sitting at the dining table drinking a coffee while looking at the news headlines on my laptop. I’m numb most of the time, except when Dane touches me. We’ve not made love since the accident, but neither of us are pressing for it. We both need to heal, we all need to heal. Dane had to go back to work but he checks in through-out the day, he’s due for his mid-morning check in any minute.

  I take a sip of the coffee in front of me as I hear the crutches entering into the space. I look up at Max, tentative to speak, but I do.

  “Coffee?” I ask holding up my mug.