Choosing You (Gravity Hill #3)

59. Chapter 56

T hey wouldn’t let me through the double doors after they took Banks, and waiting for someone to come through and give me news has me pacing and ripping at my hair. They said he’s in surgery, that’s the only thing we know.

If he doesn’t make it, I don’t know that I’ll be able to move on.

To move forward.

How could I have not said it back to him when I had the chance?

Everyone met us at the hospital. Creed’s been on the phone barking orders. Charlie disappeared for a couple of hours, and when she got here, I noticed she was freshly showered and changed. Liam, the guy who she brought to help us, hasn’t left her side, and I’m assuming that he was the one who convinced her to take care of herself. The look of horror on her face makes me think she might have come straight to the hospital otherwise.

“Sit down, Henry,” dad whispers.

“I can’t!” I gasp, “They won’t tell us anything! What i–if h-he’s…” New sobs wrack my body, and I can’t finish my thought.

“Don’t you dare,” Diego says, “don’t act like my boy won't fight death itself to come back to us, to you .”

Deep down, I know he’s right. Banks wouldn’t leave me here, not after all the progress he’s made. Not after I kissed him. I have to tell him I love him back!

He stands, gripping my shoulder and pulling me aside. “Banks has had a lot to say since starting therapy. And no matter what the topic is, he always brings you up.” He runs his hand through his beard and sighs. “My boy loves you more than words can justify. After he dropped Charlie off yesterday, he came home and declared that you needed everything you two used to make those new cookies and had Harley go pick them up from the culinary store in Cardis. He planned on surprising you after all of this.”

My lips quiver as fresh tears threaten to fall.

“He’s signed up for a culinary class just so he can bake you something. He’s smiling again, letting people get to know him. Did you know I got to see him and Jax act like they used to before Fauna passed? How joyful he looked. Sure, Henry, you’re the reason he’s pushing himself to get help, but he’s choosing to put in the work. I don’t think I’ve seen him this… dedicated to anything, anyone , in a long damn time.”

His words threaten to steal my breath. I knew my Banks was in there. Buried so deep in anguish and grief, but he’s there. Shining through an angry ocean to reach me.

“Thank you for loving him, even when he didn’t think he could love you back.”

I never thought I’d be lost for words. Diego’s gratitude is like a punch to my stomach, a reminder that if Banks doesn’t pull through, he will die without me telling him I loved him back.

The metal doors open, and a man with blood staining his green scrubs comes out and walks towards me and Diego. “Are you the family for Banks Rossi?”

Everyone in the waiting room stands when he asks, including Charlie and Liam.

“Oh, okay then,” the man says. “I’m Dr. Gully, Banks’s surgeon.”

“How is he?” Diego asks.

“He’s stable, lost a lot of blood. The bullet nicked his liver, and we were able to repair most of the damage without removing too much. As far as we can tell, nothing else was damaged, but with injuries like these, we like to keep a close eye for forty-eight hours to watch for sepsis in case a part of the bowel was also compromised.” He sighs and looks around at all of us. “He’s going to need a lot of rest, possibly another transfusion, and he will be staying here in the ICU for a few days at least.”

“Whatever he needs,” Diego says.

“When can I see him?” I ask. I need to see that he’s okay with my own eyes.

“I wouldn’t recommend–”

“Let him back, please.” Diego nods at Dr. Gully, and he sighs but tells me to follow him.

“Thank you,” I whisper to him as we pass.

The walls are a mint green and off-white, it’s an unsettling color with machines dotting the halls, and nurses sit around a circular workstation with monitors showing patient vitals.

Gully doesn’t knock, just walks into a room that’s marked ICU 4.

The lights are low, and machines show his heartbeat, oxygen, and blood pressure. He’s got a tube in his mouth helping him breathe while he’s sedated, and when I see it, I can't stop the tears from spilling over. He looks pale, so much paler than normal, and I have to remember to breathe through the choked gasps.

I can hear the machine every time his heart beats. Seeing him, laying in that bed… It’s too much, but I try to take comfort in the slow and steady beeps from the machine.

My chest wants to cave.

I almost lost him.

He almost died.

He could still die without hearing my voice telling him I love him.

He lays there, unmoving. Staggering closer to his side, I allow my emotions to roll through me. “Don’t you dare die,” I murmur. “You and I aren’t done yet. You promised Banks. You said you’d do everything you could to get back to the man I deserve. The man I fell in love with.”

Tears blur my vision, and I pull the only chair up to his bed and grab his hand. Sitting beside him, I hold his hand and cry.

“I forgive you,” I whisper into the heavy air. “For everything.”

He needs me to be here , present with him, so he can wake up and get better.

Eventually, exhaustion and spent adrenaline win as I hunch over his bed and use his hand as a pillow, letting sleep drag me under.

“Henry,” my dad’s voice pulls me from sleep, along with his hand running up and down my back.

“They need to take him for a scan,” he says while helping me to stand. When I look over into the hallway, Diego’s standing with someone I don’t recognize, speaking in hushed tones. He’s got a bandage on his shoulder, his tuxedo jacket is gone, along with his button-up. Leaving him in his tank undershirt.

“Can I stay and wait till he comes back?” I ask, wiping my eyes and looking toward Diego. He nods as a team of nurses come to transport him. The tubes connecting him to all the machines shift as they wheel him out.

“I brought you some clothes,” Dad hands me a bag, and when I look in it, I find the clothes he mentioned, along with a toothbrush and deodorant.

“How long was I out?” I ask, confused. I don’t know where my phone is, and there’s no clock in here.

“It’s morning,” he sighs. “I figured you wouldn’t leave, but the nurses said you can use a staff shower and be done by the time he’s brought back.”

I nod, leaning back on the chair to stretch my back.

“They say he might not wake up for a few more days,” Diego says, wiping his face. “It’s my fault he’s here.” He looks like he wants to punch something or, at the very least, rip his hair out. “That shot was meant for me. He pushed me out of the way.”

“That sounds like him,” I choke out.

Diego nods to Dad and walks out. He doesn’t usually show so much emotion, so just that small bit makes me fear that Banks might not ever wake up.

He’s going to wake up. My love for him will give him all the strength he needs to pull himself out of this, I’m sure of it.