CHAPTER 19
KIERAN
Broken spine. That son of a bitch had broken his brother's spine. He had pushed him so hard against the security wall that two of his thoracic vertebrae had been damaged and now Adrian was paraplegic. Paraplegic, for fuck's sake.
According to the neurosurgeon who was working on his case, it was not yet known whether it would be temporary or not. Maybe he would recover and walk again. Maybe he would be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Either way, his days as a hockey player were over.
And it should have been Kieran. He was the one who should have been lying in that hospital bed and hearing that his career had gone down the drain.
He didn't see the guy coming when he got the puck and just skated forward, giving him an opening to hit Adrian, who was hiding behind him. If only Kieran had stayed where he was for two more seconds. two seconds and his best friend wouldn't be in this situation.
He was sedated and Kieran had to leave the room for a while, so he was sitting on the floor next to his door. The empty hallway made him comfortable enough to release all the anguish, guilt, and anger that had built up.
With his head resting against the wall, he supported his elbows on his knees and held his hands against his face as thick tears streamed down his cheeks. His throat burned as if someone had made him swallow fire.
That shouldn't be happening. He'd just joined the team, they were winning every game, and they were supposed to lift the damn trophy together at the end of the season. This wasn't fucking right.
He didn't know how long he stayed there, alone and miserable, but someone decided to break his bubble when they passed through the double doors that the security guard was guarding.
— Kieran — he didn't need to look to know who it was, he knew that voice as if it were his own. This time, her tone wasn't sarcastic or impetuous. No, this time it was devastatingly sad.
Rila approached silently, sitting beside him with her legs stretched out. She had replaced her game clothes with the familiar red scrubs, which was odd because he knew she wasn't on call until seven in the morning.
— What time is it?
— I'm so sorry — she whispered at the same time and he turned his face to look at her.
Her eyes and nose were red, and Kieran could see some wet traces on her flushed cheeks. Rila was crying too.
— Did you hear the prognosis? — his voice came out hoarse and low.
It was like if they spoke louder than the whispers they were making, it would all become real. And he didn't want it to be.
— Blake let me into the surgery, I was holding his hand the whole time — she curled her fingers over his as his hands rested on the floor — I'm sorry for not staying with you, but I thought he'd like to have someone he knew in there.
He remembered the blonde doctor who had treated him and was grateful that she had allowed that. Adrian had never liked being alone.
— Thank you — he choked on the end of the word, tears filling his voice.
Rila turned to face him and pulled him towards her, her arms awkwardly circling his shoulders as he wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned down to bury his face in her belly.
They stayed like that for a while, him crying like an idiot in the arms of the woman he loved and who possibly hated him.
At some point, Kieran finished sliding down until his head was resting on her legs, while she ran her fingers through his hair, stroking the strands in a soft, hypnotizing rhythm until everything became even quieter and he was swallowed by darkness.
Something moved beneath Kieran's head. A hand moved up and down his arm as someone called his name. Confused, he blinked repeatedly to rid himself of the sleepy haze. That was when he remembered where he was and what had happened, and sat up quickly.
— I didn't want to wake you, but I need to get to the ER to start my shift.
Start her shift. That meant it was already Friday morning.
— Shit, how long have I been asleep? — he rubbed his eyes, trying to get rid of the tiredness.
— Just about fifteen minutes — Rila stood up — You should go home and get some rest.
— I won't leave Adrian.
He couldn't leave his best friend, his brother, alone there. He knew he was getting the best care possible, but still didn't like the idea of leaving him.
— It'll take a few hours for him to wake up, Kieran. Go take a shower, eat something and get some sleep — she said firmly, making it clear that she wasn't leaving room for discussion — I promise I'll check on him every half hour and call you if anything changes.
— Fine — he spoke reluctantly.
Rila waited until he stood up and caught him by surprise with a hug, her body stretching so she could wrap her arms around his neck.
— Thank you — he didn't know exactly which part he was thanking her for, but he did it anyway. Because he was truly grateful to have her around at that moment.
Leaving the hospital was hell, every door was packed with journalists and photographers waiting for updates on the winger's condition.
And Kieran, who rarely lost his temper, wanted to scream at them to get out of there, to leave his friend alone.
Adrian had just lost the thing he loved most: hockey.
On the way home, the player thought about how he would have reacted if that had happened to him. He had been through some bad things earlier in his career, but it was nothing like what his friend was about to face.
And Adrian had no one but Kieran to help him with that. Now that he thought about it, their friendship was the only thing the winger had left. His father had left when he was a child, his mother died a few years ago, and now he had lost his career.
They both lived for hockey, but their relationship with the game wasn't the same. Kieran had his parents to spend time with when they were off-season, and in a twisted way, he had Rila too.
For Adrian, hockey was everything. And that was over.
He ate, showered, and was lying down, staring at the ceiling of his room, when his phone rang, Rila's name flashing on the screen. He was already up with a cap on his head as he searched for his sneakers before she even told him his friend was waking up.
Kieran got to the hospital as quickly as possible, the pit in his stomach growing larger with every step closer to Adrian's room.
The room was full of people. Their manager, the team's coach, the annoying woman in charge of the team's image, Rila, Dr. Feldman, and the head of neuro.
All of them were silent as their friend stared at the ceiling.
There were too many people around Adrian, who looked so strangely fragile in that hospital bed, full of wires and tubes everywhere.
When the winger's eyes met his, he knew what he had to do. He didn't look away from his friend's pale face to speak, the brown gaze that used to always be full of amusement and happiness was completely dimmed now.
— Everyone out — Kieran's voice cut through the heavy atmosphere of the room — Anyone who is not medically necessary here, leave.
— Kieran — his manager tried to intervene.
— Out — he spoke sternly, his blue eyes now piercing the man in a silent warning — Whatever you're thinking can be sorted out later.
One by one, they began to leave, the blonde doctor and her boss remaining by Adrian's bedside. When Rila walked towards him. ready to walk through the door behind him, his hand shot up to her wrist, holding her to his side.
— You stay. You're family — he swallowed the lump that formed in his throat, the words coming out loaded with meaning.
Rila responded with a short nod, her slanted eyes analyzing him intently for a few quick seconds before she came to stand beside him.
— As I said, the surgery went well, but there's no way of knowing what your recovery will be like — the oldest neurosurgeon spoke — Nerve regeneration is the slowest in the entire body and doesn't always have the results we want.
Kieran gritted his teeth, clenching his jaw tightly. His chest ached for what his best friend was going through and his mind kept repeating that this wasn't supposed to be happening. That it should be him receiving this news.
— So — Adrian's voice cracked and he cleared his throat with a grimace as Blake moved around the room looking for something — So, I'm off the ice for a while.
A few seconds later, the blonde reappeared on the other side of the bed with a glass of ice chips and didn't hesitate to take the spoon to the player's mouth, who thanked her quietly after the second spoonful.
— There is a chance that the condition is permanent — Kieran's breathing became more labored as he heard the word permanent come out of the boss's mouth.
The medical team had already talked about it with him, but it wasn't easy to hear just because the information wasn't new anymore.
— But, it might not be, right? — his friend said, still trembling and weak — I can get my legs back if I do everything right and give my nerves the time they need and all that shit.
— It is possible, yes, but… — Adrian didn't let Blake finish her sentence.
— Alright, we'll do whatever it takes — the winger looked less sad now and Kieran didn't know if that was exactly a good thing. Of course he wanted his friend to walk again, but it felt wrong to give him that kind of hope — I won't give up — he spoke when everyone fell silent.
— No one is telling you to — Rila walked towards him and held the hand that was laying on the bed — We just want you to understand the situation.
— And I get it, I've got a long way ahead. Good thing this pro hockey thing pays well, huh? Looks like I'll need to hire my own team — he joked, sounding like the Adrian that Kieran knew.
But as much as his friend had handled the news well, going completely against the reaction he was expecting, Kieran knew that things wouldn't be that simple. And he was sure that he would do everything to be with Adrian during this new chapter.