35. Chapter 35
thirty-five
J ulian read Annie’s text at dawn and immediately called her.
“I’ll be there as soon as possible.”
“No, no, stay and work.” The tension in her voice betrayed her. “I’ll see you in a few days... So long as everything goes well here… The doctors finally just ordered some tests. There’s no party today.”
He switched his phone from one hand to the other as he pulled on his boots.
There was an equally long list of things he liked and hated about Northgold; at that moment, he absolutely disliked how far it was from Annie’s home.
She’d barely been gone a day; not a single hour hour had passed where he hadn’t worried or thought about her.
“You're far more important than work, sweetness. I’m not cancelling our plans to come down. I appreciate the concern, though.”
“Everyone’s stressed out. It wouldn’t be a fun visit. I’m just sitting here.”
“Are you worried I’ll be uncomfortable? Because your comfort matters to me more.”
Annie hesitated. He held his breath. Julian would drop the subject if she continued to deny she needed company, but to his relief she said, “Thank you, Julian... I’ll see you soon. I’m so scared for them.”
“That’s okay.” He scratched the back of his head. Keys. Find keys. “It is scary. I’ll see you in no time. Can you text me the hospital address?” Wallet.
“Yes.”
“Okay. Now, you can still text even if I won’t see it immediately.”
“Thank you... Drive safe, okay?”
“I will.” Julian said goodbye. He locked up the cabin, and jumped into his rig.
Without thinking about it, he glanced over at Molly and Peter’s empty cabin on his way out.
He had no genuine sense of what they were going through– he couldn’t imagine how scared they all were.
But he hoped everything would be fine in the end.
And he pictured Annie, sitting alone. Coming out of her skin, waiting for any news. He knew she had a big heart, and surely it was breaking for her friends.
Julian drove ten over the speed limit most of the way, praying any cops he crossed paths with would look the other way. The morning sun burned his retinas. It was close to nine in the morning when he pulled into the hospital parking lot.
He found Annie in the waiting room, a magazine on her lap. Her eyes were half-closed as she sat, deep in thought; he could tell her worries were enough to distract her from her reading and the morning news playing on the wall nearby.
“Annie.”
Her head shot up at his voice. She sprang to her feet and into his open arms. He felt her exhaustion through the fabric of his shirt, straight to his skin.
He asked, “Have you slept at all? ”
“Maybe an hour or two.” Her eyes were pink-hued and puffy.
“Is Molly okay?”
“Peter says she’s hanging in there. They don’t know what’s quite wrong yet. Now they’re waiting for text results to get back.”
“Hmmm...” Julian hugged her for a moment longer before they sat down. “You eat breakfast?”
Absently, Annie looked at the black and white clock on the wall next to the TV. She shook her head.
Julian frowned. She probably had no appetite, but he hoped putting something in her stomach would ease her worry. He was helpless to comfort her otherwise. Every hospital had a kitchen, even if the food was mediocre.
“You wait here,” he said, standing. “Anything that you’d like to eat in particular?”
“Not really.”
“I’ll find you something small... Perhaps a banana?”
With a tiny smile, she nodded.
In the hospital cafeteria, which smelled just as sterile as the rest of the building, he ordered himself a small breakfast platter.
Maybe I can get her to eat a couple of bites.
A basket of shining fruit tempted him at the register.
There were only apples and oranges. Unsure which she liked more, he grabbed both.
There were a few tables nearby, and he sat down while he waited for his food.
His phone rang.
Julian pulled it out of his pocket, checking the number ID, then frowned. With his line of work, he was used to answering the phone for strangers. He tapped the little green phone icon.
“Hello?”
A robotic female voice came over the line .
"Hello, this is a prepaid call from-”
And at this moment, his dad’s voice filled the void with, “Clive Lincoln.”
"–an inmate at Montana State Prison,” continued the robot voice. “To accept the call, press one. To refuse, press tw-”
“Go to hell,” Julian growled, jabbing the two on his phone screen.
He wasn’t compelled to have any contact with the man.
True, the day he’d run into Clive again was fast approaching– but it caused nothing but dread.
And, as Teagan would probably put it, Clive’s return would bring on a tide of tea big enough to cover the town.
Maybe not that literally... but something like it…
After Julian picked up his food order, he went to meet Annie. She was sitting up in her chair, propping her head on her hand with her eyes shut.
“Annie,” he whispered. When she opened her heavy eyes, he sat the two fruits in her lap.
“Thank you.” She peeled the orange. As he ate, her eyes roamed to his breakfast platter. It wasn’t long before she commented how good it looked, then sheepishly requested a few bites. He enthusiastically gave them away.
“Feeling better?”
Annie let out a satisfied sigh and nodded. The look in her fatigued eyes was still far away. “My mind is so hectic. Did I really drift off?”
“Mmm-hmm. The doctors know what they’re doing, Annie,” Julian said before adding, “If there were any big worries, they would have sent Peter to the waiting room to get out of their hair.
Annie nodded slowly. Unconvinced. She then rocked her head to the side and rubbed her neck.
“Is it bothering you? ”
“A bit.”
Julian lightly massaged her flesh. Her skin was warm beneath his fingers.
He worked her ache away, looking at the waiting room clock after a few minutes.
Since Annie had first texted him, hours had passed.
Grimly, he wondered how many more they had to look forward to.
For everyone’s sake, he hoped the doctors would hurry up.
They watched the news together. Annie rested her head on Julian’s shoulder before her eyes slipped shut again. Her breathing slowed and deepened. He didn’t move. Just held her hand. He lamented the circumstances, but at that moment, he didn’t want to be anywhere else. He hoped–
Julian froze as a burly man stepped towards them. The man met Julian’s eye with a thin smile on his face. Julian wiggled his shoulder and patted Annie’s hand, curiosity filling him.
“Peter!” Annie jumped to her feet. “How’s Molly?”
“Resting,” Peter said. “The doctors think they know why she hasn’t been feeling well.”
“What’s wrong? What happened?”
Peter’s face broke into a grin. The edges of his eyes sparkled with unshed tears. He could barely get the words out. “She’s pregnant.”
Annie squealed and bounced into Peter’s arms. She looked so small as he hugged her. “I’m so happy!”
“Congratulations, Peter.” Julian extended his hand.
Peter nodded his head and shook Julian’s hand with a solid, firm grip. “Do you want to see her?” Peter asked. “They’re– the doctors– they are letting people visit for about thirty minutes at a time.”
“Yes, please,” Annie replied. She looked up at Julian .
Peter had technically included Julian, too, but without knowing Molly closely, he thought it better for Annie to go by herself. He’d have time to visit later. “I’ll wait right here.”
Annie tucked her hair behind her ear. “You sure?”
“Don’t worry. When you’re ready, I’ll be here waiting.”
Relief softened Annie’s stiff posture. She nodded.
“And you didn’t want to give him a chance.”
Annie raised a brow. She walked down the hospital hallway at Peter’s side.
“I’m happy for you. That’s all I’ll say.”
Annie bit her lip and smiled. “Thanks.”
Peter nodded and smiled back.
When they entered her room, Molly lit up.
“Hi, it’s so good to see you,” Annie said, leaning over the bed and gingerly hugging Molly. “Beautiful mama.”
“I’m a mess!” Molly cried with a laugh.
Annie kissed her friend’s head before she sat down on the bed. She did her best to ignore the various beeps and boops from the machinery Molly was hooked up to. “You just learned you’re having a baby! You’re just fine.”
Peter sat down at Molly’s elbow and held his wife’s hand. “The news sorta hit us like a ton of bricks, but we couldn’t be happier.”
Even though they were war torn and wearied, they were glowing. Radiant. They’d finally received another chance at the precious gift they’d wanted for so long. After all they’d been through, they deserved every minute of joy.
Annie felt her lip tremble.
“I’ m so excited for you guys.”
“Time to get into nesting mode again,” Peter chuckled.
Annie winced slightly. Her friends needed all their space to themselves.
Molly touched Annie’s arm. “I know this is a bit of a surprise…”
“It’s okay. Not a total surprise. You have been trying, after all, and it was inevitable.” She took a deep breath. “I’ve got my eye on an apartment.” She hadn’t quite picked one out specifically, but the time to choose was now. Procrastination would only make adjusting to her new life harder.
“I assume you and Julian are okay with the distance,” Peter remarked, rubbing the back of his neck. “You’ll be locked into a lease.”
And Julian owns his house. And his whole life is in Northgold…
Annie thought. Julian had signed on for long-distance.
But with his dad getting out soon…? The little thought teased, but she immediately dismissed it.
He shouldn’t run away from his problems. He’s worked hard for what he has in Northgold.
“You can rent the cabin,” Molly blurted, glancing up at Peter.
“Rent?” He thought for a moment. “Yeah, of course.”
Annie blinked. “I can’t just take your cabin.”
Molly smiled. “We’ve tossed the idea around a little before now. You should be close to Julian.”