Chapter 50

I managed to not cry until we were back in the car, but handing over that baby was the hardest part. Lacey took him out of the car seat and kissed him, telling him she missed him, and my heart felt like it was being torn apart. I stood back while Carson told her when Hunter had eaten and slept last, and I waited by the door until he was back by my side again.

   Lacey smiled over at me, at just the right moment. She had Hunter over her shoulder, his head resting on the base of her neck. "Thank you for taking care of him," she said, keeping her eyes on me.

   I swallowed hard. When she'd left Carson's apartment the day before, I had no idea that I'd feel this way now. I had no clue how much I'd fall in love with Hunter, and feel as protective and attached to him as I was.

   "Of course," I managed to say, then nodded.

   Carson squeezed my hand. "I couldn't have done it without Arden," he said to Lacey.

   She nodded, which meant she understood that he and I were really in this together. I felt a weird desire to get out of there, though, so when we got back to Carson's car, I felt relieved.

   "We'll see him again in two weeks," Carson told me, starting the car.

   I clicked in my seat belt, sighing. Tears already filled the spots behind my eyes. I knew if I said anything, I'd been crying, so I just nodded and watching as he put the hospital into the GPS. Now I had to go see my brother, who was hurt. Dropping off Hunter was enough, how was I going to get through this?

   We are here, I sent a text to Dalton, when Carson pulled into the hospital parkade.

   Okay. Fourth floor, room 412, or just ask at the desk, Dalton sent back a few minutes later.

   I wasn't ready. My hand was shaking as I got out of the car and walked towards the main doors. I hadn't been in a hospital since Rylee was born, and that was only on the maternity ward. This was so different.

   Up on the fourth floor, Carson could tell I was spiraling.

   "Hey, I'm here," he whispered, slipping his hand into mine.

   "I know, but I'm just..." I let my voice trail off.

   "Arden," I heard Dalton's voice, suddenly.

   Spinning around, there he was, coming directly at us. "Hey," I said quietly.

   "Dylan's room is just down here. Come on," he went on, nodding towards the hallway.

   I didn't move, so neither did Carson. "I'm... scared."

   Dalton nodded. "Arden, he's okay. He's looking forward to seeing you. We waiting until now for a reason. It was scary, when he was not awake and waiting on surgery. But they said he's on the mend, now."

   I nodded back, finally finding the ability to walk.

   Dylan was sitting up, mostly, looking at a tablet, as we walked into the room. I knew the fact that he had been moved to a regular room from the ICU was a good sign, but seeing him with IVs and a wires, and the full leg cast still made my stomach drop.

   "Hey," Dylan smiled, looking over as soon as he saw us.

   I forced a smile. "Hey."

   Carson stepped behind me, but nodded at Dylan. "How're you doing?"

   "Oh, you know," Dylan said, letting out a bit of a laugh. "I'm okay."

   I noticed now as I looked at him longer, his face and neck had some bruises and cuts, and he was wearing a hospital gown. His right arm had several IVs. I'd never seen Dylan look weak, and this scared me too.

   "Thanks for coming. It's so good to see you two," he went on, adjusting a bit.

   "Of course," I said quickly. "I wanted to come sooner-"

   "Oh, I know. Mom wasn't okay with that," Dylan shrugged. "She's a bit freaked out by all of this."

   "A bit?" Dalton laughed. "She was beside herself until yesterday."

   Dylan nodded, but looked embarrassed. "I'm glad she went home to relax a bit."

   "Where's Dad?" I asked, only just realizing that he wasn't there.

   "Hotel across the road. He needed to relax, too," Dalton answered.

   Dylan sighed, then looked like he wasn't sure what to say next. His dark hair had been recently cut - it was very short compared to Dalton's. They still looked very similar, even now. When they were kids, they could fool anyone. Even our parents confused them sometimes.

   "It was so stupid," Dylan finally spoke again. "I knew my buddy was drinking, that night. I was drinking."

   Dalton cleared his throat. "Luckily you had the worst injuries. I mean, no one was killed."

   I hadn't heard the story until now. My parents hadn't told me anything about the accident. Now I knew he'd gotten into a car that was being driven by his drunk friend. I was unsure how to feel about that, but I still felt thankful that my brother was okay. 

   "I got into the car, knowing that though. He could have killed someone," Dylan went on.

   "I'm really glad you're okay, Dylan," I said, because I really was.

   "Me too. Hopefully I'll be out of here soon..."

   I glanced to Dalton, hoping he would have some sort of an answer for this. I hated seeing Dylan stuck in that hospital bed, but I knew recovery wasn't going to be easy.

   "It won't be long until you can be discharged, but... you need someone to stay with you." Dalton seemed like he wasn't saying everything he wanted to say.

   "Dad's staying," Dylan said plainly.

   "Yeah, another week. But he'll need to get back to Seaside and work," Dalton went on. I was just watching him, waiting. "So, since the school year's done... Trin and I are going to come stay, for the summer."

   Dylan seemed confused, before finding his voice again. "Wait, what? Stay with me?"

   Now, Dalton grinned. "It was Trinity's idea, actually."

   "Wow. Well... alright. That would be awesome," Dylan finished, and I could tell he was still processing what that meant.

   I smiled, glad to know that Dylan would have Dalton around to help out as he recovered. They had been apart for a few years, besides some random visits throughout the year, so this would be good for them, too. Relief washed over me as I finally felt okay again. I'd been practically holding my breath since I found out about the accident.

   But then Dalton turned to me again. "So, you two will have to come back and visit this summer, since we'll all be here."

   I nodded, looking at Carson before I looked back towards Dalton. "Well, Carson's baby lives here, so... yes. We will be here often."

   Dylan looked at me, wide eyed, as if he'd forgotten that Carson had a baby. It wasn't something I'd even talked with him about, but I knew my mom had told him. I'd talked to Dalton about it that very week.

   "Oh, right. How'd your baby weekend go?" Dalton went on, glancing at Dylan and back to Carson and I.

   "It was really good," I said, without hesitation. "I guess it's kind of crazy, but we already miss him."

   Carson nodded. "Yes, it's crazy."

   Dylan let out an awkward laugh. "You two, taking care of a baby."

   Dalton's phone rang a minute later, so he held it up, then said he was going to go answer it. Carson and I stood there for a few more moments, unsure of what to do or say.

   "Well, I'd love to meet the baby, if you guys would want to do that," Dylan said suddenly. "I know I don't really seem like the baby type, and I'm not, for myself. But obviously he'll be a part of our family."

   I was stunned for a moment, because those weren't words I thought he would ever say. Honestly, I wasn't sure how my brothers would react to me being with Carson and helping him during all of this. Apparently they were more grown up than I'd thought.

   "We would love that," Carson answered, finally. "And Hunter and I are both lucky to be a part of the Krank family."

   Dalton was back, rolling his eyes in my direction. "It was mom, surprise surprise. She wanted to check in on Dylan and also asked when you are going to be back."

   I looked at my watch. It was already after 6P.M. and we had a long drive back to Seaside. "I guess we should go."

   Dylan sighed a big, heavy sigh, readjusting himself again. He looked tired. "Thank you guys again for coming. Let's keep in touch about getting together?"

   I nodded, as Carson slipped his hand into mine once again. "Yes, of course."

   "Okay, we should get on the road," Carson said quietly.

   "I'll walk you guys out," Dalton chimed in.

   Down the hallway again, back near the doors to leave the area Dylan was staying, Dalton let out a deep breath. He looked tired, too. His eyes were dark and heavy, and he bit his bottom a lip a bit before he began.

   "See? I told you he's okay."

   "Yeah," I agreed. "God, I'm glad."

   "Drive safe, okay?" he said to Carson, who nodded right away. "Arden, I'll call you in a few days. I'm going back to Indiana on Monday, to deal with my job and get some stuff packed up. Trinity is already packing, she has no problem spending the summer in Florida," he laughed.

   "That's pretty awesome of you two, to go stay with him," I said, smiling.

   "I mean, what kind of twin brother would I be if I didn't?" Dalton grinned. "See you two soon?"

   I nodded, then stepped forward to hug him. "Yes, definitely."