The Wrong Side of Midnight (13 page)

"We won't know all those answers until she wakes up. But in my opinion, there's no reason why she won't make a full recovery. It'll just take time. Take into consideration her jaw fracture when it comes to speaking. But she's mending nicely."

"Thank God," whispered Matthew.

The doctor booked Chloe for surgery the next morning. When she was taken from the room by the transporters, Matthew told Becky he needed to go home, see his dad, and get cleaned up.

"I can't have her seeing me
looking this bad," he laughed.

"I'll stay here. Take your time, and if something happens I'll call you."

"I won't be any longer than a couple of hours. Don't let them take her off the ventilator and bring her out of the coma without me being by her side."

"I won't." Becky hugged Matthew and then watched him get on the elevator. Hopefully he wouldn't be angry over what she'd done. All he knew was that she bought some pizza.
I'll know soon enough.

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Matthew climbed in the Silverado and drove back to his apartment. His guilt was eating at him. All Chloe wanted to do was help him. There's no way his old pickup would have gotten him to the hospital without stalling several times. It wasn't safe
to drive anymore and Chloe knew that. She went through all that trouble to get me a new truck, just so I'd be okay, and I threw her kindness in her face. She wasn't trying to impress me or rub my nose in her money; she wanted to catch me when I was clearly falling.
He wasn't even getting a paycheck this week, and probably wouldn't be getting one next week, either.
I don't know what I'm
gonna
do about
money, but I have to be with her.

He pulled up at the apartments and walked into Sherry's office. It was nice to have one of her good cups of coffee. He was sure there was going to be a stack of bills in the mailbox, and he was right.

"How is she?" Sherry had been waiting to see Matthew so she could ask. The hospital wouldn't give her information and she didn't want to call and bother him. He had enough to deal with.

"Chloe's going to pull through. They're taking her off the ventilator this afternoon, but she has months of healing in front of her."

"Give my love to her, Matthew. Listen, if you can't make the full rent this month, just give what you can,
okay?"

Matthew smiled and kissed her cheek. It wasn't exactly what he wanted to resort to doing, but if he had to, he would.

When he opened the door to his apartment, he was shocked. A big smoke cloud didn't come and hit him in the face.

"Howdy, Matthew, how's Chloe doing?"

"She's getting better. Pops, you're not smoking?"

"Down to four cigarettes a day.
I'm feeling a lot better already. You and John have more than done your parts to take care of me, and it's about time I did my part to take care of myself."

Matthew walked over and
hugged his father. "I'm proud of you."

"Are you hungry? There's leftover pizza in the freezer you can heat up, and Becky bought a lot of groceries and—"

"
What
??" Matthew walked to the kitchen to take some calming breaths.

"Oh no you don't!
We need the help, son, and you know we do. Things are bad for us right now and it's not like we asked people to dig in their pockets. If anyone should be ashamed, it's me. I'm the one who got us into this mess in the first place."

Matthew paused before speaking. "It's okay, you're right; we need some help right now, and I
don't have enough money to pay the bills this month. I've been at the hospital and haven't been working. Someday I'll find a way to repay everyone. Being too full of
myself
is what caused me and Chloe to break up and her to nearly die." He watched the shame start to grow across his father's face. "I love you. You took care of me my whole life. It's my turn now."

"Look…" Conner slid the check and gift cards over to Matthew. "You don't have to kill yourself trying to come up with money, and you can spend time with Chloe. She needs you there."

"This is too much, Dad, I can't accept this from her."

"She's family. She's just as
sweet as Chloe. I tried to reject her offer too, but she wasn't having any part of it. Do you know that Becky didn't hesitate for one second when she wrote out the check, never even asked how much we needed."

"Yeah, the mold was broken when those two women were created. I don't know what I would have done if Becky hadn't been there with me. She's like the sister I never had."

Matthew sat the check back down on the table. "Ask John to stick this in the bank tomorrow. That way your oxygen will keep coming."

"My oxygen was paid for. Chloe not only paid off my medical debt, but a hundred grand was reserved for future medical expenses." Conner
watched his son's face redden, and before he could say anything to calm him, he turned and left the room.
I wish he'd just talk to me.

He stood in the hot shower letting the water run down his neck and back. Guilt gnawed at him even more. He'd have to find a way to pay her back every dime.
Pay her back… How the hell am I supposed to do that? I have nothing to give to anyone. All I had to give Chloe was my love. That was enough for her, but I turned around and stole it back.

Matthew wrapped a towel around his waist and shaved, then walked in his room to get dressed. He smiled at the vision of Becky in his large clothes.
The two richest women I've ever met have become
the best women I've ever met.
Matthew reached up on the top of his closet and took out a small box he'd had since he was little kid. Inside was three hundred and twenty-six dollars in a mix of crinkled up bills. He'd added a dollar here and there over the past six months in case there was an emergency. The last time he saved a few dollars
up,
it came in handy when he had to replace the starter on his pickup. He closed the lid and placed the box back on the top shelf, grabbed his wallet and keys, and went back out to the kitchen.

"I need to ask you something, Pops, before I head out the door." Matthew pulled up a chair next to Conner. It would be a conversation
he never anticipated ever having.

Chapter 12

The doctor had taken Chloe off the ventilator after surgery and allowed her to come back out of anesthesia like a regular surgical patient. She was still very groggy when they brought her back to her room. Her eyes were swollen again, and a cast was on her nose. Becky and Matthew sat at her bedside, unsure of what to do.

"Has she spoken to anyone?" Matthew wanted to hold her hand but thought it best to let her rest.

"She woke up in recovery and spoke to the nurse there. They said
she can't open her mouth very wide because of the jaw fracture, so speaking isn't going to be easy. She remembers almost everything and could answer questions. That's a great sign."

"So she remembers what an ass I was and how I nearly got her killed."

"Matthew, Chloe loves you, and you weren't responsible for what happened."

"That was how she felt before all this, Becky. She may wake up and tell me to get the hell out of here. I wouldn't blame her if she did."

"We
all
had lessons to learn. You were definitely a jerk, Matthew, but I was self-centered and judgmental. I'm not proud of how I was living my life. You wouldn’t
have bothered speaking to Chloe past "hello" if you knew she was wealthy, and when you found out, even though you already knew what her heart was like, you threw her away."

Matthew looked her in the eyes. "You're right. It hurts to hear you say those things about me, but you're absolutely right."

"And I wouldn't have had anything to do with you if I met you on the street. If you said hello to me, I wouldn't have acknowledged you. I'd have seen your dirty work clothes, unshaven face, calloused hands, and kept walking. I would've acted like Sylvia did, only less mean about it. But even so, I would have hurt your feelings and not understood why you were upset.
Like, you should know your place in the world. There is no pecking order, Matthew. Chloe's accident made me think a lot. Spending all this time together with you, allowed me to meet one of the best guys I've ever known, including his father. Do you know I dressed down for the first time in my life, appeared in public without having my makeup and hair done, and didn't shower or change my clothes for a week? I wouldn't have been caught dead in public like that before. I know I love Chloe twenty times more than I did before, if that's even possible."

"What did you think of my dad? Our apartment isn't much, but its home."

"That's exactly it, Matthew.
Home.
I felt like I was at home. I hope you're not mad about the groceries and money. I saw your dad…you've both become family to me. If you came over to my house and saw that I was struggling, unable to keep up with bills, and saw my father go hungry, would you judge me? No, you wouldn't. Out of love, you would have put food on the table and gave him a few dollars to help out. You would have done it because your heart is huge, and you care."

"I would have done anything I could to help, without question."

"Matthew, that's what Chloe was doing. I helped, not because my heart was huge, but because I learned from her. I learned to be a better person, as did you."

When the nurse came in to examine Chloe, Becky and Matthew walked down to the lounge to call Lois and update her.

"They showed up, did they? I kind of figured they would have to make an appearance to avoid bad publicity."

"Sylvia's a monster, Lois. Earl sat quietly in Chloe's room for a few minutes, and then he walked past us and said he was sorry and left. I don't think he was very happy with his wife."

"Earl's a sweet man, but he too should have been more involved with his daughter. Sylvia isn't really a monster, Becky. She acts like one
to avoid rejection. Her mother rejected her, and there was no way she was going to go through that kind of sorrow again. When she would visit with her little girl, Chloe would treat me like the mother and Sylvia more like a distant relative. That was rejection in her eyes. She never bonded with Chloe because of her past."

"I thought I was going to hit her. She treated Matthew like dirt. Do you know she hasn't called to even check on her daughter?"

"All I know is peace has to be made in that family."

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Earl Burlington walked through the parking lot in the rain. When he reached the hospital entrance, the doors opened but he couldn't bring himself to step inside. He'd rehearsed in his head, over and over again, what he would say to his daughter. In the end, it just wasn't good enough
. I'm a stranger to her
. Earl walked in the rain back to his car.

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Chloe was stable so the doctor had her moved to a surgical floor. Becky and Matthew walked behind the transporters but stayed in the lobby until the nurses were done
getting her situated. The room would allow one cot, so between the two of them they decided it was best if Becky stayed. Chloe fell right back to sleep when the nurses left, so Matthew went home, but promised to come back up after work the next day.

"Give her a kiss for me. I wish I could have talked to her before I left."

"I don't think I'll mention you if she wakes up. She'd get really nervous waiting for you to arrive, and I don't think that would be good. It's best if you come over after work and give her that kiss yourself." Becky hugged Matthew and held onto him for a few moments longer. "Thank you for loving her."

Matthew kissed Becky's cheek and drove home. John was at the apartment helping Conner get settled for the night when he walked in.

"Matt, how's Chloe?"

"They moved her to a regular room, but I didn't get a chance stay there long. She's pretty tired. Tomorrow after work I'll spend some time with her."

"You don't have to come back to work until you're ready. I got everything covered there, and here with your dad," said John as he pulled out a roll of cash.

"What's this for?"

"Your pay from this week."

"Keep it, bro. I didn't work, you did. I'm not taking your money."

"If you don't take it, I'll just
deposit it myself into your account."

"I'm okay, John."

"I worked hard doing two jobs. Not because I had to, but because I love
ya
and you're my brother. Someday I might find myself in a tight situation and unable to work. I know you'd pitch in and do for me what I couldn't do for myself. Take the money."

"Thanks, man. I owe you so much. You've taken care of me, my dad, the business…I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Hey speaking of which, your dad only smoked three cigs today."

"Unbelievable…"

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Becky woke up when the lab tech came in to draw Chloe's blood.

"Ouch."

"I know, dear, I'll be done in just a second." The technician turned to Becky when she saw her start to sit up. "There's coffee in the nurse's lounge if you want some. You should hurry though, they'll suck that stuff up like crack heads
gettin
' a fix. Have a good day, ladies."

"Becky?" Chloe's voice sounded panicked.

"Hey, how do you feel?" Becky tried to keep her voice soft as she walked to Chloe's bedside.

"Like I was hit by a tank.
My body is killing me, but I don't want
to take pain medication and sleep, so I'm not exactly honest about how I feel."

"I was so worried…."

"I'm okay. Man my jaw hurts if I open it too much when I talk. Sorry for mumbling."

"I love you."

"Thanks for being here. I love you, too."

Becky wanted to tell her how Matthew had camped at her bedside, and how much he loves her, but he needed to take care of that himself. If Chloe asked about him, however, she wouldn't lie.

Chloe had been thinking about Matthew since she woke up after surgery.
Conner and Sherry probably think I moved without
saying a word. Matthew has to be elated over not seeing me. I bet I was fired from my job and kicked out of my apartment.
She wondered if her parents knew
,
if they even cared.

"What's on your mind? You look so worried." Becky took a warm, wet cloth and gently wiped her mouth.

"Have you heard from Lois? I should have been keeping in touch with her, but I didn't want to have to lie." She wanted to ask about Matthew, her parents…so many things, but didn't feel up to bad news.

"Lois has been here off and on. She came right away when she heard about the accident. I've been calling to give her updates, and she calls me to check in."

"She's not angry with me?"

"Not one little bit. She's just thankful you're alive."

"Do you know how I was hit and who hit me at that intersection?"

"An older man had a heart attack and went through the light. They think he died before he hit you."

"That poor family…"

"Get some rest, sweetie, so your jaw doesn't get so sore. I can call Lois to come visit you this afternoon. She'll be so excited."

"I'd like that a lot. Thanks, Becky. I think I might need a little bit of medication after all. It even hurts to breathe."

"That's a good idea. While you take a nap, I'm going to run home and shower real quick."

"Why are you dressed like that?" Chloe grimaced in pain when she began to laugh.

"Oh, well the nurses had some clothes in a storage closet and they gave me some to borrow."

Becky promised to be back soon and then stopped by the desk and asked the nurse to bring Chloe some medicine. She had planned on stopping by Matthew's apartment to shower, but now she couldn't wear any of his clothes without risking Chloe recognizing them.

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Matthew checked his watch and was excited to discover they'd finished up the job early. He hopped in his truck and drove home to get what he needed, clean up, and then visit Chloe. His father was taking a nap when he walked in the door, and still, the house remained fairly smoke free. He stopped by the office to update Sherry and then drove to a jewelry store on Eight Mile. He stood outside and waited to be buzzed in.

"Hello, can I help you find something?" asked a very well-dressed woman about his father's age.

"I would like to look at this ring. How much is it?"

"This is thirty-two hundred."

Matthew frowned and handed the ring back to her.

"Let's start out in your budget range. How much do want to spend?"

"I'd be willing to spend every dime I could get my hands on for this woman but, unfortunately, I only have about nine hundred bucks."

"Come over here with me. Does she like white or yellow gold?
A diamond or plain band?"

"She doesn't really wear jewelry, and she hates gaudy looking things. Oh I think she'd like this one here."

The woman pulled out the dainty gold band with three tiny diamonds on it."

"This one's twelve hundred."

"Dang.
Can you go lower? I'll do some work for you…"

She stared at Matthew for a long time, watching him turn the small ring around in his large hands. "She's a special one isn't she?"

"You have no idea."

"I've had this ring in the showcase for over a year. I'll tell you what. I'll sell it to you for nine hundred dollars, that way I'm not losing any money on it. And in the future, if you ever need to buy more jewelry, you'll come to me?"

"You bet. Thank you so much."

Matthew watched her polish up the ring and
place
it carefully in a beautiful, gray velvet box.

"If it needs resized, bring it on back."

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Chloe was given soft food she didn't have to chew much, and even though it looked horrible, it was better than nothing. The staff at the hospital had been so nice. She'd make sure to do something special for them when she got out. Nurses really do work hard. Lois had stopped in briefly to visit, but didn't stay very long. She tried to keep the conversation on pleasant topics, but when the subject of her parents started to come up, she left and promised to come back the next day.

She wasn't as sore as she was
yesterday, but that wasn't saying much. Her body went through hell. Chloe was told the pins in her hand could come out in another week, but after that short excitement, she was diagnosed with a bladder infection and placed on more antibiotics
. It's always something
…