Chapter 60: Chapter Thirty Two-2

"Finn," I quickly reply. "Finn Collins." "Finn," the girl says to him as she squats beside him. "From one to ten, ten being the most painful, what number are you feeling?" "Eleven," he croaks out. "Give me the green whistle," she instructs the man beside her. He passes her a green, plastic pen-looking thing. Finn sucks on it and I know that the pain relief will kick in shortly. Within a minute or so, a lazy smile is spread across Finn's face and he grins up at me. "Hey Is, how's it cracking?" he asks and I quirk an eyebrow. "How's it cracking?" I repeat in amusement. "Finn, we are going to move you onto a stretcher now, okay?" the lady says him. "Right on, girlfriend," he grins back and I roll my eyes. He is high as a kite. They lift him onto the stretcher as he starts to make a wave motion with his hand. "I'll meet you at the hospital, Finn," I tell him and squeeze his arm. "You'll be okay." "Peace, love and happiness," he smiles up at me, giving me the peace sign. "That's what life is about." I let out a snort of laughter, despite the serious moment, as he gets wheeled into the ambulance. "Excuse me," I quickly say before they take off. "I'm his sister, is there anything I can tell my mum when I call her? Is it broken?" "It's definitely broken," the paramedic answers and looks at me impatiently. "I will talk to her at the hospital." I nod weakly as she jets off towards the ambulance. As the ambulance exits the field, I turn my attention to Eli. Alec has finally calmed down and Jai has taken him off the field. Eli smirks at me, looking victorious. "Oops?" *** I watch mum pace back and forth in the waiting room, her curly hair a mess. Kiarra is sitting opposite me, her arms folded across her chest as she stares at the ground. Becca has her head in her hands, Jai has his eyes closed as he leans back against the wall and Alec is on his phone, his leg propped up over the arm rest. Miles is beside me, his hand rubbing my back soothingly. "He'll be fine," Miles assures me for the fifth time. "It will heal." "But he will miss out on so much. And he's captain!" "Footballer's get injured all the time. He'll bounce back." I nod slowly and ring my fingers together. My mind is racing with worst case scenarios, so I'm glad Miles is here, helping me stay sane. I keep hearing the sound of Finn's scream in my mind. I screw my eyes shut and lean forward, rubbing my face roughly. This is not how I wanted to spend my Friday night. A grimace forms on my face. I have had a nauseous feeling in my stomach, ever since it happened. "What's the plan, then?" Alec says after a while, finally lifting his eyes from his phone screen. "How are we getting Eli back?" I glance over to mum, only to see her still pacing relentlessly, paying no mind to us. "Corner him, bash him," Miles replies and I elbow him in the side. "Nah, you need to be smart about it," Jai interjects. "It's the little things that annoy you. Do something to his car, mess with his things like that and make him snap." We all stare at Jai like he is a criminal mastermind. He shrugs. Kiarra nods at him, looking impressed. "I like the way you think." "But I kind of want to smash his head in," Miles confesses and Alec agrees, their own feud clearly being put to the side for the moment. "Collins family?" a voice says and we all snap our head up. She smiles when she see's how many of us are here. "Finn is awake and stable. He's broken his leg in two places and is in a lot of pain, so he is on some very strong pain killers for now. There's only half an hour until visiting hours are over, so you can go and see him for a little bit," she smiles. "Mrs Collins? May I speak with you?" She takes mum to the side as we all get to our feet and thunder down the hall, towards his room. When I walk in, Finn's leg is elevated on a strap and covered in a bright cast. He is eating chocolate pudding, the evidence spread around his mouth and down his chin. "Aw, guys," he says with a smile. "I love you all. Come into my office. Anyone want some pudding?" We all laugh at his words. Not-medicated Finn would never offer to share his food. "All yours buddy," Jai replies with a smile. "How's the leg?" "Not too bad," he admits. "Not very sore." "That's good," Jai replies as Alec mutters, "For now." "I'm feeling great," Finn assures us. "Oh really? You were crying like a little bitch when it happened," Alec smirks and Jai slaps him up the side of his head. "You would cry, too, you dick." We all laugh at that and Finn smiles with a shrug, before finishing his pudding. "Finn, the real question is, what do we do about Eli?" Alec asks him, folding his arms across his chest. "Yeah, tell us what to do," Jai agrees. "And we'll do it." Finn nods for a second and taps his chin. "Well, he isn't going to get any of my pudding, that's for sure." We all exchange a look, before bursting out with laughter. We decide to leave the serious talk for now, as Finn is not making much sense. We all spend the last remaining visiting hours with Finn, until we're ushered to leave. Mum decides to stay. They fix her with a pillow, blanket and a chair so that she can stay by his side all night. "Be safe, I love you," she mumbles tiredly, before giving me a hug. "You too," I reply. We shuffle out of the room and begin to head towards the exit. "I don't really want to be alone tonight," Kiarra sighs. "My house is open to everyone," I tell them. "I'll stay with you, if you want?" Jai offers and I try to hide my smile. Alec looks over to me. "Do you want to stay, Alec?" I ask him quietly. He glances to Miles briefly, before nodding. "Yes please." "I'll set up a movie in the lounge room and we can all sleep out there," I suggest and everyone murmurs in agreement. I look up to Miles, to see him smiling down at me. "I love you," he mouths and I feel my stomach squirm. "I love you," I silently say back. Miles places his arm around my shoulder and as we all head to our cars, I smile at my friends. Despite the night having taken a bad turn, we're all together and honestly, that's the best I can hope for.