Chapter 96

Chapter 96
Ava’s POV

I gripped the bunch of flowers in my hand as we walked through the sterile halls of the hospital. The stench of antiseptic and disinfectant was thick in the air. I did not exactly hate it like a lot of people did, but at the same time, I could not say that I liked it either. It was just there.

We were on the sixth floor of the hospital building, the one reserved for trauma patients. We stopped in front of a door marked F10.

“This is the room number Rice texted to me,” Aunt Clara said, checking her phone one more time to be sure.

My grip on the flowers tightened as my stomach twisted within me. Maybe coming here was a bad idea. What was the guarantee that Justin wanted to see us, especially after everything that had happened? He was probably going to live with scars from the fight—scars that might never fade.

My aunt reached for the doorknob to usher us in, but I stopped her with a question.

“What if he doesn’t want to see us?”

She raised her brow at me. “And why would you think that?”

“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “We’re part of the reason he’s lying on that hospital bed right now. He might hate us for our connection to Dale, and our presence here might just disrupt his healing process.”

A small smile lined her lips again. At this point, I was getting scared at how easily she found my words funny.

“Ava, he’s not going to be mad. If it makes you feel better, his dad told me that he actually asked about us. He’ll definitely be glad that we’re here.” She patted me on the back and opened the door.

Justin was lying on the bed with a bag of chips in his hand. His entire face was bound with bandages. He looked like a mummy, and both laughter and concern surged within me. He looked at us as we stepped in, and he didn’t seem displeased by our presence at all.

He must have noticed my attempt to hold back laughter because he said, “Just do it. I know I already look terrible.”

At his urging, I burst into laughter and wrapped my hands around him. “I’m so sorry,” I apologized, hating that he was in this position.

“I’m so sorry. I should have given that dickhead some punches of my own,” he said and then turned to Aunt Clara. “Please don’t hate me for calling your son a dickhead, Miss Newton.”

“Oh, please. You didn’t lie at all,” she smiled at him.

“I didn’t know he was going to do this to you. If I had known he would act that way around you, I would never have allowed you to come to Montry Heights yesterday,” I explained.

“There’s no need to feel bad, baby girl. Even I thought he and I would be cool. Shit happens, but I’m glad no permanent damage was done. I just fear I may never look as handsome as I did before the fight,” he said, and I sensed the sorrow in his voice.

There was a lot about this situation to be sorrowful about.

“Justin, we’re really sorry that this had to happen to you. I could swear to you that this isn’t how I raised Dale, but his actions prove otherwise. He was a nice kid. I can’t tell if he was threatened by your presence or something else, but I promise you he’s being punished for what he did to you,” she apologized.

“It’s okay. I’ll just try to stay away from him. However, you two aren’t being spared from my presence,” he warned lightly.

“And who told you we wanted to be away from you?” I teased, handing the flowers to him. “We got you flowers.”

“They’re nice,” he said, taking them from me and placing them in a vase with another bunch of flowers.

The door swung open, and his dad walked into the room. The man paused in his tracks the moment he saw me and my aunt. The air in the room seemed to drop by a few degrees, casting a strange, cold feeling. I watched as he and my aunt stared at each other, neither of them saying a word.

“You came,” the man finally breathed out.

“Yes, I did.” Aunt Clara’s voice wasn’t as strong as it had been earlier, and I could tell they were both deeply affected by seeing each other again.

This was love, and it was a pity that Dale was trying so hard to sabotage it.

“Umm, can you two please step outside? Ava and I would like to discuss something private,” Justin said to the two adults in the room.

I shot him a shocked glare, skeptical about how that might sound to an average person. Instead of being worried, he winked at me and nodded toward his dad and Aunt Clara. They were holding hands, and I immediately figured out what he was trying to do.

“Yeah, we really need to discuss something important,” I echoed, hoping to get them out of the room quickly.

“Yeah, sure,” Mr. Rice said absentmindedly and led my aunt out of the room.

“Someone has to guide those oldies, or else...” Justin clicked his tongue and shook his head.

I threw my head back in laughter, impressed by how bold he was about pushing the two lovebirds together. I would never have had the confidence to do that. Hell, I would be so shy around them. Who the hell was this dude?

“You’re right,” I said with a sheepish smile.

He smiled and looked at me, and I bent my head, unsure what to say next.

“So, tell me, Ava, how are you doing? Don’t tell me ‘fine,’ because you look anything but fine.” He shook his head at me.

I laughed again, louder this time. For the first time since the fight, I felt lighter. I could swear at this point that I had successfully gained a new friend.