WESLEY WEDNESDAY -Recklessly peek

Recklessly is going to have a pretty close release to Remake, I think. Anyway, here's a little piece to stew on:

“She’s in…um…her kidneys…it’s…” Abel, flustered, fumbled with the bottom edge of his t-shirt, unable to meet Wes’ eyes. It was obvious he was crying and he just didn’t want Wes to know right away.

“Renal failure,” Wes said flatly before he surveyed the unfamiliar faces in the hospital waiting room. “Her kidneys aren’t filtering toxins out like they’re supposed to.” He was sure Abel knew this already; Wes was stating it entirely for his own benefit. Maybe his own punishment.

“Man, she tested positive for…cocaine.” Abel finally looked up with puffy, bloodshot eyes. “They said sometimes it makes you go into hypo…no…uh…hyperthermia. Her body overheated.” He pressed his palms against his eyes. “I can’t believe we’re here again. Today took me right back to—”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Wes’ curt tone silenced Abel, and he was squeezing his fists so hard that his fingers went numb. He would’ve given anything to have it spread through the rest of him right now. “So, I guess her parents are here?” Abel nodded, holding his solemn expression. “Great.”

How could he face them right now?  Wes drew his keys from his pocket. Rage was a vise on his chest, and since he couldn’t toss any of the screwed-down chairs across the room, he flung his keys instead. He had never before felt hate like this, for anybody; yet, all he wanted to do was hold her, bury his face in her hair and tell her how he would fix it.

“Wesley, this isn’t your fault. It’s not your—”

“Don’t.” Wes held his palms out toward Abel as a warning as he clenched his jaw. He had to calm down or he would take out his anger undeservedly on his brother. “I kinda need you to walk away right now. You didn’t do anything…I just…”

Hurt flared in Abel’s eyes for just a blink before calm took over—as much calm as one could have in a hospital setting. “I got it, bro,” he said, but his tone was unconvincing as he squeezed Wes’ shoulder twice. “Call me, okay?”

“Yeah....” Under the concerned and probably fearful eyes of everyone in the waiting room, Wes went to retrieve his keys. Then, he only got as far as the other side of one of the motion-sensor exits before he doubled over from exhaustion and shock, planting his hands on his knees for support.

“Hey, you okay?”

Wes wasn’t a crier, so he suppressed the burn in his chest with the strength he could muster, but he couldn’t control how hard his shoulders were shaking. It felt like he couldn’t breathe quickly enough to sustain his existence. Every time he took a breath in, the world seemed ready to rip it back out of him just as the air crossed his lips. Everything else was being taken away, too, so it seemed fitting. Did he need to pray? Shit. He didn’t do that, either. So he grunted and growled at the ground until the sound coming out of his singed throat stopped.

“Hey. Excuse me…”

Wes turned his head and flushed with embarrassment when he noticed the woman standing next to him. He probably looked crazy. “Are you okay...stupid question, but human nature," she said.

Wes slowly stood upright and was unsure of whether to shake his head or nod, so he did neither.

"I saw you earlier…with your brother...you were carrying that girl,” she continued. She pulled the shroud of her thick, dark brown curls away from her face and smiled with compassion before offering a cigarette. He hadn’t smoked since he was twelve, but he took it, and he even let her light it. “I know it’s a stimulant, but it calms me down. I usually need it when I come see how my dad’s doing. You look like you need one, too. Shannon.” She pointed at herself before pulling a couple tissues from her purse and waving them at him. “And you’re bleeding. Right above your eye.”

“Wesley, and thanks.” He dabbed at one of his eyebrows and winced from the sting. He hadn’t even noticed he was hurt, but the memory of colliding with a door earlier suddenly poured in.  “Is it bad?”

Shannon shrugged. “Shouldn’t be if you couldn’t feel it.” Then she smiled. “No, that’s not necessarily true, but I don’t think you’ll die or… Shit, probably not the best word to use at a place like this, huh? Sorry.”

He agreed in silence, but Wes shrugged and stared at the light shade of blood on the tissue. Now that he was aware of the cut, the pain was manageable but seemed to be intensifying. He suspected that this would be the most unscathed he’d be when this was all over.

“I hope you don’t mind my asking, but is your girlfriend gonna be okay?”

Crushing the tissue, Wes hauled in a long drag from the cigarette after he shook his head. “She’s not…no.”