It was a cold hallway. On the ceiling, blank white lights shone down on the near never-ending hallway, creating a bleak atmosphere. Along the wall, chairs were stacked in a row, and an obese man sat in one of them. In front of him, a door with the number 294 stood tall, menacingly intimidating him.

Everett stayed seated in the chair with his hands put together, leaning forward, until the hospital door in front of him opened. Inside, a nurse came out and spoke directly to Everett.

“She’s awake. You can go in and speak with her if you’d like.”

Everett stood up before thanking the nurse.

“Yeah. Thank you very much, ma’am.”

The nurse smiled before leaving momentarily.

Everett walked towards the door before hesitating to enter. He knew now was not the time to argue or even get mad at her. All he could do now was comfort her.

With a light breath, he opened the door before entering. In a short corridor, he took three steps before seeing the outline of the hospital bed. With another step, he found himself staring directly at his daughter.

Questions filled his mind that he helplessly struggled to suppress before he smiled.

“How are you holding up?”

She did not respond. She stared blankly at the TV, ignoring his question.

Everett’s smile faded as he walked to a chair in the corner of the room and sat down.

Everett thought about what to say before he spoke.

“Just get better soon. I can’t afford this.”

Yasmine continued to stare at the TV before responding.

“I had hoped it would have killed me. So I could stop bothering you.”

Everett shook slightly as his goosebumps formed on his skin.

His fist tightened as he struggled with his response. Eventually, though, he responded harshly.

His mouth opened and closed a couple of times before the words finally tore through the air.

“Then you should have cut deeper…”

Yasmine did not respond. Her eyes focused on the TV while Everett continued.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“If ya were really thinking of doing that for me, Then you should have made sure.”

Before he could continue, a nurse stepped into the room.

She explained that she would have to keep watch over Yasmine for the night. It was to ensure she did not harm herself while in their care. Everett understood and soon left without saying another word to Yasmine.

The sliding doors opened to the entrance of the hospital before Everett walked to his van. While walking, he pulled out his phone and fumbled with it as he texted someone.

After sending it, he thought about what Marcia had asked him earlier in the day.

“How about they meet each other!?”

Everett had looked at her weirdly before responding.

“What would that accomplish?”

Marcia thought about it for a second before blurting out an answer.

“Maybe they can…”She tried to think of something. However, even she did not know what it would accomplish. Hell, it might make things worse for the two of them. Both Marcia and Everett were in this blind, and the advice on the internet usually had a 50/50 chance of working. Usually, it would make things worse while sometimes making them better.

“Maybe they can talk about their struggles with substance abuse!”

Everett rubbed his chin as she continued.

“Who knows, maybe they can grow a bond and help each other through it. You know, like a collaborative effort!”

Suspicion filled his face as he thought about it.

“I don’t know; it might make things even more difficult.”

“But it could make things better as well! You know we have to stay positive through it all!”

Everett hesitated before responding.

“I’ll think about it, miss. Can I contact you through Matthew?”

Marcia smiled before patting Matthew on the back.

“Yeah! Just send him a text, and I’ll receive it.

“Alright.”

Marcia continued before he changed the subject in an attempt to convince him even more.

“Everett. Let’s think about the people going through this. They could help each other with another head to lean on. We always have to think about them first.”

Everett smiled subtly before continuing with what he came there for.

Back at home, he unlocked his house door with the same bronze key he used earlier before it creaked open.

A large sigh crawled from his body as he walked in and collapsed onto the couch. Everett remained there for minutes, slumping as he tried to relieve his stress and exhaustion. After a certain time, though, he stood up and walked into Yasmine’s room. He came out with all her blood-soaked blankets and covers minutes later. He walked to the edge of the kitchen before stepping into a separate room. Inside, a washer and dryer stood unused for the past couple of weeks. With the blankets and covers in hand, he shoved them all into it and added detergent.

His thought process was that it would be better to deal with the blankets now so that the stains would not show as much. He also did it to wash away the guilt he felt, as if it would leave so easily.

Afterward, he cast a glance at his watch and realized how late it had become. He had work early the next day, yet he was here with unwanted stress. Another sigh left his being as he walked towards his room. Now, he did not have time to shower if he hoped to at least sleep six hours. The room door creaked open as pictures of a couple were nailed in different places around the room. The king-sized bed right next to the door was unmade and had clothes on top of it. Everett could not be bothered with it right now, though. He took his shirt off before collapsing onto the bed. Then he turned the lights off and lay there. He slowly fell into a deep sleep before his phone buzzed. His eyes shot open, then proceeded to close and open multiple times as he woke up. Exhausted, he struggled to grab his phone on the desk next to him. When he did, though, he noticed a text notification. When opened, it said: