Her fear mirrored his own, but he was trying to hold it together. He’d break down once she went to the OR.
They got out of the car and walked hand in hand out of the parking garage with her parents. The hospital gleamed in the morning light streaming through the tall windows. In the waiting room, Lila sat between Gavin and her mom while her father paced before them. Soon, they were led to a room already prepared for her stay.
Lila changed into a hospital gown in the bathroom. Nurses came in to check her vitals and prepared to take her to the OR. Gavin stood by the window, trying to stay out of the way. The doctor came in to explain the procedure one more time to the Westons, but Gavin didn’t hear the words. He crossed his arms to hide his shaking hands. She was really having brain surgery. She might wake up later that afternoon and have no memory of him.
“All right, I will see you downstairs shortly.” The doctor left, followed shortly by the nurses.
An aide came in to take Lila, and Gavin finally looked up. She hugged her parents, both telling her everything would be fine yet again. They’d see her in a few hours no matter what. However, if she didn’t remember, they’d decided it would be best for Gavin not to visit right away. He would need to leave and wait for her to rest and heal up a little. They didn’t want to overwhelm her with new faces.
He took slow steps toward her, waiting for Robert to let go. When he did, Lila hesitated before turning. Her deep blue eyes met his, and Gavin’s heart twisted inside. He pulled her into a fierce hug, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She held onto him, as if clinging on for life. They stood still—neither moving nor speaking.
“It’s time,” the aide said quietly.
Gavin glanced up at him and nodded before looking back to Lila. He tilted her face up, sliding his palm up to rest on her cheek. Standing on her toes, Lila brought her lips to his. He moved his other arm to her waist to lift her up against his chest.
It ended too soon. As he sat her back down, he brushed away her tears with his thumbs. He kissed her on the forehead before saying, “I love you, Lila.”
With a smile, she whispered, “I love you too.”
Then, she was lying on the bed, and the aide unlocked the wheels to push her away.
“I’ll see you soon,” Gavin said. “I promise.”
She nodded, waved to her parents, then left, taking all the oxygen from the room with her. The pressure on Gavin’s chest was too much. His vision blurred as he stared at the empty hall beyond the open doorway.
A hand came down on his shoulder, but he couldn’t move. The hand moved to the back of his neck as Robert said, “Breathe.”
Gavin’s breath shook with soft laughter. How many times had he said that to Lila throughout their lives? Even when they weren’t friends, he’d helped her through anxiety attacks more than once. He remembered seeing her walk from the guidance counselor’s office during lunch a few months back, pale as a ghost. She’d quickly left the cafeteria, and he followed out of instinct. She’d stopped in the hall with hands on her knees. He’d pulled her around a corner to a short, empty hallway, and they stood side by side with their backs against the wall as he reminded her to breathe.
He never knew what sparked it—they didn’t say anything else. He stayed with her until she calmed down, and when the bell rang, she walked away with a quiet thanks. Now, he wondered if it had been because of the surgery or something else.
As they moved to sit, a thought hit him. Lila had lied. “She got into Bennu, didn’t she?”
Mrs. Weston’s brow scrunched from her spot across from him but nodded. The room held a small couch with a pull-out mattress for them to stay with Lila. They sat there, Robert putting an arm around his wife’s shoulders, while Gavin took the single chair.
“She didn’t tell you?” Mrs. Weston said.
Gavin shook his head. “I was just thinking about a time I helped her through an attack at school. She never told me what was wrong. I just realized it probably had something to do with all this.”
“Yes, I remember her talking about that,” Robert said. “Although, she didn’t say who helped her.”
“I know she wants to take business classes for the Scoop, but it couldn’t have been easy giving up a lifelong dream.” Gavin raked a hand through his short hair. She’d gone through so much in such a short time. He hadn’t really thought about how drastic Lila’s life changed within six months. Less than a year, and her entire future altered.
“Sweetie,” Mrs. Weston started, “she didn’t give up her dream. She found a new one. She wasn’t upset about Bennu that day. She’d already decided on studying business last summer. The attack happened after telling the counselor she’d need to hold off on going away to college. They were going over online programs.”
“She applied to other schools, you know,” Robert said. “She was accepted to a couple, and she plans on transferring in the spring if everything goes well with the surgery.”
Gavin shook his head and looked to the ground. He had no idea. He was afraid to ask where she’d go.
“Last week, she moved Maslair to the top of her list,” Mrs. Weston said in a soft tone, as if reading his thoughts.
His eyes snapped up to hers.
She shrugged. “Sometimes life throws
