Trouble in Paradise?
Chapter Forty Two

Final chapter.

“Thank you,” I said to Amber. “For bringing me here, I mean. I assume it was mostly you who put this together.”

She shrugged modestly. “You were in a bad place, and I knew I had to get you out of it. So I did what I could, even if you wouldn’t have liked it.”

“And you teamed up with my mum,” I joked. “Sneaky.”

She laughed. “It was worth it. You’re happier already, I can see it. You need those idiots more than you know.”

“When did you become so wise?” I asked. “You’ve eaten like four packets of skittles.”

“Sugar makes me wise.”

“I’ll remember that in the future.”

She laughed. “I did this for you because you’re my friend. Let’s say you owe me a favour.”

“Deal,” I said, shaking her hand. “You’re the most sane person here.”

“Disagree,” she said. “You are.”

I laughed, agreeing with the accuracy of her reply. “You’re right."

“Where did they get the fake swords?” I whispered to Ethan and Amber, who just shrugged and watched the show regardless.

“I will turn you to dust!" Jordan yelled as he sliced his arm through the air while attempting to hit Blake in the head with his foam sword.

“Good luck! Bring it on, you shit!” Blake bravely defended, jumping out of Jordan’s way. They had covered the swords in paint. Where had they gotten the paint from? I have no idea.

“I hope they remember you,” Jordan said, pointing to us. “because you’re about to die, peasant!”

Blake scoffed, shoving his arm forward in a jab. Jordan parried, and suddenly they were fencing. Only it was with foam swords that flopped around at every opportunity.

Jordan ended up winning by slicing his sword across Blake’s abdomen. Blake looked down in defeat. “You cut me in half!”

“Perfectly balanced, as all things should be,” Jordan declared. “You’ve bitten the dust, my friend.”

“Not funny,” Blake muttered as he got up to change his shirt which now had a large line of paint horizontally across it. Jordan bowed and I offered a slow clap. Most of us were just confused.

“Should we be leaving soon?” I asked Amber. We had packed all of our things, and only Blake and Jordan’s fight had halted our actions.

“Yeah,” she said. We double checked that we had taken everything before we stopped in front of the two cars we had used to come up here. Xavier had his car, meanwhile my mum was here.

“Have fun being in a car with Blake and Jordan,” I sang as I waved goodbye to them, hopping into my mum’s car with some effort. Amber jumped in next to me, and we drove off as I watched Ethan and Xavier load up the car while mumbling and groaning at Blake and Jordan who had become distracted again. They were trying to climb into the car through the windows.

“Back to bed,” I sighed as I climbed into my hospital bed. My mum had received some scolding from the doctors who suggested that I would have to stay in bed until my health improved.

Basically, more boredom with a side of nothing to do. Amber had to go straight home, so I was left with an empty room and a TV. Like I hadn’t already watched every TV show I was even vaguely interested in.

I was lying down with my eyes shut, thinking about the events of the weekend and this morning before we had left. I listened to the sounds outside of my room, and more importantly I soon began to hear loud voices. I groaned in my pillow three seconds before the door opened and the talking became even louder.

“Wow, this place sucks,” Blake commented as he walked in, touching everything within his reach.

“No shit,” Ethan deadpanned, leaning against the doorway while crossing his arms. I didn’t look at his biceps this time, I swear. Even if he looked brilliant just standing there with that small smile on his face.

Jordan was carrying a bunch of colourful toys that he had bought from the gift shop downstairs. There were giant teddy bears, small stuffed animals and balloons. I raised an eyebrow as he dropped them all on the floor.

“We each bought four,” he explained. “Well, Xavier paid.”

Xavier scoffed. “It was a nice thing to do.”

Jordan grinned. “Ethan stole the biggest ones, so we had to pick from the rest,” he said, shooting Ethan a scowl who only smugly nodded his head.

Jordan lined up all the toys on the window side of the room, Ethan having indeed gifted me the bigger ones. I shook my head as I watched them bicker back and forth over plush toys.

Blake found the TV remote pretty quickly, already flicking through the channels like an excited child. He sat down on the floor with his legs crossed. I watched him for a moment, amazed.

Jordan joined him on the floor soon after that, and Xavier had resumed a spot near the window on one of the hospital chairs. Only Ethan was left standing in the doorway as they all watched some crime show on the TV. I looked over to him to find him already glancing my way.

He walked over, sitting on my bed. He looked at me with a question in his eyes, and I accepted the invitation as he laid down with me in the bed. None of the others noticed as they had now changed the channel to some hospital show.

Ethan’s arm came around my shoulders as I rested my head on his own shoulder. I was immediately warmer than I had been and I was grateful for it.

“How’s your mum?” I asked quietly.

He looked at me with surprise. “She’s good. God, I really am a lucky guy.”

“Hell yeah you are,” I agreed, smiling. He returned the smile with a peck on my cheek. I allowed it, totally not internally bursting on the inside.

“Thank you,” he said after a moment. “For everything that you’ve done for us. And I mean everything. I don’t think you realise the impact that you’ve had.”

I was temporarily stunned, but managed to find my words anyway. “I’m an awesome friend who does awesome things.”

“I hope I didn’t just get friend zoned,” he said, laughing nervously.

Okay, so, during our conversation our faces had been naturally close as we had been talking quietly.

And that’s exactly why I couldn’t resist kissing him. He was right there and my instinct took over. If he was surprised or shocked, he didn’t show it as he was confident while he kissed. I pulled away after a moment. “Does that answer your question?”

“What was my question again?” he joked as he leaned in again, reigniting the kiss.

“Oh my GOD! His organs are literally falling out!” Jordan yelled, unintentionally interrupting our moment. I giggled and turned to the screen, Ethan pulling me closer to his large frame.

Jordan had been spot on when he had made his statement. The character’s guts had been falling out. We all watched on with fascination as the guy held his own organs.

“I’ve already seen this show before,” I said after we watched the show for a while. “The character ends up with-”

“No! Don’t spoil it!” Blake said. “I’m rooting for that one, the black haired one. Ah, the neurosurgeon. Whatever his name is,” he said.

“He’s the hottest,” I commented. Ethan spun his head around with a raised eyebrow.

Then, all four voices said: “I’m hotter.”

The four of them looked at each other, narrowing their eyes in a mental, masculine battle.

“Disagree,” I said cheerfully, interrupting their weird moment. “Doc here is hotter. Sorry boys.”

“My ego!” Blake said, pretending to pass out.

“My head!” Jordan yelled with mock sadness. “I can’t take it!”

“My dick!” Xavier yelled proudly. “Oh, we aren’t screaming out our biggest qualities?”

I cracked up laughing while Jordan felt his head with his hands.

“Do I have a big head to you?” he asked Ethan who only gave him a weird look. He gasped. “I do?! Why would you never tell me that?”

I was still laughing while Xavier brushed some imaginary dust off his shoulders as he wore a smug smirk on his face. His joke was great, I’ll admit.

“I think I can safely say that you think I’m hotter than any guy on TV,” Ethan said into my ear. Goosebumps rose on my arms.

I reluctantly nodded. “Can’t lie on this one. Unfortunately I can already see your ego growing larger.”

“You know it, baby,” he said with wink. I didn’t know whether I should cringe or swoon at the name, so I just let it be as I continued to watch the show with everyone else.

The sun set soon, and it was now dark outside. They would be forced to leave soon by the nurses, so I soaked up every moment I could with them. Ethan’s warmth, Jordan’s jokes, Blake’s goofiness and Xavier’s cockiness. I loved these stupid idiots for who they were even if I shouldn’t have.

And as it became dark, we stuck with each other while we fuelled our friendship.

The End.

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