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NOVEMBER 4TH, 2017 — ❝ NO ONE LIKES THE HOSPITAL. ❞

The night had been going well.

Eloise and Tom had enjoyed their dinner, taken the leftovers back to Eloise's house, and were now enjoying a movie together--Anna Karenina. For Eloise, the literature lover, and then Tom, the history lover, this movie was fun for them to watch, pretending to be adults and like the 'adult' movies.

All was going well, until a knock came to the front door. "I'll go see who it is," Eloise said, getting up from the couch and stretching. Tom paused the movie, and another knock came from the door.

"Hold on, I'm coming!" Eloise called, going down the stairs. Another knock came to the door, this time more frantic than the last, and Eloise finally looked through the peep-hole, and saw Karen on the other side. Opening the door, she said, "Karen? Is everything alright?"

Now that she could see her close friend more clearly, she felt her heart start to pound. Karen's hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail, her eyes were puffy and red from crying, and tears still stained her cheeks. "No! Nothing is alright, it-it's," She sniffled, and then swallowed, trying to breathe. "It's your dad, Eloise. He's in the hospital. He and Robert ran into each other at the airport when your dad was coming home. He had a heart attack all of a sudden, and now-and now-"

Karen leaned over, wheezing. "The hospital tried your cell, but it didn't go through, and so they called my cell. I'm taking you to the hospital."

Throughout this, Eloise fell into shock. Her dad? Her beloved father, in the hospital? What?

"Eloise? Is everything okay?" Tom called from the top of the staircase. Karen stepped inside, and said, "Pack overnight bags. Eloise is in shock. Nikolai's in the hospital. We have to go, now."

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Eloise was silent the whole ride to the hospital.

Was silent as they walked into the hospital, and Karen asked for Nikolai Alexey, saying his two daughters, Natalie and Karoline Alexeyevna were there to see him, along with his friend, William Johnson.

The nurse gave them the room number, and the three of them made their way towards it. Eloise was in shock, still. She had no idea what to do, what was happening. She felt like she should have prepared herself better for this--her father was getting old, this is what happened when people got old, why hadn't she stuck around?

When Karen knocked on the door, Robert opened it, and Eloise fell forward, and collapsed into his arms, finally crying. Wrapping his arms around her, he led his goddaughter towards the hospital bed, where her father was sleeping.

Eloise pulled away, and silently sat down in the chair next to the bed. She reached forward, grabbing her father's right hand, and brought it to her forehead. It had been a very long time since Eloise had prayed, the last time being when she had turned ten, and prayed that her parents could work out whatever problems were plaguing them.

Tom and Karen came inside the room, closing the door behind them. They watched her pray silently, and then lay her head down on the bed, her hand still intertwined with her father's, who was unconscious.

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The night stretched on, and eventually, Tom got a hotel room for he, Karen, and Robert to share while Eloise stayed by her father's side in the hospital. The three of them sat at the table in the dining room, all quiet and unsure of what to say.

"Did anything seem off to you when you ran into him at the airport?" Tom asked Robert, who shook his head and replied, "We both were wearing disguises, and I had my security guards nearby so no one could mob us. We were just sitting there, chatting, waiting for our food to come when he just . . . "

Robert paled as he recounted the experience. "He just stopped talking, and then groaned. He held his hand up to his chest, and then just . . . Said he was going to lie down for a quick second. Which he did, he laid his head down on the table, and then fell out of his chair."

They were speechless.

Tom's phone buzzed, and he frowned, pulling it out of his pocket, expecting it to be a text from Eloise. But instead, his phone buzzed again, another text coming in from a different person. The first one was from Chris, and then the second one was from . . . Taylor?

Why was she texting him in the middle of the night?

Chris's text read, I heard about Nikolai! Is he okay? Is Eloise okay? Text me back as soon as you can. Elsa and I are sending them our love and thoughts. We'll try and visit if we can.

Taylor's text said, Tom. I heard about Eloise's dad, sorry to hear he's in the hospital. But, are you in town? Can you meet me tomorrow night? I need to tell you something.

He texted Chris back first. Karen, Robert, and I are staying in a hotel nearby the hospital. If you do visit Nikolai, ask for the name Nikolai Alexey, that's the name he's been admitted under. I'll tell Eloise that you're trying to visit. Thank you for reaching out, I'll make sure your love reaches her.

But he had no idea what to say to Taylor. Karen and Robert were currently talking about something, but Tom wasn't listening. His phone buzzed again, and another text from Taylor, which was a location . . . Son of a bitch. Tom had to keep himself from swearing under his breath, because it was the last place they had dinner at, before they broke up.

He got up from the table, and said, "I'm going to go to nap for a little bit."

"If you want to sleep, go ahead. We were just going to turn our ringers on, make them really loud," Karen explained, and Tom nodded, taking off his jacket. He dug his phone charger out of his bag that he'd packed, remembering the blurring rush of trying to get Eloise to the hospital as quickly as possible, and then laid down on the bed.

The last thought he had before his eyes closed was of Eloise, and how she looked when she laid down, her head on her father's arm.

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When Eloise woke, she could finally feel the sheets of the hospital bed under her face, and her father affectionately rubbing her cheek with his thumb gently.

The TV was on, and she could slightly hear the news on, talking about a robbery that had happened sometime during the night. Opening her eyes, she saw that the blinds were somewhat drawn, but that it was sunrise. It'd only been a few hours.

Eloise sat up, Nikolai's arm shifting to her hand, and she yawned, then asked, "Daddy? Are you okay?"

"I'll be okay, Ellie. Don't worry," Nikolai replied, his voice hoarse. His skin was paler than usual, and he said, "I woke up about an hour ago. I had the nurse come in and give me water. But the doctor won't be in to check on me 'till nine."

She nodded, and then got up, going to the bathroom before digging through her overnight bag for her phone and phone charger. She slightly remembered Karen sitting next to her on the couch as Tom rushed to pack their bags. Last night didn't feel like it had been hours ago.

She saw a couple texts from Tom, two from Chris, one from Robert and Karen, and then one from Penelope. Penelope's text was wishing her father well, that the two of them were in her prayers, and then Robert and Karen's text was just telling them about the hotel room they were staying in nearby.

Chris's text was telling her that she and Nikolai were in his and Elsa's thoughts, and that they hoped to visit them soon, if they were able to. And that he loved them both.

Tom's first text was about the hotel room as well--he'd given her the name it was under, and the room number if she just wanted to look for it. His second text was about Chris's--just telling her that Chris and Elsa sent their love, and wanted to visit.

"Penelope's praying for us," Eloise said to her father after she'd plugged in her phone and then sat down again. She was holding his hand again. "And Chris and Elsa are wanting to visit us here. They hope they can. They're sending their love to us as well."

"How's Robert?" Nikolai asked, and then gestured for Eloise to help him with the glass of water. In his left hand was the remote for the TV, and his right was intertwined with hers. Eloise used her right hand to hold the glass for him, but ended up having to use her left hand to help him with the straw.

"I'm not sure," Eloise replied, guilty for not asking her godfather how he was doing throughout all of this. "I'll ask him, them. I'm hoping he's not doing too badly, though . . . "

Nikolai nodded after his daughter set the glass of water back on the nightstand. Sighing, he asked Eloise, "Could you help me lay down? I'm tired . . . "

"Of course, of course," Eloise rushed to help him. After she helped him lay down, she watched him fall asleep again, and kept her eyes on the heart monitor.

Eventually, as she was watching the sunrise, her stomach growled. Food was something she needed to keep going . . . That, and her boyfriend. Even before she met him, she always used to watch one of his movies to cheer herself up. She wondered if it would be weird to do that now . . .

Leaving her father's hospital room, she memorized the room number, and went up to the nurse at the desk, and asked where the food court was. After she found out where it was, she thanked the nurse and boarded the elevator.

About half an hour later, with a bagel and cream cheese in hand, she made her way back to her father's hospital room, but nearly tripped over her own feet when she saw someone at the front desk, asking the same nurse for Nikolai's room.

Eloise's mother, Maria, turned, and the two made eye contact.

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Eloise had no idea what to say, how to react. She was too shocked at the fact that her mother, someone she hadn't seen in years, was here at the hospital, asking for Nikolai's room number.

"Ellie?" Maria carefully asked, coming towards her daughter carefully. "Ellie, is that you?"

The hunger that Eloise had felt suddenly melted away as she asked, "What are you doing here, Maria?"

Maria rushed over, shushing her daughter as she sat her down in some nearby chair. "Don't use my real name here," She whispered. "I don't want them knowing who I am."

"Mom, everyone here knows who you are," Eloise whispered back, and then shook her head rapidly. She hadn't called her mother Mom in years . . . "But you didn't answer my question, Maria. What are you?"

"I heard about your father," Maria quietly said. "And I knew I had to see him. Is he . . . Doing okay?"

"Besides this? Or right now? Because if you mean besides this, he's doing just fine without you. We both are." Eloise simply said. "And right now? He's going to be just fine. But you can leave now. We don't need you here."

A flash of hurt went over Maria's face, and she said, "Listen, I know I haven't been the nicest to you two these past few years, but when were you going to tell me my own sister died?"

"I don't need to tell you anything. Besides, you'll just twist my words, and make me the bad guy again," Eloise snapped. "I mean, how was I supposed to know any better? I was a fucking child, Maria."

The elevator dinged, and a man walked out. He came up to Maria, handing her a Starbucks cup, and then turned to Eloise, and asked, "Are you Maria's daughter?"

Eloise wasn't sure what to say, but then recognized him instantly--Stefan Hillsburg, the man her mother had left Nikolai for. The one she'd married just days after her first marriage was over.

"You seriously don't recognize me?" Eloise said in disbelief, and then shook her head. "I've had enough of you, Maria. Take your homewrecker and get out of here. I don't want you here, and neither does my father. Nikolai will refuse to see you, no matter what, Maria."

Maria's mouth opened and closed a couple times, before she finally said, "Fine. I'll just come back tomorrow. I want to see him, Eloise. I want to see your father. I know it may seem like I don't love either of you anymore . . . But I do. And I want closure."

"You want closure?" Eloise repeated in disbelief. "Alright. That's it. Get the fuck out. Get out of this hospital, get out of mine and my father's lives, and certainly keep your big mouth shut about us. We shouldn't be 'your problem' anymore, Maria. So go. Now."

It had been a very long time since Eloise had been this angry. So when she watched her mother walk out, with her homewrecker of a husband, she didn't feel shame at what she'd done.

The nurse at the front desk nodded her approval to Eloise as she walked back to her dad's hospital room, and spent the next twenty minutes crying while eating her bagel.