Update
Hey guys, I currently have up to chapter 12 written out on B.A but I'm starting to panic a little bit because I've got writer's block. I think I'll post up to chapter 12 on here and if you have any ideas for it will you tell me please? Thanks.
Title: Beautiful Addiction
Chapters: 10, 11 and 12
Dedication: The lions on my school tie, they talk to me
Disclaimer- I own nothing. Wait actually- Brandi's mine. Lol, never noticed that before. Jessica
can be owned by anyone she's evil.
Roughly four hours later nearly everybody had either passed out or gone to bed except for Dave
and Muppet.
“There’s someone missing.” Muppet said, pensively.
“Yeah, I need some more beer but I can’t be assed to move.” Dave replied trying to reach for the
crates.
“Hmmm, Deryck and Adah are in bed. Jessica hasn’t left her room, Steve’s passed out on the
kitchen floor, Simon and Joe went into the bathroom and have not yet returned and Brandi went to
bed. We’re here on the sofas, so that’s only…. nine people. There were ten of us earlier on….”
“You missed off Cone.” Dave told the frustrated guitarist.
“Yeah, where the fuck is he?” Muppet asked.
“Probably decided to stay on the bus rather than hang out with a load of drunk people, little
fucker.” Dave reached and nearly grabbed a bottle before falling on the floor. He groaned
dejectedly, “I guess I’m just not supposed to drink that beer.”
“Shouldn’t we go looking for him?” asked Muppet. “Just to make sure he’s Ok?”
“Only if and I say if you’ll pass me that darn beer and unscrew the cap.” Dave stated, he hadn’t
made any attempt to move from the floor yet.
Muppet rolled his eyes and did as Dave requested and then after a couple of minutes trying to
stand up and fully clothing themselves again they were off.
When they arrived at Deryck and Cone’s bus ten minutes later they were met with a wide open door
instead off the closed one they were expecting.
“Maybe he didn’t close it properly and it opened.” Dave said nervously, trying to make up
excuses.
“Yeah, and maybe he just forgot to take the keys out of the front of the door.” Muppet said as
he walked into the eerily quiet and dark tour bus.
Dave followed him and switched on a light to reveal the normal looking main room, they shared a
look before walking towards the back of the bus. Nothing looked out of place in either the
kitchenette or the bathroom so they went upstairs.
They gasped when the saw Adah’s room, everything had been upturned and thrown about making it
look like a war zone.
“This definitely isn’t right.” Muppet said walking around the room. Dave nodded and tip toed
towards the last room on the bus, he stuck his head into the room and nearly threw up at the
sight that greeted him.
One of his best friends in the world was sprawled out on the bed, facedown. He had no t-shirt
on; his pants and boxers were halfway down his legs and he was covered in blood.
“Shit, Muppet. Run to the hotel and get help quick.” Dave ordered in a weak tone of voice.
Muppet glanced in the room before running off of the bus and up to the hotel as quick as he
could.
Dave took a step into the room and was hit by the stench of blood; he nearly started to retch
but he stepped closer to the bed. Where skin could be seen without blood on it there were bruises
instead and Dave felt bile rise in his throat and tears in his eyes.
He quickly ran off of the bus and puked all over the wet tarmac. He didn’t want to go back on
the bus but he hadn’t even checked the bassist’s pulse or even looked to see if he was breathing.
He couldn’t be dead though, he was too young.
He took a deep breath and willed himself to think positively. He’d be all right; Cone was the
strong one. He got through everything.
When he walked back into the room this time he walked purposefully over to the bed and checked
Cone’s pulse and breathing. He was doing both, but only just.
Dave’s eyes ran over Cone’s back and down to his hips where Dave could make out bruises in the
shapes of fingers.
“Oh, Jay…” He said quietly brushing some hair away from the prone figure’s pale and clammy
forehead. “What did you do to deserve this?”
“Nnnoo.” Cone mumbled, his face screwed up and tears started to roll down his cheeks. He tried
to move away from the hand that was stroking his head.
“It’s Dave, Cone. What happened?” It was obvious what had happened, while everyone was up in the
hotel getting drunk Cone had been down at the tour bus getting raped and beaten.
“No, Don’t. Please.” Cone whispered; he had yet to open his eyes so Dave assumed it must be a
nightmare.
Dave heard an ambulance in the distance and the sounds of people running up the stairs, he heard
the gasps when they saw Adah’s room.
He got up and stood in the doorway blocking it.
“Dave?” Brandi asked, her voice wobbled. “What happened?”
“Is he…alive?” Muppet asked and Dave nodded.
Deryck stood in the middle of the room; he looked around at everything that was on the floor
before turning to Dave with tears rolling down his face.
“Is…is he Ok?” Deryck asked taking an unsteady step towards the guitarist.
“Biz, I don’t think you should see him like this.” Dave told the shorter man gently.
“Why not? He’s my husband, I need to see him.” Deryck said smiling. “Let me in.”
Dave shook his head sadly and stood his ground.
“No, you don’t understand. He’s my husband, I have to see him!” Deryck was shouting now only two
inches away from Dave’s face.
“I’m not letting you in. I’m doing this for your own good you know.” Dave told the singer who
shook his head angrily.
“Let me in!” He started to pound his fists on Dave’s chest, Dave bit his lip to stop himself
from crying out.
“Deryck please, lets just go downstairs the ambulance is nearly here. They’ll take good care of
him, I promise.” Dave said and Deryck nodded mutely.
Muppet had already gone downstairs when Dave started to lead the shorter man down the stairs. He
was caught by surprise when Deryck elbowed him in the stomach before running into his bedroom.
A scream rang out. Brandi looked uncertainly at Dave then at the entrance to the room, they both
started towards the room. The scene that met them was heart breaking.
Deryck was sat on the bed with tears running down his face, his hand was outstretched towards
Cone who was unintentionally shying away from the contact.
“Jason…” Deryck whispered, he wiped some tears off of his husband’s pale face. “I’m sorry.”
“No, no. Please, hurts.” The bassist moaned.
He moved his head so it was facedown on the bed and weakly moved his arms to cover his head.
Deryck noticed the bruises and the long cuts, clearly made with a knife, that were still bleeding.
“Too much blood.” Deryck said before getting up and leaving the room, Dave followed him to make
sure he wouldn’t do anything stupid.
Brandi sat down on the edge of the bed; she started to sob. Why the hell had this happened? It
wasn’t fair; Cone would never hurt anybody.
“Cone, please be alright. Think about what there is to live for, don’t give up.”
She heard the ambulance pull to a stop outside the tour bus, “Please Cone.”
Two paramedics entered the room a couple of minutes later, they faltered before continuing. One
tried to check Cone’s vital signs but the distressed and now fully awake bassist was not having
it; he squirmed and wriggled making it impossible so the second paramedic had to hold him down.
Azure eyes darted around trying to look for someone familiar; he couldn’t see anybody.
He felt his chest tighten and it was suddenly hard to breathe. Why couldn’t he breathe? Were
these strangers going to hurt him like the others did? He started to scream when one of their
hands touched his neck; his lungs were burning.
“Calm down, son. We’re not going to hurt you.” The older paramedic said soothingly, he was the
one pinning Cone to the bed.
Jay shook his head and tears leaked down his face he wasn’t screaming now, just trying to gulp
in air but it wasn’t working.
Wasn’t that what the others had said? ‘We’re not going to hurt you fag’ had been their exact
words. They had lied, why should he trust these new strangers? Maybe they had gotten everyone
else, that’s why they weren’t here. Deryck and Adah… No. He felt a prick in his arm and heard a
familiar voice as he slipped into darkness.
“Can’t you see he’s fucking terrified of you?” Brandi shouted, the second paramedic had blocked
her view of Cone and she was beyond angry at the way they treated him. “What have you done to
him?” She questioned as the second paramedic let go of the now limp bassist and moved out of the
way so the first one could check his vitals.
“We had to sedate him, he was going to hurt himself further if we didn’t” Said the second
paramedic. “How long has he been like this?”
“I don’t know, five hours maybe?” Brandi looked at the paramedic’s face which had a frown on it.
“Have you ever noticed him bleeding for long periods of times from things like cuts and
nosebleeds?” The paramedic questioned.
“He had two nosebleeds today, they took ages to stop. Why?” Brandi asked worriedly.
“We need to get him to the hospital ASAP.” The first paramedic said looking up.
Deryck stumbled down the stairs and got off of the bus as quick as he could, to him it reeked
like death. Cone… He’d be Ok. He was always Ok; Cone could get through anything.
He sat down heavily on the tarmac; not caring that it had only just stopped raining and he had
just sat down in a huge puddle. Nothing mattered if Cone wasn’t Ok. He was nothing without his
lanky bassist.
He bowed his head. He didn’t hear the ambulance pull up and the paramedics get out; they were
taking too long. He didn’t hear Muppet telling them were his other half was, dying upstairs.
He didn’t hear Dave trying to coax him into standing up and getting out of the puddle, he didn’t
hear the sighs or everybody else from the hotel room joining them. He didn’t hear Adah starting
to cry in Steve’s arms.
He heard the screams. He heard the horrible, heart-wrenching screaming and he broke down. Sobs
racked his body and he felt someone put their arms around him, trying their best to comfort him
by rubbing circles on his back. That made him cry more, it was what Cone did whenever he was
upset.
He felt the raindrops pelting him and he broke away from the hug, he was surprised to see it was
Joe who had been holding him.
“Adah needs to get out of the rain.” Deryck said as Joe got up and then offered him a hand.
Deryck took the hand and stood up, “Steve took her onto the bus when the rain started. Come on,
we’re going to get a cold if we don’t move.”
“He took her onto the bus?” Deryck asked, “How could he be so stupid?”
Deryck stormed onto the bus and saw everybody minus the obvious sat on the sofas; nobody was
making any noise apart from Adah who was crying. He grabbed his daughter out of the drummer’s
hands.
“You don’t bring her on the bus!” Shouted Deryck angrily. “She shouldn’t be on here, she
doesn’t need to see Cone like this.”
The singer walked into the kitchen and started to make Adah a bottle while balancing her on his
hip.
Steve didn’t say anything in return; he just put his head in his hands and groaned. He wished
he could take back the majority of the day, too much had happened. None of it good, he looked up
and watched one of the paramedics basically ran out of the bus only to return a couple of minutes
later with a stretcher. He then disappeared up the stairs and Steve wondered how they were going
to get Cone down here.
One thing Steve knew for certain is that he didn’t want to see Cone, he hadn’t seen him yet and
he didn’t want to. It’d just make things so much more real. He put his head in his hands again,
he knew he didn’t deserve it but he wanted a hug from someone. Why? He could feel the beginnings
of a headache and he groaned again.
Somehow the paramedics managed to get down the stairs with the stretcher carrying Cone on
in-between them safely. Brandi had followed them, she had tears running down her cheeks but Steve
didn’t see. He hadn’t looked up yet.
“Who’s going in the ambulance with him?” She asked as she wiped away the tears only for them to
be replaced by more.
“I’ll go, I don’t think Deryck’s in the right state of mind at the moment. Plus I know all of
Cone’s medical stuff.” Dave said standing up, he gave Brandi a hug and a kiss before walking off
of the bus and climbing into the ambulance once they had loaded Cone onto it.
There was an awkward silence in which the only noise apart from Adah’s quiet crying was the
ambulance’s siren as it drove away.
“What are we going to do?” Joe asked.
Everyone shrugged and Deryck walked back into the room with Adah in his arms drinking from a
sippy cup full of formula.
“We need to get to the hospital.” Simon said. “Can anybody drive a bus?”
“Or we could just phone for Greig and he could come and drive it for us. He knows how to.” Said
Steve and everybody gaped at him.
“You know that is the most smartest thing I’ve ever heard come out of your mouth?” Brandi told
him.
“Shut up you guys, someone give us a phone.” Deryck said, he had left his in the hotel.
The others searched their pockets but came up with nothing; Muppet spotted a cell phone on top
of the stereo next to a wallet. He picked it up before travelling across to the other side of the
room to give it to Deryck. The shorter man stared at the cell phone that was offered to him and
started to sob but he took it anyway. Muppet took Adah out of his arms and sat back on the sofa.
Deryck dialled Greig’s number quickly and put the phone to his ear. On the ninth ring it was
answered.
“Cone? Why the hell are you ringing me at 1.30 in the morning.” Deryck let out a sob.
“I-It’s Deryck.” Said the distressed singer in-between sobs.
“Deryck? What’s wrong, are you Ok? What’s happened?” Asked the worried manager.
“C-Cone got real-really hurt, they t-took him to the hos-hospital.” Deryck told him, still
sobbing. “We-we need a ride.”
“Where are you?” Greig asked and Deryck could hear him moving about.
“On mi-mine and Cone’s bus.” Deryck let out a wail and dropped the phone before falling to the
floor himself. Brandi was immediately at his side; she pulled him into a hug as best as she could.
No one dare move or speak for the ten minutes it took a panting Greig to get to the bus. He
didn’t ask questions instead he just jumped into the driver’s seat and started up the engine.
After a couple of minutes he shouted, “Where’s the damn hospital?”
It took them at least forty-five minutes to get to the hospital after stopping on numerous
occasions and asking anybody they could spot on the streets at this time of night. The bus hadn’t
even stopped in the parking lot before Deryck had run off of it and into the building with a
worried Brandi following him just as fast.
Muppet, Joe, Simon, Steve and Greig walked into the hospital at a slower pace. Steve was now
carrying Adah who was fast asleep in his arms, sucking on her thumb.
Deryck was hassling nurses to find out about his husband while Dave and Brandi were hugging in
the middle of the waiting room. Dave had tears streaming down his face and was sobbing into
Brandi’s shoulder.
The group of new comers crowded around them, “What’s happened?” Greig asked. He looked
dishevelled and had his t-shirt on inside out but no one took any notice.
Dave shook hiss head and Brandi held him tighter, she had her own tears running down her face
because she knew what had happened.
“He blue-coded a couple of minutes before we got here.” Brandi told them, her voice sounded
emotionless.
“Does Deryck know?” Joe asked biting his lip nervously.
Brandi shook her head, “He ran straight up to the nurses station asking questions.”
Muppet nodded and walked up to Deryck and gently guided him to the chairs, “Sit here, Mate. If
you keep on pestering the nurses they won’t be able to help Cone will they?”
Deryck sighed dejectedly and slumped in one of the uncomfortable chairs. Muppet sat down next to
him and everyone else found somewhere to sit, it was a couple of minutes later when a haggard
looking doctor emerged from the room.
Deryck immediately jumped to his feet, “Is he Ok?”
“Are you a family member of Mr McCaslin’s?” The Doctor asked.
“I’m his fucking husband!” Deryck exclaimed angrily running a hand through his hair.
“Very well, I think we should talk in a more private place.” The middle-aged man eyed the others
in the room.
“No, tell me here.” Said Deryck crossing his arms haughtily.
“If I must, I think you better sit down.” The Doctor told the shorter man and Deryck did what he
was told.
“I’m afraid that Mr McCaslin was beaten, raped and then cut several times with a knife on his
arms, back and torso.” The Doctor told them bluntly. “If Mr McCaslin was anybody else he would’ve
stopped bleeding by the time that he was found but unfortunately he has Haemophilia so-“
“Haemo-what?” Deryck asked puzzled.
The Doctor let out a sigh, “Haemophilia is a blood clotting disorder. When a haemophiliac gets a
cut they can’t stop bleeding because they don’t have the ‘clotting factor’. They also tend to
bruise easier than other people, do you understand?”
Deryck nodded and the Doctor continued.
“We were able to slow the bleeding by injecting the missing ‘clotting factor’ and we will have
to keep doing so every couple of hours so it will stop. That’s the good news, the bad news is
that we currently don’t have any of Mr McCaslin’s blood type and if he doesn’t get some soon he
may die.”
“What type is he?” Deryck asked.
“0- “ The Doctor told him and Deryck swore.
“I’m 0- too.” Steve said looking up from Adah’s face.
“Are you willing to donate?” The Doctor asked and Steve nodded. “Ok, I’m just going to get you a
form to fill out and then we’ll see if you’re eligible.” The Doctor left the waiting room.
“Stevo, thank you so much.” Deryck said looking at the drummer with tears in his eyes.
“It’s nothing, D, especially after what a dickhead I’ve been today.” Steve told the singer
quietly looking down at Adah’s face once again as the Doctor walked back into the room.
Steve carefully put the Baby into Brandi’s waiting arms and started to fill out the form that
was given to him. He didn’t say anything until he got to the last question,
“’Have you had a tattoo done in the last twelve months?’ Why does that even matter?” He asked
before filling it in and handing the form back to the Doctor who checked it over and then nodded.
“If you’d like to come with me, Mr Jocz.” The Doctor said and Steve stood up and followed him
into Cone’s room. He stuck his thumbs up before closing the door.
Steve gasped at the sight of the figure on the bed. Cone was hooked up to several machines and
looked so deathly pale; some of his dyed black hair was plastered against his forehead and the
rest was stuck up at different angles.
“Sit here please, Mr Jocz.” The Doctor said indicating a chair next to the bed.
Steve sat down in it uncertainly and his eyes wandered over Cone’s unclothed chest half of which
was covered in bandages stained red with blood. His skinny arms also had bandages on them, Steve
looked at the floor.
“I’m just going to wipe something on your arm that’ll numb the pain of the needle, Ok?” A nurse
asked him and he nodded.
He winced when the needle was inserted into his arm a couple of minutes later; he watched Cone’s
face throughout the whole thing. The black eye stood out vividly against the pale skin and Steve
sighed, he didn’t know if he would ever be able to forgive himself for that.
He didn’t even know why he trusted Jessica over Cone, it was pretty stupid but he was so caught
up in his relationship with Jessica. He thought he loved her.
He felt the Nurse take out the needle and put a band-aid over the tiny pinprick; he smiled at
her.
“Will he be Ok now?” Steve asked and the Nurse frowned but she wasn’t looking at Steve.
Her eyes were looking at the figure on the bed, his once calm features were screwed up in pain
and his breathing started to quicken.
“I think you better leave, sir.” The Nurse said as she scanned the machines and felt Cone’s
pulse.
“Nnnooo.” Cone moaned, he tried to wrench his arm free of the Nurse’s grasp but she just held on
tighter.
Steve hadn’t moved, he watched what was happening with a look of horror on his face.
Cone struggled some more and then he just stopped and the heart-monitor flat-lined for the
second time in an hour.
Doctors and Nurses hurried in and Steve was pushed away from the bed, he watched as they tried
to start his best friend’s heartbeat again. Tears rolled down his cheeks when it wasn’t working,
a Nurse caught site of him and guided him out of the room.
Deryck was trying to get into the room but was being held back by Simon and Dave, “Steve!” He
shouted when he spotted him “What’s happening? Is he Ok?”
Steve just shook his head and sat in a chair heavily, everyone crowded around him and the Nurse
left to go back into the room.
“What happened?” Deryck asked pushing his way to the front of the group.
“It looked like he was having a nightmare and then the Nurse touched him and then he freaked out.
Then he flat-lined. God, he looks so horrible.” Steve put his head in his hands.
He was surprised when someone put their arms around him and pulled him into a hug. He removed
his hands from his face and put them around the person in front of him; he looked at the person’s
face, he was shocked when it turned out to be Deryck.
“Why are you hugging me? I hurt Cone.” Steve asked; he didn’t pull away from the hug though.
“You made a mistake, we both did. I didn’t trust him and I didn’t get chance to say I’m sorry
yet. I might never have a chance to.” Deryck broke down again; he didn’t know how he could cry so
much. Shouldn’t he be running out of tears soon? He hoped he would, he hated to cry and get
pitying looks.
“He’ll get through this, D.” Steve told the singer but he didn’t sound very convincing, Deryck
didn’t say anything but instead buried his head into Steve’s shoulder.
Everyone sat back in his or her seats and eventually Deryck pulled away and went and sat back
in his own seat.
It was hours later before the Doctor came to see them; everyone was asleep apart from Brandi and
Deryck. Deryck jumped up from his seat and Brandi watched curiously.
“Is he Ok?” The singer asked.
The Doctor nodded, “We managed to stabilize him but he could still go either way.”
“Can we see him?” Brandi asked hopefully.
“One person at a time and I suggest that you don’t bring the Baby in.” The Doctor told them and
Deryck moved towards the door.
He glanced back at Brandi for reassurance and she smiled, he then looked back at the door and
willed himself to walk closer.
He didn’t want to go in, it would make everything seem so much more real. His steps faltered,
the doors seemed to be a million miles away. He turned around and looked at his chair, it seemed
like the easier option.
“Don’t you even think about it.” Brandi warned and he sighed and turned back to the door.
Deryck took one step and nearly started to cry from frustration when the door didn’t seem to be
any closer. He needed to see if Cone was really alive and the Doctor wasn’t lying but he didn’t
want to see his husband like this.
He started to move forwards and he found it got easier with each step he took. He finally
reached the door and the Doctor opened it for him, Deryck walked in.
He gasped when he saw his husband, if it weren’t for the bruises and the colour of his hair he
would have blended in with the white sheets on the bed.
He rushed forwards and took a hold of one of Cone’s cold hands. He didn’t notice when the Doctor
shut the door or when a Nurse came in and then left a couple of minutes later.
He focused all of his attention on the man he loved more than life itself.
“I know you probably can’t hear me but I’m sorry about taking Jessica’s word over yours. So is
Steve, please be Ok so he can tell you. Please be Ok for me, I’d die without you by my side.”
Deryck told the immobile figure.
He waited a couple of minutes before speaking again, “Brandi’s coming in to see you soon. And
then they’re probably going to move you into your own room. I don’t know though.”
After a couple more minutes Deryck sighs, he lightly places a kiss on Cone’s lips before leaving
the room. He didn’t know what to do or what to say, he thought it would be best if he left and
let Brandi have a chance to see Jay.
He took Adah from Brandi before the red-haired woman left the room, Deryck sunk heavily into a
chair next to Greig. The noise woke up the band’s manager and he looked around before he stared
at Deryck.
“Where’ve you been?” He asked, still half asleep.
“I’ve just been to see Cone, Brandi’s in there now.” Deryck informed him, shifting Adah in his
arms so she would be more comfortable while she slept.
“You’ve seen him?” Greig asked, startled. He would have expected the singer to be crying or
doing something instead of just sitting there quietly. “Are you Ok?”
“I will be when I can be sure that Cone’s going to be Ok.” He informed the other man.
Greig nodded, he didn’t know what to say. He was thankful the Doctor decided to come and talk to
them then.
“I’m didn’t get to introduce myself before, I’m Dr Brooke.” He held his hand out and Deryck
shook it awkwardly before Greig did. “We’ll be moving Mr McCaslin up to his own room in a couple
of minutes on a high-watch ward.”
“Do you know when he’s going to wake up?” Deryck asked.
“Mr McCaslin was hit over the head by a hard object during his attack this evening and we have
reason to believe he hit it earlier today. I’m afraid to say he’s in a coma.”
Deryck looked at the Doctor with wide eyes and Greig was shocked.
“But Steve saw him move!” Greig said.
“What Mr Jocz saw was apart of the coma, some people believe that comas are just a deep sleep
but that’s not entirely true. There are different stages to comas; in which some of them the
person may make movements, sounds and experience agitation. They may also have reflex activities
that mimic conscious activities. That’s what Mr Jocz saw.” Dr Brooke told them. “Do you
understand?”
Deryck nodded slowly trying to take it all in while Greig shook his head and sighed angrily.
Why did this have to happen now? The tour hadn’t even started properly yet; one show and it had
all gone down the drain. Plus a great friend of his had been put into a coma; this was not good.
He’d have to cancel the rest of the tour and then re-arrange another one once Cone was up and
about. This was going to be horrible, the media would undoubtedly find out about this.
‘Probably going to have a field day.’ Greig thought miserably.
Brandi walked back into the room at that moment; she smiled sadly at them.
“Well, we’ll move Mr McCaslin up to his room while you talk. I’ll tell you when we’re finished.”
Dr Brooke told them before he left.
Brandi sat down on the sleeping Dave’s lap effectively waking him up.
“Wha’s ‘rong?” Dave asked sleepily.
Brandi made herself comfortable on his lap; “They’re moving him up to his own room.” Greig said.
“There’s something else isn’t there?” Dave asked looking at Deryck, Greig and Brandi’s faces.
“He’s in a coma and they don’t know when he’s going to wake up.” Greig told the Guitarist sadly.
Dave sighed and rested his head against Brandi who then started to stroke his hair.
“So he could be in the coma for years?” Brandi asked softly and Greig shrugged.
Deryck was silent, he began to block out the conversation from that point onwards. Years? That
wouldn’t really happen, surely not. Adah needed both of her Dads so Cone had to wake up.
He looked down at his daughter in his arms; she was just beginning to wake up. She blinked
sluggishly and yawned, her brown eyes looked up at her Dad curiously.
“Dada?” She asked.
“Dada’s here.” Deryck told her. “You hungry?”
He got a gurgle in response and said, “Of course you are, we’ll go down onto the bus and get you
something to eat.”
He stood up and shifted the baby so she was on his hip rather than in his arms, he looked at his
awake friends.
“Anyone want to come with?” He asked trying to sound cheerful.
“I’ll go, it’s not safe to go anywhere alone anymore.” Greig said also standing up.
“We’ll stay here and wake the others up when they’ve moved him to his room.” Brandi told them,
Greig nodded his thanks and he followed Deryck out of the exit.
A/N: Waddya think? Ideas please!
Title: Beautiful Addiction
Chapters: 10, 11 and 12
Dedication: The lions on my school tie, they talk to me
Disclaimer- I own nothing. Wait actually- Brandi's mine. Lol, never noticed that before. Jessica
can be owned by anyone she's evil.
Roughly four hours later nearly everybody had either passed out or gone to bed except for Dave
and Muppet.
“There’s someone missing.” Muppet said, pensively.
“Yeah, I need some more beer but I can’t be assed to move.” Dave replied trying to reach for the
crates.
“Hmmm, Deryck and Adah are in bed. Jessica hasn’t left her room, Steve’s passed out on the
kitchen floor, Simon and Joe went into the bathroom and have not yet returned and Brandi went to
bed. We’re here on the sofas, so that’s only…. nine people. There were ten of us earlier on….”
“You missed off Cone.” Dave told the frustrated guitarist.
“Yeah, where the fuck is he?” Muppet asked.
“Probably decided to stay on the bus rather than hang out with a load of drunk people, little
fucker.” Dave reached and nearly grabbed a bottle before falling on the floor. He groaned
dejectedly, “I guess I’m just not supposed to drink that beer.”
“Shouldn’t we go looking for him?” asked Muppet. “Just to make sure he’s Ok?”
“Only if and I say if you’ll pass me that darn beer and unscrew the cap.” Dave stated, he hadn’t
made any attempt to move from the floor yet.
Muppet rolled his eyes and did as Dave requested and then after a couple of minutes trying to
stand up and fully clothing themselves again they were off.
When they arrived at Deryck and Cone’s bus ten minutes later they were met with a wide open door
instead off the closed one they were expecting.
“Maybe he didn’t close it properly and it opened.” Dave said nervously, trying to make up
excuses.
“Yeah, and maybe he just forgot to take the keys out of the front of the door.” Muppet said as
he walked into the eerily quiet and dark tour bus.
Dave followed him and switched on a light to reveal the normal looking main room, they shared a
look before walking towards the back of the bus. Nothing looked out of place in either the
kitchenette or the bathroom so they went upstairs.
They gasped when the saw Adah’s room, everything had been upturned and thrown about making it
look like a war zone.
“This definitely isn’t right.” Muppet said walking around the room. Dave nodded and tip toed
towards the last room on the bus, he stuck his head into the room and nearly threw up at the
sight that greeted him.
One of his best friends in the world was sprawled out on the bed, facedown. He had no t-shirt
on; his pants and boxers were halfway down his legs and he was covered in blood.
“Shit, Muppet. Run to the hotel and get help quick.” Dave ordered in a weak tone of voice.
Muppet glanced in the room before running off of the bus and up to the hotel as quick as he
could.
Dave took a step into the room and was hit by the stench of blood; he nearly started to retch
but he stepped closer to the bed. Where skin could be seen without blood on it there were bruises
instead and Dave felt bile rise in his throat and tears in his eyes.
He quickly ran off of the bus and puked all over the wet tarmac. He didn’t want to go back on
the bus but he hadn’t even checked the bassist’s pulse or even looked to see if he was breathing.
He couldn’t be dead though, he was too young.
He took a deep breath and willed himself to think positively. He’d be all right; Cone was the
strong one. He got through everything.
When he walked back into the room this time he walked purposefully over to the bed and checked
Cone’s pulse and breathing. He was doing both, but only just.
Dave’s eyes ran over Cone’s back and down to his hips where Dave could make out bruises in the
shapes of fingers.
“Oh, Jay…” He said quietly brushing some hair away from the prone figure’s pale and clammy
forehead. “What did you do to deserve this?”
“Nnnoo.” Cone mumbled, his face screwed up and tears started to roll down his cheeks. He tried
to move away from the hand that was stroking his head.
“It’s Dave, Cone. What happened?” It was obvious what had happened, while everyone was up in the
hotel getting drunk Cone had been down at the tour bus getting raped and beaten.
“No, Don’t. Please.” Cone whispered; he had yet to open his eyes so Dave assumed it must be a
nightmare.
Dave heard an ambulance in the distance and the sounds of people running up the stairs, he heard
the gasps when they saw Adah’s room.
He got up and stood in the doorway blocking it.
“Dave?” Brandi asked, her voice wobbled. “What happened?”
“Is he…alive?” Muppet asked and Dave nodded.
Deryck stood in the middle of the room; he looked around at everything that was on the floor
before turning to Dave with tears rolling down his face.
“Is…is he Ok?” Deryck asked taking an unsteady step towards the guitarist.
“Biz, I don’t think you should see him like this.” Dave told the shorter man gently.
“Why not? He’s my husband, I need to see him.” Deryck said smiling. “Let me in.”
Dave shook his head sadly and stood his ground.
“No, you don’t understand. He’s my husband, I have to see him!” Deryck was shouting now only two
inches away from Dave’s face.
“I’m not letting you in. I’m doing this for your own good you know.” Dave told the singer who
shook his head angrily.
“Let me in!” He started to pound his fists on Dave’s chest, Dave bit his lip to stop himself
from crying out.
“Deryck please, lets just go downstairs the ambulance is nearly here. They’ll take good care of
him, I promise.” Dave said and Deryck nodded mutely.
Muppet had already gone downstairs when Dave started to lead the shorter man down the stairs. He
was caught by surprise when Deryck elbowed him in the stomach before running into his bedroom.
A scream rang out. Brandi looked uncertainly at Dave then at the entrance to the room, they both
started towards the room. The scene that met them was heart breaking.
Deryck was sat on the bed with tears running down his face, his hand was outstretched towards
Cone who was unintentionally shying away from the contact.
“Jason…” Deryck whispered, he wiped some tears off of his husband’s pale face. “I’m sorry.”
“No, no. Please, hurts.” The bassist moaned.
He moved his head so it was facedown on the bed and weakly moved his arms to cover his head.
Deryck noticed the bruises and the long cuts, clearly made with a knife, that were still bleeding.
“Too much blood.” Deryck said before getting up and leaving the room, Dave followed him to make
sure he wouldn’t do anything stupid.
Brandi sat down on the edge of the bed; she started to sob. Why the hell had this happened? It
wasn’t fair; Cone would never hurt anybody.
“Cone, please be alright. Think about what there is to live for, don’t give up.”
She heard the ambulance pull to a stop outside the tour bus, “Please Cone.”
Two paramedics entered the room a couple of minutes later, they faltered before continuing. One
tried to check Cone’s vital signs but the distressed and now fully awake bassist was not having
it; he squirmed and wriggled making it impossible so the second paramedic had to hold him down.
Azure eyes darted around trying to look for someone familiar; he couldn’t see anybody.
He felt his chest tighten and it was suddenly hard to breathe. Why couldn’t he breathe? Were
these strangers going to hurt him like the others did? He started to scream when one of their
hands touched his neck; his lungs were burning.
“Calm down, son. We’re not going to hurt you.” The older paramedic said soothingly, he was the
one pinning Cone to the bed.
Jay shook his head and tears leaked down his face he wasn’t screaming now, just trying to gulp
in air but it wasn’t working.
Wasn’t that what the others had said? ‘We’re not going to hurt you fag’ had been their exact
words. They had lied, why should he trust these new strangers? Maybe they had gotten everyone
else, that’s why they weren’t here. Deryck and Adah… No. He felt a prick in his arm and heard a
familiar voice as he slipped into darkness.
“Can’t you see he’s fucking terrified of you?” Brandi shouted, the second paramedic had blocked
her view of Cone and she was beyond angry at the way they treated him. “What have you done to
him?” She questioned as the second paramedic let go of the now limp bassist and moved out of the
way so the first one could check his vitals.
“We had to sedate him, he was going to hurt himself further if we didn’t” Said the second
paramedic. “How long has he been like this?”
“I don’t know, five hours maybe?” Brandi looked at the paramedic’s face which had a frown on it.
“Have you ever noticed him bleeding for long periods of times from things like cuts and
nosebleeds?” The paramedic questioned.
“He had two nosebleeds today, they took ages to stop. Why?” Brandi asked worriedly.
“We need to get him to the hospital ASAP.” The first paramedic said looking up.
Deryck stumbled down the stairs and got off of the bus as quick as he could, to him it reeked
like death. Cone… He’d be Ok. He was always Ok; Cone could get through anything.
He sat down heavily on the tarmac; not caring that it had only just stopped raining and he had
just sat down in a huge puddle. Nothing mattered if Cone wasn’t Ok. He was nothing without his
lanky bassist.
He bowed his head. He didn’t hear the ambulance pull up and the paramedics get out; they were
taking too long. He didn’t hear Muppet telling them were his other half was, dying upstairs.
He didn’t hear Dave trying to coax him into standing up and getting out of the puddle, he didn’t
hear the sighs or everybody else from the hotel room joining them. He didn’t hear Adah starting
to cry in Steve’s arms.
He heard the screams. He heard the horrible, heart-wrenching screaming and he broke down. Sobs
racked his body and he felt someone put their arms around him, trying their best to comfort him
by rubbing circles on his back. That made him cry more, it was what Cone did whenever he was
upset.
He felt the raindrops pelting him and he broke away from the hug, he was surprised to see it was
Joe who had been holding him.
“Adah needs to get out of the rain.” Deryck said as Joe got up and then offered him a hand.
Deryck took the hand and stood up, “Steve took her onto the bus when the rain started. Come on,
we’re going to get a cold if we don’t move.”
“He took her onto the bus?” Deryck asked, “How could he be so stupid?”
Deryck stormed onto the bus and saw everybody minus the obvious sat on the sofas; nobody was
making any noise apart from Adah who was crying. He grabbed his daughter out of the drummer’s
hands.
“You don’t bring her on the bus!” Shouted Deryck angrily. “She shouldn’t be on here, she
doesn’t need to see Cone like this.”
The singer walked into the kitchen and started to make Adah a bottle while balancing her on his
hip.
Steve didn’t say anything in return; he just put his head in his hands and groaned. He wished
he could take back the majority of the day, too much had happened. None of it good, he looked up
and watched one of the paramedics basically ran out of the bus only to return a couple of minutes
later with a stretcher. He then disappeared up the stairs and Steve wondered how they were going
to get Cone down here.
One thing Steve knew for certain is that he didn’t want to see Cone, he hadn’t seen him yet and
he didn’t want to. It’d just make things so much more real. He put his head in his hands again,
he knew he didn’t deserve it but he wanted a hug from someone. Why? He could feel the beginnings
of a headache and he groaned again.
Somehow the paramedics managed to get down the stairs with the stretcher carrying Cone on
in-between them safely. Brandi had followed them, she had tears running down her cheeks but Steve
didn’t see. He hadn’t looked up yet.
“Who’s going in the ambulance with him?” She asked as she wiped away the tears only for them to
be replaced by more.
“I’ll go, I don’t think Deryck’s in the right state of mind at the moment. Plus I know all of
Cone’s medical stuff.” Dave said standing up, he gave Brandi a hug and a kiss before walking off
of the bus and climbing into the ambulance once they had loaded Cone onto it.
There was an awkward silence in which the only noise apart from Adah’s quiet crying was the
ambulance’s siren as it drove away.
“What are we going to do?” Joe asked.
Everyone shrugged and Deryck walked back into the room with Adah in his arms drinking from a
sippy cup full of formula.
“We need to get to the hospital.” Simon said. “Can anybody drive a bus?”
“Or we could just phone for Greig and he could come and drive it for us. He knows how to.” Said
Steve and everybody gaped at him.
“You know that is the most smartest thing I’ve ever heard come out of your mouth?” Brandi told
him.
“Shut up you guys, someone give us a phone.” Deryck said, he had left his in the hotel.
The others searched their pockets but came up with nothing; Muppet spotted a cell phone on top
of the stereo next to a wallet. He picked it up before travelling across to the other side of the
room to give it to Deryck. The shorter man stared at the cell phone that was offered to him and
started to sob but he took it anyway. Muppet took Adah out of his arms and sat back on the sofa.
Deryck dialled Greig’s number quickly and put the phone to his ear. On the ninth ring it was
answered.
“Cone? Why the hell are you ringing me at 1.30 in the morning.” Deryck let out a sob.
“I-It’s Deryck.” Said the distressed singer in-between sobs.
“Deryck? What’s wrong, are you Ok? What’s happened?” Asked the worried manager.
“C-Cone got real-really hurt, they t-took him to the hos-hospital.” Deryck told him, still
sobbing. “We-we need a ride.”
“Where are you?” Greig asked and Deryck could hear him moving about.
“On mi-mine and Cone’s bus.” Deryck let out a wail and dropped the phone before falling to the
floor himself. Brandi was immediately at his side; she pulled him into a hug as best as she could.
No one dare move or speak for the ten minutes it took a panting Greig to get to the bus. He
didn’t ask questions instead he just jumped into the driver’s seat and started up the engine.
After a couple of minutes he shouted, “Where’s the damn hospital?”
It took them at least forty-five minutes to get to the hospital after stopping on numerous
occasions and asking anybody they could spot on the streets at this time of night. The bus hadn’t
even stopped in the parking lot before Deryck had run off of it and into the building with a
worried Brandi following him just as fast.
Muppet, Joe, Simon, Steve and Greig walked into the hospital at a slower pace. Steve was now
carrying Adah who was fast asleep in his arms, sucking on her thumb.
Deryck was hassling nurses to find out about his husband while Dave and Brandi were hugging in
the middle of the waiting room. Dave had tears streaming down his face and was sobbing into
Brandi’s shoulder.
The group of new comers crowded around them, “What’s happened?” Greig asked. He looked
dishevelled and had his t-shirt on inside out but no one took any notice.
Dave shook hiss head and Brandi held him tighter, she had her own tears running down her face
because she knew what had happened.
“He blue-coded a couple of minutes before we got here.” Brandi told them, her voice sounded
emotionless.
“Does Deryck know?” Joe asked biting his lip nervously.
Brandi shook her head, “He ran straight up to the nurses station asking questions.”
Muppet nodded and walked up to Deryck and gently guided him to the chairs, “Sit here, Mate. If
you keep on pestering the nurses they won’t be able to help Cone will they?”
Deryck sighed dejectedly and slumped in one of the uncomfortable chairs. Muppet sat down next to
him and everyone else found somewhere to sit, it was a couple of minutes later when a haggard
looking doctor emerged from the room.
Deryck immediately jumped to his feet, “Is he Ok?”
“Are you a family member of Mr McCaslin’s?” The Doctor asked.
“I’m his fucking husband!” Deryck exclaimed angrily running a hand through his hair.
“Very well, I think we should talk in a more private place.” The middle-aged man eyed the others
in the room.
“No, tell me here.” Said Deryck crossing his arms haughtily.
“If I must, I think you better sit down.” The Doctor told the shorter man and Deryck did what he
was told.
“I’m afraid that Mr McCaslin was beaten, raped and then cut several times with a knife on his
arms, back and torso.” The Doctor told them bluntly. “If Mr McCaslin was anybody else he would’ve
stopped bleeding by the time that he was found but unfortunately he has Haemophilia so-“
“Haemo-what?” Deryck asked puzzled.
The Doctor let out a sigh, “Haemophilia is a blood clotting disorder. When a haemophiliac gets a
cut they can’t stop bleeding because they don’t have the ‘clotting factor’. They also tend to
bruise easier than other people, do you understand?”
Deryck nodded and the Doctor continued.
“We were able to slow the bleeding by injecting the missing ‘clotting factor’ and we will have
to keep doing so every couple of hours so it will stop. That’s the good news, the bad news is
that we currently don’t have any of Mr McCaslin’s blood type and if he doesn’t get some soon he
may die.”
“What type is he?” Deryck asked.
“0- “ The Doctor told him and Deryck swore.
“I’m 0- too.” Steve said looking up from Adah’s face.
“Are you willing to donate?” The Doctor asked and Steve nodded. “Ok, I’m just going to get you a
form to fill out and then we’ll see if you’re eligible.” The Doctor left the waiting room.
“Stevo, thank you so much.” Deryck said looking at the drummer with tears in his eyes.
“It’s nothing, D, especially after what a dickhead I’ve been today.” Steve told the singer
quietly looking down at Adah’s face once again as the Doctor walked back into the room.
Steve carefully put the Baby into Brandi’s waiting arms and started to fill out the form that
was given to him. He didn’t say anything until he got to the last question,
“’Have you had a tattoo done in the last twelve months?’ Why does that even matter?” He asked
before filling it in and handing the form back to the Doctor who checked it over and then nodded.
“If you’d like to come with me, Mr Jocz.” The Doctor said and Steve stood up and followed him
into Cone’s room. He stuck his thumbs up before closing the door.
Steve gasped at the sight of the figure on the bed. Cone was hooked up to several machines and
looked so deathly pale; some of his dyed black hair was plastered against his forehead and the
rest was stuck up at different angles.
“Sit here please, Mr Jocz.” The Doctor said indicating a chair next to the bed.
Steve sat down in it uncertainly and his eyes wandered over Cone’s unclothed chest half of which
was covered in bandages stained red with blood. His skinny arms also had bandages on them, Steve
looked at the floor.
“I’m just going to wipe something on your arm that’ll numb the pain of the needle, Ok?” A nurse
asked him and he nodded.
He winced when the needle was inserted into his arm a couple of minutes later; he watched Cone’s
face throughout the whole thing. The black eye stood out vividly against the pale skin and Steve
sighed, he didn’t know if he would ever be able to forgive himself for that.
He didn’t even know why he trusted Jessica over Cone, it was pretty stupid but he was so caught
up in his relationship with Jessica. He thought he loved her.
He felt the Nurse take out the needle and put a band-aid over the tiny pinprick; he smiled at
her.
“Will he be Ok now?” Steve asked and the Nurse frowned but she wasn’t looking at Steve.
Her eyes were looking at the figure on the bed, his once calm features were screwed up in pain
and his breathing started to quicken.
“I think you better leave, sir.” The Nurse said as she scanned the machines and felt Cone’s
pulse.
“Nnnooo.” Cone moaned, he tried to wrench his arm free of the Nurse’s grasp but she just held on
tighter.
Steve hadn’t moved, he watched what was happening with a look of horror on his face.
Cone struggled some more and then he just stopped and the heart-monitor flat-lined for the
second time in an hour.
Doctors and Nurses hurried in and Steve was pushed away from the bed, he watched as they tried
to start his best friend’s heartbeat again. Tears rolled down his cheeks when it wasn’t working,
a Nurse caught site of him and guided him out of the room.
Deryck was trying to get into the room but was being held back by Simon and Dave, “Steve!” He
shouted when he spotted him “What’s happening? Is he Ok?”
Steve just shook his head and sat in a chair heavily, everyone crowded around him and the Nurse
left to go back into the room.
“What happened?” Deryck asked pushing his way to the front of the group.
“It looked like he was having a nightmare and then the Nurse touched him and then he freaked out.
Then he flat-lined. God, he looks so horrible.” Steve put his head in his hands.
He was surprised when someone put their arms around him and pulled him into a hug. He removed
his hands from his face and put them around the person in front of him; he looked at the person’s
face, he was shocked when it turned out to be Deryck.
“Why are you hugging me? I hurt Cone.” Steve asked; he didn’t pull away from the hug though.
“You made a mistake, we both did. I didn’t trust him and I didn’t get chance to say I’m sorry
yet. I might never have a chance to.” Deryck broke down again; he didn’t know how he could cry so
much. Shouldn’t he be running out of tears soon? He hoped he would, he hated to cry and get
pitying looks.
“He’ll get through this, D.” Steve told the singer but he didn’t sound very convincing, Deryck
didn’t say anything but instead buried his head into Steve’s shoulder.
Everyone sat back in his or her seats and eventually Deryck pulled away and went and sat back
in his own seat.
It was hours later before the Doctor came to see them; everyone was asleep apart from Brandi and
Deryck. Deryck jumped up from his seat and Brandi watched curiously.
“Is he Ok?” The singer asked.
The Doctor nodded, “We managed to stabilize him but he could still go either way.”
“Can we see him?” Brandi asked hopefully.
“One person at a time and I suggest that you don’t bring the Baby in.” The Doctor told them and
Deryck moved towards the door.
He glanced back at Brandi for reassurance and she smiled, he then looked back at the door and
willed himself to walk closer.
He didn’t want to go in, it would make everything seem so much more real. His steps faltered,
the doors seemed to be a million miles away. He turned around and looked at his chair, it seemed
like the easier option.
“Don’t you even think about it.” Brandi warned and he sighed and turned back to the door.
Deryck took one step and nearly started to cry from frustration when the door didn’t seem to be
any closer. He needed to see if Cone was really alive and the Doctor wasn’t lying but he didn’t
want to see his husband like this.
He started to move forwards and he found it got easier with each step he took. He finally
reached the door and the Doctor opened it for him, Deryck walked in.
He gasped when he saw his husband, if it weren’t for the bruises and the colour of his hair he
would have blended in with the white sheets on the bed.
He rushed forwards and took a hold of one of Cone’s cold hands. He didn’t notice when the Doctor
shut the door or when a Nurse came in and then left a couple of minutes later.
He focused all of his attention on the man he loved more than life itself.
“I know you probably can’t hear me but I’m sorry about taking Jessica’s word over yours. So is
Steve, please be Ok so he can tell you. Please be Ok for me, I’d die without you by my side.”
Deryck told the immobile figure.
He waited a couple of minutes before speaking again, “Brandi’s coming in to see you soon. And
then they’re probably going to move you into your own room. I don’t know though.”
After a couple more minutes Deryck sighs, he lightly places a kiss on Cone’s lips before leaving
the room. He didn’t know what to do or what to say, he thought it would be best if he left and
let Brandi have a chance to see Jay.
He took Adah from Brandi before the red-haired woman left the room, Deryck sunk heavily into a
chair next to Greig. The noise woke up the band’s manager and he looked around before he stared
at Deryck.
“Where’ve you been?” He asked, still half asleep.
“I’ve just been to see Cone, Brandi’s in there now.” Deryck informed him, shifting Adah in his
arms so she would be more comfortable while she slept.
“You’ve seen him?” Greig asked, startled. He would have expected the singer to be crying or
doing something instead of just sitting there quietly. “Are you Ok?”
“I will be when I can be sure that Cone’s going to be Ok.” He informed the other man.
Greig nodded, he didn’t know what to say. He was thankful the Doctor decided to come and talk to
them then.
“I’m didn’t get to introduce myself before, I’m Dr Brooke.” He held his hand out and Deryck
shook it awkwardly before Greig did. “We’ll be moving Mr McCaslin up to his own room in a couple
of minutes on a high-watch ward.”
“Do you know when he’s going to wake up?” Deryck asked.
“Mr McCaslin was hit over the head by a hard object during his attack this evening and we have
reason to believe he hit it earlier today. I’m afraid to say he’s in a coma.”
Deryck looked at the Doctor with wide eyes and Greig was shocked.
“But Steve saw him move!” Greig said.
“What Mr Jocz saw was apart of the coma, some people believe that comas are just a deep sleep
but that’s not entirely true. There are different stages to comas; in which some of them the
person may make movements, sounds and experience agitation. They may also have reflex activities
that mimic conscious activities. That’s what Mr Jocz saw.” Dr Brooke told them. “Do you
understand?”
Deryck nodded slowly trying to take it all in while Greig shook his head and sighed angrily.
Why did this have to happen now? The tour hadn’t even started properly yet; one show and it had
all gone down the drain. Plus a great friend of his had been put into a coma; this was not good.
He’d have to cancel the rest of the tour and then re-arrange another one once Cone was up and
about. This was going to be horrible, the media would undoubtedly find out about this.
‘Probably going to have a field day.’ Greig thought miserably.
Brandi walked back into the room at that moment; she smiled sadly at them.
“Well, we’ll move Mr McCaslin up to his room while you talk. I’ll tell you when we’re finished.”
Dr Brooke told them before he left.
Brandi sat down on the sleeping Dave’s lap effectively waking him up.
“Wha’s ‘rong?” Dave asked sleepily.
Brandi made herself comfortable on his lap; “They’re moving him up to his own room.” Greig said.
“There’s something else isn’t there?” Dave asked looking at Deryck, Greig and Brandi’s faces.
“He’s in a coma and they don’t know when he’s going to wake up.” Greig told the Guitarist sadly.
Dave sighed and rested his head against Brandi who then started to stroke his hair.
“So he could be in the coma for years?” Brandi asked softly and Greig shrugged.
Deryck was silent, he began to block out the conversation from that point onwards. Years? That
wouldn’t really happen, surely not. Adah needed both of her Dads so Cone had to wake up.
He looked down at his daughter in his arms; she was just beginning to wake up. She blinked
sluggishly and yawned, her brown eyes looked up at her Dad curiously.
“Dada?” She asked.
“Dada’s here.” Deryck told her. “You hungry?”
He got a gurgle in response and said, “Of course you are, we’ll go down onto the bus and get you
something to eat.”
He stood up and shifted the baby so she was on his hip rather than in his arms, he looked at his
awake friends.
“Anyone want to come with?” He asked trying to sound cheerful.
“I’ll go, it’s not safe to go anywhere alone anymore.” Greig said also standing up.
“We’ll stay here and wake the others up when they’ve moved him to his room.” Brandi told them,
Greig nodded his thanks and he followed Deryck out of the exit.
A/N: Waddya think? Ideas please!