Shattered Dreams [EDITING] - Chapter 75: Chapter 75

COREY'S POV:
Nadia stirs again but this time wakes up as my mother begins to cry in the chair next to her, not bothering to keep quiet anymore. My father tries his hardest to comfort my mum but he doesn't really know what he's doing so he's just sort of rubbing her back in an attempt to make her feel better and I must give him some credit as it seems to be working.
I take my eyes off them and look back to Nadia and my heart swells at the sight of her. She looks so beautiful in the morning, she is so naturally gorgeous and she is even more so to me now that I look at her with love. Flower buds are beautiful anyway but she has blossomed in my eyes and whenever I look at her, I am unable to see anything other than perfect, even when she has drool making its way down her chin.
She rubs her eyes and when they finally open the first thing they do is land on me and a smile instantly takes over her face, "Hey you," I smile at her.
"Hey you," She smiles back at me before her smile drops, remembering where we are. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay," I reassure her, rubbing the top of her leg that's still resting on my bed. "You didn't have to stay overnight, you know?"
"I know," She shrugs her shoulders as if it's no big deal what she did and slowly lifts her legs off the bed. I notice her wince at the action but I don't make a big deal about it as she made herself subtle with it. "I just wanted to be here with you as I knew you were alone. I know you'd do the same for me."
I see both my mum and dad flinch as this out of the corner of my eye and I can't help but turn to face them. Nadia stiffens, slowly looking in the direction of my parents and she hangs her head down in shame.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound the way it did." Nadia apologises profusely to them but they just shake their head at her.
"We know, but it doesn't stop the sting of your words." My father responds to her and she flinches at the sound of his voice. I give him a warning look and he looks at me confused, causing me to sigh into my hands.
"But that of course, isn't your fault, it's ours." My mum reassures her, putting her hand on Nadia's knee in a comforting manner. It's weird to see my mum being soft and loving as she has never really had a chance to be with us because of all the shit life has thrown at her, so it's nice to see her being like this with my girlfriend.
My father is watching their interaction and I can see him trying to process something behind his eyes and that's when he speaks to Nadia again, "No, it really is our fault and we are so sorry for how unwell you've been these past few months."
Even though what he said is about Nadia being unwell I smile a little because I can really see that they both, especially my dad are trying to be better people.
I used to blame my parents for how they treated us because I never fully understood until I became closer with Nadia. I thought that my mum was just avoiding looking after us and that my dad would rather bury his problems in a bottle of whisky, which is the truth but I didn't know it was an addiction. Addictions are far more complex than anything I ever thought possible. My dad needed to be pushed a long time ago to be better but we never gave him that as we simply didn't care enough, so maybe it is partially our fault as well. He needed help but none of us saw that he was suffering too.
Maybe my parents will soon see it like I do, that they have a lot in common with the girl I love. They have all been handed a shit card in life and have to navigate their way through it. It's understandable why they are angry at the world. They all just need to be understood.
"That's not your fault either," Nadia smiles at my dad and he chuckles slightly but I can tell they both look awkward as fuck. Nadia looks at me for reassurance and I nod at her to do so and her shoulders soften up slightly. I can't imagine what's going on inside her head as I have spoken about my relationship with my dad in great detail so it must be weird for her to see him here as much as it is for me.
We fall into an uncomfortable silence and the only thing to keep me grounded is Nadia's presence around me. I know my parents want to leave and I can tell my mum is starting to get tired. They just don't want to prove a point.
"You can go if you want." I aim my words to my parents but they are in the air for Nadia as well in case she wants to head off back to bed too.
My parents are about to reply but then the curtain is pulled to the side slightly and I'm expecting to see my doctor to tell me I can go home but instead it's Coach Grayson.
"This is an odd site to see." I greet him, looking down at his usual daytime clothes which I never get to see him in.
"As is this one." He motions to me in the hospital bed, to Nadia next to me and my parents. Coach's eyes widen at the sight of them looking back at him and he is stunned to silence, reminding me of the news he told me last night that wound me up in this hospital bed in the first place.
"I don't want you here." I bite out, causing him to flinch at the sound of my voice.
"Corey, don't be like that please. I came to see how you are." He pleads with me but I won't back down, not after how much he's hurt me by keeping this from me. Growing up, I considered this man a better father figure to me than my own dad and now he has hurt me just the same.
The only person who has never done anything to hurt me is Nadia but she isn't the one who should protect me, it should be my own family.
"I'm fine," I confirm, adding a cocky thumbs up on top of that. "Pull the curtain back to where it was on your way out."
Nadia and my parents are looking between us with concern because I haven't had a chance to explain to either of them what I now know. I was definitely going to tell Nadia when I had the chance but I wasn't sure if I was even going to tell my parents at all as I have no idea if that is something they would even want to know or not.
I'm scared to tell them if I'm being honest. My
dad has given me a massive speech today about how he is going to be a better man but if he finds this out I feel as though it will slip him back into his old habits. I also fear that my mum will just become more withdrawn, spending even more of her time in her bedroom as she can't face her problems even if they hit her in the face.
"I'm not going, not when we all have so much to talk about." Coach insists, not backing down. "Nadia, could you please leave us to talk in private."
"Oh, okay, yeah that's fine." Nadia nods, setting herself up to leave but I gently grab her hand to stop her movements.
"Please don't," I whisper to her knowing everyone else in here can hear me. "I need you here."
She looks at my parents, who are both wearing confused expressions and then towards my coach, who looks annoyed at my need for her to be here. She then looks back at the utter anguish on my face and she nods, sitting back down and placing her hand on top of mine where it rests next to my body on the bed.
"Whatever you need to speak to us about, you can say in front of Nadia too." I exclaim, putting my foot down as he doesn't get to order me or her around when he was the one to lie to my face for the past few years.
The only time he is allowed to boss me round is on the ice so he is overstepping massively by asking Nadia to leave.
It's not just the fact I want her here, it's that I need her here. She helps me keep grounded and in control of my emotions. If she wasn't here then I would've shouted at my dad and him to leave as soon as they stepped foot in here. She helps me be a better person in many ways but my favourite is that she makes me want to be more family and friendship orientated. I've always admired the Marsh family dynamic but since being with Nadia she is not like a little sister to me anymore so it makes me crave having my own sister close to me, as well as my brother and parents.
"So, what lies are you going to tell me now?" I ask Coach, venom lacing each word I speak.
"I'm not going to tell you any lies," He growls, getting angry at me now. "It wasn't lies in the first place, it was me just not telling you some information."
"I think that is the definition of lying to someone, coach." I bite back, laughing although I don't find the conversation funny in the slightest.
"Lies? Tell us what you are on about at this instant!" My father interrupts now, growing tired of this back and forth bullshit we have going on.
"Do you want to tell him or should I?" I ask, with a devilish grin on my face, knowing that he will get it in the neck from my parents too.
"C, what's going on?" Nadia whispers to me, looking scared at the interaction as she has no idea what's happening. I look back at the man who has been my coach since I was a young boy and wait for him to speak.
"It's uhh," He stutters, not knowing what to say. "I think it's better that I show you."
He pulls back the curtain and heads out for a few moments before returning, with a petite brunette following behind him.
I instantly recognise this as the same brunette as earlier and I freeze, not knowing how to react. Nadia notices this and she turns to look at me but I pay her no interest, instead I look towards my parents who are staring at this girl as she pulls the curtain closed once more.
I try to spot to see if there is any recognition on their faces but I don't see any, at least not until Natalie steps to the side of Coach.
My dad's eyes widen and his mouth falls open in shock and a strangled sob comes out of my mothers mouth. "Oh my god."
My mum's cries get louder and my dad tries his hardest to settle her down as she is making a scene and I just hope that the other families here are talking over us so they can't hear our conversation from the other beds.
"Hi mum," Natalie greets our mum with a smile, before straightening her lips and turning to dad. "Hello."
My sister looks at me now and when our eyes meet, all the memories hit me in the face. In front of me now is not a beautiful grown woman who has an amazing life set for herself, but instead is a young, frail girl with bruises covering her body. I grow stiff again with my dad being in the room as I know how much he hurt Natalie in the past. It is weird that I can call this girl my sister as she might look the same as me, but the way she grew up is completely different. She is a lot better than our pack, she doesn't deserve to have these parents or me as a brother.
Natalie is a much stronger person than I am as she is standing in front of the man who abused her all without blinking an eye.
I am shocked by the next thing that happens as both my parents wrap their arms around her and she collapses into their touch and bursts into a fit of quiet cries, as if she has been needing this touch for the whole time she's been away. "I can't believe you're here." My mum whispers to her.
"I can't either," She agrees, smiling through her tears as she pulls away from the embrace to look at me. "I never thought my little brother would be the captain of the hockey team."
"I never thought my older sister would be standing in front of my hospital bed on a Thursday morning." I bounce back, causing everyone but Nadia to let out a small laugh. I look towards her to silently ask her if she's okay and she smiles in response but I know it's a lie. The poor girl is exhausted, you can see it and I suddenly feel selfish for keeping her here with me. "This is Nadia, my girlfriend."
"Oh, I know all about her," My sister smiles at her fiance, reminding me once again that they have both kept this massive secret from me. "Good in bed isn't she?"
"I think I preferred it when I didn't know whether you were dead or alive." I banter, growing embarrassed that even she has heard this.
"What?" My mum chimes in with a horrified expression on her face.
"I hope you're being safe, son." My dad inputs and it makes me want to die.
"I think I'm going to go," Nadia announces with bright red cheeks and I want to pull her in so I can kiss the embarrassment away from them.
I nod my head, deciding not to force her to stay this time as I know she needs to go home and get in her own bed but also because I want to have this time to be with my family. Nadia doesn't need to be here for this and she knows that, I will talk to her when I'm ready and once I understand how I feel. I have just had an answer I've been trying to find for over a decade revealed to me so I have no idea how I'm supposed to feel.
Nadia observes me and everyone around us before she finally decides to bend down and give me a kiss in front of everyone. No one reacts, which I'm thankful for as I don't want her to be more embarrassed than she needs to be.
"I'll text you?" She asks me, which I confirm with a nod and a wink. Before she leaves the room she reaches into her bag, struggling with her crutches and takes out a journal of somesorts and puts it under my pillow. She doesn't tell me what it is, nor do I ask her but there is a silent communication there of her telling me to read it.
She disappears behind the curtain and everyone turns to look at me again. "I don't think you should be here either." I angle my head towards coach, earning a scowl back.
"Play nice, Corey." My father warns, causing me to widen my eyes at him.
"How can I 'play nice' when he has kept this massive thing from me?" I keep my voice low as a hospital ward is really not the place to be having a conversation like this.
"That's not his fault." Natalie defends him, causing my anger levels to rise and for my mum's eyes to narrow in though.
"Wait," She begins, looking at my sister. "How come he kept it from Corey for you?"
"We're engaged." Natalie smiles and I feel the bile rise in my throat.
"Oh, this just keeps getting better and better." My dad laughs to himself and my mum slaps him across the chest.
My sister is about to reply to him but the curtain is pulled back, revealing a nurse, an older one than Poppy. "The doctor has processed your discharge, so you're free to go."
The nurse leaves and we all scramble, unsure of what to do. "Why don't you two come back home to ours for a cup of tea? I think a conversation needs to be had." My dad offers and both Natalie and coach nod in agreement.
The nurse walks back in and perches herself on the bed, taking my arm so she can take my cannula out. My dad packs up my stuff for me as she does so,
remembering the journal under my pillow from Nadia.
I wish I could stay in hospital for one more night as going home and having to talk about all this is the last thing I want to do. I would much prefer it if I could go home to cuddle in bed with my girlfriend, but instead I have to unleash a bunch of trauma that all of the Meloche's have kept locked away for so long.