It’s true, but it’s a shock to hear him admit it. We always pretended like Liam was the perfect son, and he played the role to a tee. “But you didn’t do it.”
“No. I didn’t.”
“Also,” I add, “I want to thank you.”
Liam finally looks up at me. The bruise on his cheek has faded slightly, but it’s still there. “For what?”
“You saved my life. You saved Hannah’s life. Even though…”
He frowns. “Even though what?”
“Even though…” I clear my throat. “Nothing. Never mind.”
He cocks his head to the side. “What?”
I bite my lip, afraid to say the words that have been circling around my brain for the last decade. Your son doesn’t love you. He’s not capable of it. “I know you don’t feel… you know…”
Liam is quiet for a moment. “Feel what?”
“Dr. Hebert explained it to me,” I say quickly. “I know you have trouble with… you know, emotions.”
“Emotions?”
“You know, like… love.”
“What?” Liam blinks at me. “Um, that’s bullshit. You really don’t think that I love you and Hannah?”
I don’t know what to say to that. “It’s okay if you don’t. It’s just who you are.”
“Jesus, Mom.” He rakes a hand through his dark hair. “I can’t believe you’re saying that. Of course I love you. You’re my mom.”
“But Dr. Hebert said—”
“Oh, well, if the quack psychiatrist said it, then it must be true, right?” He snorts. “I just risked my life for you. I love you, Mom. If anything happened to you or Hannah…”
He’s quiet then, looking down at his hands. “It would be awful,” he finally says.
I don’t always know if Liam is telling the truth, but at this moment, I know for sure that he is. My son loves me. I always thought he was incapable of it. But I was wrong.
Chapter 65
Olivia
I’ve been in the hospital for five days now and my parents have barely left my side. My mother has been sleeping in my room in a recliner, because she’s scared to leave me. I would complain, but the truth is, I’m glad she’s here. The last thing I want is to be alone in this hospital room.
I had to have surgery on my ankle. It was broken in two places, and then it got infected on top of that. I needed antibiotics through an IV, and I was also really dehydrated when I came in. My ankle is in a cast now, and the doctor told me it’s going to be a while before I can put weight on it again. So I guess I better get used to crutches.
As of yesterday, I finally started feeling up to having visitors besides my parents. The first person who came to see me was Madison, of course. She gave me a huge hug and we both cried and it was like our fight never happened. She told me she never gave up hope that I was okay.
She’s back again today. She’s sitting at my bedside while my mother is downstairs in the cafeteria, and she’s drawing a doodle on my cast. I’ve never had a cast before, and I’m actually excited for people to sign it. I remember being so jealous of the kids in my class who had a cast and got to have people sign it.
Other than that, it sucks having a cast. The damn thing gets so itchy. I stuck a pencil in there this morning to try to reach an itch on the side of my calf, and the next thing I knew, the pencil was gone! When I take this cast off, half the contents of my desk drawer are going to fall out.
“Leave some room for other people,” I say to Madison, whose drawing is getting a little out of control. She’s going to be like the John Hancock of my cast.
“Hey, I’m giving your cast an artistic flair.” She’s not joking around. She actually brought different color markers for just this reason. “You’ll thank me later.”
As she gets back to work with her design, my nurse comes into the room. “Olivia,” she says in a singsong voice. “You’ve got another visitor.”
I must be feeling a lot better, because the thought of having two people with me in this room doesn’t fill me with dread. “Who is it?”
“It’s a boy. And he’s very cute.” The nurse winks at me. “He says his name is Liam. Is he your boyfriend?”
Madison freezes, mid doodle. “You’re not going to see him, are you?”
“Mad, he saved my life,” I murmur.
“Yeah, but if it wasn’t for his dad, he wouldn’t have had to.”