Already tired

"A baby?" Will looks at the nurse with wide eyes.

"You weren't aware? I'm sorry you had to find out like this. Let me fill you in on the whole situation. Yesterday evening, Miss Anderson went out despite the red alert being issued, as did many others, but in her case, she was hit by a man in his fifties who was coming back from work. He lost control due to the strong wind. Some witnesses called for help for both of them, as they both lost consciousness on impact and were immediately brought here. The baby died on impact, while Miss Anderson remained in a coma for most of the night. She woke up this morning around five; her parents have been with her the entire time. She was two months pregnant, so the baby had just barely started to form..."

Ken can see that Will is completely stunned by the amount of information the nurse is giving him, especially the part about the baby. He himself is taken aback.

"I-thank you for the info, goodbye..." Will starts walking quickly toward Nora's room.

"You'll have to excuse him; he's very shaken by all of this. Thank you again, and have a good day." Ken reaches the room and not seeing Will around, he understands that he's already entered. He leans against the wall to give the couple some privacy.

Meanwhile, Will, who has entered the room, stands in the middle of it. He sighs with closed eyes before opening them and looking at Nora.

"How are you?"

She slightly opens her mouth but closes it immediately without saying a word.

"I'm not angry at you for going out when you shouldn't have... and I'm not angry about the baby thing either. So talk to me, please."

His voice trembles as she lets out a frustrated scoff.

"At least look at me..." He approaches her but stops instantly as he hears her almost yell at him:

"How can I look at you when your face is full of tears?!"

"I'm not cry-" He rubs the back of his hand against his eye and is slightly surprised to find it wet.

"Listen, I'm sorry! I messed up, I know! But what's done is done. Can we forget about all of it?" She finally turns toward him and starts crying. He rushes to hug her.

Ken sighs and closes his eyes while leaning against the wall outside the room, listening to his friends. Nora's parents are sitting on the other side of the hallway, patiently waiting for the young couple to finish talking. He goes to sit next to them.

"Thank you and Will for always taking care of our girl." Nora's father tells him.

"...Don't even mention it. We're friends, after all."

Ken stands up as soon as he hears the 'click' of the door opening, seeing Will coming out and closing the door behind him.

"Thanks for letting me talk to her alone. Unfortunately, I have to head home now. You see, due to the bad weather, I spent the whole day yesterday at Ken's place. I'll definitely call later."

"Of course, darling. Don't worry too much; the doctors have already said it's not serious, and she'll be discharged in a few days." Mrs. Anderson reassures them.

"Be careful on your way back home; the weather has improved, but there could still be hazardous roads or buildings along the streets." This time, Mr. Anderson speaks up.

"You take care too. Goodbye and see you later." Will says, as he and Ken move in the direction they came from.

"Goodbye." Ken also waves as they walk away, and the Andersons smile at them.

"Wanna talk?" Ken places a hand on his best friend's shoulder, but Will immediately shrugs it off.

"Thanks, Ken, but I need some time alone."

"Of course... Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. It's all over now anyway. Let's move; we've been here for a while, and Ghalen must be worried about us." He picks up the pace, leaving Ken slightly behind.

They reach the spot where they left Ghalen without any issues, only to find neither the car nor Ghalen there. Will takes out his phone to call him, but they hear a honk from behind, and turning around, they see Ghalen driving his car. The two boys get in, this time with Will sitting in the back seats.

"Sorry, guys; I realized that this is a route frequently used by other cars, so I had to park elsewhere. How's Nora?"

Both, but mainly Ken, explain the situation to him as he drives.

"I'm really sorry, Will. It must have been really tough for both of you to find out like this. I hope you both can recover... You know we're always here to lend a hand, right? For both you and Nora."

"I know, and thanks. Everything you guys do is appreciated. Can you drop me off at my house if it's not a problem? The day has just started, but I'm already exhausted."

"Of course, buddy."

They get back to Ken's home without any issues after dropping off Will at his place. Ken and Ghalen explain the situation to the others, who are confused about why Will wasn't with them. Upon hearing the reason, Briar covers her mouth with her hand, and the others are more or less left in shock.

"I should head back home now." Rebecca suddenly stands up, while the others are still discussing what just happened.

"I'll give everyone a ride home." Ghalen suggests.

"Yes, it's better not to walk home." Ken says.

"Are you leaving already? Don't you want to have something to eat?" Lisa sees them in the hallway, heading toward the front door.

"Thanks, Mrs. Douglas, but our stomachs are too upset to eat anything right now." Briar jokes a little.

"Take care. Bye, kids."

"Goodbye, guys. See you. The school is probably going to be closed tomorrow..." Ken ponders.

"I wouldn't be surprised if all the buildings in the city collapsed, but the school is probably the only building still standing." Briar jokes again, making Lisa laugh and the others smile.

They say their quick goodbyes once more before Ken closes the door, leaving Ghalen to drive them home in his car.