"Mom," Tyler's voice seems to echo in the deadly-silent waiting room. "Is she... is she okay?"

Hayden's POV

All of our eyes are bore into Tyler's mom as we wait for her to answer. "She is alive in and in stable, but critical condition."

"I want to see her." I blurt out.

"That's not possible at the moment, Hayden."

"Why can't we see her mom? Do you not understand how worried we all are?" Tyler hisses at his mom. "We thought our friend had died. You can't just say we can't see her." Tyler starts to argue.

His mom places a hand on his shoulder. "You can't see her because she is being transferred to Fairview Heights Regional Hospital as we speak. Your dad is riding with her in the ambulance and will perform surgery on her with one of his colleagues once they arrived." She then looks around until her eyes land on Nick. "Are you feeling better?"

Nick stands to his feet with the help of Sofia. "Yes, and I'm sorry for the way I acted, Mrs. Constable."

"Don't be, Nick. You were upset and hurt. We only had to sedate you because we were afraid, they were going to call security, and have you escorted out." Mrs. Constable says, giving him a gentle smile.

"Mrs. Constable." I say as my voice wobbles. "Is she going to make it?"

She gulps. "Kids, it's hard to know anything for sure. We are hoping for the best. They performed surgery here, but she was still having internal bleeding which started to constrict her heart. Mr. Constable and I were able to relieve the area around her heart of the blood, but she's going to need surgery to fix where her bleeding is coming from."

Mrs. Constable sighs. "It's a very complicated surgery, but if anyone can do it, it's Tyler's dad. If surgery goes well, I would say she has a good chance of making it and she will possibly wake up a few hours after surgery. There will be complications though. The first bullet shot may have caused damage to her reproductive organs. We won't know for sure until she tries to start a family in the future. I believe one of you said she already suffers from depression. Because of the depression, she stands a great chance of having PTSD now. There could be other things too, but only time will tell."

"But do you think she will live?" Nick asks with fear in his voice.

"I can't promise anything, but I think she has a much better chance now that she's being transferred. Also, Tyler's dad and I were able to pull some strings and she's being placed in a private wing of the hospital and you will all be allowed to stay with her. They are going to let the six of you use the three rooms near her."

Sofia has a huge smile on her as she says, "Really?"

"Yes." Mrs. Constable says. "Now come on, let's get out of here."

I ride with Nick and Sofia, while Luke and Killian ride with Tyler. It's a two and half-hour drive, but it's worth the travel if it gets Isla a better chance at surviving. When we finally arrive at the hospital, my heart is beating a million times a minute. This hospital is huge. Far bigger and fancier than I have ever seen.

There's a knock on the window when I realize everyone is out of their vehicles except for me, who is still staring at the hospital. "Are you okay?" Tyler asks.

"Yeah, just caught in my thoughts." I say, as unbuckle my seat belt and follow Tyler's mom into the hospital.

Several people greet Mrs. Constable as we walk right past the receptionist, not needing to check in. She takes us through a set of doors that say 'Hospital Personnel Only' until we reach a set of elevators. We all gather into the larger than normal elevator and it climbs to the eighth floor.

"After Isla's surgery, she will be in room 804. And y'all will be able to use rooms 802, 803 and 806. The six of you will need special badges to be allowed on the eighth floor. The eighth floor is for VIP patients. No one will disturbed y'all as Isla is the only patient on the eighth floor for now." Mrs. Constable shows us Isla's room and then the three rooms that we are allowed to stay in. "The hospital staff will be by soon to see if y'all want to order anything from the cafeteria. I'm going to check on how Isla's surgery is going." Mrs. Constable gives us a small smile. "Have faith, kids."

Nick and Sofia take the room across the hall from Isla's room while Tyler and Luke take the room on her left and Killian and I take the room on the right of hers. In any other situation, I would be amazed at how nice and fancy these hospital rooms are, but all I care about now is if Isla is going to be okay. Tyler's mom was nice enough to get two beds placed in each room for us. As I sit on the bed, Killian walks into the room. "Are you okay, Hayden?"

"Not really. I feel like a part of this is my fault. I shouldn't have kissed her. I shouldn't have fallen for her." I admit. "I knew how Luke felt about her. If I hadn't kissed her, she would have never gone to tell him that she didn't want to be with him, he would have never gotten upset and she would have never taken off. It's my fault, Kill."

"It's not your fault. We all wanted a relationship with her besides Nick. The heart wants what the heart wants. Her heart wants you, and if she was able to see you now, she wouldn't want you blaming yourself."

I sigh. "I guess, but I should have never gotten feelings for her, knowing my best friend had a thing for her."

"You can't help who you fall in love with, and you've been in love with her for as long as I've known you. The day I met you, I could tell you loved her. I could also see how special you were to her too. Sure, I wanted her to pick me, but her feelings towards you have always been stronger than what she feels for the rest of us. There might have been a time that she loved Luke more, but not since I've met y'all."

"But what if she doesn't make it, Kill?" I ask with frustration. "How am I supposed to survive without her?"

"Don't ask questions like that. She's going to make it. She's in the best hands possible. Tyler's parents adore and love Isla. Isla's going to make it, but like Mrs. Constable said we are all going to need to be there for her. Things are going to be a little different."

"Have a question for you, Kill."

"What is it?"

"Should I try to have a relationship with her, or should I just be her friend because of Luke?"

"I think the two of you deserve to be happy. I have a feeling if y'all get together then the two of you will be in it for the long haul. Just think about one thing though, before you rush into a relationship with her. What are you wanting from your future?"

What do I want from my future? I want Isla. I want to be with Isla, but Killian should know this. "What do you mean? I want Isla to be in my future."

"That's obvious. What I mean is, are you wanting a family?" Killian sighs.

"Well of course I am wanting a family, and I would hope it would be with Isla, but I don't understand what you're getting at."

"Don't get upset with what I'm about to say. I just care for Isla and after everything she's been through, I want to make sure she's not going to get hurt."

"I care about her too and I wouldn't hurt her."

"I know you wouldn't but just hear me out. If you are really wanting a family, Isla might not be able to give you that. Dr. Montez said she may have issues in that department. Tyler's parents also said she may have some mental issues to deal with. Are you willing to stand by her side and support her through all of that when the time comes?" Killian asks with all seriousness.

I've never thought about not being able to have a family. I know we're still young, but I've always wanted to be a dad. I also have my own mental issues. "I love her, Kill. I will always be there for Isla and support her in whatever way she needs it. Plus, just because we can't have biological kids doesn't mean we still can't be parents. There are plenty of kids who need a family and I know Isla and I would treat them as if they are our own flesh and blood."

A wide smile breaks across Killian's face as he pats me on the back. "That's all I need to know. I'm glad she chose you." Killian stands up and walks towards the door. "Come on, let's check on the others."

We leave our room and find everyone waiting in Isla's hospital room. "Why are y'all all in here?" I ask with curiosity.

"We want Isla to know we are all here for her." Tyler says. "Mom said she won't be brought to this room until she wakes up."

"Does that mean she's out of surgery yet?" Killian asks with hopefulness.

"We haven't heard anything yet. We just want to wait in here." Sofia says. She then pulls a stuffed cat from a bag. "Nick and I went to the gift store and bought her this. Do y'all think she will like it?"

"Yeah, sis. She's going to love it." Killian answers.

A few minutes later, there is a knock on the door before it opens, Tyler's dad walks in with another guy around his age. All eyes are on the two of them as we wait for them to tell us how surgery went for Isla.

----------------------------------

A/N: Merry Christmas Everyone! ~KarenJ128~

----------------------------------

A/N: Merry Christmas Everyone! ~KarenJ128~