Angelo and Jono chat over unconscious Paige

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Angelo sat in the darkened hospital wing, curled up in a chair by Paige's bed. Several of the staff and older students had tried to persuade him to go and get some sleep but had eventually given up and gone away on realising that he wasn't going anywhere. He didn't intend to sleep, either. Not until Paige woke up. So he just sat there, watching over her, silently reciting all the prayers for the sick he could remember.

His vigil was disturbed by the slightest rustle of clothes from the doorway, and then Jono's voice slipped into his mind. "Didn't know.. someone else would be.." he stopped, defeated, and made to leave.

Angelo raised his head wearily, and called out to stop him. "Don't go, man. You've got as much right to be here as I have. Maybe more..."

Jono hesitated for a second, then walked over to Paige's bed and reached out a hand to touch her forehead. "How is she?"

"I don't know", Angelo answered. "They say she's not as bad as she could have been, because she husked, but... well, you can see. She hasn't woken up yet."

Jono held himself tensely for a moment, eyes flicking between Angelo and Paige, then he folded against the bed. "I told her," he said. "I told she'd get hurt."

Angelo offered a tired half-smile. "When could you ever tell Paige anything? She knew what she was doing..."

"She should've listened to me," Jono insisted, burying his face into his arms. "Now she won't want to see me."

Angelo pushed himself up straighter, hearing that, and looked directly at Jono. "Excuse me? Could you repeat that? You seriously think Paige will hate you for this?"

"Jono... she's a big girl now. You warned her, and she made her choice. And I think she's more forgiving than you're giving her credit for - even if it was your fault, which it's not."

"Wouldn't you hate someone who almost blew you to bits?" Jono shot a troubled look at Angelo.

Angelo replied firmly, "Not if I'd been warned of the danger and had my chance to get out of it. This is not your fault."

Jono thought about it a moment. "Why do you care anyway?" he asked then.

Angelo thought about that for a moment. Finally, he replied, "Paige cares about you. I care about Paige. And I know you care about her too. Besides, it's not fair for you to be carrying around guilt you don't deserve. "You're not the bad guy you seem to think you are, Jono. I trust Paige's judgment on this. You should too."

"Not the bad guy," Jono repeated, looking like he would have burst out in a bitter laugh if he could've. He only rubbed his eyes instead. "But if this is the price for trying to get close to me, what else could I be?"

Angelo sighed, curling up in his chair again. "Look, I can't make you believe me - or Paige. We both know you would never have hurt her deliberately. And you've just told me you tried to warn her off. That makes you a good guy in my book."

Jono smoothed some hair away from Paige's face, momentarily lost in contemplation. "She'll wake up, won't she," he said then, not really to anyone present. "It can't always be this difficult."

Angelo paused, momentarily taken aback. "Of course she'll wake up! Don't even talk like that", he said, half-upset, half-angry. "And as for it not always being so difficult... well, that's not for me to say. But I'm sure Ms. Frost can find a way to make things better for you..."

"She'll wake up," Jono looked at Angelo, a bit startled. "She's.. stubborn like that." His hand scrabbled against his chest almost convulsively. "Dr. Essex gave me a list of people who might be able to help me," he added carefully. "Psionics."

Angelo relaxed, realizing he'd misinterpreted what Jono had said. "Yeah, stubborn's an understatement", he said, trying for a light voice and almost succeeding."And you should look into that. Anything that could help has to be good, right?" he added.

"It must run in the family," Jono said fondly, then stood up slowly from the bedside. "I think.. thanks. I'm sure she'll want you, and Doug," he nodded towards the door, "to be here when she wakes up."

"Doug's out there?" Angelo asked, amused. "Why doesn't he just come in? And I think she'd want you here too, man. I wish you'd stay."

"I think he fancies himself a doorkeeper of sorts," Jono shook his head, walking across the room back to the door. "And, no, I'll let her decide if she wants me around once she's awake again."

"Well, tell him to come in here if he wants to", Angelo called. "And it's up to you. But I think you'll find she does."

Jono shrugged. "I'll tell him," and disappeared out the door.

Angelo watched him leave, then settled back into his chair, pulling his rosary out again and resuming his prayers.

Comments

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This also makes me do the sniffling thing.

I love how much of a sweetheart Angelo is. I love Jono smoothing away her hair (and using the word 'fancies') I love you guys.

(write me stories, dammit)