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Michael took a step forward, and all eyes were on him. Ashton was squeezing Luke’s hand in his. Tears were streaming down his face and he didn’t understand how Michael could be this calm.
“There are no words to describe how I feel right now. Everything was going great, I had made a new friend and together we waited for our boys to come home. Luke, my friend, had the luck to get his husband back alive; because Calum saved him. Calum gave his life for his best friend, he died a hero.”
Michael took a deep breath.
“I had the luck to get him back alive, but only for one day. For one day, there was this tiny bit of hope, and we got to spend our last day together, even though Calum didn’t open his eyes. At least I could feel his warm skin and hear his breathing. He still looked like my Calum. He still does.”
“He should’ve been planning a wedding, not a funeral.” Ashton heard someone whisper behind him, and that realisation hit him hard. He pulled Luke close to him, thankful he still had him.
“Calum should’ve never saved that guy, it wasn’t worth it.” Another voice said.
“It’s his fault really.” Someone answered.
Ashton froze, but only for a second. He let go of Luke’s hand and ran, as fast as possible.
“You can’t run from this Ashton. It’ll always follow you. It’s your fault and you know it. I will never forgive you” Michael’s voice sounded a lot closer than he had been, but no matter how hard Ashton ran, the voice didn’t die down.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t want him to save me, I told him not too, please. I’m sorry.” Ashton had trouble breathing, and he started to sweat.
“Ashton.”
It was Luke’s voice.
“Ashton, calm down.”
When Ashton opened his eyes, he was met with Luke’s worried ones.
“It’s okay baby, it was just a dream.” The youngest placed a kiss on his sweaty forehead, where his hair was sticking to his skin. Ashton had been home for five weeks now, and he had nightmares every single night, and every night again, Luke woke him up, trying to calm him down.
Ashton wrapped his strong arms around his husband, holding him as close as possible.
“I love you.” He told him.
“And I’m never going on a boat again.”
Luke kissed him at that. Ashton had promised him that at least ten times already, but he just needed to make sure he had told Luke that every now and then.
“It is not your fault what happened to Calum, you know that right?” Luke’s eyes looked right into his. He nodded. His therapist had tried to explain that to him as well, but after five weeks, he still blamed himself. Luke didn’t have to know though, he already worried too much as it was.
The thing is, Ashton had always been the strong one in the relationship, always the one taking care of Luke instead of the other way around.
“Can we go to the hospital tomorrow?”
Ashton knew Luke had the next day off. For the first two weeks, Ashton had visited his friend every single day, with or without Luke. But both his therapist and his mother had told him he had to take some distance from it all, so now they went two or three times a week together.
“Off course baby.” Luke kissed him once again.
“Now get some sleep.
When the couple walked into the hospital room, Michael was asleep in a chair. Calum’s parents, who lived in L.A., had moved back because of their work two weeks ago. They had said they’d come back, but Ashton knew they were not going to see the lad’s parents any time soon. They were disappointed in their son, for being gay and for not becoming a lawyer even though he had his certificate. They both had busy lives, and Calum had never really been a part of it.
The doctors had said that Calum was probably not going to survive his first day, but there he was: five weeks later and still alive. The boy was in a coma though, and no one knew if he’d ever come out, and even if he did, they weren’t sure he was going to be the same as he once was before the accident.
Michael spent every single day in the hospital, he didn’t leave to sleep or eat and the only people who were looking out for him were the nurses and the two Irwin’s.
The red-haired boy was curled up on the chair, his neck and back both in a very weird position, and the eldest knew for sure he was going to be sore once he woke up.
“Mike.” The youngest crouched down in front of his friend, gently waking him up. In the meantime, Ashton had walked over to the hospital bed, grabbing Calum’s hand in his own like he always did.
“How’s he doing?” Ashton asked when Michael opened his eyes.
“Still the same. He’s stable. We have to wait for him to wake up. The doctors said it could take months, maybe even years.”
The boy sighed.
“I know I can’t wait here forever, I have to go back to work sooner or later, but I can’t just leave him here like this.”
Luke hugged Michael, letting him burry his head in the crook of his neck. It had become a habit ever since Calum had been asleep.
Ashton had been looking for a job already, but it wasn’t very easy to just go on with his live after everything that had happened. He had the luck he had his husband at his side though; Michael had to do everything alone.
Sitting at Calum’s side had something hopeless. In the beginning they had been hopeful, just because he had survived the first day while the doctor had told them he wouldn’t. But now, every day was the same. Calum slept and they spend the day in silence, waiting for a miracle to happen, waiting for him to wake up, and though they didn’t expect it to actually happen, they were still let down whenever he didn’t.
Michael stood on Calum’s other side, his free hand in his and Luke moved to sit next to Ashton, his hand resting on his husband’s leg.
“I should’ve been married by now.” Michael looked at the clock.
“Shit Mike, I had forgotten about that.” Luke muttered.
“You will marry him one day. Calum is strong, I know it for sure.”
Michael smiled a watery smile at him, telling Ashton he believed it too.
“But what if he doesn’t remember me, or…” Michael suddenly realized.
“What if he can’t talk anymore, what if he is a total different person? I’ve read about that you know. There are so many things that can go wrong. What if he can’t even properly think for himself?”
“Would you give up on him?” Luke asked.
“No.” Michael answered right away.
“Then the two of you will find a way. If I were you I wouldn’t think of all that too much, you never know what will happen.”
Michael nodded.
Ashton felt the exact same way though. He was afraid to lose his friend as well, even if he survived.
---
The three young men spend the entire day in the hospital, and once it was dark outside, Luke invited Michael to sleep at their house.
“I can drive you back to the hospital in the morning.” Luke told him.
“Can I stay with Mike tomorrow?” Ashton asked Luke. He knew he didn’t actually need permission from his husband, but he knew he worried.
“Yes, off course, love.”
Ashton and Luke were in bed together, Michael was asleep in another room.
“Are you sure this was a good idea? What if the two of us both have nightmares, you’re not going to get any sleep that way.” Ashton asked Luke, knowing Michael had trouble sleeping as well.
“It’s okay. I have nightmares sometimes too, so it’s not like I get that much sleep anyways.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Ashton asked, a bit offended that his husband had kept that from him.
“You already worry too much as it is, you already have a lot on your mind. I didn’t want you to worry about me. I’m taking care of you, and there’s no way I am going to let you take care of me now. Maybe in the future, but right now, you need me.” Luke told him.
“You act as if I’m broken.”
“You might not be completely broken, but you’ve been through a lot. You don’t have two therapy sessions a week for nothing Ash. You don’t have to pretend you’re stronger than you are for me, I know you.”
The eldest smiled at his husband. He could’ve known his Luke knew him better than he knew himself.
---
Michael had been at Calum’s bedside, writing for more than an hour straight, when he finally placed his notebook down and looked up at Ashton.
“Maybe I shouldn’t be here every single day.” He stated.
“He might stay like this for months, I can’t just sit here and do nothing for months can I?”
Ashton knew Michael well enough to know he was talking to himself, rather than to Ashton, so he didn’t answer.
“But what if he wakes up and I am not here? I can’t lose hope now, can I? I mean, he has come so far, it would be so unfair if he died now.”
Ashton nodded.
“He won’t.”
“He won’t.” Michael agreed, nodding his head slightly.
“Don’t tell Luke I said this, but if I were you, I’d stay here too.” Ashton smiled faintly at his friend.
Michael nodded once again, a smile on his face while he picked the notebook up. He started writing, and Ashton continued the game he had been playing on his phone.
It was around six when Luke came walking into the room. Michael was asleep in a chair once again, it seemed like the only time the boy could sleep without nightmares was whenever he was with his fiancé.
They didn’t wake him up on purpose, but Ashton figured the smell of pizza did the job.
“Luke, you truly are my hero.” He smiled when Luke handed him a box of his own.
“Happy to help.”
Ashton would’ve pulled the blonde in his lap if Michael hadn’t been there, it wouldn’t be fair.
The boys ate their pizza while Luke started chatting about his day, Ashton and Michael both didn’t have much to tell since they didn’t really do anything all day.
The eldest noticed how Michael dozed off every now and then, staring at the love of his live, sleeping peacefully under the white blankets. Luke fell still once he had noticed it too.
“I’m going to get us something to drink. Do you guys want anything?” Luke offered.
“Hot chocolate please.” Michael said, eyes not leaving Calum.
“Coffee, thanks.”
“Okay. I’ll be right back.”
---
“Ashton, we should go. You have a job interview tomorrow.” Luke said, already getting up from his chair, walking around the room to clean up the mess they had made.
Suddenly, the tall blonde came to a halt; there was a noise coming from the bed. Everybody’s eyes landed on the boy in the bed, whose head was moving a bit before he opened his eyes.
“Calum? Oh my god Calum!” Michael exclaimed, throwing himself on the boy, his hands moving through the boy’s hair.
He drew back immediately, probably realizing there might be a change Calum might not remember him or anything, but the boy smiled sleepily up at his fiancé.
“Hi Mikey.”
Michael kissed him at that.
“How are you feeling?” Michael asked.
“I’m getting a doctor.” Luke told them somewhere in the background, rushing off as quick as possible.
Ashton thought about leaving the two of them alone for a minute too, but Calum’s eyes
landed on him.
“Thank god you’re alive. Would’ve been pretty useless if you hadn’t made it.” Calum chuckled, as if he hadn’t just woken up from a coma he had been in for weeks.
“And I feel fine. I’m quite tired though and my eyesight is blurry.”
Michael grabbed Calum’s left hand in his own, their rings right next to each other.
“How can you be tired after sleeping for five weeks?”
“Five weeks?” Calum’s eyes grew big, a bit panicked even.
“Y- yeah. You were in a coma.”
The raven-haired boy fell silent for a little while, he was clearly thinking, his eyes were scanning the room and scanning his love’s face.
“The wedding.” Was all he said.
“Should’ve been yesterday. It’s okay though, I’m so glad you’re alive.”
The two of them got interrupted by the doctor, who walked straight to Calum’s side and checked on him.
“How do you feel Mister Hood?”
“Tired, my head hurts and I can’t see very clear actually.”
“Can you move your neck for me?”
Calum did.
“Your hands?”
The boy in the bed waved at the doctor with ten fingers, making both Michael and Ashton smile.
“Toes?”
Ashton’s eyes moved to where he expected Calum’s legs were, but nothing happened.
Calum looked down at his own legs, concern evident on his face.
He started to stress a bit before he squeezed his eyes shut.
“I can’t feel them.”
Michael gulped, but that was pretty much all he did.
“Nothing?”
“No.”
Luke moved to stand next to Michael, a comforting arm around his waist. Calum’s eyes opened again and immediately found his fiancé’s, who squeezed Calum’s hand.
“Well, there is a very big change something hit your spine in the progress. I will have to continue the check up before I can send a nurse to take you to the radiography room to see what is going on exactly.”
The doctor continued what he had been doing, and soon left, promising a nurse was going to pick him up within thirty minutes, so the four of them had some time to register everything.
Calum’s eyes were still wide with panic, but Michael somehow didn’t seem too phased.
“How are you not freaking out?” Calum asked his fiancé.
“Simple. You’re alive, you’re you. What else could I ever wish? Okay, there might be a change you could never walk again, but things honestly are a lot better than I could’ve hoped for.” Michael explained, the emotions rising high as his eyes became watery.
“I mean, this is awful for you, but you could’ve been dead, you could’ve been retarded for all I know.”
Calum smiled at that, even though it was nothing to laugh about.
Ashton watched with a fond look in his eyes. He really hadn’t thought about this, about what the two of them would talk about once Calum would wake up.
Luke was standing right next to his husband, pressing a kiss on his cheek because this whole thing turned out so good. This was a happy ending they could’ve never wished for.
“Maybe you’re right.” Calum spoke.
“And as long as you are here to help me, I don’t really care for my legs. Ashton and I are both alive and well, that’s most important.”
---
“Honey, can you help me with my tie?” Luke yelled from where he was getting dressed. Ashton walked over to their bedroom, only to find his husband in a gorgeous dark blue suit.
“You look stunning mister Irwin.” The blonde chuckled, kissing Luke before he helped him out.
“You look pretty good yourself.”
Ashton was wearing a black suit with a dark blue bow tie.
“You were the one who picked it out, remember.” Ashton giggled at his husband.
“We should better hurry, it’s getting late.” He reminded Luke, who hastily put on his shoes.
“Ready!”
---
Ashton was ‘maid of honour’ as Calum liked to call it, so he was standing at the empty side, with two of his co-workers next to him. Michael was waiting at the altar, Luke next to him and next to him two friends Luke had only met a few weeks ago.
Luke, because Michael and Calum barely knew him when they got engaged, wasn’t supposed to be their best man but things changed after the accident.
At first, it had been the plan to let Michael walk down the aisle, because he wanted everyone to react at his hair like people usually reacted at the wedding dress.
Now Michael was waiting for Calum to roll down the aisle, and Ashton could see his hands trembling from where he was standing. He could remember feeling like that. Luke found his gaze and winked at him, telling him he was thinking the exact same thing.
Music started playing and Calum came rolling down the aisle, his sister was behind him, her hands on the handles of his wheelchair but not actually pushing.
Calum had told Ashton his parents hadn’t contacted his sister when they had found out of the accident because his parents didn’t speak to her anymore, and Michael didn’t have her number.
Calum had called her as soon as he was awake and she had got on the first plane from Australia .Calum hadn’t seen her in years, she had never come back to America because she didn’t want to see her parents, even though that meant she had to miss her baby brother. Seeing his sister again was according to Calum the only good part of the accident.
Ashton watched his two friends, the smiles on their faces so big, it looked as if their faces were going to burst, and he knew he looked a lot alike. He was so happy for them, Michael would’ve never believed him if he would’ve told him this would happen in just a few weeks.
“Brown?” Ashton could hear Calum say when he had reached the altar.
“Yeah. People are used to my weird hair colours now, so I figured I might surprise them with a natural colour. Plus, I was afraid I wouldn’t like to see myself with red hair in forty years, since the pictures are going to be all around our house.” Michael chuckled.
Calum reached out his hand and Michael bowed down to let his almost-husband touch it, earning giggles from their audience.
“We are gathered here on this beautiful day, to celebrate the love of Calum Hood and Michael Clifford, as they promise each other to spend the rest of their lives together.”
Ashton honestly didn’t listen very well, he really couldn’t stop looking at his two best friends and husband.
“Do you take Calum Thomas Hood to be your lawful wedded husband to have and behold from this day on, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live.”
Ashton gulped. There was so much in that one sentence that had crossed his mind in the past few months.
“I do.”
“Do you take Michael Gordon Clifford to be your lawful wedded husband, to have and behold from this day on, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live.”
A smile grew on Calum as he said ‘I do.’
Ashton remember talking about that with Calum. He had been worried Michael didn’t want to go through with the wedding anymore because of what had happened. Ashton had told him that he was an idiot for even thinking that. He had told his friend that there was nothing more than to ‘make him officially mine so he can’t get rid of me anymore.’ Calum had been worried about the ‘in sickness and in health part’ in particular, since ‘he has to take care of me, and not the other way around since I am the cripple.’
Ashton watched as the two man exchanged rings.
“Beloved family and friends, I present to you: Mister and Mister Clifford.”
Ashton chuckled at that, before he joined the rest and applauded, crossing Luke’s eyes once again.
---
“Dear Calum.”
Michael had just asked for everyone’s attention and was now standing up, facing his husband.
“I wrote this when I was in the hospital, when there was no proof you were ever going to wake up and marry me yet. But I knew you would make it. I knew this day would come. And I wanted to tell you then, and I want to tell you know; I love you no matter what happens. And I had wanted to make this a lot longer, I wanted to write something so beautiful it would make you cry, but that day, you woke up, and I honestly didn’t have much time to write anymore. Calum Gordon Clifford Hood, you are the love of my life and I thank God every single day that he gave you back to me, with or without legs, I really don’t care. You are still, and you will always be my Calum, no matter what.”
Calum still wiped away a tear, as did Luke, who was sitting next to Ashton and squeezing his hand so hard, the eldest was sure it was purple by now.
“I love you.” He heard Calum whisper, while Michael sat down again, kissing his Mister Clifford passionately.
“I would’ve written you something too, if I hadn’t been in a coma.” Calum joked, just loud enough for everyone to hear.
This story honestly couldn’t have ended any better, for Calum really didn’t care he couldn’t walk as long as he had his husband to push, or carry him around.