AUTUMN LEAVES

“Sidney, the past two summers were very special to the penguins and to you personally. But this year, there was another occasion. Tell us what it was like to be Mario Lemieux’s best man, in your own backyard?” one reporter asked with a wide grin on the first day of training camp.

Sidney adjusted his cap and smiled. “I was honored to share that special day with Mario. He’s always been there for me, you know. He didn’t need to ask twice. He’s family.” Sidney paused pensively for a few moments. “Autumn Scott is a lucky woman,” he added.

Mario squeezed his eyes shut as the memory of Sidney’s interview came like another stab to his heart. He was startled when detective Mason nudged him, “we may have found Lauren, Mr. Lemieux.”

*****

“My poor baby, how traumatized she must be. To witness what she has witnessed, I mean, his blood was on her face, Nathan,” Linda whispered as she watched Autumn try desperately to get a glimpse of Sidney through the large ICU window.

“I still can’t believe that Lauren Lemieux would do this,” Nathan said shaking his head.

“I just can’t keep watching her broken like this,” Tiffany said as she joined Linda and Nathan, having given up on getting Autumn to sit down.

“I know, honey. She seems much better now though,” Linda said.

“I’ll go talk to her,” Nathan said as he petted Tiffany’s head.

“Hey, Auttie,” Nathan said as he casually draped his arm around Autumn’s shoulders.“I’m surprised that you haven’t terrorized that nurse into letting you in yet.” When he got no response, he added, “you heard what the doctors said though. Sid is doing well and will get stronger with time.”

Autumn nodded silently as someone caught her eye. “Mike!” she called after the anesthesiologist. Autumn was never one to ask for preferential treatment, but different times called for different measures. And different times it was; she was not the same person for one, and the man lying in a hospital bed was everything to her. “Is he awake yet? Please, you’ve got to let me see him,” she asked not caring if the staff heard her ask Mike to break the rules.

“You know the answer to that, Dr. Scott,” Mike answered taking her to the side for some privacy. “We put him in an induced coma for a few days to prevent any brain damage from the blood loss,” her colleague explained with a frown. As Autumn’s eyes got teary, Mike added, “I know that he’s a close friend, Autumn, but you know the rules here better than anyone. Only family and one person at a time in the ICU.”

“But his family is not here yet and –” Autumn pleaded.

“Dr. Muller is in charge, and you know how he is,” Mike said. He then sighed and pinched his nose, “I shouldn’t, but I’ll see what I can do, okay? Just wait right here.”

Kris entered the ICU hall and went straight for Autumn. “Did you see him?” he asked her. “Not yet, I’m trying,” she mumbled.

“How about we go sit in the lounge while waiting, Auttie,” Nathan suggested but Autumn just shook her head.

“I think it’s best if she didn’t. Everyone would start asking her about what happened,” Kris whispered in Nathan’s ear. “Was it really Lauren who did this?” Kris asked taking Nathan to the side. The news has reached the team in the private lounge across from the ICU.

“Autumn confirmed that to the police earlier,” Nathan said.

“But why? I can’t wrap my mind around it,” Kris asked.

“Tiff told me what Autumn told her. You can say that the love triangle is to blame here, or is it a square?” Nathan spoke. When Kris gave him a confused look, he added, “To sum it up, Lauren knew about Sid and Autumn, though we’re unclear on how. Lauren is in love with Sid and hates her step-mom, the woman who happened to have cheated on her father with Sid.”

“And so… she decides to shoot Sid?” Kris asked, still confused. Nathan sighed, “she wanted to shoot Autumn, but Sid sort of protected her at his own expense.” Nathan patted a shocked Kris on the shoulder and joined his friends on the row of chairs.

“What the hell is she doing here!” Tiffany stood up in front of Autumn and yelled, “Officer!”

“Lauren?” Kris turned around to see the oldest Lemieux kid standing in the sliding ICU door, her arms at her side, her shoulders shaking as tears streamed down her face.

“Is Sid okay? I just want to know if he’s okay,” she said between sobs. “I did not mean to hurt him! All I wanted is for him to love me back. That is all I ever wanted,” she said as she collapsed to the floor, two police officers appearing at her sides in no time.

Autumn stood behind her sister motionless as she watched the police pull Lauren off the floor and handcuff her.

“You did this to him, Autumn! You made me do this! You’re nothing but a curse! Your own parents didn’t even want you!” Lauren screamed and thrashed her legs while the police officers tried restraining her to avoid a scene in the middle of a hospital.As Lauren was steered toward the exit, she came face to face with her father.

“Lauren,” Mario swallowed hard at the sight of his daughter being escorted by the police, her hand behind her back like a criminal. “Why did you do this, Lauren?” he said to his daughter in a worried, yet disappointed, fatherly tone.

“Papa, it’s Autumn’s fault. It’s all her fault,” Lauren said to her dad.

“Laura, you committed this crime. I can’t do anything about it. Not even me can protect you from this,” he said as the police officers waited sympathetically. “Your mother and I will see you at the police station later, with a lawyer,” he said. “Please don’t hurt her. She is not in a normal state. My daughter would never do this if she was,” he pleaded with a tear in his eye as the police took his daughter out of the hospital and to what he assumed would be a police vehicle where only criminals would normally be caged.

Mario shuffled around looking for support as he felt himself getting lightheaded. “I’ve got you,” Kris hurried to his side for help. Mario covered his face mortified. “I’m sorry. Tell the team that I’m sorry,” he told Kris.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Mario. No one is blaming you for what happened,” Kris reassured him.

“I’m a successful businessman and hockey player, but I failed as a father. I failed my daughter. I failed my family. I failed myself,” Mario said. Mario glanced at Autumn briefly, then got up and stared into an endless set of glass doors where he caught a glimpse of Sidney’s dark hair. Another lump formed in his throat.

“Kris, please keep me posted,” Mario said just above a whisper before finally dragging himself out of the ICU, out of the hospital and towards a police station where his ex-wife, his lawyer and his daughter awaited.

A pin drop could have been heard in the narrow hall of the ICU. The handful of hospital staff busied themselves at their stations, Linda and Nathan just stared at one another, Tiff helped Autumn settle in her chair, and Kris remained in the same spot Mario left him in.

“This man does not deserve this,” Kris said, unconsciously looking Autumn’s way.

“Autumn,” Mike came back into the hall and gestured for Autumn who leaped out of her seat and was at his side in a split of a second.

Scanning his access card at three separate doors, Mike led Autumn to Sidney’s room. The closer she got, the heavier her steps felt. Stopping in front of his door, her chest started heaving at the sight of Sidney’s lifeless body and all the medical equipment that were keeping him alive. “Hey, you don’t have to go in,” Mike said.

Shaking her head, Autumn pushed the green button and the sliding door opened. “Ten minutes,” Mike said before leaving.

Covering her mouth, Autumn stood next to Sidney’s bed and tried to muffle her sobs. She knew Sidney couldn’t hear her, but she wanted to be strong for him. With a shaky hand, she reached for his hair and ran her fingers slowly through his curls. “I’m sorry, baby. I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “But you’re gonna be okay. I know you will,” she said as her lips brushed his forehead. His face had more color than the last time she saw him.

“You’re just sleeping now,” she whispered as she continued to comb his hair. “When you wake up, everything will be okay,” she said softly, wanting to believe this herself, more than anything.

“Remember when we slept together in a hospital bed. That night, I couldn’t sleep. Then you got the genius idea of singing to me,” she chuckled as another tear rolled down her cheek. “You pouted when I told you that kids would rather have Christmas cancelled than to listen to you sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”Pausing, she wiped his cheek that was stained with her own tears. “So much has happened since then.”

With her knees on the vinyl floor, Autumn placed her cheek on Sidney’s hand that was secured in hers. She started humming a song for him as he slept.

“There goes my hand shaking
And you are the reason
My heart keeps bleeding
I need you now

If I could turn back the clock
I'd make sure the light defeated the dark
I'd spend every hour, of every day
Keeping you safe

And I'd climb every mountain
And swim every ocean
Just to be with you
And fix what I've broken
Oh, 'cause I need you to see
That you are the reason…”

At the door, Mike and an ICU nurse did not have the heart to interrupt her. “Autumn,” Mike finally said apologetically. Autumn turned around and wiped her face. She stood up slowly, still clutching Sidney’s hand. “Just one minute,” she whispered. Giving her a tight smile, Mike nodded but remained at the door, guarding the coast.

“I will come back later, okay?” Autumn kissed Sidney softly on the cheek, “I love you,” she whispered in his ear. She let go of his hand and adjusted his blanket. She ran her hands over his shoulders before turning around.

“Thanks, Mike,” Autumn mumbled as she passed her colleague to leave the room.

Filing out of the ICU’s restricted area, Autumn passed by her friends, who followed behind her silently as she headed toward the lounge. Tiffany managed to catch up with Autumn, “so, how was he?”

“As good as he can be. I did not have the strength to look at his chart,” Autumn answered right before nodding to the security guard who opened the lounge door for the group.

All eyes snapped in Autumn’s direction. The worried faces of Sidney’s extended family and the image of a distraught Autumn drew fresh tears around the room. Finding a seat next to Patric, Autumn covered her face for a few seconds before summoning some strength.

“Sid is stable. He should be okay,” she said looking at the room, not really seeing the faces with her cloudy vision. Patric kneeled in front of her, “he will. He’s a strong man, Autumn. We should believe in him like we always have,” he said.

“It’s all my fault. I’m so sorry,” she said covering her face once again. Patric pulled her hands away and looked her in the eye. “Don’t say that. This is not your fault; no one here thinks it is. It was just an… accident. God only knows why Lauren did it,” he said as some Penguins joined her side, nodding and humming their agreement with the Swede.

Kris rolled his eyes as he remained seated with his wife and their son who was busy playing on his tablet. “Some part of me is unable but to blame her,” Kris whispered to his wife. “None of this would have happened if she hasn’t shown up in his life. Lauren was somewhat right about that,” he said with a hard expression.

Catherine sighed heavily, “maybe you’re right.” When her husband glared at Autumn, Catherine continued, “I know you’re worried about Sid, we all are, honey. But this is not the time to stir up a fight.”

“I think Mario knows. I don’t know how, but he does. He did not even approach Autumn in the ICU,” Kris said.

“Guys, Murr’s girlfriend just called,” Coach Sullivan announced. “Matt is driving Sid’s parents from the airport. They should be here soon. We should all try to look less miserable when they arrive. They will need us at their side,” the coach added before handing Autumn a cup of water.

“Our PR team is working hard to keep… things…um… from getting out to the media. So, please stick to what we agreed on and don’t answer any inquiries, whether it being from your personal circles or the press. The organization is preparing a statement. Jennifer is arriving soon to brief us on the next step.” The team nodded their understanding.

“With everything Sid and Mario are going through, media morons should be our last concern,” Geno muttered annoyed. “It’s a delicate situation, G. I’m sure that Mario does not want the media to catch wind of who shot Sid,” Carl Hagelin spoke patting Geno’s knee.

“Coach, Flower called coz he saw it on the news. I told him what we know. But we can count that he will not leak anything out. He is also flying here tonight,” Kris said.

The room fell quite for a few minutes as Tiffany chatted quietly with Autumn. “Auttie, his parents are gonna want to hear what happened. Do you think you’ll be ready to tell them?” Tiffany asked.

“I… I don’t know,” Autumn said looking at her hands. Autumn did not have much time to ponder that subject as Matt Murray entered the room. “Doctors said Sid is stable for now,” he said. “Sid’s parents are talking to them now. I think they’re allowed to see Sid,” he added as he took a seat next to Jake.

“Autumn saw him earlier. He’s in a temporary coma but she said he’s gonna be okay,” Jake said with a small smile as Matt squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

“Tay,” Kris whispered as Taylor Crosby entered the room with her dad holding her close. Kris hugged Sidney’s young sister as she cried. Autumn watch from her seat Troy surrounded by his son’s teammates who had nothing but comforting words for the worried father. Trina must be with Sidney, Autumn thought. She felt so out of place that she simply left the room, unnoticed by the rest of the crowd.

Autumn reached for the elevator with Tiffany at her heels. They headed for Autumn’s hospital office, ignoring everyone who tried speaking to them on the way. Slamming her office door, she slid down to the floor, hugging her knees to her chest. “Auttie,” Tiffany said softly. “Tiff, please, I need to be alone,” Autumn said.

“If you think I’m leaving alone when you’re like this, you’re clearly delusional,” Tiffany said as she sat next to her sister.

“Not only did I break Mario’s family, Tiff, I broke Sid’s too,” Autumn said after a long silence. “They’re devastated because of me,” she added, her voice strained.

“Auttie, you can’t–”

“Blame myself? How can I not!” Autumn said angrily. “I should have left him alone.”

“How on earth would you have foreseen what Lauren did?!” Tiffany tried to help her sister see how this was not her fault.

A knock at the door interrupted what would have developed into a long futile argument.
“Autumn, police wanted to give you this,” Nathan entered holding out a plastic. “They finished sweeping the scene I guess. But you still can’t go back home yet.”

“What home…” Autumn mumbled to herself.

“You can stay at my place tonight. Tiff is on call, right?”

“I’ll find a replacement,” Tiff said as she watched Autumn open the bag with shaky hands. “You need to eat something, you….” Tiffany stopped talking as she watched her sister closely.

Autumn was clearly not listening to neither of them as she inspected the white iPhone in her trembling hand. She circled the home button a few times, studying it up close. Tiffany and Nathan exchanged looks.

Finally pressing the home button that had a trace of blood at the seams, Autumn’s lips quivered. At the very end of the long string of missed calls and unread messages, there was his name. His missed calls were there as was an unread text message. A sob escaped her as she tried controlling her shaking hand long enough to press the ‘open’ button.

-Hey, baby. Sorry I missed your call, I was on the other line. I’m on my way to you! I have some good news!

Notes

Hello!

I hope everyone is doing well this summer. I'm quite busy these days, hence the slow updates. But bear with me, there is more to come. My characters have another thing coming, as always, LOL!

Thanks for reading, I hope you're enjoying reading it as much as I enjoy writing it :D

(I miss hockey! No World Cup buzz could ever replace hockey)

Charlie