Melissa gave him a weak look, dropping her chin on her knees. "I- I could… I could try to cover for you?" She tried, knowing she would never have time. But she hated seeing him like this, feeling desperate to try and help.
"You c-can't, Mel… you're busy, and as much as I love you, I don't think you'd be a fantastic assistant baseball coach…" Lucas sighed again, fresh tears rolling down his cheeks.
"I- um… I could-" Melissa fell quiet, sighing weakly. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze, trying so hard not to hurt him. "I-I really want to help you, Lu… I just… I don't know what I can do…"
"Neither do I, Mel… my life is falling more to shit than usual and I don't know what to do anymore. I can't trust myself not to subconsciously try to kill myself. That's terrifying, Melissa."
Melissa grew quiet, starting to pull away from him a little. There she went, getting all self-centered again. "I-I know… I'm sorry, I'm not helping." She muttered a bit, slowly starting to crawl out from under the cot. "I… I can always try and explain your situation to your coach..?"
"I guess so…" Lucas sighed. "It's not like they're going to let me out to go tell people what's going on, so unfortunately, that's gonna have to fall to you… only tell people we trust, though."
"Of course…" Melissa replied softly, offering a hand to him. "Can you come out from under there? We probably need to get your IV attached before someone comes back…"
"We probably need a doctor to do that, Mel… I mean, they've gotta stick a needle into my vein. Still love you, but I don't think you're qualified." Lucas stayed under the cot for now.
"Mm… yeah. I guess you're right." Melissa sighed softly, reaching over to run her fingers through his hair. "But you still need to come out… I know you don't want to, but you need to."
"I'm safer here… they can't take me to the mental hospital if I'm under here…" Lucas replied weakly, moving away a bit more. "They can't hurt me here…"
"Lu, please…" Melissa whispered, pulling her hand back. She climbed up onto the cot, spreading out before letting out a soft sigh. "It's really better to cooperate. Even if you hate what you have to do, it only makes things worse for everyone if you try to run away. You can't just hide from your problems…"
"B-But I feel safer under here, even if the pain meds are wearing off and my arm hurts incredibly badly…" Lucas replied weakly.
"Lucas, babe, please." Melissa whispered, pushing so she was hanging over the edge of the cot. She gave him a soft look, using her arm to support her up.
"I don't wanna go up right now, Mel… I feel better down here for the time being, okay?" Lucas buried his face in his arms again.
Melissa grew quiet, nodding softly. She pulled back, not going to argue any further. If he wasn't gonna come up then he wasn't gonna come up. So she rolled on her side, staring at the wall blankly.
Lucas was still under the cot when the doctor came in. The doctor was clearly confused upon only seeing Melissa on the cot at first, and then at seeing Lucas underneath. "Is everything alright in here…?"
Melissa rolled over, and sighed softly, shaking her head. She pushed up off the cot, quietly approaching the doctor. "Lucas really doesn't want to go…" She whispered, hugging herself as she did.
The doctor nodded a bit. "That's understandable, but unfortunately we have no choice but to admit him after an incident like this."
"There's nothing… nothing we can do instead?" Melissa asked weakly, glancing over to Lucas. "He- he's honestly terrified. There was… a lot that was worrying him."
"Unfortunately, he at least needs to be admitted for three days. After that, he can make the decision with you and your father whether or not he'll stay longer. Obviously, it would be ideal if he chooses to allow further treatment, but things are tricky with him not having a legal guardian."
Melissa sighed weakly, leaning back against the door frame. "I'm worried he's not going to want to…" She mumbled, dropping her head in her hands. Sucking in a deep breath, she let it out slowly. After a minute or so of thinking, she looked up at the doctor. "Would- um… would you be able to answer questions about it?"
"Sure. Would you step outside with me for a moment?" The doctor led Melissa out into the hall to talk with her about the details of the mental hospital.
After about an hour, Melissa nodded resting a hand on the handle. "Thank you, sir… I'm sorry for taking up so much of your time, though." She mumbled, stepping back into the room.
The doctor nodded and followed her in so that he could put Lucas's IV back in. "Lucas? Can you come out from under there, please?" Lucas shook his head weakly.
Melissa knelt down on the floor, looking at Lucas. "Come on, Lu… please? You don't have to go yet, you just need to lie in bed." Melissa insisted in a gentle tone.
"…F-Fine…" Lucas hesitated before carefully climbing up onto the cot and curling in on himself. The doctor gently took his arm and put the IV in and checked Lucas's vitals before leaving again.
Melissa was quiet, sitting in a chair away from him. God she felt so sick with worry, for a number of reasons. She was worried he was mad at her- because she had pushed things too far. She couldn't keep her mouth shut, feeling the need to keep talking. And even if he wasn't mad at her, she was worried what would happen after he went. It was stupid, but she was so nervous he would decide he didn't need her anymore. And then leave her… just like her mother had said. Though she tried not to think about it, assuming she was over-exaggerating. She hadn't exactly slept in the past three days.
"I'm sorry, Mel…" Lucas whispered, huddling up in a tight ball under his blanket. "I screwed everything up so much… and I just… I'm sorry…" Cody cuddled close to him, whining worriedly at him.
Melissa sighed weakly, looking over to him. "I- you… you don't need to be sorry, Lu…" She mumbled a little, curling up herself. "I should be apologizing. I was pushing you, and I knew it."
Lucas hiccuped a bit and buried his face in his pillow. "T-They're really going to make me go, aren't they?" He asked weakly. "It's over, isn't it? I don't have any choice…"