=CHAPTER FOUR=

It was 9pm in the hospital. Mike lay in his hospital bed, sleeping quietly, aside from some barely inaudible mumbling every now and then. His friends were gathered on the chairs around him, also sleeping, except for Phil, who sat up picking beneath his fingernails. After a while he was extremely bored and pulled out his mobile phone, dialing Joe’s number. The phone was answered after three rings.
“Who the hell is calling me at this hour?!” was his greeting.
“I’m sorry about this, Joe,” Phil apologised. “Everyone’s asleep here and I’ve got nothing else to do. Have you heard from the lighting company yet?”
Joe rubbed his eyes and scratched his head. “Nah, I doubt they’ll ever return my calls, Phil. They’re scared little bastards. They’re just making their situation worse – the longer they avoid it, the more pissed off we get – and the more determined we are to sue their arses.”
“But they’ll have to respond sooner or later, won’t they, Joe? I mean, their crap lighting has put Mike in hospital. They can’t keep on hiding.”
“How is Mike, by the way? When he’s getting out?”
“We don’t know. He seems to be getting a lot better. Nobody really knows when he’s going to be well enough to get out of here – but word around the hospital is that it won’t take too long.”
“Good…that’s really good. We can’t have him out of action for too long. The show must go on, as the old saying goes."
“We owe you an apology, Joe. We should’ve known you were onto something when you got those bad vibes that night.”
“It doesn’t matter – nobody listens to me anyway.”
Phil chuckled. He looked up and saw Mike opening his eyes and rubbing them with his palms. “Mike’s just woken up. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Rightio – take care.”
Phil turned off his mobile phone and leant over to the edge of Mike’s bed, resting his elbows against it.
“Get back to sleep, Mike,” he smiled. Mike returned the smile.
“I haven’t been able to sleep very well since I got in here,” he replied. “How come you’re still hanging around?”
“I was just about to head off. Toby and Andrew nodded off soon after you did. Kate’s probably waiting up for me.”
Mike nodded and coughed. “Bleuch. Could you get me some water, please?”
“Yeah, sure.” Phil walked over and began pouring him a drink from the small, clear tank in a corner of the room. No sooner did he fill it up when he heard crashes from behind him. He turned to see what it was and saw that it was Mike, thrashing around violently, throwing everything in sight. Andrew stirred for a moment, then went back to sleep.
“Mike!” Phil put the cup on top of the tank and rushed over to the bed, trying to stop Mike. He finally dove onto the bed and restrained him by clutching his arms and holding them still. Mike sat with his head hanging, puffing.
“What was that all about?” Phil asked. Mike threw his hands down by his sides and looked up at Phil, his eyes darting around wildly.
“I hate it here! Why can’t they just give me a walking stick and throw me out? I feel better, I feel fine!”
“You haven’t fully recovered yet.”
“How long do they plan on keeping me in here, man?”
“For as long as they have to.”
“They don’t HAVE to.”
“They’re only trying to help you walk again, Michael. And while you might be physically getting well again, you still haven’t fully recovered mentally.”
Michael glared at him. “I’m not insane, Phil. I haven’t got anything wrong with my head.” He started hauling himself out of the bed. “I’m getting out of here.”
Phil reached out for him again. “Michael, you can’t...”
“I can and I will! Now just leave me alone!”
“That’s it.” Phil walked around to the other side of the bed, where Mike was trying to get out, and put his hands near Mike’s sides, trapping him on the bed.
“Let me go! Bloody hell!”
“Just relax, okay? Don’t go aggro on me. Take a deep breath. Go on.” Mike shook his head but did as he was instructed. “Now let it go.” He did so. “And again. Just calm down, man.” After Mike took a few breaths, he seemed a bit calmer so Phil continued.
“You’re doing great, Mike. Nobody thought you’d get well so rapidly. We’re proud of you. All we ask is that you stay calm and just let nature take its course. You’ll be out of here in no time.”
Mike narrowed his eyes, beginning to doze off. “Please, I want to be left alone. Just for a few days. I need to get myself sorted out.”
Phil nodded, removing his hands. “Okay. Try and get some more sleep, okay? You’re going to need it.”
Mike lay down on the bed again and pulled the blanket over him as Phil brought him the cup of water and put it beside the bed.
“I’m sorry,” Mike whispered.
“Don’t be sorry. See you later, mate.”
Phil walked around to where Toby and Andrew were sleeping and gently woke them up, telling them that they had to leave. Toby and Andrew stood up and followed Phil out of the room, drowsily mumbling their farewells to Mike.

“Human Nature have written a press release which I would like to read aloud to you now,” Joe said into the microphone, at a press conference on the steps of the Sony head offices. Around him, camera flashes were going off and videos were rolling. Joe pulled a piece of paper out of his coat pocket and unfolded it.
“Thank you all for supporting us, especially Michael, after the accident which has caused him to have a misaligned vertebrae and a pinched nerve, as well as random burns around his body, which are fortunately not too serious. He is recovering well and should be released from hospital soon. He has requested that he be left alone for up to a week for him to have some time by himself. We hope the fans and the press will respect and obey that request. We, his fellow band members, also wish to have some time to ourselves, and therefore we will not be doing any tours or interviews for a while. When Michael is released from the hospital’s care, we hope, soon after, to return to doing what we love best – writing and performing our music. Thank you once again and God bless you. From Toby Allen, Phil Burton and Andrew Tierney.”
Reporters began calling out questions to him all at once. He silenced them and pointed to one of them.
“Have the organisation responsible for the incorrect handling and installation of the lighting equipment been contacted?” she asked.
“Yes, we have tried to contact them many times, and as yet they have not responded. If they do then that would be wonderful.”
“Are there any lawsuits being organised?”
“Not yet, there isn’t. We’re not planning on placing any lawsuits on anyone until we hear from all parties involved on what occurred on the night of the accident.”
Suddenly rain began pouring down from the sky, and everyone ran to find shelter. Joe, already under shelter, re-read the press release slowly, then put it back into his pocket, turning to enter the building.
“Be strong, Mike,” he said to himself as he pushed the doors open and disappeared.

=TO BE CONTINUED=

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