Damaged Goods

The car crash that involved 5 people from the ED and killed a paramedic- Jeff, affected the driver of the vehicle most- unknown to everyone. Ethan Hardy was a promising doctor who had a cool head and a loving heart- even towards his annoying older brother. Ethan's logic was- as I was driving the car, it's my fault we crashed, and it's my fault Dixie lost her husband. He could not convince himself any other way.

He hadn't told anyone this, not even his brother, and why would he? He already thought that they blamed him, why give them the satisfaction of giving in to them. Obviously no one did blame him, but Ethan didn't know this.

Cal had moved in with Ethan, much to Ethan's dismay. His brother was more of the sloppy type, who would go out with a girl- and dump her a week later, and even though he was a bit…stupid, he still looked after his brother- especially since the accident, which, nearly cost Ethan his life. Ethan was Cal's safety net, and he was happy in that knowledge.

A month after the accident, it was time for Ethan to go back to work. He had been trying to forget all about the accident, all about Jeff, and had managed it quite well, along with a couple of drinks every night. He had learnt to drown his sorrows, and managed to hide the evidence from his over-protective brother, quite well if he must say. Cal had no idea of how Ethan felt, or how he was coping. If that was one thing Ethan was good at, it was lying.

"You ready?" Cal jumped on the sofa next to Ethan, who had a look of worry pasted onto his face. He turned his head towards his brother, smiled, and replied.

"Sure? Why wouldn't I be, Cal?"

"No reason." Cal really had no reason to question his brother, apart from the fact he looked scared. "Cool, er…shall we go then?" Cal continued.

"Yeah, but, I'll walk. I need the fresh air!" The truth was, Ethan couldn't bear to be in a car again. The pure thought made a shiver run down his spine. He hadn't been in a car since the accident, what if it crashes again?

"You don't want to be late on your first day back!" Cal jested, while punching Ethan playfully in the arm.

"We've got loads of time. See you there." Ethan walked briskly out. Cal was left wondering what brought that on. Ethan was a stickler for time, and the truth was, there wasn't much time until he had to be in work. That was when Cal started to notice something strange.

A review telling me what you thought would be a massive help. I hope to see you next chapter.