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How many emergency contacts is it reasonable for a person to have?
Most people only have one - usually a spouse or a parent or a sibling. Maybe two would be standard, if both your parents are alive. Most forms only let you put one or two, so that must be normal.
Apparently, the normal amount is not six. The nurse gives Calum a weird look when he asks her to try all of them.
"At least one of them will pick up." Calum insists. He doesn't know where any of his partners are right now, but hopefully one of them is within driving distance of the hospital and can come pick him up. All he wants to do right now is go home, and he can't do that in a taxi.
He isn't even sure how he crashed his car. One minute, he was driving down the road absolutely fine, the next he was slumped against his steering wheel, the A pillar of his car crushing his left leg. Fortunately, some very beautiful firefighters came to cut him out of his car and helped load him into an ambulance. Unfortunately, Calum wasn't conscious enough to ask for any of their numbers. C'est la vie.
The nurse leaves to try all six phone numbers. Calum encourages her to try Luke's first, because he's the one person Calum wants to see right now. Well, he'd take Ashton or Michael too, or maybe Awsten, but Luke will be the most help to him right now. Michael will only panic and Ashton will just bully Calum for being a bad driver. Luke will, at the very least, bring him food.
Calum hates hospitals. It isn't so much the light or the noise as it is the people constantly coming in and asking him questions. Asking if he's okay. Of course he isn't okay, his leg is broken and he isn't going to be able to walk unaided for at least six weeks. How is he supposed to get anything done? If one more person offers him a pudding cup, he's going to lose his shit.
The nurse comes back ten minutes later, holding a clipboard and a pen. "Right, I got no answer from the first four, so it's probably good that you gave me six numbers to try."
"Luke didn't pick up?" Calum asks, heart dropping. Where is he?
"Neither did Michael, Ashton or Awsten." The nurse looks puzzled. "Why does he spell it like that?"
"He's just crazy, I think." Calum shrugs. He has never asked. "What about the other two?"
"Geoff answered but he said he's at LAX on his way back to Houston right now." The nurse says.
"Right, yeah." Calum is sure Geoff told him that, but he's sort of high on morphine right now so his brain isn't working. It's a shame, because of all the Waterparks boys, Geoff is Calum's favourite. He's a lot of fun, up for anything.
"Fortunately, lucky number six picked up." The nurse smiles. "Otto is on his way."
Calum tries not to look disappointed. It isn't that he doesn't like Otto - they get along fine - they just don't see each other very often. Otto isn't really one of Calum's partners. More like a boyfriend-in-law. He dates Awsten who dates Michael who dates Calum. Boyfriend-in-law-in-law, then? Regardless, Calum didn't expect Otto to answer his phone, let alone show up at the hospital for him.
Why is he in LA? If Geoff goes back to Houston, Otto usually goes with him. Maybe he stayed behind with Awsten this time, which Calum is pretty sure has happened before. He really does not know enough about Otto for him to be showing up beside his hospital bed while he's in this situation. But, whatever, he'll take the company he can get. He sends a picture of his broken leg (now safely in a cast) on his hospital bed to the group chat he has with his hand with the caption 'whoops lol' and leaves his phone on the table by his bed.
Half an hour later, Otto walks into the emergency room, wearing a crop top and inappropriately short shorts. He always dresses like that, but it catches Calum off guard every time. Sure, that's normal in LA, but Otto is supposed to be a good Texas boy. Otto talks to a nurse briefly, while Calum tries to wave him down through the window of his room. Eventually, Otto sees him, and the nurse leads him in.
"Hey, what happened?" Otto asks. He puts his hand on the top of Calum's hospital bed, but doesn't touch him.
"I crashed my car, apparently." Calum really doesn't remember. "I think someone ran a red light and hit me."
"Jesus." Otto mutters. He turns to the nurse. "Can I stay with him?"
"Of course you can." The nurse says gently. "We'll be ready to discharge him in an hour or so, we're just waiting for the results of his CT scan to make sure he doesn't have any head injuries."
"I told you, my head doesn't hurt." Calum insists.
"That's the morphine, dear." The nurse reminds him. Then she leaves and closes the door behind her.
"I had to tell them I'm your boyfriend, or they weren't going to let me in." Otto says once she's gone. "Sorry about that."
"It's fine. I mean we're sort of, like, boyfriends-in-law." Calum says, floating the idea out loud for the first time.
Otto chuckles, which is a good sign. See, they're getting along. Calum can handle this. Otto drags a chair from the edge of the room to the bed and sits on it. "I guess so. Kinda weird relationship to have with someone, isn't it?"
"Yeah. I feel like I hardly know you." Calum tries to sit up a little bit and winces. "I'm sorry they called you. I asked them to contact literally everyone else first, but apparently everyone else was too fucking busy to come help me."
"Well, I only picked up because Geoff text me first. My phone is on do not disturb for everyone but him." Otto shrugs. "Half the time, I can't even find my phone. I don't use it much."
"What about Awsten?"
"If it was an emergency, he'd call Geoff first." Otto shrugs.
"Even if Geoff was on a plane?"
Otto just shrugs again.
"Fair enough." Calum sighs. "I can't believe Luke didn't pick up. He hasn't answered my texts either."
"He'll get back to you." Otto says diplomatically. "For now, you're stuck with me."
They sit in an awkward, uncomfortable silence for a few minutes. Calum has no idea what to say to Otto, except to ask him to go and find Luke. That's the only thing he wants right now - to hug his boyfriend and be told that the car accident wasn't his fault, to be taken home and doted on and held by people he loves.
He doesn't realise he's crying until Otto tries to put a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't touch me." Calum snaps. Otto recoils back into his chair. "Sorry. I don't like strangers touching me."
"That's fine. I should have asked first." Otto pulls the fingers of his left hand with his right. He doesn't bring up that they're technically not strangers. "I'm used to Awsten always wanting a hug when he cries."
"I'd love a hug." Calum admits tearily. "Just- not from you. Sorry."
"That's alright." Otto says soothingly. "I get it, trust me. I think if you tried to hug me, I'd punch you."
Calum laughs through a sob. "Maybe we have more in common than we thought."
"Maybe."
They sit in silence for a while longer, Calum crying softly to himself. He checks his phone, but no one has answered him yet. What is he supposed to do? Otto doesn't have a car in LA, there's no way for him to get home unless one of their boyfriends comes and picks them up. Otherwise, he's going to be stuck in this hospital overnight, and that's the last thing he wants.
Calum wants Otto to talk to him so he doesn't spiral, but he has no idea what Otto would want to talk about. Music, maybe? But Calum has no idea what kind of music he's into. He tries to remember what influences Waterparks, but nothing is coming to him right now.
The only other thing they have in common, really, is Geoff and Awsten.
"How did you meet your band mates?" Calum asks quietly.
"Me?" Otto asks, as if there's someone else in the room he might be talking to. Calum nods. "Uh, I met Awsten outside a local show back in Houston. He was handing out flyers, looking for a drummer for his band and, well, I could play the drums reasonably well. I must have been the only drummer in Houston, because as soon as I reached out to him, I was in the band."
"Was Geoff there, then?"
"No, no. Me and Awsten, uh… fell out. I didn't see him for about a year, but it turns out I am literally the only drummer he knows so he begged me to come back. And, well… I loved him, so I did. Geoff just sort of appeared at band practice one day, like he fell out of the sky. My angel." Otto laughs to himself.
"I like Geoff. He's so nice." Calum itches the edge of his cast. "Like, I feel like I couldn't do anything wrong with him, he's so forgiving."
"Yeah, he is." Otto agrees. "I think that's why me and Awsten have stuck for so long this time. Geoff helps keep the peace between us."
Calum nods. "Luke's like that. He's the peaceful type."
"Yeah, I've noticed that. When I've had a chance to talk to him, you know." Otto chews on his lip. "I don't really talk to many people. Awsten always says that I'm bad with people."
"You're doing alright now." Calum says. He has stopped crying, feeling just a little bit better. "I just wish you weren't… you."
"That's okay. Sometimes I wish I wasn't me either." Otto says quietly.
Calum stares at him. That's a worrying thing to say. "Do you want to talk about that?"
Otto sighs. It takes him a while to speak again. "Do you ever feel like you're the least favourite person in every room?"
"Sometimes." Calum admits. "I mean, I'm the only non-white guy in my band. People edit me out of pictures just to edit themselves next to my own band mates."
"Jesus." Otto mumbles. "I know people like to crop Geoff out of pictures so they can convince themselves that me and Awsten are in love."
"You and Awsten are in love."
"Not publicly." Otto smiles. "But, yeah. Sometimes I feel like… I'm the least important person in this… thing. You know, like, I don't really have a relationship with anyone on your side, like Awsten does with Luke and Michael and you do with Geoff. And I don't live in LA, so I get left out of a lot of stuff. I don't care all that much, Geoff and Awsten care about me so much that I never feel unloved, but… Sometimes I see the pictures of you guys out here having fun and I feel a bit alone."
"You could move out here too. I'm sure Awsten would love to have you."
"No, I hate LA. No offence, I just don't do well with big cities. I like my deserted suburb and my parent's farm that no one ever comes to." Otto leans back in his chair. "I like my life down in Houston, I just don't like being away from Awsten so much. But I also know that this is where he thrives."
"I'm sorry we haven't included you more." Calum says gently. "I guess I don't really know you well, but we'd like to. Or at least, I'd like to."
"This is a hell of a first bonding experience." Otto says, making Calum laugh. "Our first date is at the hospital."
"I've had worst first dates." Calum chuckles. "If you want to go on a date, we should do something when I'm not hopped up on morphine and unable to walk."
"People often leave my dates unable to walk."
"Jesus Christ."
"Sorry." Otto says, then they both descend into giggles. "Do you feel better?"
"A little bit." Calum's phone starts buzzing so hard it almost falls off the table. "Oh, Luke finally answered me."
Luke: OH MY FUCKING GOD
Luke: BABE
Luke: WHERE ARE YOU
Calum: hospital
Calum: im fine otto is with me
Luke: Otto???
Calum: no one else picked up
Michael: JESUS WH AT HAPPENED
Calum: crashed my car :P
"Awsten is calling me." Otto taps his phone screen. "Hey, baby- Jesus, don't yell at me."
Michael: I'm coming to get you right now I'm sos orry babe
Michael: My phone was of f I didn't see thhis
Calum: im fine i promise
"Well you didn't answer your phone and Geoff was about to get on a plane. Why was your phone off?" Otto says. He grimaces as Awsten talks. "I'm not repeating any of that to Calum."
Calum: do you know where Ashton is? he isnt replying to me either
Michael: Asleep I think
Michael: I'll swing by his house
Calum: cool
"You don't need to come here, babe, he's fine." Otto insists. "No, seriously, you can't. I've already told them that I'm his boyfriend, you can't all be his boyfriend."
"I dunno. We make it work." Calum grins.