Iris

Chapter 1

“Please Jonny!” Jonny glanced up from the book he was reading only to see Chris’ puppy dog eyes and little pout on his stunning face. He bit his lip to try and hold in his grin, but to no avail failed and let slip his smoldering smile show.

“Chris, I swear you’re going to be the death of me someday!”

“Soooo, Is that a yes? Chris asked doing a little dance in place.

Jonny sighed “Yes Chris”

“Oh Jonny Boy! It’s going to be so much fun!”

“Yeah what’s more fun than a skip it? By the way where on earth did you find one? I thought those things were like extinct or on some banned toys list?”

“Nope!” Chris emphasized the ‘p’ to aggravated Jonny. “I got it off ewave oh wait I think it’s called ebay! Oh and to add to the awesomeness of the skip it, it’s hot pink!”

“Oh Joy! A hot pink skip it! Now people will really think we’re gay!” Jonny retorted.

“Psh whatever Jonny, your just jealous you didn’t think to buy it!”

“That’s exactly it Chris! Now where is this skip it?”

Chris ran upstairs to retrieve the prized item! Jonny glanced down at his book, “someday when I can say No to Chris, I will finish you, until then it’s back on the shelf for another day”

Chris magically appeared in front of Jonny with an enormous smile on his face and a hot pink skip it in his hand. “Ready J?”

“Yup, bring on the torture!”

Chris ran outside the door of the beehive to the street and began to search for the perfect spot to play with the skip it. Jonny followed him and sat down on the curb watching Chris with a little grin on his face. He couldn’t help smiling when he saw Chris like this. He always imagined that this was how Chris was when he was a little boy, always excited just like Christmas morning and always in constant motion like a tornado. Jonny chuckled to himself and watched as Chris hopped, skipped, and then proclaimed that this was the place to play with the Skip it!

Chris placed the skip it on his foot and began to spin it and jump in perfect sync with the spinning ball at the end of the toy. He was a natural and never seemed to falter. Jonny was mesmerized at the sight before him. Chris’ golden sunrise curls we’re bouncing every time he skipped and his eyes we’re light up like the fourth of July. He was laughing and clapping his hands in motion. He was truly happy, which in turn made Jonny happy!

“Jonny you wanna go at it?” Chris asked after a while of skipping

“Sure! I’ll take a whack at it!”

Chris somehow elegantly stopped skipping and passed the toy over to Jonny and took his place on the curb of the street. Jonny walked out into the middle of the street and placed the skip it on his foot and began to skip it. He was nowhere in same league as Chris, but still managed to get the toy to work properly.

Chris’ eyes glistened as he watched Jonny play with the skip it, he was so into the moment that he didn’t see the approaching car until it was too late. All he heard was the screeching of tires, the shattering of glass and the dull thud of Jonny’s body being smashed by a car. One moment Jonny was there skipping with a ridiculous grin on his face and the next he was laying on the ground with a pool of blood forming around him. Chris doesn’t remember moving, but the next thing he knows he is next to Jonny with tears streaming down his face. He pulled Jonny’s limp body into his arms and whispered in a shaky voice “all I can breathe is your life, don’t leave me Jonny, don’t you dare leave me here! I need you…I need you!”

Chapter 2

“Please stay here Mr. Martin!” The EMT said as he was pushing Chris back into the emergency waiting room.

“NO! I can’t leave him, he would never leave me! He just wouldn’t.”

“I’m sorry, but he is being taken into surgery and you can’t go back there, we will update you as soon as we know something, until then please stay in the waiting room!” The EMT walked through the doors and disappeared. Chris slumped down into one of the many uncomfortable chairs and buried his face in his hands.

‘Why did I convince him to play with me? He was so content reading his book, but I was feeling selfish and wanted his attention. Jonny was always doing things for me, but what was I doing for him in return? He was always putting me before himself, never thinking twice. What am I going to do if he doesn’t make it? Sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss him tonight. I.. I think I’m in love with my best friend, I want to grow old with him. I want to take car of him when he is sick. I want to walk through the park together. I want it all. He is my all!’ Chris continued to sit and ponder on his and Jonny’s life.

Chris was so wrapped up in his mind he didn’t realize that Will and Guy had walked into the room and were there sitting on either side of him. Will has placed his arm around Chris for comfort and guy the same.

“He is so lost in his mind, I wonder if he will come back around?” Will asked Guy.

“Gosh, who knows with Chris, I wonder if he has finally realized that he is in love with Jonny? I mean it’s been so obvious to me, what about you? Did you notice how they have always flirted with each other?”

“I’ve always thought they would get together in time, but maybe it’s just hit him finally. Look at him, he is sitting here breathing, but he is quite clearly not here, geez he is shaking Guy! We need to get him a blanket or something.”

“Right, I’ll go see what I can do!” Guy said as he got up and went off to search for a blanket.

“Chris, I know you are probably in shock right now, and can’t really hear me, but Guy and I are here for you and for.. for Jonny….. Christ Chris come back, Jonny needs you, Guy needs you, I need you.” Tears start to stream down Will’s check “Chris, Jonny is pretty banged up, but you can’t be like this.. just, just look at me God dammit!” Will stood up and walked over to the window, he couldn’t stand to see Chris look so empty and hopeless. “Poor Jonny, poor Chris.”

Guy soon returned with a blanket for Chris, as he was wrapping it around him, Chris looked up as if to register the presence of his friend, but then quickly looked back down.

“Shit, he has to snap out of it or I’m gonna start crying” Guy said softly to Will. Will just nodded his head and continued to look out the window. Guy looked away from Chris toward the doors of the emergency room to see a nurse walking toward him.

“Hi I’m Nurse Paige, Are you all here for a..”

“JONNY! Jonny Buckland!” Chris yelled back at her as he quickly stood up. Will and Guy just looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders in unbelief. One moment Chris is out in the battlefield of his mind and the next he is standing, looking like he is ready to grab the nurse and shake her for answers that she is not telling him.

“Uh yes, a Mr. Buckland.” Before she can say anything Chris is spitting out question after question.

“ Where is he? Can I see him? What is wrong with him? Is he.. is he alive?”

Chapter 3

“Sir! I need you to calm down before I can tell you anything” Nurse Paige said to Chris. Guy stood up and placed his hand on Chris’ shoulder and whispered softly into his ear.

“Chris, stop. Take a deep breath, and count down from 10. When you have done that, then we can let the nurse tell us her information, but until then she is going to stand there and be silent. Please nod your head if you understand what I am saying?”

Chris turned his head slowly toward Guy. He stared at Guy with misery in his eyes and then slowly moved his head in an up and down fashion. To coach Chris on, Guy took in a deep breath with Chris, and then slowly exhaled. Both men paused for 10 seconds and then Guy turned to the Nurse and said “ Okay, sorry, this is one of our deepest friends and band mates, he means a whole lot to us. We are a bit scared right now.”

“It’s quite alright, I’m deeply sorry about your friend, but he is still in surgery and will be for quite some time. Mr. Buckland has broken 7 ribs, both his and left and right tibia as well as his left femur. He also has extensive internal bleeding. He is lucky to be alive in his current state due to the extreme loss of blood, which is why I came over here in the first place. It appears that your friend is in dire need of a blood transfusion and while we are fully capable of giving him O+ blood it would be better for him to receive the same type of blood. Unfortunatly Mr. Buckland is one of the rare few with type AB+ and of course at this time we are running extremely low on that type of blood. We want to give Mr. Buckland..”

“Jonny, call him Jonny. He doesn’t like to be called Mr. Buckland, it makes him feel like his father” Chris said.

“Okay Jonny, We want to give Jonny the best chance of survival in his current state. So we we’re wondering if any of you we’re of the same type of blood as Mr. Buck.. I mean Jonny?”

“Oh, I’m not the same type” Guy said as he stared down at his feet. “I’m A+”

“I’m not sure what type I am, I have never been tested.” Will said as he still looked out the window. It had begun to rain and drops we’re rolling down the window.

“ I.. I don’t know either” Chris mumbled

“Well gentlemen, if don’t mind having your finger pricked we can found out in a matter of minuets?” Replied Nurse Paige.

“Of course we don’t mind! I mean I don’t.. um Will?” Chris turned toward Will. Will had his forehead pressed against the cool glass, his eyes were closed as if he we’re meditating. He lifted his head off the glass and turned around and walked toward Chris.

“What kind of friend am I, if I won’t check to see if I match one of my best friends blood type?” Will sighed and turned to the nurse “Yes, I will agree to checking my blood type.”

Chris gave Will a quick smile and turned to the nurse and said, “Well, what are we waiting for? I have ten fingers, and you can prick them all if it will save Jonny!”

“Wonderful, if you will follow me then.” Chris started to follow, but then paused and turned around.

“Oh Guy and Will, thanks for being here. It.. well it means an awful lot to me and..” Chris’ voice cracked and tears we’re beginning to form in his eyes.

“Aw Chris, your going to make me cry and I don’t cry! Anyways you would do the same for one of us.” Guy said as he gave Chris a hug.

Nurse Paige tapped her feet in that annoying manner as if to say come on!

“Right Chris, come on we got to go see if we can help Jonny.” Will said as he tugged on Chris’ shirt and pulled him away toward where the nurse stood.

“ I’ll prick your finger on the count of 3! 1..2..3 ‘click’ Perfect, I just need to get your blood in this tube and I will send it off the lab.” The nurse then walked out of the room leaving Will and Chris alone.

Chris put his finger to his mouth in hope that it would make it feel better by sucking on it. All in all the whole finger prick wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be, Will had already had his and was sitting there staring at me. Geez why he is staring at me? It hurt a little bit, and I always do this when I hurt one of my fingers.

“Will?”

“Uh yeah Chris?”

“err why are you staring at me, the finger prick hurt, so I was just um nursing my finger”

“Chris, I don’t care about your finger or your weird habits.”

“Then..then why were you staring at me?” Will took in a deep breath and responded back to chris.

“It’s raining Chris, every time I’m at a hospital and it rains something bad happens. I’m scared. Scared for Jonny, scared for you and Guy. I .. I just don’t know what I will do if something happens to any of you?”

Chris got up and moved across the room and sat next to Will. “Will, I’m scared too. I think I have realized that Jonny is more than a friend to me. I don’t want him to die, without knowing that…that he’s the closest to heaven that I'll ever be, And I don't want to go home right now without out him knowing that. I..I I love him. ” Will sighed and looked down at his hands. They we’re strong hands, great for playing the drums with and for holding and caressing people with.

“Chris, I’ve always known that you would be more to Jonny then me and Guy, and I think he feels the same.”

“Really Will?”

Will looked at Chris, his eyes had a little spark in them, one that had been missing all day. He nodded his head and gave Chris a hug so he wouldn’t see the lone tear roll down his check. He too loved Jonny, but was more in love with Chris, but Will knew Chris only felt for Jonny.

Chapter 4

“We just got you blood test back from the lab, and it appears that.. Mr. Champion you are a match! As for you Mr. Martin, you too are a match! This is quite lucky considering the rarity of your blood type! So if you both are willing we need to get started on drawing your blood as soon as possible!”

“Right well, lets get to it!” Will said.

“Yeah, Jonny needs our blood” Chris said as he jumped up.

“Ok Mr. Champion please sit here and Mr. Martin right here next to Mr. Champion. Are either of you allergic to iodine?” Both men shook their heads. “Right and is this the correct information?” The Nurse held out a sheet of paper to both men with their full name and identity number. Again both Chris and Will nodded their heads.

“Wonderful, okay I will start you off first Mr. Champion.” The nurse began with the prep and then told Will to look away as she inserted the needle into the crevice of his arm. Will made a puckered up face at the little pinch of the needle, but other than that he was fine. The Blood flowed smoothly from his arm into the bag attached to the chair.

The nurse moved over to Chris and performed the exact same procedure only Chris said “for you Jonny, I would bleed myself dry” Chris had that cocky grin on his face but soon that grin faded and Chris became light headed and passed out, his head rolling to the side facing away from Will. The nurse chuckled and turned to Will and said, “It always happens.”

Will just nodded his head and looked up at the ceiling. The nurse then left the room, leaving Chris and Will to themselves again.

Will turned toward Chris and sighed and then said “since your out and can’t hear me, I might as well get this out of my chest and just tell you since I know you can’t possibly feel the same as me, but Chris.. you do things to me. Things that nobody has ever been able to. I feel as if everything is possible when your around, I feel no pain and sorrow when you grin your stupid little grin and.. and you give me that dumb butterfly feeling in the pit of my stomach.” Will rubbed his hand over his face in a tired manor.

“What am I doing, here? Why I am I talking to an unconscious Chris, Gosh I am totally hopeless!”

The nurse walked in and walked over to Chris to check on him, “Oh good you’re awake again! You passed out while donating blood, but look your almost done now!” The nurse patted Chris shoulder and made her way toward Will.

“Oh shit!” Will thought to himself, I hope Chris wasn’t awake for a long time, other wise he would have heard me.”

“Mr. Champion, how are you doing dear?” the nurse asked?

“What? Oh um Fine.”

“Well your all done, so let me just take the needle out.. and now please raise your arm above your head like this, perfect, hold it there for about 30 seconds and then I will bandage you up. The same goes for you Mr. Martin.”

Both Will and Chris held their arms in the air until the nurse told them they could put them down. She then quickly bandaged their arms and gave them some water and cookies. “ I need to get this blood to your friend so when you are feeling better you may get up and leave and head back out to the waiting room.”

As soon as the door closed and the nurse had left, Will jumped up and headed toward the door. His hand was on the handle about to pull it open when he felt a hand on his shoulder that caused him to pause.

“Will?”

Will closed his eyes and took in a few relaxing breaths, “Chris, you just passed out, go and sit back down and rest.” Will then pulled on the handle and stalked away leaving Chris standing at the door, watching. Will made his way back to the waiting room where Guy was still waiting.

Guy jumped up when he saw Will, but something was off with Will, he could just tell, it wasn’t his normal standoffish behavior rather more of a crushed man stance. Will just stood there and Guy put his arms around his friend, he didn’t know what else to do. Soon he felt the shuddering of Will’s shoulder and smelt the salt of tears that were falling on to his shoulder. Yet Guy continued to hug his friend, in fear of what would happen if he let go.

Jonny was out of surgery and in his room on multiple machines that we’re helping to keep him alive, he was in a coma, and the doctors we’re unsure as to when he would awake. To Chris the Machines we’re the beeping and whirring of Jonny’s heart, they told him that Jonny was still alive, and that as long as his heart was beating so was Chris’. Chris sat by Jonny’s bed holding his hand day and night. If you were to leave at night he would be there and when you came back in the morning he would be in the same position, head bent and hand holding Jonny’s.

Will and Guy visited Jonny’s room often, Guy would stay for a long time, but Will would only visit for a few minuets and then make up an excuse to leave.

One day after Will left, Guy and Chris we’re sitting in Jonny’ s room. Chris looked up at Guy.. “He left again didn’t he?” Chris asked.

“Yes, he had to go somewhere.” Guy responded.

“Guy, when Will and I we’re donating blood, I passed out. Did Will ever tell you that?”

“No, he never mentioned anything about that.”

“Oh, well he just, well when I woke up he seemed so.. so lost. Like he knew something had happened, and then he practically ran out of the room as soon as he could.”

“Chris, there’s a lot to Will, that we still don’t know, I think he is just trying to protect us from the depths of his mind”

“Yeah.. maybe”

“Chris, I’ve got some errands to run but, let me know if anything.. you know happens with Jonny!”

“Okay. I will”

Chris, Will, and Guy were once again sitting in Jonny’s room, It had been two weeks since Jonny’s accident and he was still in a coma. Chris was in his same spot, Guy by the window and Will by the door. Will was writing Chris a letter, in hopes that writing his feelings for chris would help him get over the fact that Chris was in love with Jonny. Will had just finished when we heard the sound..

“wwwwaaatte”

Chris jumped up from his chair and knocked it over! “JONNY! NURSE!”

Jonny blinked his green eyes and looked around the room, he was awake!

A nurse ran into the room and saw that Jonny was awake, and proceeded to page the doctor. She then walked over to Jonny and told him that she was going to remove the tube in his throat and to not move or his throat could be severely damaged. Jonny nodded his head in understanding.

The nurse had just removed the tube when the doctor walked in. “Mr. Buckland! I see you are awake! That is wonderful! Now I’m sure your wondering why you are here in this room, but I feel it would be better for one of your friends here to tell you, I just need to check a few of your vitals while one of them fills you in.”

Chris then proceeded to tell Jonny of the incident and then the doctor left the room satisfied that his patient was doing well. The nurse brought Jonny some water and told him to drink it in little sips to not upset his stomach after not having had real food in him.

When the nurse had left Chris spoke up.

“Jonny! How are you feeling? Can I do anything for you?”

“Chris, I’m just glad that all of you are here. I’m fine, a bit stiff, but that’s alright.”

“Jonny, Will and I need to go tell everyone the good news, But we are so happy that you are okay!” Said Guy.

Jonny just smiled at them and Will and Guy left the room leaving Chris and Jonny to themselves.

“Jonny, I have been thinking this whole time about, what I would do if you weren’t around and well I don’t think I would be around with out you. I live for every breath you take and every beat your heart makes. You are everything to me. You make me complete and well Jonny, It took me a horrible accident to see how important you are to me and.. I.I love you Jonny.”

Jonny looked up into Chris’ endless ocean eyes and smiled. “Chris, thank you. Thank you for freeing me. I have been hopelessly enamored by you since college. Since you first knocked on my door and demanded that I be in a band with you and, when I first saw you truly smile, when you call me Jonny boy on stage and dance around me and.. I love you too!”

“Crash!” Will had been standing in the door and heard the entire conversation, he dropped everything he had been holding and ran. Ran to the exit of the hospital into the middle of the street. He was trying to run away from his broken heart, he tripped often but got back up and ran some more. He only stopped running when the drunk driver struck him. He didn’t get up that time.

4 years have passed since Will’s death. Guy couldn’t bring himself to play music anymore and so Coldplay never made any more music. Jonny and Chris married and we’re about to have their first child.

“Chris, what should we name our son?” Jonny asked.

Chris looked up from a worn piece of paper in his hand. The paper had been folded and crumpled and cried upon many times. He looked back down at the paper and smiled and said, “Will. We should name our son after the man that also held my heart.”

Closure:

Jonny had just placed the sleeping Will in his crib. He moved over to the baby monitor and turned it on to the channel that was linked with the other monitor in his and Chris’ room. Jonny turned around to see will smile in his sleep, and he too smiled and kissed his forehead and headed over to the door, before he left the room completely he took one last look at his son, blew him a kiss, closed the door and walked down the hall.

Chris was standing in front of the bathroom mirror when he felt the familiar arm wrap its way around his waist. It sent shivers and tingles down his spine. He turned toward the beautiful man who was playfully tugging at his shirt. Chris looked at the glowing green eyes of the man and then moved his mouth up to his ear and breathed heavily and said in a seductive whisper.

“ I’m not much use standing here, you best move over to that bed or who knows what might just happen.”

“Oh, is that so? Hmm well, we will just have to see.” Replied Jonny as he began to tug at the elastic of Chris boxer’s.

Chris moved his hand down Jonny’s back and pulled himself closer to Jonny’s body. He could feel his steady heartbeat and his chest rise and fall from the deep breaths he was taking. It was a feeling he could never forget. The feeling of being loved.

Soon there were no clothes left on either man and they had somehow managed to make it to the bed. Hands were gripping tighter and pulling each other closer. Kisses were shared with eager passion and moans shouted with ecstasy.

Chris and Jonny were laying in the tangle of sheets on their bed. Jonny had an arm wrapped Chris’ torso and Chris had his head on Jonny’s shoulder. Chris was tracing the scars on Jonny’s stomach from his surgery, forming little shapes and patterns.

“Chris?”

“Mmm, yes love?”

“I know we named our son after Will, but I.. I just I always wondered why you said the other man who held your heart?”

Chris was silent for a few minuets before responding to Jonny’s question. “J, I should have told you this a while ago, but I didn’t feel it was necessary with all that had happened.”

Chris felt Jonny tighten his grip and his heart beat faster.

“It happened a long time ago and it is in the past, so please just.. just listen, okay?”

Jonny closed his eyes and took in a deep breath and then let it out slowly “okay.”

****Many years prior, told in Chris point of view****

“We had just finished playing that gig where we first heard people singing along with our songs, you and Guy had already left but I was still there. I had thought that Will had left too, until I heard the shower and the faint muffled sound of someone singing. I peeked my head into the room and saw Will singing some Oasis song in the shower, I started laughing cause he was singing into a bar of soap and then it slipped out of his hand, and he was franticly trying to catch it.”

“Well I guess he heard me and turned around, and I swear to you he blushed! I saw the blood rush into his cheeks! I know its crazy; it’s not the typical Will behavior, but let me tell you it was like magic in that moment. One minute he is singing in the shower and the next he is biting his lip and blushing. He just looked so adorable.”

“I don’t know what came over me; I couldn’t control any part of my body. My feet started walking toward him and my hands were taking my clothes off. In my mind I was screaming what are you doing? But my heart wasn’t hearing any of it. I would have thought that Will would have punched me square in the face at the moment, but strangely enough he did nothing, in fact he seemed to have this.. this aura about him that was drawing me nearer and nearer until I was next to him.”

“I’m not sure what happened next, but somehow I was in the shower with him and he had me pinned up against the wall. He was staring into my eyes and I back at his. Then his lips were grazing mine and I reached up and put my hands behind his head and pulled him in. We were kissing for what seemed like an eternity to me. We only stopped when one of us needed air. Our bodies move in sync and everything just sort of blurred around us.”

“My mind finally took control of the situation and I dropped my hands and my lips went limp. I had no idea what I was doing. Will looked at my frantic eyes, he stepped back and said sorry and ran out of the shower as quickly as he had pulled me in.”

“Jonny, I never knew, he had deep feeling for me until that day at the hospital. After that incident neither of us mentioned it, and soon it just got filled away in the crevices of my mind. I only fully understood his love for me when I read his letter.”

Chris reached across Jonny and pulled open the nightstand drawer and pulled out a letter. The same letter that Chris held when Jonny had asked what to name their son.

“Here, perhaps you should read this.” Chris handed Jonny the letter and laid his head back down on Jonny’s shoulder.

Jonny turned the letter around and around in his hand debating on reading it.

“Chris, I don’t feel that I need to read this, I know that Will was a hidden man, and he might have held you heart, but what’s in this letter is for you, not me. Will probably wrote powerful things that were meant for you and I don’t want to spoil his memory. I love you all the same and know that you have my heart as well.”

Jonny then bent down and kissed Chris long and hard and wiped the lone tear from his cheek. “That is from Will, the only man I will allow to hold the other half of your heart.”