Chapter 7
The news
conference went smoothly, all things considered. Although they had to move the
time up by two hours due to a local station breaking the news early, Brian and
Nick handled the barrage of questions fairly well. Whether due to the stress on
their faces or the strain in their voices, something kept the media in check.
While eager for information, the reporters’ questions remained civil and on
track, a true rarity. Of course, heavy pressure from the hospital and the Boys’
management team to keep things low-key hadn’t hurt.
Nick had
seemed reluctant to speak until Brian, choked up in a moment of emotion, had
been unable to respond to a particular question. The youngest had swallowed his
fear and answered as best he could; the grateful look from his brother had
given him confidence and before long Nick found himself fielding a fair share
of the inquiries. His answers weren’t smooth or rehearsed, but he did his best,
and before too long the ordeal was over, for the time being.
As the
reporters filed out of the small room, Brian leaned close to Nick and said,
“I’m going to call Leigh, let her know what’s going on.”
“I’ll call
AJ,” came the reply.
“We can do
it from the lounge,” Brian said. “Then we can visit Kev for a bit.”
Nick looked
uncertain but didn’t protest. With a non-committal shrug, he followed Brian out
the door and down the hall.
While Brian
spoke with his wife, Nick learned that all was well at Howie’s house. AJ told
him that he’d practically had to carry their brother inside; he’d fallen fast
asleep in the car before five minutes had passed. Aside from having to listen
to a couple of un-funny Spanish jokes, an argument about which pajamas were the
right ones to wear, and a strange song melody Howie seemed to make up on
the spot, AJ hadn’t had any trouble at all. Actually, he had found the whole thing
amusing; it was not often that he got to see Howie in a state that resembled a
happy drunkenness.
While he
didn’t have any changes to report on Kevin’s condition, Nick did tell him how
the news conference had gone. AJ seemed impressed, and admitted he was relieved
he didn’t have to participate in all the hoopla.
Nick hung
up the phone and looked at Brian, still on his call to Leigh. The obvious
tension on his face was hard to see; while Brian was trying to keep his voice
as calm as possible on the phone, his knuckles were clenched white around the
receiver. In that moment, Nick understood that while Kevin was his brother
through the group, Brian was Kevin’s family… and their bond had existed
all their lives, not just a few short years. He also realized that as together
as Brian had seemed so far, it was probably harder on him than on anyone else.
Once again,
Nick felt a wash of shame when he considered how selfish his recent thinking
had been… and how much of a coward he’d become. If Brian could push past the
terrible pain and visit Kevin, he should be able to confront reality as well.
He’d made a decision to support Kevin and the others last night, yet here it
was, late the next day, and he hadn’t even seen the man.
Coward…
He bit his
lip as he realized how much he deserved the title. He vividly remembered an
incident that had taken place a week ago, when Kevin had called him an immature
brat. He’d laughed at the remark, knowing that the stunt he’d pulled had
been a bit childish, but hadn’t given it a second thought. He’d told himself
that Kevin’s anger was simply the result of being too uptight and not being
able to take a joke.
He knew now
that Kevin had hit the mark. He was an immature brat, and the accident
had only proven it. Nick felt a wave of pain as he realized just how much the
truth could hurt.
But he’d
had enough of running, of avoiding that same truth. He knew what he had to do.
Without a
word, he stood and swallowed against his fear. Giving Brian a final glance, he
turned and walked toward the door.
“Nick?”
came the question just as he reached for the knob. “Where are you going?”
He didn’t
turn. “Where I should have gone last night,” he said. “Where I belong.”
With that,
he left and headed down the hallway to where the elevators waited.
*******
He felt a
cold sweep of panic hit him as he approached Kevin’s room, but he pushed past
it, determined to do the right thing. He held his breath as he crossed the
threshold, letting it out in surprise as he nearly ran into a figure standing
just inside.
The woman
looked as startled as Nick did.
“Oh, I’m…
I’m sorry,” he said awkwardly. “I didn’t know-”
“No, it’s
okay,” she said. “No harm done.”
“I can come
back,” he said as he retreated a step.
“Really,
it’s okay,” she said in a calming voice. “I gather you are one of Mr.
Richardson’s friends?”
“His
brother,” Nick said automatically.
She held
out her hand. “I’m Dr. Meyers, the attending physician.”
He shook it
and said, “My name is Nick.” He glanced nervously behind her. “How is… has he…”
She seemed
to understand his distress. “He hasn’t woken yet,” she said calmly. “But that’s
understandable, considering his concussion and other injuries. We’re keeping
him closely monitored.” She put a hand on his arm and said, “Come on, it’s okay
to see him.”
He forced
his feet to move beyond the partition. There were tubes and machines and wires
and monitors surrounding the pale figure in the bed; for a second, he felt
overwhelmed by panic and would have bolted if not for the firm but gentle grip
on his arm.
“Kevin,”
he said anxiously. His wide blue eyes locked on his brother’s bruised face.
“Easy,” the
woman said kindly. “I take it you haven’t visited him before now?”
He shook
his head, unable to look away.
“Okay, let
me explain what some of these things are. This machine, the one beeping, is the
heart monitor. You can see that line, it indicates the rhythm and frequency of
his heartbeat,” she said as she gestured. “This one, below it, tells us how
much oxygen he’s getting in his blood. See, it’s attached to his finger by that
little clip…”
Slowly, she
continued on with each machine and tube and monitor. By the time she was done,
Nick felt a lot more in control of his emotions. He finally managed to look
into her expectant gray eyes.
“So,
according to all this stuff,” he said as he tried to sort it out, “Kevin’s not
doing too bad, right?”
“Nick,” she
said carefully, “Kevin’s got a long way to go. Right now, he’s stable, and
that’s about all we can declare. We’ve taken care of all the immediate issues;
his leg and broken ribs have been tended to, and the CAT scans show about what
we expected. I did speak with him earlier, and he was a bit confused but seemed
to have normal comprehension. That’s a good sign.”
“But…” Nick
prompted, hearing it in her voice.
“But,” she
sighed, “he’s not out of the woods by any means. His temperature is higher than
I’d like it to be, for one. That’s the kind of thing we have to really watch.”
“Brian said
you told him a higher temperature is normal,” he frowned.
“A slight
elevation, yes. But his has been steadily climbing, so that tells us there’s a
problem.”
“What kind
of problem?” he said, his voice hitching up a degree.
“It’s too
early to tell,” she replied. “I’ve called in some specialists, we’re going over
the preliminary bloodwork and tests and trying to pinpoint what’s causing it.
Speaking of which, I need to get into consultation right now. You can visit as
long as you like, just stay out of the way of the nurses or technicians that
are going to be in and out of here.”
“Yeah,
okay,” he said, feeling the tension return.
“Don’t
worry,” she said with a final pat on his shoulder, “we’re going to do
everything in our power to figure this out.”
He nodded
and stood there for a moment after she had left. Slowly, he moved to the chair
near the bed and sat down. He studied Kevin’s marred face, wondering if he was
dreaming or feeling pain or aware of anything at all. He hoped it was the
latter; dreams could be confusing, especially bad ones, and pain… no one should
be in pain. Hoping that Kevin was unaware seemed for the best.
Leaning
forward, he reached a hand up towards the large bandage on Kevin’s forehead,
delicately pushing back a random strand of hair that had fallen out of place.
He was reluctant to touch skin; the bruising looked painful and angry, and the
last thing Nick wanted to do was cause more hurt, just in case Kevin wasn’t all
that unaware.
The blond
wanted to do something, anything, that would make a difference… but he couldn’t
think of what that might be. He’d heard that sometimes unconscious people could
hear and sense things around them, but he hadn’t a clue what to say. He was
sure that Brian would have words of faith; Howie’s would be positive and
uplifting, full of optimism. AJ’s would probably be laced with encouragement
and humor, but his…
What could
he say, when he was really just scared and worried? When he couldn’t find faith
or optimism or encouragement, because he was terrified of what might happen?
In the end,
he opted for truth. Hoping that Kevin would somehow understand him, he leaned
close.
“Kev,” he
whispered, “I don’t know how to handle this without you. I don’t have any
answers. Please come back, I’m not done needing you here. None of us are.”
He was
standing by the bed holding Kevin’s hand ten minutes later when Brian came into
the room.
“Nick,” he
said with relief. “Thank God.” Quickly he crossed the room and stood beside his
best friend. “You okay?” he asked with a careful touch.
Tears that
had been held back for so long were released with a sob as Nick’s tenuous grasp
on control vanished. Brian simply hugged him, glad to feel the embrace returned
in earnest. He didn’t try to stop his own tears as the silently trailed down
his face a moment later. He, too, had been holding back far too much.
Together, they let go
a large measure of their fear and pain and grief and worry… and found,
astonishingly, that it had been replaced not with weakness, but with strength.
***