1
COOP
“Come on, Ford. Stay with me,”I pleaded, my hands trembling as I held the phone up to my ear.
“911, what’s your emergency?” a female dispatcher answered.
“My friend ... he’s in trouble. He took sleeping pills and had some drinks. I just found him unconscious, and he won’t wake up.” I set the phone on the cushion and pushed the speakerphone button.
“I’m here to help. Can you confirm the address of your location, please?”
I provided Ford’s address as I continued to shake him gently, desperate for any response. “Please, you’ve got to send someone. He’s not waking up.”
“Help is on the way. I need you to stay calm. Is he breathing?”
I leaned down to check for the rise and fall of Ford’s chest.
“Yes, he’s breathing, but he’s not responding. Please, hurry.”
“I want you to keep talking to him. Encourage him to wake up. I’m updating the paramedics on the situation.”
“Ford, come on, baby. Stay with me. Help’s on the way.” My throat felt tight and tears stung my eyes. This wasn’t happening.
“Good. Now, I need you to tell me if he took any other substances and if he has a history of any medical conditions.”
“I don’t know. I was on the phone with him when he told me. He just mentioned he had some drinks tonight and he was going to take some sleeping pills and just go to sleep. I don’t know of any medical conditions.”
“All right, help should be there any minute. Continue to try to wake him up.”
“Ford, please,” I begged.
Finally, the distant wail of sirens pierced the air, growing louder as the ambulance approached.
Ford groaned, and I sucked in a quick breath.
“That’s it,” I urged, but he didn’t open his eyes.
Moments later, the paramedics burst into the apartment, and I rose and moved out of the way as they rushed toward Ford on the couch. “What happened?” one of them asked.
“He took sleeping pills and was drinking before that,” I explained, my voice strained.
“What kind of sleeping pills?”
“I don’t know. I wasn’t here.”
They looked around as though looking for a bottle.
“I’ll go see what I can find,” I told them.
One paramedic nodded. “Okay. We’ll get him to the hospital for further evaluation.”
The reality of the situation was hitting me hard, and I feared losing another friend like I had Jonah. Except Ford was more than just a friend. Always had been.
I rushed to his bedroom, searching for the medication he said he was going to take. I didn’t see anything there, but when I went into his bathroom, I found a bottle on the counter. I grabbed it and rushed back to the EMTs. “Is this it?”
The one I had been mainly speaking with grabbed it. “Yes. This is for sleeping. Thanks.”
As they prepared to move him onto a gurney, Ford’s eyes opened and he looked straight at me. “Coop,” he slurred, “I didn’t expect you really to come.”
