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“Brayleigh.” Mom sobs into the phone. Immediately I sit straight up, the boys shooting up with me in concern.
“Mom? What’s going on?” I ask frantically. My heart is in my stomach as I wait for her to answer through her heartwrenching sobs.
“It’s your dad,” she finally gets out after a moment. “We’re at the hospital. It’s not good.”
“What happened? What floor are you on at the hospital? Does he have a room number?”
Questions are shooting out of my mouth at rapid speed as I hastily rush around the room trying to find something suitable to wear. What does someone wear to the hospital to see their sick or injured loved ones? Is there a dress code for that? My mom is there all alone while my father is not doing well and here I am thinking about what to fucking wear.
“We’re on the second floor. I’m in the waiting room because they won’t let anyone in,” she cries out. “I need to see him. I need to yell at him for not taking care of himself.”
“Is anyone there with you?” I rush around the room not sure what I’m looking for as I pull on yoga pants from my bag.
Mason walks in the room completely dressed as I’m searching for a bra. He gathers the rest of my clothes for me, helping me get on what I can while staying on the phone. I can hear Grayson on the phone with someone behind me, I can only hope it’s my other guys.
“No one,” she whispers, her breathing so ragged.
“I’m on my way.” I soothe her through the phone as much as I can. “I’ll be there soon, Mom.”
We say our goodbyes, hanging up the phone. I pull my shirt over my head, tossing my hair into a messy bun as the three of us make our way down to the car. Grayson gets the passenger door for me then jumps in the backseat. Mason is already putting the car into drive, moving as fast as he can to get us to the hospital. My body feels numb right now. It could be because I don’t actually know what’s wrong yet or it could be because I don’t feel like I have the right to break down while Mom is scared and alone at the hospital. One of us needs to be strong and it has to be me.
“Colton will be at the hospital within the next couple of minutes. He wasn’t far when I called. Tuck and Arch are both on their way as well,” Grayson informs us, his voice wavering slightly. “Archer was going to call Piper and Josh for us.”
Murmuring my thanks, I stare out the window watching the scenery go by as my mind seems to shut down. My mom can’t lose my dad, I can’t either. He’s our rock, the one that keeps us level-headed and grounded when we get crazy. We need his bad jokes and hearty laugh. There’s so many things he hasn’t even been able to be a part of yet. He’s only 55 years old, he’s still so young. I need my daddy still. He needs to walk me down the aisle at my wedding. He needs to meet his grandkids and teach them bad habits that I scold him for later. He needs to live and be with us for so many more years to come.
“We’re here, love,” Mason speaks, breaking through my haze of thoughts.
Looking around, I see we are indeed here. I’m not ready to walk in there and face this. Being an adult means I need to do the hard things in life though. It doesn’t matter if I’m ready to walk in there, Mom and Dad need me. There’s a knock on my window before my door is pulled wide open. Tuck is there, undoing my seatbelt and pulling me into his arms. My body shakes with the force of my emotions yet still no tears come to my eyes. The numb feeling is slightly suffocating, but it’s the only thing keeping me going.
The twins get out, jumping into action quickly to get us inside. The trip to the second floor is a blur of people and doors. The smell of the hospital is nauseating, the colours bland and unfeeling. Overall the entire place is extremely unsettling and not where I want to be right now. The waiting room comes into sight with my mom curled into Colton’s chest, sobbing and shaking in his arms.
“Mom,” I call out when I walk in. We’re the only ones in here, thankfully so my yelling doesn’t disturb anyone.
“Oh, baby! You’re here,” she runs to me, her tear streaked face showing so much pain it breaks me a little bit more.
“What happened Mom?” I finally get the courage to ask.
“He was shaving in the bathroom,” Mom starts with a sniffle. “I heard a loud thud so I went to see if he was o-okay. He was on the g-ground, his face turning blue. The a-ambulance s-said it was a heart attack. They did CPR, b-but it d-doesn’t look good.”
I pull her close to me again, holding my own emotions at bay for her sake. A heart attack, he had a heart attack. That probably means he’s in some sort of surgery or something, right? Hell, I have no idea. Her sobs are calming down little by little. Mom looks so exhausted from everything that’s happened. Dad is her whole life, if he dies I don’t know how she’s going to get through it.
Looking over at my guys I see that Archer has now joined them so I move my mom towards them. Grayson takes Mom from my arms, sitting her beside him and handing her a cup of coffee that someone brought. Colton pulls me into his arms, whispering sweet words and assurances. He avoids the ones about everything being okay and sticks to how they are all here for us, how much he loves me, and how we’ll get through any of this together. I appreciate that he didn’t use any false words of hope to try to make me feel better because the truth is none of us know how this could turn out.
Archer grabs me next, not saying anything at all just holding me and kissing my head before directing me to the seat beside my mom. Tuck takes the seat next to me, grabbing my hand as we sit and wait for someone to come talk to us about what’s happening. At some point Josh and Piper rush in, kissing mom and me before settling in to wait with us. Archer fills them both in quietly while Mason and Colton find food for everyone. Mom finally drifts off leaning against Gray, her face still full of so much anguish even in her sleep.
Tuck takes my hand, tracing hearts along the back as I stare at the door of the waiting room. Mason and Colt come back, handing out food and coffee to everyone. Colt bends down in front of me, kissing my forehead softly. My Wilds are here, holding everyone together and all I can give them is a grimace instead of a smile. My face feels numb and stuck in a disbelieving expression.
“I love you, baby. We’re all here for you guys. Do you need anything?” Colt whispers to me, kissing my other hand as he waits for my response.
“No.” The word escapes my mouth on a breath, my head shaking gently.
“Okay, baby. You let any of us know if that changes, okay?”
“Okay.”
Colton settles in a chair, throwing looks my way every few minutes. The worry coming off of my guys for not only me but also my mom who has been hot and cold with them since learning about our relationship. These Wild men are perfect, I’m never letting them go.
What feels like hours later, a doctor in blue scrubs comes into the room asking for the Carter family. Mom shoots up immediately, squeezing my hand like I’m the only thing keeping her from breaking apart. It’s probably not far off of the truth, I’ve never seen her so distraught. We walk up to the doctor hand in hand, emotions warring inside of me. I’m struggling between both wanting and not wanting to hear anything she has to say. Her face is neutral as we approach her, the blank expression making my heart beat so fast it feels like it’s going to explode. I wish she would give something away to me, give me an idea as to which way this conversation will go.
