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"Can you hear me?", There’s a light blinding me.
"Can you follow the light for me? Do you know your name?" questions the voice behind the light.
"It's, um, it's Gabe. What happened?" I reply groggily.
"It seems you were in a car accident. My name is Gary. I'm with the fire and rescue service," the man replies.
"Accident? What kind of accident?" I ask, trying to sit up. But I feel strong hands pushing me back down.
"Strap him down, Kate," I hear the man call out.
"Yeah, there's been an accident. You're fine. You're on a stretcher in the back of the ambulance," I hear a woman's voice say, but I still can't quite make out their faces.
"Where's Nathaniel? Is he okay?" I ask in a panic.
"Nathaniel, is that the other young man's name?" The woman tries to clarify.
"Yes, Nate, he's my little brother. I need to get to him right away," I snap, tugging at my restraints and trying to free myself.
"My people are taking care of him right now," the woman soothes, attempting to sound calm but failing.
"We need a sedative," she yells to someone before I feel my head begin to spin and I lose consciousness once more.
***
I wake up in a hospital bed and attempt to move, but as soon as I do, I hear a loud alarm sound, and then I see a nurse and what looks like security rushing over.
"Where am I? What happened? Where’s my brother?" I say, fearfully.
I see a nurse stick something in the tube in my hand, and I instantly feel relaxed and sleepy again.
"You’re at Saint Mary's Hospital. You were in a car accident last night and had to be sedated..." the nurse continues, but her voice seems to zone in and out. "... so we gave you something for the pain and to help you relax," I hear her say.
"Where... is... my... brother?" I mumble.Why the hell can't I think or speak properly?
"Is that the man you were in the car with?" one of the men asks.
"His side of the car was hit head-on. It appears you ran a red light," the nurse begins.
"He was thrown from the car, and he's in our intensive care unit, but he hasn't regained consciousness yet."
"What do you mean he hasn't regained consciousness yet?" I ask, interrupting her.
"Gabe, man, you're awake." I turn my head and see a flick of long black hair, probably a nurse, leave as Tucker comes in with a cup of coffee.
"Tucker, thank God, where's Nathaniel?" I ask, hoping the nurse was wrong.
"It's not good, man. He's in another ward, but he's in a coma, Gabe. You ran a red light, and another car crashed head-on into his door. The other driver said he tried but was unable to stop in time." Tucker informs me, and you can tell by his tone that he's either been screaming or crying because it's all hoarse. "Gabe, the car flipped several times, and when the ambulance came, it was on its roof. They managed to get you out, but his door was completely caved in." I hear his voice break as a tear runs down his face.
"The force of the impact threw Nate right through the windshield because he wasn't wearing his seatbelt. Paramedics had to restart his heart at the scene. It worked, but we do not know how long he was in that condition," he says, and I can hear the anger displacing the sadness in his voice.
"You're fucking lucky the other driver was stable enough to call an ambulance, or he would have died for sure," he says angrily.
I start to doubt him. Surely he must be mistaken? Nate must be alive and well, right? This has got to be some sort of terrible trick! But the heartbroken look on Tucker's face tells me it isn't."I am so sorry," I say quietly, not knowing what else to say.
"Sorry is not enough, Gabe. He has a brain hemorrhage. They had to put him in a coma so his body could heal. We do not even know if he's going to wake up."
"He has to wake up. He's all I have," I cry out, realizing now that I am crying too. "You've got to be mistaken. How do you know all this?" I say, remembering that Nate and I were alone in the car.
