The Chaotic Interim (boyxboy)

Chapter 7

Josiah woke up in a small room and the first thing he noticed was that Carson wasn’t anywhere in sight. The lights were bright and the walls were a bland cream colour. The dark-haired boy glanced around, confused and concerned.

The room was empty except for Josiah. He looked down at himself and noted there was nothing hooked up to him. It was literally like he had just been renting out a bed to take a nap on.

The image of Carson blacked out popped back into his head, and Josiah quickly scrambled out of the bed. He felt a tad light-headed, but he shot his hand out to grab the bed so he could steady himself. Just as he got himself together, the door flew open and a short woman about five years older than Josiah, came walking in.

Josiah studied the lady in dark blue scrubs and he knew she was a nurse. She smiled and gestured at the tall boy standing a few feet away from her.

“I see you’re feeling better,” she commented.

Josiah eyed her warily. He wasn’t in the mood for small talk. “Where’s Carson?”

The lady’s smile didn’t even falter. “Don’t you want to know what happened?” Josiah only blinked, which caused the nurse to shake her head and laugh lightly. “You fainted in the ambulance after you vomited. The emergency medics passed you off to me once they arrived.”

Josiah glanced around, looking for a clock. “How long have I been in here?”

“Only about an hour. I checked you out and you’re completely fine. I got you all cleaned up and you should be good to go. It was more than likely the stress that caused the spell.” The nurse walked over to the counter and picked up a cup of water. She turned around and held it out to Josiah, who was gaping at her. “You should drink this, it will take away the dizzy feeling.”

Josiah numbly took the paper cup, but didn’t even look at it. Shocked, he blurted, “An hour? I’ve been here that long? What the--Carson. What’s going on with my friend? Where is he?”

“Slow down there, tiger,” the nurse said calmly, giving Josiah a gentle smile. His chest ached as he remembered all the times Carson said that same line to him in the past year. “Don’t get worked up, now, okay? Take a drink and I’ll fill you in.”

Josiah grimaced and glanced down at his hand holding the container of water. The truth was, he was becoming more and more aware of how dry his throat was. He watched the nurse as he lifted up the cup and drank all the contents.

“Now, Josiah,” the nurse said carefully. He took the empty cup away from his mouth and listened intently. “Your friend is doing alright. He doesn’t need surgery or anything to that extreme, but he does have a concussion, and he’s been roughed up quite a bit.”

Josiah felt the blood drain from his face all over again. “Can I see him?”

At this, the nurse finally hesitated. “Not yet. The doctors are still running a few tests and scans to make sure the head injury isn’t too serious.” The nurse clasped her hands together, and any signs of her smile from earlier were long gone.

Josiah’s nerves picked up and he stared unblinkingly at the woman. “What?”

“Typically this kind of information isn’t supposed to be disclosed with non-immediate family members...”

“Tell me,” Josiah insisted. He felt his hands begin to shake slightly from the fear of what he didn’t know. Josiah could see how torn the nurse was from the expression on her face. “Please.”

“They’re also in the process of running a rape kit on him,” she said quietly. Josiah bit his tongue and looked away. He knew that was more than likely the case when he had first found Carson, but to have it confirmed made everything so much more real. “And I hate to do this to you, sweetie, but there’s another matter we have to discuss.”