On Our Own

Chapter 40

Taylor's POV

Carter doesn't reply, so I repeat myself.

"Where's Ezhno."

"He's at the vet. They had to put him into emergency surgery I think- or maybe they were doing stitches. They weren't very specific because we were all rushing," he rambles.

"Did they say how bad it was?" Carter takes a deep breath before answering.

"They said that it would be a long recovery if he managed to survive. But they also said- we might need to consider putting him down."

Those words hurt more than any injury I've gone through. My breath catches in my throat, my heart races, and my vision starts to blur with tears.

"Wh-when can I leave," I ask quietly.

"Dads getting the papers signed now that you're awake. But they want to watch you for another few hours."

I don't want to stay in this pristine white building anymore where everything smells like antiseptics and death.

I wonder why they would make hospitals white when blood stains the white tiles so easily. Maybe it's so that they never forget the pain the people here go through.

"I want to leave now. They can't keep me here against my will," I nearly shout.

"That's true for adults but since you are a minor, your legal guardian makes the decision."

"Well then tell your father to get me out of here. I'm fine. I just need some painkillers and I'll be fine- maybe crutches."

"Taylor," Carter starts, cautiously. "Your leg was injured badly- they said you might never regain full use of it. In time, you'll be able to walk without any help, but right now they are suggesting a wheel chair. If you put any weight on it, you could make the damage worse."

Great, just my luck.

The tears that have been threatening to fall now flood my eyes, rolling down my cheeks in little droplets.

Carter sits down beside me, and pulls my head onto his shoulder so that I can lean on him. I cry into him until I have no more tears.

Eventually, I sit up, and wipe my puffy cheeks so that they are free of tears.

"I want to go home."

Carter sighs. It's a tired sigh, a sigh that you would sigh after a long, sleepless night. I feel awful that I've put him in this state.

"I'll see what I can do," he replies, kissing my forehead.

Carter's POV

I leave and go to find my dad. When I finally spot him, it's not a pretty sight.

His face is pale as he talks with someone on the phone. When he finally hangs up, I rush to his side.

"Who was it?"

"The vet," he answers. "Apparently Ezhno has too many injuries. He's lost his heartbeat multiple times, but he keeps pulling through. They said they can repair almost all of the damage, but his front right leg is broken. He has only two options."

"What are the options?"

"Well, there's an expensive, controversial treatment that our vet could try. You put the horse in a full body sling so all of its legs are off the ground, and it can't walk for months. There's a 50/50 chance the leg will heal completely. But there's a chance that he could become lame and never be ridden again. Were considering it, but it's so expensive- we might not be able to afford it," he explains, his voice tired.

"But you said there were two options? What about the other one?"

"The other option is... the other option is that we put him down."

A/N

I'm so sorry I haven't updated all weekend! I had a performance yesterday. I also was in a minor, three car accident. No one was severely injured, but it was scary.

Thanks for being so patient!!

And shoutout to justerica- go read her book 'Why?'