Here to Win Rewrite (Walker Boys Sequel)

Chap. 20

"What are you doing?" Carson asked, amusedly.

"I'm lying in bed," I answered.

"I think you could use a pick-me-up."

I looked over at him, raising my eyebrows. "What do you have in mind?"

"Ethan's throwing a party tonight," he said, leaning against my doorway. "Big blowout because Sara's visiting her parents."

"Count me in."

"Great, we leave here in 20."

He disappeared and I stood up, knowing that I needed to take a shower to be presentable.

I took a quick shower and then changed into actual clothes.

I'd been wearing gym shorts and remaining shirtless since the surgery, comfort coming before anything else.

But now I slipped into an itchy polo shirt and a pair of jeans, a little harder to do seeing as though I was working with one arm.

I ran some Axe gel through my hair and looped my medical ID tag around my neck before heading downstairs, meeting Carson in the kitchen.

"Be careful," mom chastised.

"We will," I promised, kissing her cheek.

Carson rolled his eyes, heading to the front door.

"Love you guys!" mom called after us.

Carson scoffed, throwing open the front door and slamming it behind us.

"Alright, what is it?" I asked, as Steve pulled around the car.

"What?" Carson asked, innocently.

"I've seen you give mom some lip before, but never that."

Carson didn't say anything, sliding into the driver's seat.

I took passenger, nudging his arm as he pulled out of the driveway.

"Come on," I urged. "Talk to your favorite brother."

"Chase is here?" Carson asked, looking around the car.

"Shut up."

He smirked at me. "Just let it go and enjoy the night."

I sighed, knowing that it was no use when Carson was in party-mode.

"Okay," I agreed, leaning back in my seat.

We pulled up to Ethan's apartment, the party already in full swing.

"Holy shit," I muttered, following Carson up. "How often does he do this?"

"Whenever Sara's gone," Carson said, with a smirk.

"This marriage is not going to end well," I muttered, opening his apartment door.

"She knows."

"She knows?"

He nodded. "It's Ethan. You can't strip him of his party."

I couldn't help but laugh.

"I'll grab the drinks," Carson promised, disappearing into the kitchen.

I leaned against the wall, surveying the people at the party.

I saw people I went to high school with, people that are still in high school, and a few people I didn't recognize.

But for the most part it was just another Walker party.

"Here," Carson said, coming back from the kitchen.

"Thanks," I said, accepting the cup from Carson. "What is it?"

"Bud," he said, before disappearing onto the dance floor, his drink in his hand.

I took a sip, hanging on the outside of the dance floor. I wrinkled my nose; something was definitely off with this beer.

I headed into the kitchen and dumped out the beer, getting my own Bud from the keg. It tasted fine this time.

"Weird," I mumbled.

"Hey Mason," Kara said, with a bright smile.

"Hey," I answered, waving my cup at her.

"How's the shoulder?" she asked, gesturing to my surgified left shoulder.

"It's holding up," I said, with a laugh.

"What are you doing here?"

"Just having a night out," I said, taking another sip of my beer.

"You deserve one after everything that's happened."

"Mason!" a girl's voice shouted.

I turned to see Alison sprinting at me, barefoot.

"What?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at her.

She grabbed my arm and dragged me into the upstairs.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked.

"Something's wrong with Carson," she said, breathlessly.

"What do you mean something's wrong with him?" I asked, picking up the pace and following her to a bedroom.

Carson was bent over, gasping for air.

"Shit!"

"What's going on?" Alison demanded.

I tore down the hallway and into Ethan's bathroom, reaching up and pulling down the first aid kit. I pulled out one of Carson's epipens and sprinted back to the bedroom.

As I jammed the epipen into Carson's thigh, he fell unconscious.

"What's happening?" Alison shrieked.

"Shut up," I ordered. "Find Ethan."

She did as I asked, still crying.

I just wanted to get Carson out to my car and to the hospital, but with my shoulder I couldn't be of any real help.

Alison came back less than a minute later with Ethan in tow.

"Get him out to my car and I'll get him to the hospital," I ordered to Ethan, who looked a bit too tipsy to know what was happening.

Ethan nodded and scooped Carson up, following me through the party and outside. Luckily we didn't call too much attention to ourselves.

Ethan put the now half-conscious Carson into the back of my car, and I raced off to the hospital, my heart pounding in my chest.

I pulled into the ER and left my car, and Carson, in a no-parking zone, hurrying inside.

"I have my brother in the car who's going into anaphylactic shock," I said, breathlessly.

Immediately the nurses sprang into action and followed me out, helping the half-conscious Carson into the hospital.

His lips and face were swelling, but the epipen had opened his airway, allowing him to breathe a little easier.

I called mom from the waiting room as they took Carson back.

"Mason, do you know the time?" she asked, groggily.

"I'm at the hospital with Carson," I said, breathlessly.

"What?" she asked, her voice immediately perking up. "What's happening?"

"He must've had some alcohol at the party."

"I'll be right there," she promised, before hanging up.

I paced the ER waiting room floor, eventually joined by my parents and Zoe, still in their pajamas.

"Why don't you sit down?" Zoe suggested, as I continued to pace the floor.

I shook my head, my heart pounding in my chest.

A few moments later, Cody came in too, dragging along a more sober-looking Ethan.

"How's he doing?" Cody asked, breathlessly.

"No updates yet," I said, still pacing.

"How'd this happen?" mom asked.

"I don't know," I admitted. "Well, I mean, I have a theory, but I don't know."

"What do you think happened?"

"Carson was getting our drinks, and I think he must've mixed ours up, because mine didn't taste right, so it might've been the NA beer," I explained, bouncing on my toes.

"Walker family," the doctor called, and I quickly hurried back, followed by the rest of my family.

Carson was asleep in a hospital bed, which reminded me all too much of what happened just a few years ago at the Walker party, when we first discovered Carson's alcohol allergy. His first drink sent him into a coma and almost killed him.

"He's going to be just fine," the doctor promised. "Right now we've got a tube down his throat to keep his airway from closing and to help him breathe, but it's only temporary. And the IV is pumping antihistamines and cortisone to help reduce inflammation of the air passageway."

"But he'll be alright?" my mom confirmed, clutching my dad's arm.

"It looks like he's going to be fine," the doctor repeated. "The sedative we gave him will probably keep him out through the night, but tomorrow we should be able to take out the tube and get him back up on his feet."

"Thank you doctor," my mom breathed.

"You're welcome," he said, with a kind smile, before leaving us with an unconscious Carson.

Seconds later, the door opened again, and James and Joseph came in, Joseph clearly pissed.

"Thanks for the heads up," Joseph said, hotly.

"I'm so sorry," mom promised, breathlessly. "I was just trying to get down here as soon as I could."

Dad filled the twins in on what was happening, and I sunk into one of the chairs in the hospital room, feeling a sense of relief, but still worried.

"You look like you could use some sleep," Zoe said, climbing into my lap.

"Not until I know he's okay," I said, looking at Carson uneasily.

"You heard the doctor, he's not going to wake up until tomorrow," Zoe reasoned, her worried eyes searching mine.

"When I know he's safe, then I'll worry about sleep," I repeated.

~*~

"Good morning Walker family," the doctor said, coming in.

"He still hasn't woken up," I said, groggily.

"That's why I'm in here," the doctor said. "To have the tube taken out and see what I can do about having him woken up."

"I would think that having a tube taken out of you would wake someone up," Zoe said, groggily.

She'd joined me on my all-nighter, keeping a conversation and keeping me sane.

"He was heavily sedated," the doctor explained, as a couple of nurses walked in.

I looked away as they worked on Carson, not wanting to see them pull the tube out of Caron's body.

A considerable amount of time passed before they finished, and the doctor had been right, Carson was still asleep.

"It'll be a little while before he's fully awake," the doctor explained. "He'll be groggy when he does wake up."

"But when will he wake up?" mom asked, having woken up when the nurses all came in.

"Within the next few hours," the doctor promised.

He left, along with the nurses, and my dad ran out to grab breakfast for the group of us camping out in the hospital room.

"Any news yet?" Cody asked Zoe, just having woken up.

"He'll be up in the next few hours," Zoe answered.

"How's your shoulder?" Ethan asked me.

"It's fine," I answered, gruffly.

"Hey," I heard Joseph say to James. "Wake up."

I looked over to see James roll over to say something to Joseph, and then they had a quick conversation. James got up with a sigh and left the hospital room.

Zoe stood up and stretched, careful to step over people as she headed out to the hallway.

"Where are you going?" I whispered, due to Ethan still sleeping, and Cody half out of it, even though I wouldn't mind waking him up.

"Bathroom," she whispered back, with a smirk.

I flashed her a thumbs-up, standing up to stretch out myself as she left.

The simple motion jolted my shoulder, and the relief I'd been experiencing was gone. I clenched my jaw, trying not to show the pain on my face.

James came back with an orange juice, handing it to Joseph before stretching back out in his position on the floor.

I made my way over to Joseph, who was sitting with his back pressed against the wall.

"Morning," I said, taking a seat next to him.

"Morning," he answered, taking a slug of orange juice.

"Rough night?"

"Rough morning," he corrected. "But my night wasn't all that pleasant either."

I couldn't help but smile. "I feel you."

"Did you ever go to sleep?"

I shook my head, looking over at Carson's unconscious figure. "Not until I know that he's alright."

"This isn't your fault, you know that right?"

I chose to ignore him, instead watching as Cody talked with mom and dad.

"You good here?" I asked Joseph.

He flashed me a thumbs-up.

I retook my chair next to Carson's bed as Zoe came back in.

"Hey," I murmured, as she came over to me.

"Pain pills?" she asked.

"If you don't mind."

She went over to my mom's purse and took the pain pills out of the side pocket. She came back over to me, handing me her bottle of water. "I brought them just in case, but I stored them in your mom's purse."

I took a couple, smiling at her. "You're the best."

"I'd like to think so." She gave me a quick kiss. "I really wish you'd get some sleep. I can wake you up just as soon as Carson's awake."

I shook my head.

Carson stirred next to me, and he wiped his right arm across his face, letting out a yawn.

"Carson?" I asked, getting my mom's attention.

He mumbled an incoherent reply.

"Carson?" I repeated, a little louder and stronger this time.

"Shut up," he groaned.

I couldn't help the small smile that overcame my face.

He yawned again and slowly blinked awake, taking in surroundings.

"Carson, sweetie?" mom asked, coming up next to me.

Carson's eyes flickered around the room before finally settling on me.

"What. Is going. On?" Carson asked me, slowly pronouncing each word.

"You passed out at Ethan's party," I explained, looking him directly in the eyes. "You drank alcohol."

Carson pressed his eyes closed for a few moments before looking at me again. "Are you fucking serious?"

I could feel mom tense up next to me.

"Yeah."

"How?"

"I don't know, I mean I think I know, but I don't."

He closed his eyes again. "I don't even know what that means, and I don't want to know right now."

"How're you feeling?" mom asked him.

"Like shit," Carson snapped. "I feel like-"

"Enough," dad ordered across the room.

Carson sighed, taking a long blink.

"You're an idiot," Ethan informed him, coming up to his bed.

"This happened at your party, right?" Carson asked.

"Yeah, at which I provided NA beer specifically for you!"

"I'm not stupid enough to drink beer," Carson snapped.

Ethan looked around at the hospital room. "Then why don't you enlighten me on how we ended up here?"

"Enough," mom ordered, laying a hand on Ethan's arm.

Ethan sighed, taking a step back to cool off.

"When can I go home?" Carson asked me, his eyes drooping.

"I can find out," I promised, going to stand up. That simple motion caused a wave of pain through my shoulder and down my arm.

"Let me," Zoe said, patting my arm before heading out of the room.

I let out a sigh, the pain escalating.

A few moments later, she came back with the doctor in tow.

"Hi there Carson," the doctor said, with a smile.

"Hey."

"So as you've probably been told by now, you've experienced anaphylaxis."

Carson nodded.

"So we're going to go ahead and get you discharged before the end of today," the doctor promised. "But I'd like to see you here until noon."

"What's in this IV?" Carson asked, pointing to the IV connected to his left arm.

"Cortisone and antihistamines, which I'd like to keep pumping until about noon."

Carson nodded.

"As for your discharge, you're going to feel pretty lousy for the next few days."

"Great," Carson mumbled.

"Avoid heavy exercise for the next week, understood?"

Carson's eyebrows shot up. "Week? Sir, I'm in the middle of a spring season of football. I have a lot riding on this."

"That won't be a problem doctor," mom promised, interrupting Carson.

Carson shot her a murderous glare.

"Trust me," the doctor said, with a small smile, "you're not really going to feel up to football."

He turned to chat with mom and dad for a few moments, before leaving.

"Alright, well there's the news," dad announced. "Cody, get Ethan back home, will you? James and Joseph, well actually Joseph maybe it's best if you stay here for a few moments. But Mason and Zoe, we'll see you at the house."

I raised my eyebrows at my dad. "No way."

"You need sleep," Carson interjected. "And you're obviously in pain."

"I'm fine," I shot at him, giving him a glare.

"Go home," he said, his glare not so intimidating due to the exhaustion written across his face. "I'll be home tonight."

We held a glaring contest, which was broken by Zoe tugging my right arm.

"Come on Mase," she whispered in my ear.

I let out a low growl, but let her pull me out of the room.

"It's for the best," she promised, driving me home in James's car.

I didn't speak to her the entire way home, absolutely livid that I'd been forced to go home.

She led me inside the house.

I took off my shirt once I got upstairs and laid out across my bed, exhaustion taking over my body.

"Eat this first," Zoe said, coming into my room and handing me a banana.

I did as she asked before closing my eyes and letting sleep take over.

**************************************************************************************************************

So what did you guys think about Mason & Carson's decision to hit up a party? And what about Kara being there, were you surprised? And then, of course, Carson's allergy? Were you expecting it?

I have my first final today in my Anatomy Lab. I'm uber nervous because it's 1/3 microscopes and I'm terrible at microscopes.

Teaser: Carson comes home & more

Update: Friday