it doesn't take long for him to start shivering. and then soon after, his asthma flares up, and he starts to wheeze. don't panic. don't panic. his legs are moving in auto pilot. daniel feels so cold, and tired, and his chest is on fire. only a few more streets. he tries to take deep breaths, and conserve every single last bit of energy in his body.
he gets to the end of jonah's street, after ten painstaking minutes of walking. he's beyond soaked, every limb on his body shakes, and he can barely get oxygen in his lungs. he repeats jonah's name in his head, knowing he can't pass out. not in the rain in the middle of the road. he practically drags his legs behind him as jonah's house lights come into view. he feels a wave of relief.
as he takes his final, shaky steps up to his door, he raises his fist and knocks. he lets out a few coughs, clutching his chest again. the door swings open, and jonah stands there, a concerned look on his face. "i know that cough anywhere. come in," jonah says. daniel walks in slowly, leaning on anything he can for support. "woah, dani you're soaked. and you're trembling. sit down on the sofa, take deep breaths for me, okay?", jonah says, leading him over gently.
jonah runs and grabs daniel's nebulizer. when daniel was diagnosed with asthma, he was given four inhalers, and two nebulizers. jonah has one of each, considering how often daniel is over. he grabs two packets of albuterol, and runs back downstairs to the living room. he plugs in the machine and pours in the medicine, screwing the mouthpiece back on. daniel's shallow breaths have decreased to strictly wheezes. jonah is just glad he's not turning blue.
"i'm gonna put the mask on you, dani. you're gonna take some deep breaths," jonah says, sitting next to him on the leather couch. he slips the mask over his head and turns the machine on, albuterol filling the air. "count with me. deep breath in, 1, 2, 3. out, 1, 2, 3," jonah says, running his ice cold back. he can feel the boy trembling with each inhale and exhale. "you're doing great. just a few more."
daniel breaths get deeper as the minutes pass by, and near the end, he's nearly back to normal. in terms of breathing, at least. "you did so good. what's the pain, 1-10?", jonah asks, turning off the machine. daniel traces a 7 into jonah's hand. "does anything else hurt?" daniel points to his throat and his head. jonah nods. "i'm gonna go get you some dry clothes. you need to warm up," jonah inform daniel, running up the stairs.
daniel leans back into the couch, massaging his temples. his head is probably pounding from the lack of oxygen he was getting. that'll do it. his teeth chatter, and his limbs tremble hopelessly. jonah comes back down stairs with a blue hoodie, gray sweatpants, and black boxers and socks. "can you get to the bathroom on your own?", jonah asks. "can, can i just change here," daniel says, still slightly out of breath. "sure. i'll turn around."
daniel somehow changes while mostly sitting down. once he's done, he hands jonah the soggy clothes, and coughs into his elbow. he begins to gag, so jonah grabs a trash can. daniel spits up some flem and groans, a shiver going down his spine. jonah rubs his back, and daniel sits back up slowly. "do you wanna go to the kitchen? we can eat some snacks and drink some sodas?" daniel nods. "can you walk?"
daniel nods shakily, trying to pull himself to his feet. but as soon as he manages to get some footing, his knees buckle, and his vision goes slightly hazy. he reaches out to grab anything to stop him from completely wrecking onto the floor. jonah catches him before he can hurt himself, and holds him upright. "s-sorry," daniel stutters, trying to balance himself. "it's okay. it's okay, i've got you." daniel shakily leans into jonah, and then, he starts to cry.
and it's not just from the pain in his throat, or his head, or even his chest. it's from the fact that his own mother kicked him out of the car in the pouring rain. the fact that she knows he has asthma, but sped off anyway. the fact that he could've died walking here, and the fact he had to walk for his life at all. "shhhh, you're alright. i'm here. it's gonna be okay," jonah soothes, stroking the boy's damp hair.
daniel clings onto to jonah for dear life, hoping he won't fall. he know he won't though, because jonah would never let that happen. "do you wanna go eat some food and drink some water? i'll carry you," jonah suggests. daniel can't even hear jonah over his own sobs, so jonah decides to just stay in the moment, and let him cry. he rocks him back and forth, whispering comforting things to him, only loud enough for the both of them to hear. he rubs his back and strokes his hair, trying to make his trembling lessen.
after about twenty minutes, daniel finally calms down. his eyes are puffy, his nose is clogged, and his teaks are streaked with tears. "i'm gonna carry you, okay?" daniel nods against his chest. jonah picks him up gently and walks towards his kitchen, then sets him down in a chair. daniel lets out a cough and begins to gag. jonah rushes to grab the can, and hauls it under the younger boy's chin. he coughs up some flem, but this time it's followed by bile. daniel lets out a small cry.
"you're okay, just relax. if you work yourself up it'll last longer," jonah says softly. daniel takes a few deep breaths and calms his stomach, signaling jonah to put the can down. "what snack do you want? goldfish or cheezits?", he asks. daniel shrugs, not having the biggest appetite. "goldfish it is," jonah says with a smile. he grabs the family sized bag of them, along with two water bottles. "drink three sips of this. slowly," he instructs daniel, handing him a water.
daniel shakily unscrews the cap and puts the bottle to his lips. he takes small cautious sips, not wanting to irritate his stomach. after taking three like jonah told him to, he sets it back down and puts the cap on. "good job." after a beat he says, "do you wanna talk about what happened?" daniel thinks for a second, and jonah grabs a handful of goldfish. it's now or never. "mom and i were going out for, um, out for dinner. she got mad. she kicked me out of the car, i had to walk here. 'm sorry," daniel explains. jonah furrows his eyebrows. "why are you apologizing?"
"i just, just showed up uninvited. got your house all wet," daniel replies, tears forming in his eyes again. at this point, daniel is on the verge of crying just from being tired. "i'm glad you came. you could've gotten really hurt, or sick. and you know you're always welcome. hell, dani, you're in my family photos on the walls." daniel half smiles at that. "you had to walk all the way here? how far away did she kick you out?" daniel thinks. "ten minutes, i think. i'm, i'm not sure." jonah's face falls shocked.
"i'm so sorry, dani. has anything like this happened before?", jonah inquiries, sitting in a chair next to him. "she's never kicked me out of the car before. but we argue. i'll say something wrong, and she gets upset. 'm used to it," daniel says, realizing how much he had really just told his best friend. daniel puts a hand to his chest, a pain shooting through it. "it hurts?", jonah asks semi rhetorically. daniel nods, a tear sliding down his face.
"okay. you don't have to talk anymore unless you want to. i'll get you some ibuprofen." daniel lets a few more tears slide down his face as his chest pulses. the throbbing pain eventually fades, leaving behind the painful ache. "here." daniel downs the pills, then yawns. "let's head to bed," jonah suggests. daniel nods. jonah picks him up again, and carries their waters in hand. he takes daniel upstairs to his bedroom, and lays his down on his bed.
jonah shuts the door and turns off the light. "you okay to sleep in the dark?", jonah asks. he sees daniel's silhouette nod. jonah climbs into bed next to him and lays on his back. "come here. i'll play with your hair," jonah says, extending his arm out. daniel lays in between his chest and bicep, curling up against jonah. "good night, dani," jonah says as he strokes his brown locks. and within a few minutes, still wheezy as ever, daniel drifts into a deep sleep.
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