Free Falling

Chapter 29 | All I Get Is Nothing

"He's a fighter Em, it's gonna be okay." Dwight says softly, holding me tight.

"He better be Dwight. I can't lose him." I say through my tears.

"I know." He says, holding me for a few minutes before he let's go and moves on to hug Kara tight.

"Come here Em." Travis says softly, pulling me in for a hug.

He hugs me for a few minutes before letting go and moving on to everyone else who needs a hug.

"D-did they say how long they're going to be in surgery?" I ask shakily.

"No honey, they didn't." My mom says.

I just nod and take a seat next to Caleb. He grabs my hand and I can tell that he's worried.

"Jordan and Trevor are booking the next flights out, and Madison should be here soon." My dad says, sitting on the other side of me.

I don't even have it in me to respond, a numb feeling coming over me.

I can't lose my best friend.

I just can't.

I'm not sure how much time blurs by before my dad answers a call, pulling me from my thoughts.

"Emma, do you think you could go to the airport to pick up your brothers? Jordan has landed and Trevor should be landing in another twenty minutes or so." My dad asks and I start shaking my head.

"I can't leave him dad...I can't. He needs me here. He didn't leave me, I can't leave him." I say, tears breaking through again.

"I can do it. What airlines are they in?" Dwight says before my dad has time to react to me.

I send him a grateful smile, and he just rubs my shoulder.

"Southwest." My dad says, and Dwight nods before grabbing his keys.

"I'm sorry dear, I didn't even think when I asked you." My dad says, wrapping an arm around me.

I just nod and lean my head back, hoping we get answers soon.

'~'

"I'm here to speak to the family of Jake Richardson." A voice says, pulling me from my sleep hours later.

An arm nudges my side and I open my eyes, lifting my head from Dwight's shoulder.

"Here." My dad says, standing up as the rest of us follow suit.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Hill, the doctor in charge of Jake's case." He says, shaking hands with my parents.

"How is he?" My mom asks.

"As you know, the truck flipped multiple times after the other car hit them. Jake suffered tremendous head trauma, broke his left arm, and fractured three ribs. There was also glass stuck in him that punctured his abdomen causing internal bleeding.

"We just performed surgery to remove the shard, and we were successful. We stopped the internal bleeding, so that's no longer a concern. However, Jake has slipped into a coma and we are not sure when he will wake up at this point." He finishes and my mom chokes out a sob as my dad wraps an arm around her.

"So he isn't okay?" Jordan asks.

"Jake will live, however we can't say the condition that he will wake up in. We are unsure if the damage in his brain will be permanent. Only time will tell." Dr. Hill says.

Oh my God.

"Can we see him?" My dad asks, his voice thick.

"Yes, he's in ICU so only a few people at a time can visit. Be aware that he can probably hear you, he just can't respond." He says.