Isak's P.O.V
Isak rode down the narrow street on his bike, the headwind almost causing his snapback to fall off. The trees, houses and front yards passing by him blurred into a streak of colors.
Isak pedaled faster and faster, trying to get to his destination as soon as possible.
He was really worried about Even. Not only had he sounded kind of strange on the phone, Isak also had a sick feeling in his stomach. And every time he had that feeling, something was definitely not right.
When that f*cking jackass, also called Even's father, said those terrible things to his boyfriend yesterday, Isak had felt terribly sorry for him. He knew how much Even cared about his family and he also knew that being not accepted, had hurt him more than he would ever admit.
As he finally arrived at Even's flat, Isak carelessly let his bike fall onto the street and hurried to the door. He pressed on the door bell multiple times and waited for a response.
Nothing. Isak pulled out his phone to see if Even had left him any messages, but no, nothing.
The only notification on his phone was from a local news app, informing about some car crash that had happened about an hour ago.
Isak frowned and unlocked his phone. His finger found his way to Even's contact and he began typing.
"Open up, I'm here baby!"
Isak waited a few minutes, but he got no response. He tried to call Even, but the person to answer was not Even, but the annoying phone service lady telling him that Even was not able to be reached at the moment. Great.
Suddenly, Isak noticed a strange smell, which seemed to come out of the house. It smelled like...like something got burned. To the mixture of sorrow and suspicion in Isak's stomach was now added the feeling that something was immensely wrong.
"What the f*ck, Even." Isak mumbled to himself as he pressed on the door bell once more. Even had sounded so desperate when he said that he wanted to see him. And now he wasn't home? Or maybe, he was home and..
"Open up!" Isak yelled frustrated as he looked up to an opened window, which he knew belonged to Even's flat.
Then he saw it. Dark, almost black smoke crawling out of the small window gap.
Panic started to rise in Isak's body. Something had to burn in the kitchen.
And if no one was home, then no one could put it out.
Isak began to think hard. What should he do? He didn't have the phone number of Even's parents and Even didn't pick up his phone so there was only one choice.
As Isak typed '110' into his phone, his hands were shaking uncontrollably.
His heart was racing like he'd just run a marathon and he couldn't form one clear thought. Where in earth's name was Even? And why was there something burning in their flat? And why-
Isak's thoughts were interrupted by a deep voice.
"You're speaking to the fire department in Oslo. How can I help you?"
"H-hello I..I think something is burning in a flat. But I'm not sure because I'm not able to go inside and I...I don't know if anyone's in there and..and.." Isak stammered, panic clear in his voice.
"Try to stay calm, sir. Can you please tell me your name and the address of the building with the suspected fire?"
"Yeah..uhm..my name's Isak Valtersen and I'm at Blomst Street 5 in Oslo. Please hurry." Isak said, not even caring that he sounded like he was about to cry.
"We will be there in approximately five minutes. Don't panic, Mr. Valtersen."
Isak thanked the fireman and hung up. He ran his hands over his face. Why was everything such a mess now?
Why couldn't Even and him have just one normal and nice day for instance?
Isak had just put his phone back into his pocket, as it began to vibrate.
He got it out again so frantically, that it almost fell down to the floor. Isak looked at the display. He was called by an unknown number. Not thinking much about it, Isak picked up.
"Hello?" he asked, anticipation in his voice.
"Isak?" a scratchy, female voice asked.
Isak frowned. Was that..could that really be..Even's mum?
"This is Even's mum. Something..something happened and I...you need to..to kn-" the woman broke out into heartbreaking sobs.
Isak's heart clenched at her words.
"What? What is happening? Where is Even?" he asked panic-stricken. Isak couldn't stay calm anymore. He needed answers. Now.
"Even had an accident."
And with those words, it felt like all the air inside of Isak's body was being pressed out of him in a matter of seconds. He felt like he was petrified.
"An..an accident? What kind of accident? Is he okay?" Isak asked hesitantly.
"It was a car accident." she sobbed again. "And he's..well we're waiting for the doctor right now but I just think you should come." Even's mother said, deep sorrow and despair in her voice.
"But Even doesn't even drive...how?" Isak asked but at the same time he realized that, with Even's illness, everything was possible.
"Just come to the university hospital. Even needs you now." Her last words sounded more like a whisper.
"A-alright, I'll be there as soon as possible." Isak said and hung up.
His thoughts were all over the place.
Isak needed a few seconds to process what he just heard. Even had an accident. A car accident. He was not well. His mother had been crying, which means he must be injured pretty badly.
The more Isak thought about everything, the more despair and sorrow started to build up inside of him. He needed to get to the hospital. Right now.
As Isak sprinted down the street to the nearest bus station, a fire engine came from the opposite direction, the sirens were so loud that Isak had to cover his ears.
F*ck. He'd almost forgotten about the fire. But he had more important things to do right now.
Half an hour later, Isak finally arrived at the University Hospital. He didn't know where to go so he asked the woman behind the 'information' stand if she knew where Even Bech Næsheim was.
She told him that he should look in the intensive care unit. Isak felt shivers run down his spine at her words. Intensive care. Even was in need of intensive care.
Isak thanked the woman and ran to the elevator, causing a few people nearby to look at him weirdly.
As he stood in front of the entrance to the ICU, his eyes immediately fell on Even's parents, which were sitting on a row of white seats next to the wall.
The head of Even's mother was leaning on her husband's shoulder and Isak noticed how red and swollen her eyes looked.
Don, Even's father, gently stroke his wife's arm as if to calm her down, but he looked like he'd been crying himself.
"Mrs. Bech Næsheim?" Isak asked carefully. He didn't know what to say, how to act.
Her head shot up and she looked at Isak with her glassy eyes.
"Thank god you're here." she said as she stood up and walked up to him.
To Isak's surprise, she wrapped her arms around him and pressed him to her chest. "Thank god.." she mumbled again.
"The doctor's coming any minute now. He'll tell us more about Even's..condition." Even's mother said as she let go of Isak.
She pulled out a already dripping handkerchief and blew her nose.
Isak noticed how Even's father stood up from his chair as well.
He stepped behind his wife and gently pushed her into his arms.
"It'll be alright, Alva." he said and pressed his lips onto the top of her head. Then, he turned his attention to Isak.
"Hello, Isak." he said and nodded shortly. "Hello." Isak pressed out and nodded as well.
Don looked like he wanted to say something, but he was interrupted by the sound of the door being opened.
All three of them spun around.
Isak's eyes fell on a middle-aged looking man, wearing a white surgical gown, a clipboard in his hands.
"Hello, my name is Dr. Johansen." the man said and extended his hand to Even's mother, then to his father and finally to Isak.
All three looked at him with anticipation, waiting for him to say something about Even.
"First off, let me say that your son seems to have a really good guardian angel. It is almost a miracle that he is still here with us." Dr. Johansen said with a sincere expression on his face.
Isak breathed in sharply. That meant
Even had been only inches away from...from death.
This thought alone seemed to be so unimaginable for Isak, that he felt like he was going to throw up.
"But..Even suffers from a severe TBI with brain hemorrhage. After the operation, his body fell into a coma, probably as a self-protect-mechanism to relieve his organism, or else, the pain would've been unbearable for him.
We don't know when he is going to wake up. Cases like this are pretty unpredictable. It is...still uncertain if he is going to make it through the night."
the doctor said casually, as if it was normal for him to talk about whether a patient was going to live or not.
Isak heard how Even's mother gasped.
"He might still..die?" she croaked and tears started to gather in her eyes again.
"His injuries are far from harmless. But if he's going to make it to tomorrow morning, then he's got a good chance at surviving. That is, if he wakes up from the coma."
"If?!" Isak blurted out, not being able to hold himself back.
The doctor turned to face him, a compassionate expression on his face.
"Look, I'm sure your brother will make it through. He's a tough one." he said sympathetically.
"He's not my brother." Isak said and took a step back. "He's my boyfriend. And I need to see him now."
The doctor looked a little taken aback by his words, but quickly gained back his composure.
"I'm sorry boy, but..you can only visit the ICU if you're part of the patient's family."
the doctor said, and shot him another sympathetic look.
"What?!" Isak asked disbelieving. The doctor couldn't be serious. Isak needed to see him, because Even needed him.
To Isak's surprise, Even's father spoke up. "We, as Even's parents, are granting him permission to see our son. That will be enough, right?" he said, followed by a frantic nod from his wife.
"I'm sorry, but the rules are the rules." Dr. Johansen said. "As long as they're not married, there's nothing I can do." He glanced at his clock. "Well, I must leave now, but we will be in touch about your son. For now, I wish you all the best." he said and then turned around to leave.
As soon as the doctor was out of sight, Isak turned to Even's parents.
"He's joking, right?" he asked, his voice shaky. "I mean, I need to see him." he went on, starting to feel tears forming in his eyes.
"Don't worry, love." Alva said, putting her hands on Isak's shoulder. "We'll get you inside."
"Names?" asked the unfriendly looking nurse as she examined the three of them at the entrance of the ICU.
"Donald, Alva and Isak Bech Næsheim." Even's father said and glanced nervously to the side. "Mh hm.." the nurse said as her eyes lingered on Isak. "I assume you're the patient's brother?" she asked and Isak nodded.
"Well, then." the nurse said and pulled out three white breathing masks out of a drawer of her desk.
Isak put his on and together, they went to room 4. He impatiently waited outside while Even's parents got into the room first.
As Isak entered the room, the first thing he noticed was the steady beeping of the heart monitor.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
It wasn't just a sound to Isak, it was like an insurance that Even was still with him, still alive.
Then, his eyes wandered to Even's face. Most of it was covered with a giant oxygen mask, which had small tubes leading into Even's nose and mouth. His eyes were closed and his skin was so pale, that it almost looked invisible.
On his left arm was a catheter diving into his vein and there was a blood oxygen monitor on his index finger.
Overall, Even's body seemed so small and vulnerable in that bed, that Isak felt the instant need to rip all of these tubes and cables off of him and just embrace him in his arms, protect him from all the pain, all the harm out there.
But instead, he slowly made a few more steps in Even's direction and let himself fall down onto the chair next to the bed.
For a while, Isak just stared at his boyfriend.
He still couldn't realize what had happened. He still didn't understand why Even had been in a car in the first place. Why didn't he just wait for Isak at home, then everything would be okay now.
Gradually, Isak extended one arm and gently let his fingertips stroke over Even's cheek.
"If you leave me Even, I swear to god..." he whispered, his voice scratchy.
If it weren't for the machines, Even would've looked so peaceful, with his eyes closed and the steady rise and fall of his chest.
"I don't know if you can hear what I say, Even, but I need you to wake up! God, I don't know what I'd do without you baby, I..." Isak whispered as he let his fingers trace over Even's temple.
"I just...I know I've never said this before but.. I love you. I love you so much it physically hurts and that's why you need to wake up!" Isak stammered, his voice full of sincerity and despair.
He felt tears gathering in his eyes.
"You need to wake up so that I can tell you that I love you for the first time and then you'll say it back and we'll kiss and everything will be perfect and-" Isak's voice broke.
"You just have to come back to me, alright?" Isak whispered, as tears began to roll down his cheeks.
"I need you..need you to come back." he sobbed, as he let his head sink down till it hit the mattress.
"Please.." he cried out into the fabric, his tears leaving a wet stain on it.