Peyton's POV:
I was exhausted after the party. I don't usually wear heels for that long, so my feet were aching a lot. I lay down on my bed and sighed. I remembered the kiss. I don't know why I kissed him. A feeling deep down my heart made me do it. He seemed so upset, and I wanted to help. And the kiss happened to work.
I rolled over to my side and thought for a while. I had changed. Before I came here I didn't even bother look at a guy. And here I am...talking to one and kissing him at his friend's party. I looked at my phone. I hadn't been on that since I came here. I grabbed onto it and took a look. No notifications or texts.
I sighed and thought about Ryan. Whenever I'm getting close with Noah, I want to hold back. I remember Ryan, and how he needs me. I realize that Ryan could possibly die while I'm sitting here talking to Noah. I locked my door and changed my outfit. I threw on an ordinary top and jeans, with my converse.
It was very late, and Noah was in his room. I wanted to keep quiet in case he was asleep. I took a deep breath in and went down the stairs, being as silent as possible. Even Mrs Grey was asleep in her room. I sighed and headed towards the door, before a cold hand grabbed my shoulder. I gasped and turned around, finding myself face-to-face with Noah.
"Peyton? What are you doing at this time?" Noah asked.
"Nothing," I muttered.
"Where are you going?" he demanded.
"You don't need to know Noah," I mumbled.
I turned and grabbed onto the door handle, before Noah spun me around and held onto my waist. We were literally nose-to-nose right now. I could feel his warm breath against my skin. I felt my heart race rapidly. We were so close to each other at the moment. He smirked and stared right into my eyes.
"What if I want to know?" he whispered.
"Well that's too bad for you," I teased.
"Wouldn't you rather have me come along with you?" he probed.
"I guess so," I replied.
He smiled and grabbed his leather jacket from the hanger. He threw it on and walked out with me. We climbed into his car and sat down. He tapped his hand on the steering wheel, looking at me. I looked down at my feet and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
"Where are we headed?" he finally said.
"Hospital..." I managed to say.
He nodded his head and started driving towards the hospital. We were quiet most of the time, and I was busy thinking about Ryan. Noah didn't say a single word, and that made me feel weird. We were almost at the hospital, and I was so worried about Ryan. I hoped he was okay. He can't have woken up, because the doctor would've called me in that case. Noah parked the car and got out. I did so too, walking next to him inside the hospital.
"I hate the smell of hospitals," Noah muttered.
I was barely listening to him. I was too scared that Ryan was badly hurt, or that he had gotten worse in the past few days. I felt so dizzy, and it seemed like I would drop to the floor any second. Noah looked down at me and frowned. He tapped me gently and I snapped back to reality.
"Peyton...something wrong?" he asked.
"No, I'm fine," I managed to say.
"Peyton you're shaking?! Is everything okay?!" he demanded.
I kept silent and shook my head...so slightly he didn't notice. He took of his leather jacket and held it out in front of me. I looked up at him and smiled. He was honestly so sweet. I held onto his jacket and put it on. I felt a bit better now, thanks to him. He held onto my hand and walked with me towards the information desk.
"Hi. I'd like to talk to Dr Nickolas regarding my brother Ryan Wells," I said.
"You'll have to stay in the waiting room until it's your turn. Dr Nickolas has a lot patients to see," the woman replied.
"Okay...thanks," I mumbled.
I walked with Noah towards the waiting room, each taking a seat next to each other. I was so tired. I hadn't had a good sleep since my parents died. I sighed and placed my head in my hands. I felt hopeless, like there was nothing in the world to help Ryan. But there was still the operation. I had to wait for that, so that Ryan could get better.
I could feel myself starting to cry. I held back the tears. I didn't like crying. It makes me feel worse. I leaned back in my chair and kept my eyes closed. Maybe keeping them shut will hide the fact that I was crying. I kept them closed and before I knew it, I was asleep.
______________________________________
I woke up and found myself leaning on Noah's shoulder. Was I asleep like this the whole time? He was sitting completely still, with his head leaned against mine. He looked at me and noticed I was awake. I rubbed my eyes and looked at Noah. What time was it? I had no clue. Noah smiled at me and sighed.
"How long have I been asleep on you for?" I probed.
"About 4 hours and a half," he replied.
I gaped. Four hours and a half?! Noah and I have been waiting here for 4 hours and a half?! I was asleep on Noah for that long?! I t didn't feel that long, and I barely noticed that I was leaning on his shoulder until I woke up. My face reddened a little.
"I was asleep on your shoulder that long?! It must be hurting you so much by now!" I exclaimed.
"It does...but you seemed really comfortable..." he managed to say.
I smiled at him. He was being so nice to me. It takes a lot to have a girl sleep on your shoulder for that long. The doctor walked out of his room, letting out his patients. He lifted up his clipboard and looked at it after putting his glasses on. He lifted his head up and looked around the room.
"Peyton Wells?" he called.
"Right here..." I said, raising my hand.
Noah and I got up from our seats and walked into the doctors room. That's when I realized how worried I should be. I breathed in and sat down on a chair, biting my lip nervously. Noah wrapped his arm around my shoulder and leaned in close to my ear.
"It'll be okay Peyton..." he whispered.
I nodded my head and forced out a smile. Hopefully he was right. Hopefully Ryan would be okay. The doctor sat in his chair and scrolled through the computer at all the x-rays and scans. I tapped my foot, trying to distract myself from stressing out. The doctor looked at me hesitantly and sighed.
"What is Dr Nickolas?" I asked.
"I don't know what to say to you Peyton," he started.
"Just say it please," I begged.
"We looked into the operation and statistics, and it's really complicated," the doctor stated.
My heart best started rising. This was for sure not a good start to the appointment. I was starting to panic slightly. I took a deep breath to calm myself, waiting for the doctor to continue saying what he needs to.
"The operation is pretty risky, and there's high chances of failure or death," the doctor continued.
"How high?" I probed.
"96% chance of dying..." the doctor confessed.
"96%?!" I exclaimed in horror.
"And we are afraid that with him being in such a weak and poor state...he might actually...die..." the doctor stammered.
I got up from my seat and darted out of the room. My heart was racing real fast, and tears were running down my cheeks like crazy. This couldn't be true. Ryan couldn't die. He was the only person I had left in my family. He was the one to hug me and help me when our parents died. I turned and sat in an empty hallway crying. My heart felt shattered, and my eyes were red. I placed my head in my hands and sniffed.
"Nononono! He can't die! Ryan can't die!" I sobbed.
My heart seemed completely broken. I had lost enough people in my life, and I don't want to add onto that list. Noah was standing at the end of the hall looking at me. He bit his lip and silence and held out his arms. I wiped my tears and got up, running towards him and throwing my arms around him. I cried into his shirt as he squeezed me tightly.
"It'll be okay Peyton. There's still a chance he'll survive..." Noah said.
"4% chance isn't enough Noah. It's impossible for him to live!" I cried.
"No it isn't Peyton. 4% could be plenty. You can't predict what will happen until it does. That 4% could be worth something," Noah whispered.
"But-"
"No buts about it Peyton. Please...don't lose hope. Okay?" he asked.
I nodded my head and wiped my tears, hugging Noah once again. Maybe I shouldn't lose hope.
Maybe that 4% could actually mean something...