Chapter Twenty-One ~ Tomato Face
Last time on TDIMG...Ava had just received a phone call from the hospital after her "Date" with Cooper where he revealed what happened in his past when his dad died. Grace is pregnant with Braxton's baby but Braxton does not know yet.
PLEASE IGNORE ANY GRAMMAR MISTAKES, MY BRAIN LACKS IN THE GRAMMAR DEPARTMENT.
ALSO I HAVEN'T REALLY FIXED THIS UP AS MUCH AS I WOULD LIKE TOO BUT I FIGURED YOU GUYS MIGHT LIKE SOMETHING GOOD BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS AGAIN SOOOO HERE YOU GO
Ava Chance
My hands shook as I spoke on my phone. With all the possible thoughts on what could have happened I was having a hard time actually concentrating on what the person was saying to me.
"Hello? Is this Ava?"
"Huh, y-yeah I'm here." I stuttered, snapping out of my thoughts while pushing the hair that had fallen onto my face behind my ear.
"Ava, do you think you could come down to the hospital so we can speak to you directly?" What appeared as a nurse said.
"Is my grandma okay?" I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion while Cooper eyed at me with confusion and concern laced in his eyes.
"Yes, so far she is fine but I would rather explain the situation in person." The nurse said in a polite matter, much better than the one I had last checkup. "I can assure you she isn't hurt."
"Okay." I paused, nodding to myself. "I'll be down as soon as possible." I was ready to hang up but surprised myself when I did again. "Tell my Grandma I love her and I'm on my way please."
"Of course." And with that I had hung up, meeting Cooper's worried eyes.
"What happened?" Cooper asked immediately with dread clear in his voice.
Looking at Cooper I knew if one of us had to be the calm one, it had to be me. He hadn't even heard what happened yet and he was running his hands through his hair as if his life depended on it and rubbing his face as if he just developed a very bad rash.
I guess it would have been easier just to say there was stress written all over his face by his actions.
"Ava!" He snapped me from my thoughts. "This is not the time to be daydreaming."
"I'm sorry!" Throwing my hands up in defense. "And my gran is in the hospital, I need to go see her." Brushing past him I began to speed walk to my home.
"So where are you going?"
"To my house." I yelled behind me before I began to run home.
"What about the hospital?" He said closer than before, making me suspect he was running after me.
My house was now barely two houses down and both he and I could see that my grans car was not at the house.
"Hm?" Cooper asked again. "How you going to get there?"
I wanted to growl at him. "I don't know." I said deflated instead. "I'll take the bus."
"You don't even know where any bus stops are, never the less the times." He pushed.
"I'll figure it out."
"It'll take hours to even get to the hospital from the bus."
"So what do you want me to say?!" I yelled at him with frustration. "You don't think I realize my gran could be dying or something awful, because trust me, I know and I'm terrified but it doesn't help when I have you constantly reminding me."
"What I'm saying is." Cooper paused for effect, making me roll my eyes. "I have a certain friend that owns a fully running car and also happens to have possession of your dog."
"Braxton."
"Who's the greatest?"
"Just call him, you dork."
☯
"So you're saying my Grandma is at risk?" I asked the nurse, ignoring the two knuckleheads behind me as they argued to each other about not being able to hear.
"What your Grandma had was a TIA, a transient ischemic attack also known as a mini stroke." The nurse said formally, pulling out her clipboard to discuss further into it. "A TIA is when a blood clot blocks blood flow to the brain, the block is temporary and unlike a stroke it generally doesn't kill brain tissue."
"It didn't, did it?"
"No your Grandma is fine now, although TIA doesn't cause permanent damage, it is urgent to keep her under watch because her chances of stoke have now doubled."
"So what's the difference between a TIA and a stroke?" I asked, trying to wrap my brain around the concept.
"When your Grandma experienced the TIA, the blood flow to the brain was blocked but after a short amount of time resumed again. The symptoms of a mini-stroke are the same as a stroke but don't last as long." She cleared her throat. "Your Grandma was lucky to recognize these symptoms like, Trouble speaking, sudden numbness usually on one side of the body and problems with balance control and she drove herself down here just before her TIA began."
"She drove herself?! Badass nana pearl!" Braxton cheered.
"U-um yes well, she was lucky in that case- driving is very dangerous for someone experiencing these symptoms and she was lucky enough not to of ended up in a fatal accident."
I covered my mouth in shock while I felt Cooper trying to calm me by rubbing circles on my back discreetly. "Can I see her?"
"Yes but she is quite weak and we've put her on two different medications." The nurse said while scanning her finger down the sheet for her room number. "Room 203."
I nodded my head as I turned my head away from the nurse down the hallway with two dorks hot on my trail. This hospital wasn't the same one I went to, considering I went to a children's hospital but I had been here a few times.
This hospital had few memories, few I did not want to relive. With the pale pink walls, blue trim, and oddly well-kept white tile floor this hospital gave an oddly calming feeling to anyone that had entered.
I counted the doors down only to turn around to see Cooper looking strangely distant in his own thoughts while Braxton jumped from tile to tile.
Still counting the doors, I knew Braxton would make a good father, even if he wasn't ready. His caring and carefree aurora would be a good match for Grace's caring and bit controlling, but either way they had a child on the way.
199, 200, 201,202,
203.
Both Cooper and Braxton unexpectantly gave me my space, as I prepared myself to open the door.
Just like ripping off a Band-Aid, I opened the door fast and quick, one deep breath and I swung it open to see my grandma lying in a pale green hospital bed.
Even with an IV jabbing into her arm, pale skin, and having nurses help her go pee, her eyes lit up when they saw me and I was sure mine did too.
"Avalon!" She squealed with her very hoarse voice.
Without a second thought, I dashed towards her and embraced her in a hug. I pulled back though, thinking I hurt her but her blue eyes sparkled when she looked at me before she kissed my nose.
"Pearl, don't you ever scare us like that again, do you hear me?" Braxton said when he walked in while waving his finger at her.
I smiled until I turned my head to see my grandma's scared wide eyes at Braxton.
Then I realized Grandma had never met Braxton before.
Facepalm.
"Grandma this is Braxton, Mine and Cooper's friend."
"Ahem, best friend." He corrected me with his sass showing through, making Gran give him a wary smile. "Ava helped me during a rough time, the least I could do was drive her down her to see you."
My grandma gave me a proud smile. "The doctors." She paused taking a steady breathe. "They said I will have some-"
"Speech disturbance, I know." I finished for her, making her smile in gratitude. "Lie down and get some rest, I'm not going anywhere."
☯
My grandma had forced me to go to school the next day after she had realized it wasn't the weekend and we had spent the night on a school night. I tried to tell her I should be with her but she claimed I needed to graduate or something silly like that.
She's the one in the hospital bed and she's still the one making the orders.
Cooper, Braxton, and I had spent the rest of the night with her last night and then because of hospital early hours had spent a few with her this morning until she kicked us out.
That and she probably needed to pee.
Today I had dressed up in a Nike t-shirt tucked into my black skater skirt and several bracelets on my wrist. I had mastered the walking in heals deal, So I had decided to wear my favorite booties that were lace up platform booties while finishing it off with curled hair and light makeup.
Braxton was giving me a ride today and dropped me off at my house so he could change at his house before school started.
I had a little time so I decided to pull out my phone and text Grace back. I had texted her back about what had happened and she comforted me the whole night just by texting me.
You need to tell him, School is almost over and he's probably getting ready for uni. I texted Grace, we were now in the middle of a conversation about Braxton. She still hadn't told Braxton about his baby.
Grace was barely three weeks along and she had told me after her talk with her parents she is going to be finishing high school, even if that meant she would have to order an extra-large graduation gown because of her baby bump.
Sure people are going to talk about her being pregnant when they find out and that might hurt her, but I couldn't help but think even more were because it was Braxton's.
I think I'll phone him tomorrow. I'll tell you how it goes xxxx Grace replied, while sending her love, indicating she had to go.
Speak of the devil; I thought when I heard Braxton's car honk outside my house.
"Let's go Avalon!" Braxton yelled at me when I opened the front door. I cringed when I heard the name because I was hoping he hadn't heard my grandma say that yesterday.
"Oh goodness no." I cringed as I approached his car. "Your car is a mess." I laughed while getting into it. "What bimbo did this?"
"A bimbo named Hiccup." He laughed. "I haven't really been with anyone lately but you should have noticed the mess yesterday anyways."
"I was a little pre-occupied."
"So we just need to pick Cooper up-"Braxton was silenced by the sound of my ringtone.
"Hello?"
"Ava." Graces voice sounded. "My car broke down."
☯
That's how we ended up here, four squished in Braxton's messy car that was missing the seats in the back.
"Hey Brax, remind me again why there are no seats back here?" Cooper said from the floor of the car as I sat next to him.
"It was for the dog." He rolled his eyes as I thought that was his excuse for everything. Fortunately for him he was the driver so he and Grace were sat in the front with seats while Cooper and I sat in the back trying not to die without lack of seats and seatbelts.
"I found the seatbelt!" Grace Cheered, picking up a seatbelt off the ground of the front seats.
"Now if only it was actually attached to the seats." Cooper said, making Braxton make a sharp turn for us to fall. "Hey!"
"Oh I'm sorry." Braxton batted his eyes. "Ava, hold on."
With barely enough time to hold on, Braxton made another sharp turn for Cooper to slip and have his hand fall straight into Braxton's abandoned pizza.
"Damn it Braxton." Cooper growled, picking his hand up to show tomato sauce covering it. "You think this is funny?" Cooper asked me when I laughed.
"Never."
"Avalon."
"Don't call me that." I complained while covering my ears.
"If you think that is bad, you should hear what her grandpa used to call her." Grace snickered.
"Grace." I warned.
"Peewee."
"Grace!" I yelled while everyone burst into laughter.
"Don't worry it's not as bad as the one you'll soon have." Cooper said smirking at me.
"What?"
"Tomato face."
And with that he wiped his tomato sauce covered hand on my face.
☯
"You're such a jerk." I said to Cooper as we both climbed out of the car at school.
Times like these I was grateful Grace liked to carry around little baby wipes in her purse wherever she went as I used it to remove all the tomato sauce.
While Cooper just wiped the remainder of his onto his shirt. Classy.
"I'm sorry but you could've caught me from falling into it in the first place and we wouldn't have this problem."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll make sure to catch you next time with my huge muscles and amazing reflexes."
"Thank you." Cooper said at the same moment we both realized only 2/4 ninja turtles were actually walking towards school as the other two were having a heating conversation by Braxton's car.
"Just let them talk." I said to Cooper while I grabbed his arm to pull him inside.
"What do you think there talking about?" He said after a minute of silence.
"You don't want to know." Making Cooper laugh probably because of his dirty mind. "I got to get to class." As I turned around.
"Ava wait." Cooper said before grabbing my waist and turning me back around very close to him. He picked up his arm and began to weave it through my hair before saying. "You've got pizza sauce in your hair."
☯
The day went slowly throughout the course of classes. I spent my breaks texting Grandma only to have her tell me not to come to the hospital tonight because she was having scans with the doctors.
I was a little disappointed I had to go home without her but I figured two guys named Netflix and Hiccup would keep me company.
But my plans immediately changed when a certain someone stopped me at my lockers with a bundle of flowers.
"Are you ready for our date?"
Hey Guise/Guys
This chapter was alittle small and pathetic but the next one is a big one so stay tuned for that.
As for any updates on my life, I'm on a new volleyball team now and I'm reaching for the captain spot soooo idk, pray for me J
I was recently offered a publishing type deal but I did turn it down because after speaking with the Wattpad team is was not the right move, but hopefully someday we'll get this book out there J
Not much more to say but don't expect an update at the end of January because I have my semester finals and I cannot afford to fail but in the beginning of February expect for another update J
I DO TO MANY SMILEY FACES LLLL
Thank you guys for sticking with me and my book for this long and until the next chapter; ily
COMMENT/VOTE/FOLLOW & LALALOVEYEW/BUHBYE
ALSO HAS ANYONE WATCHED HEARTLAND BC I'M OBSESSED.