Page 59 of Highway To Destiny

I dozed off after a couple of hours and awoke to the sounds of a hospital coming to life in the early morning. I looked at my phone, and it was almost seven a.m. I needed coffee. Thankfully, the cafeteria had some good brew, and then I realized I was in Seattle, the coffee Mecca of the Northwest. Once I’d got a large Styrofoam mug filled and doctored the way I liked it, I headed back to the ICU.

I took a detour to the men’s room, washed my face, and brushed my teeth, feeling a little more human and presentable. I would need to figure out where to stay besides crashing in the waiting areas of the hospital. I knew I’d need to find a cheap hotel room for a few days. I plopped back down in the waiting room since I had another hour before I could see Mason when visiting hours started. It was a good time to call Mom and Spencer to let them know I made it okay and update them on Mason’s condition.

After almost an hour, I noticed more staff, with an occasional patient, traversing the hallways. I got to the ICU and rounded the corner to the nurse’s station, where I saw Eli talking to a young nurse. I quickly hurried to his side and slightly bumped his shoulder. My arrival stopped their conversation abruptly.

Eli turned, and I instinctively threw my arms around him. He didn’t say anything but returned my embrace. I let go and stepped back—the look on his face was relaxed and calm, which I needed to see.

“Morning, Connor,” he said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Have you been here in the hospital all night?”

“I have, yes,” I replied, then quickly added, “The waiting area isn’t so bad, but hardly a place to spend the night. I think I’ll need to find a cheap hotel close by.”

Eli nodded. “We’ll talk about that, but first, let’s talk to the doctors and find out what the deal is with Mason.” He gestured a thumb to the nurse he’d been talking to. “Colleen here told me the critical care physician and the neurologist will be making rounds soon. We can talk to them together.”

I felt so grateful to have Eli take control and maintain such a calm demeanor. My anxiety level had been growing through the night, but Eli helped center the worrying chatter in my head. All I could think of to say was, “Thank you.”

Colleen took us to Mason’s room. He didn’t look any different than the previous night—neither did the room. Eli glanced in my direction as we entered.

“Fuck me!” he said under his breath.

“I know.”

There were two chairs. One was a hard-looking recliner pushed against the wall on the side furthest from us, and the other was a folding chair. There was also a rolling stool at the opposite end of the room. I opted for the folding chair, and Eli rolled the stool over to sit at the end of the bed. I sidled up next to Mason to hold his hand. I hadn’t noticed how big his room was last night. Then again, my eyes had only been on Mason’s sleeping form.

Mason’s hand was limp but warm, and I wished I could have felt his grip in return. I couldn’t take my eyes off his chest that rose and fell with the ventilator. I wanted to crawl onto the bed and hold him.

“Good morning, sweet man,” I said gently, then kissed the top of his hand.

“Have you been talking to him?” Eli asked.

I placed Mason’s hand on my cheek when I looked in Eli’s direction. “No. All I did was hold his hand and cry until I had to leave. I didn’t have the chance to spend much time with him.”

Eli looked at the floor as he sat on the stool with his elbows on his knees. “You know he’s in a coma, right?” I nodded.

Eli took a deep breath and said, “When I got to the hospital this morning, they directed me up here. I found Mason’s legal documents shortly after we spoke on the phone yesterday. I am his power of attorney, so I gave copies to Colleen for his chart. They have his health directive and living will information too. I drove all night to get here.”

I could see how tired he was, not only from the drive but from hunting down and finding Mason’s papers. I was sure the adrenaline he’d had was long gone.

“When was the last time you ate?” I asked, knowing he probably hadn’t eaten or it was snacky stuff and coffee from the gas stations he’d stopped at along the way.

“I haven’t,” he replied flatly. “I haven’t been hungry.”

Eli was such a loyal friend to Mason. I had that same friendship with Spencer. I felt all four of us were lucky to have such strong bonds with each other.

I never let go of Mason’s hand. “Okay, I haven’t eaten either, so once we get some answers from the doctors, I say we head to the cafeteria.” Eli agreed.

Suddenly, we heard one of the monitors beep erratically. Then, a long, continuous beep and a shrill alarm. I froze, not knowing what to do, and Eli sat up so fast the stool shot across the room. Two nurses rushed into the room seconds later, one yelling, “Code Blue!” down the hall. A man in a lab coat followed close behind and told Eli and me to step outside.

“What the fuck is happening?” I cried out, my head whipping from side to side, waiting for an answer. Eli grabbed my arm and ushered us both into the hallway. I saw two more nurses pushing a cart toward his room, and I almost tripped over myself, trying to get out of their way.

I didn’t want to leave Mason as I saw one of the nurses doing chest compressions. Eli pulled me down the hall to sit on the bench where Sam and I had sat the night before.

“It looks like he’s had some sort of heart attack, Connor,” Eli said as he held my arm in a tight grip. “Let them do their job, and he’ll be fine.” I turned my head as I heard footsteps echo down the hall—two other doctors rushed into his room. My chest felt tight, and I found it hard to breathe. Eli gently pushed my head down and told me to take deep breaths through my nose and to slow my breathing.

“He’s going to be fine,” Eli repeated. I think he was trying to convince himself Mason would be okay. All I heard was that damn long beep.

I felt the world was suffocating me.

37

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