Page 63 of Accidentally Falling For My Best Friend
I know without a doubt that something is wrong with Parker if she’s the one calling me back after all this time. He would understand how anxious his lack of response would have left me. He’d be doing everything that he could to get a hold of me, to reassure me that he was okay.
“Parker’s fine,” she chokes out, attempting to reassure me, but the words do little to calm my racing heart.
“Aspen, tell me what the fuck is wrong!” I shout.
I know I’m way too loud and that the whole family can hear me yelling from where I ran into the hallway. I do try to calm down as I take deep measured breaths. Still, it’s hard not to keep yelling at Aspen, because clearly something is wrong with Parker, and she didn’t stop it from happening.Probably not her fault.I remind myself of that but logic and reasoning can only go so far when my anxiety over Parker’s well-being has been so high all day. It’s poisoned my every thought with intrusive, worst-case scenarios. I know I won’t be able to calm down until I can physically see for myself that he’s okay.
It’s only been a moment, but it feels like an eternity before she finally answers. “He’s in the hospital, but he really is fine! They said his blood sugar was high. He stopped throwing up?—”
My eyes widen. “He wasthrowing up?”
“—butthey gave him fluids to replenish his electrolytes. He’s in good hands, Oakley.”
Even though she says it, I don’t believe it. There’s so many things that could go wrong here. If it was bad enough that he needed to be hospitalized, I can’t just stay here and do nothing.
I take in another deep breath, trying to level out my breathing before I respond. I don’t want her to think I’m angry, butfuck me, she could have called me sooner. “Thank you for calling.”
She sighs over the other end of the line, guilt written in her tone. “I’m sorry I couldn’t call sooner. We just found a phone charger?—”
“It’s okay,” I rush out. I don’t mean to interrupt her, but I don’t care to hear anything other than information that will get me to Parker. “Please give me the address.”
“Okay,” she says through a small tremble. She rattles off the address of the hospital they’re in. Before I can hang up, she stops me. “Oakley, I really am sorry.”
“Thanks, Aspen. See you soon.”
When I hang up, I’m shaking, adrenaline racing through my body with nowhere to channel it as I pull up a rideshare app to request a car to the airport.
“Is Parker okay?” Cody asks as he enters the hallway. I’m assuming he and Beck probably waited to give me privacy, but they both look alarmed when I flash the rideshare app.
“He’s in the hospital with diabetes complications. Aspen said he’s okay, but I’m going to Atlanta. He needs me.”
“I’m glad he’s okay and in the hospital with professionals who can help him,” Beck says with a loud exhale, obviously relieved by the news. “I get that you want to be with him, but are you sure you want to leave without even saying goodbye to our parents or grandparents?” Beck checks, following me as I put on my shoes and walk outside.
“I can’t wait, I need to be there.” I insist, pacing as I check the app again.
“Oak, he’s going to be okay,” Beck tries, reaching out to place a hand on my shoulder, but I shrug it off.
“You can’t know that!” I insist. “I never should have been away from Parker to begin with, this never would have happened if I’d been there,” I point out, voice cracking as I spin to face him. “I promised. All of those years ago, when he first got diagnosed and almost died. It was the scariest moment of my life, but his dad promised me he wouldn’t let anything happen to Parker. And then his dad died, and I took on that promise. I swore to him he wouldn’t end up back in the hospital, that I would be there to make sure it never happened again.”
“Oakley, you have to know it’s not your fault,” Cody tries to reassure me but there’s no use.
Any sense of a filter I had is gone with all of the stress, and I can’t stop the thoughts flying through my mind from spilling out of my mouth without my permission. “I love him. I’m in love with Parker and I should have been with him today. Not just because it’s Christmas, or because he was struggling and I could have made it easier on him, but because I want to be with him all the time. Every moment that we’re together is better than when we’re apart. His presence settles something inside of me that I can’t explain. It’s like a part of me is missing when I’m not with him. And I’m an idiot for not realizing it sooner, for not seeing what was right in front of me.”
Beck looks a little smug at my confession, and Cody is beaming at me, but neither looks surprised. I’ve probably gotten my point across already, but I keep going. “I don’t want to wait until we’re alone to be able to touch him. I don’t want to hide the fact that I’m in love with him from my own family.” My voice is calmer now, each word seemingly loosening the imaginary chains I’ve felt tightening around my chest, slowly suffocating me the longer I went on pretending Parker and I are just friends.
“Keep us updated. Go get your man,” Beck says with a smirk as my driver pulls up and I promise I will.
By the time I’m at the airport, I’ve booked a seaton the next flight to Atlanta. Luckily, there was a flight because if driving had been faster, I was prepared to pay my Uber driver an exorbitant amount of money if it meant getting to Parker sooner.
Other than the wallet that was in my pocket, I didn’t bring anything with me since I walked right out of my grandparents' house and came straight here. I get through security quickly, and learning from Parker’s mistake, I buy a phone charger before I get to my gate. I make a quick call to Parker’s mom, updating her on what I know and that I’m on my way to him. She asks if she should come too, but I assure her I’ll make sure he’s okay and that I’ll call with any updates. I can tell she’s hesitant to agree and that she wants to see for herself that he’s okay, but she admits that Parker would hate it if she made a fuss and makes me promise to video call as soon as I can.
The flight feels like it drags on forever, but eventually I’m pulling up in another rideshare at the Atlanta Hospital. I guess it’s only been a couple of hours since I first heard from Aspen, but in a way, I feel like a different person than I was when I answered her call. I have new priorities, a new perspective on what’s important in my life, and I’m finally ready to fight for it.
I’ve spent the entire time thinking about what to say to Parker. Aspen texted that she left while Parker was still sleeping to get some sleep herself, so I shouldn’t have an audience at least. I need to be honest and tell him how I really feel, but as I enter the lobby to check in, it’s like my mind has gone blank.
“I’m here to see Parker Leighton,” I tell the security guard, who already looks annoyed.
They type something into their computer before turning back to me. “Intensive care visiting hours ended over an hour ago. You can come back at eight AM.”
