Page 103 of Break the Ice
CHAPTER 32
JAYDEN
Friends.
I keep reminding myself every time I reach for Finley. Any part of her I can hold on to while Elijah’s doctor informs us and Lex of what’s going on.
Then she grips my hand and my chest squeezes tight at the contact. At the sensation of her slender fingers laced with mine.
“What are you saying? What does that mean?” The questions roll from my tongue one after the other, rushed into an urgent ramble. “Is he going to be okay?”
“It’s a lot to take in, I know. After such a traumatic experience, it’s anticlimactic and leaves even more questions than if it was something sinister,” the doctor turns to look over Elijah while the nurse administers the drug to wake him up. “All the tests and scans have come back normal, so it's a matter of rest and finding the right medication to prevent the migraines from escalating like this.”
“But he couldn’t see when the paramedics got there and his speech…” Finley sounds as confused as I am. “I don’t understand…”
“You said you thought he was having a stroke,” Lex snaps, twisting away from where Eli is sedated.
He’s baffled too, and the way his stare is boring into mine—accusing and full of blame—makes the sight of Eli harder to stomach.
So pale and fragile…
Fuck.
My pulse cuts through my veins with each second I hold his still form in my sight. Every inch of me is aching when Finley leans into myside. Her embrace coils around me. Exactly the way I need it. I need her. The dearest part of Eli that is accessible to me.
That he has put in my hands.
“Are you sure?” Finley asks the doctor. Her fingertips are clawing into my side. “It did not look like a migraine. He just… justdropped.”
“Complicated migraines can mimic the symptoms of a stroke.”
“You are one-hundred percent sure of it?” Lex questions.
“The CT and nerve tests are all normal. No tumors, no legions, no clots, no concussion…”
“So, he’s fine?” I can’t believe it. It’s not sinking in because I can still see his pale face and faraway gaze as I caught him in my arms.
Finley looks up at me in disbelief. “Just like that?”
“Not just like that,” the doctor gives Finley a reassuring chuckle. “There is a process for treating this type of migraine. We've administered IV fluids and triptan to take care of this episode.”
“This episode? Will this happen again?” Finley’s panicked and choked.
“Complicated migraines are a chronic neurological condition. We’ll have to identify the triggers and work on a management plan.”
“What happens now?” I ask the doctor.
“Are you asking me if he’ll be able to play or?—”
“I’m asking what happensnow. When you wake Eli up. Is he going to feel better? What happens if he doesn’t?”
“How long could he have this migraine for?” Lex adds.
“I can’t answer that. It could be over, or it could last longer. Sometimes up to seventy-two hours. If the migraine is still strong, we’ll administer the prednisone steroid to break the status migrainosus. At a last resort we’ll sedate him again.”
Finley claws my hand.
When I look at her, she appears as deflated as I feel.
