Page 76 of Taste of Surrender
A moment later, the security guy came back. “Move out of the way.”
Jesse and I pulled away from our friend and watched as the security guy administered Narcan into Silas’s nose.
The seconds ticked by, each one feeling like fucking forever. But then, Silas’s body jerked suddenly, and he took a deep, ragged breath. Relief washed over me, but I knew we weren’t out of the woods yet.
“Keep talking to him,” the security guy ordered. “We need to keep him conscious until the ambulance arrives.”
“Silas, stay with us,” I begged, dropping to my knees again and gripping his hand tightly. “Just open your eyes, okay?”
Jesse knelt beside me. “Come on, buddy. You’re stronger than this.”
Silas’s eyelids fluttered, and he groaned softly. His eyes opened, unfocused and glassy, but it was a start. I squeezed his hand, willing him to stay awake.
The distant wail of sirens grew louder, and soon the paramedics burst into the room, taking over. They checked his vitals, started an IV, and loaded him onto a stretcher.
I stood back, watching helplessly. Jasper stood next to me and grabbed my hand. I held on tight, thankful for him and also scared out of my fucking mind. The reality of the situation crashed over me in waves. We should have gotten Silas help a long-ass time ago. We shouldn’t have turned a blind eye because we knew what he was doing.
We should have helped him.
23
Jasper
The waitingroom was filled with stifling tension as we all awaited word on Silas’s condition. It seemed Jesse and Malachi had reached an unspoken truce for the time being, but it felt as though it wouldn’t take much for things to pop off again since everyone was on edge.
Malachi and I had come straight to the hospital from the venue, and Jesse, Olivia, Elliott, Savannah,and Rina had shown up only a few moments later. It seemed word had already gotten out that Silas had been taken away by ambulance, as indicated by the horde of reporters waiting on the sidewalk near the emergency room.
“Can’t security do anything about them?” Elliott hooked his thumb toward the window where we could see the paparazzi standing around.
Rina shrugged. “Unless they come onto the hospital property, there isn’t much anyone can do.”
“I’m going to see if I can find some coffee or a vending machine around here. Any of you want something?” Olivia asked.
“I’m good. Thanks,” I replied as Malachi, Elliott, and Savannah shook their heads.
Jesse stood. “I’ll go with you.”
“While you do that, I’m going to see if I can get an update.” Rina followed them out.
I reached over and squeezed Malachi’s hand. “How are you holding up?”
He’d been quiet on the drive over and hadn’t said a word since we’d sat down. I could only imagine how scared he had been when he’d found his friend unconscious.
He shook his head. “Not great. I should have paid more attention to what was going on. All the signs were there, but I didn’t help him.”
“Hey, you’re not the only one,” Elliott said, leaning forward and bracing his elbows on his knees as Savannah rubbed his back. “I think we all wanted to believe he had things under control.”
“This isn’t anyone’s fault,” I stated. “Instead of blaming yourselves, you should focus on helping him through whatever comes next.”
Malachi nodded as Elliott said, “We should probably listen to your boyfriend.”
The words were spoken without a hint of judgment, and I was grateful Elliott seemed to accept us being together so easily. At least it appeared we had one of the guys in our corner.
Jesse and Olivia returned, and with them, so did the silence. After arguing with Jesse earlier in the day, I understood some of his reasons for being upset with Malachi and me. However, he was going to have to get over his shit soon because they were all going to need to work together to help Silas.
I didn’t know how much time passed before Rina joined us again. She took a seat next to Olivia and let out a sigh. “Silas is awake, and he gave the doctor permission to talk to me.”
“How is he? Do they know how he overdosed so fast?” Eli asked.
