12- The whole family sat in the hospital’s waiting room on hard plastic chairs.
Damn these chairs, Avery thought to herself. If someone is in the ER waiting room they’ve definitely got enough problems… no need to worsen one’s life by making it utterly impossible to stay seated in the same position for more than a couple of minutes.
She rubbed her behind, frowning, and looked at her watch.
Zac had been in there for more than an hour.
Looking around at her family, she felt her heart break into pieces.
Diana was rocking back and forth, still crying and praying.
Walker had his elbows resting on his knees and his head in his hands. He’d been in that position for quite some time now, she wondered if he had even fallen asleep.
Isaac’s face was palid, his eyes were pinched and dry, and his hair a ratty mess. He was trying to be the strong older brother, but she could see that he was trying not to fall apart. He had already lost his baby sister, he couldn’t lose his brother too.
Jessica had Mackenzie in her lap, he had fallen asleep on her and she was playing with his relaxed fingers. She would look at her watch once in a while and look at her mother in question. In response, Diana would cry harder and Jessica would blink back tears as she heavily focused on Mackenzie’s fingers.
Taylor frighteningly looked somewhere else. His eyes were glazed over; he had been staring at the same spot on the floor for the past hour, but not intensely. His bright blue gaze went beyond that, and his teeth were tightly clenched.
Without a word, Taylor got up and slowly went to the bathroom. A few seconds later, Isaac followed his footsteps and found his brother sitting on the bathroom floor, in silent misery. Taylor looked at his watch, at Isaac, and back at his watch. They stared at each other.
“Taylor…”
“What’s happening Ike? Ike… what the hell’s the matter with this hospital? Why can’t they stabilize him? Why can’t they let us see him? I wanna see Zac. Why don’t we know if he’s going to…” his voice trailed off, and he drew his knees in. Tears were streaming down his face now, and he did nothing to wipe them off.
“No!”
“What?”
“No.” he repeated, “Dammit Taylor… you’re not doing this to me now. Our whole fucking family’s falling apart. I’m about to go crazy… all I’ve got in this life to keep me sane are you guys. One of you just attempted suicide. There’s just you now… and you’re not breaking down now. Not right now, I can’t take it. Please.” His face showed one of desperation. “I can’t be the only strong one.”
Taylor sniffled. “Jess… there’s Jess.”
“Taylor… Jess is twelve.”
Taylor’s voice was choked. “But Ike…I just don’t think I can take this much longer. And I’m not dumb enough to cry in front of everyone, that’ll get the girls going. I just…” he paused and Isaac barely heard his muffled words. “God, when did everything get so fucked up.” It was more a statement than a question.
Isaac sighed “I honestly don’t know. And it’s not the time and place to evaluate this. Right now I’m just begging you for more than anything I’ve ever begged to you before… please don’t do this to me. Keep your head up…”
“What do you care what I do? Let me be…”
“Taylor…” Isaac whispered, “Please… you’re- you’re all I’ve got left.”
Taylor sighed. A few minutes later he looked up and took a deep breath. “Fine. But it’s not for you. For Jess, Avery, and Mac…”
Isaac snorted. “Thanks for the lovin’ Tay ”
Taylor gave him a weak smile. “Okay… for you too, Isaac”
“Thank you.”
Together, they walked back into the waiting room.
-----
“Mr. And Mrs. Hanson?”
Walker and Diana’s head sharply went up. Diana rose to her feet, then stopped and sat back down, not quite sure where she was going.
“I take it that’s you?”
“Yes. I’m Diana Hanson, this is my husband Walker, and these are our children.”
“I’m Dr. Meyers.”
Her hair was curly, her eyes bright. Avery noticed her resemblance to Meg Ryan frighteningly precise.
Looking at the Hanson family, she spoke in a low voice.
“Do you wish to discuss your son’s condition in private?” Taylor realized she didn’t approve of the little kids knowing about their brother’s suicide attempt.
Diana began to shake her head but Walker cut her off. “No, they’ve been through everything else. They’re going to want to know what’s going on with Zachary. We’re not keeping secrets.”
Dr. Meyers gave a nod of approval. “Very well then, Mr. Hanson. Zachary is in a somewhat better condition. Though stable, he’s not doing well.”
Diana drew her breath in sharply. “Can we see him? But he’s not… you’re not saying he could worsen are you?”
“Let me finish. Your son slit his wrists in two different ways: completely vertical, and in a curve. One of the ways, the vertical way, was wrong. That was one of the things that saved his life. Only half of what he slit really provided sufficient blood loss… the curve shaped half. Are you still with me?”
Seven pairs of blank looking eyes stared back at her.
Dr. Meyers sighed and continued, “He lost seven and a half pints of blood. Seven and a half pints. The average person doesn’t survive without that amount. If his wrists had been slit completely right, he would have lost too much. Thank god for lack of knowledge. Right now Zachary is in the process of having blood pumped back inside of him. Six pints to be exact. He’s very lucky. Half a pint more would have proved fatal…that would have been a couple more minutes of him passed out. Now, if I recall correctly, one of you found him?” She nodded towards the children.
“I did.” Avery’s small voice was heard.
“What’s your name sweetie?”
“Avery Laurel”
Dr. Meyers smiled at her. “You did the right thing, Avery. You saved your brother’s life. Now let me take you guys to him. I’m sure he’s anxious to see his family.”
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