Left Behind


TEASER

Kevin shook his head and laughed, walking out of the kitchen and into the living room when the phone rang. With a smile in his voice, Kevin answered it, “Hello?”

Like a line of dominos, Kevin’s face fell. The humor left his eyes and his smile vanished. His mouth suddenly went dry as he glanced at the kitchen, where Nick, Brian, and Howie carried on, oblivious. His voice was soft when he spoke, his tone low, “Could- could you say that again?”

Nick and Brian stuck their faces over Howie’s pan once again. Nick scrunched his nose up and snatched a bottle of seasoning, “Don’t smell quite right, ‘D. I think it needs some more ‘oomph’.” With that, Nick dumped some seasoning into his hand and then threw it into the pan with a, “Bam!”

“Nick!” cried Howie while attempting to block Nick, failing miserably, “Dang it! Yer gonna ruin it!”

Brian snickered, grabbing the salt. He dumped some into his hand and imitated Nick, “Needs salt, Howie.” Brian threw the salt into the pan, “Bam!”

“You guys!” whined Howie, shoving the two away from his food, “You’re not funny!”

They just laughed, falling into the chairs around the kitchen table. Kevin then walked into the kitchen, drawing their attention. Nick grinned at Kevin, not noticing the stricken look in the green eyes, “Hey, Kev! Wanna help us annoy Howie?”

Unlike Nick, Brian noticed Kevin’s shaken appearance and let the smile leave his face, “Kevin? What’s wrong?”

Kevin hesitated, his silence drawing Howie’s attention and wiping the laughter off of Nick’s face. Nick straightened nervously, “Kevin?”

Kevin struggled to speak as he fought back tears, “I- I just got a phone call...” Kevin cleared his throat, glancing away, “AJ... AJ’s had a car-” A silent sob cut Kevin’s voice of, but he forced himself to continue. His green eyes shined as his voice came across tearful and strained, “AJ’s had a car accident. He’s in the hospital...”

Shocked silence filled the room. Nick went white and fell back in his chair. Brian stared at Kevin, unblinking. Howie slowly shook his head, stepping away from the stove and looking at Kevin, “No... Is- is he okay?”

Kevin shut his eyes, “I don’t know. They said we should get to the hospital...”

(Okay, this is a jump to a different part of the story)

AJ slowly blinked his eyes open, feeling oddly detached and numb. As his brown eyes focussed in on a strange man in a white coat, AJ tried to shift position. He gasped as pain shot from his back, echoing in his head. That’s when AJ realized he couldn’t feel his legs. His eyes widened in panic and he stared around the room, realizing he was in the hospital.

“Settle down, Mr. McLean,” spoke the man in the white coat while laying a hand on his chest to settle him. AJ assumed he was a doctor, “You need to lie still. You’ve been involved in a car accident and are in the hospital.”

AJ stared and then tried to talk, coughing out his question, “M-my... legs?”

The doctor hesitated and AJ felt his heart skip a beat, “You suffered a severe blow to you lower back, causing extensive bruising and swelling. The swelling has effected your spinal chord and has caused you to lose the use of your legs. This should be temporary, Mr. Mclean.” The doctor made sure he held AJ’s gaze, “You should regain the feeling of your legs as soon as your back heals and the swelling goes down.”

Even through the shock of information, AJ felt sleep pulling at him already. But, even as his eyes fell closed, AJ couldn’t miss one of the words the doctor spoke.

Should?