Feeling Faint (BxB)

Chapter 30

Jay turns his gaze out the window as he finally begins to talk while I drive. "I guess, just a lot of not so good memories have been in my head all day and it's getting hard to brush them off."

I nod, encouraging him to continue, but he doesn't say another word for several minutes. I start to wonder whether I pushed the topic too hard when I glance over and realize that his entire face is scrunched up in pain, his eyes squinted closed.

I immediately pull over, putting the car in park on the side of the road even though we're nearly home.

I place a hand on his shoulder, watching him closely. "Deep breaths in and out. Hang in there."

I bite my lip in hesitation. "We're just a few blocks from home, do you want to wait it out here or try to get you back in the apartment onto the couch?"

He grimaces again, holding his head as he hoarsely whispers, "Drive."

I nod, taking his hand and squeezing once before starting the car back up again and driving as fast as I can without getting pulled over.

I manage to get us back quickly, although how safely I drove was probably a bit on the questionable side.

I slam the car into park and Madelyn wakes in the back seat. "Madelyn, why don't you unbuckle and stand by the front door where I can see you? You can babysit all the penguins for a bit okay? Jay and I will be over in a little bit."

She smiles, taking the penguins in her arms and cuddling them close. I walk around the car to the passenger seat as I watch her walk over to the front step and sit, happily playing with the stuffed animals.

I pull open Jay's door, finding him still hunched over in his seat and holding his head.

"Can we get you inside?" I ask cautiously.

"No." He gasps out, teeth clenched tightly as he breathes heavily.

I take his hand. "Hey you're doing great okay? Keep breathing. Try some deep breaths and focus on me instead of the pain."

He continues to struggle to breathe properly, and I start to worry more as he's nearly gasping for every breath. I've just begun to contemplate speed dialing my dad when his breath slowly begins to go back to normal.

Some of the tension of worry escapes my body, but I can tell that he's still in a lot of pain. "Do you want to try to get inside now?" I ask gently.

He pulls in a shuddering breath and whispers a small "yeah". I slowly help him out of the car, though he still grimaces with each movement and is leaning a fair amount of his weight on me.

Madelyn quickly takes notice as we make our way to the door and comes running over. "What's wrong with Blue Jay?" She exclaims, eyes wide and worried.

He glances over at me, clearly still in too much pain to respond.

"He'll be alright. We've just got to get him inside. How about you get the door?" I suggest.

She nods hurriedly and runs ahead to get the door. Jay shoots me a grateful look and I squeeze his hand again, doing my best to help him inside.

We manage to get to the apartment door, though he's panting heavily again. I take the opportunity to slide him down the wall to rest on the floor while I unlock the door.

Madelyn pats his shoulder gently and gives him his penguin. I watch as he tries to smile at her, though it ends up looking more like a grimace.

"Do you need a minute?" I ask, pausing near the open door. He nods, then immediately winces, hand flying to his head.