Moment in the Sun

6. Time

Nick POV - (panic attack, mental illness, medical procedure)

My alarm goes off at 8am and I roll over with a groan to turn it off. I feel like I only got three hours of sleep. Probably not even that. I was up late on the phone with Charlie, trying to calm him down after a panic attack.

He is currently staying in the hospital as an inpatient to get treatment after his relapse last week. It hasn't been going very well. Last night he wouldn't eat at dinner so, as per the doctor's recommendation, the staff made him drink this protein drink that I think is supposed to help keep up his nutrition if he's not eating. He's told me it tastes awful and he hates it but a part of him is in control enough to know he has to drink it when he can't eat. Apparently last night, though, he couldn't keep it down, throwing up pretty soon after so the doctor's next step was to put a tube through his nose and into his stomach which would allow them to keep up his nutrition while they focused on his mental health.

The nurse who originally called me told me that as soon as he'd heard about the plan, Charlie had begun to hyperventilate and cry, curling himself into a ball and wouldn't let anyone touch him. They had wanted to try and calm him by letting him talk to me before forcing the issue so I talked to him over the phone, eventually getting him to stop crying enough to talk to me. It broke my heart to hear how terrified he sounded. I wished I could have gone to visit him in person but by the time I got there, visiting hours would have been over.

Slowly, over a couple of hours, Charlie calmed down enough to let the staff do what they needed. I stayed on the phone with him the whole time, hating hearing his little whimpers and cries. I couldn't help but feel more guilty over the fact that it was my fault he was in this situation again.

When it was over, I kept talking to him, talking about anything and everything I could think of, trying to distract him. I eventually succeeded in getting a few giggles out of him and I was finally able to hang up, knowing that, at least for now, he was okay. Afterwards, it had taken me a long time to fall asleep, tossing and turning for ages as I thought about Charlie and how much I wished I could to more to help him.

Which is why I now feel like shit when I need to get up. The Paris squad are coming around in a little while. They're all worried about Charlie and want to be kept updated but I suspect their impromptu visit is more to do with distracting me than anything else. All I want to do right now is go back to sleep but I sit up anyway, grabbing my phone from the table beside to find a text from Tori.

Victoria Spring: Hey Nick, thanks for looking after Charlie last night.

She must have gotten to the hospital early. Between us and Charlie's parents, we'd been taking turns visiting him so that he didn't get overwhelmed with all of us at once. It was working pretty well so far.

Nick Nelson: That's okay. How is he this morning? I will try to come down this afternoon.

Victoria Spring: Physically fine. Mentally, it's going to be a long road. I think he'd appreciate seeing you.

Nick Nelson: God, this sucks. I hate that he has to be there again.

Victoria Spring: Me too. But it will get better. I'll tell him you're coming later.

"Nicky! Breakfast is ready!" My mum called from downstairs. She'd taken to making breakfast for me every few days, despite my protests. She claimed it was her way of spending time with me while I was home.

"Coming mum!" I called back. I put my phone back on the table and got up off the bed. I made quick work of pulling up the sheets and pulling on some clothes. Checking my hair in the mirror, I left the room, going downstairs to find my mum in the kitchen.