Halstead Sister

Low Sugar

A/N: thank you to everyone who gave me requests and please feel free to keep posting them! A couple people suggested a diabetes related chapter so here it is.

Tess POV (14 y/o)
It was summer. I had been forced to spend much of my break at the district. Jay and Will still didn't like me staying home alone. I spent some time hanging out with my friends but there were still days where no one was around and both of my brothers had to work. Today, however, I had plans to go to the mall with Lucy and then her mom would drop me off at home. Since it would only be a few hours until Will would get off work, I managed to convince Will and Jay to let me stay home. Lucy and I spent a few hours walking around and looking at clothes but neither of us bought anything. We ended up getting smoothies and sitting in the food court until her mom came to get us.
When I got home, I texted my brothers to let them know that I was home and safe. I then laid down on the couch and put on a scary movie. After the movie, I felt unusually tired. I looked at the clock. Nearly 6pm. Where was Will? I sat up and grabbed my phone to call him.
"Hey, T, everything ok?" He answered.
"Um, yeah, I just, where are you?" I was a little confused and couldn't really remember why I called him.
"Still at work. Have a few more things to finish up." He told me.
"When will you be back?" I asked.
"I shouldn't be too much longer. You sure you're okay?" He repeated.
"Yeah" I mumbled. "See you soon." I hung up the phone and laid back in the couch. Not only was I tired but I was a little nauseous and lightheaded. I pulled the fleece throw blanket over me and closed my eyes.

Will POV
After hanging up with Tess, I logged out of my computer. My patient notes could wait. Tess sounded off on the phone and I was worried. I quickly gathered my things and headed home.
"I'm home!" I called as I opened the door. No answer. I walked into the living room and saw Tess asleep on the couch. I smiled and sat down next to her. "Hey Tiny" I said softly as I gently placed my hand on her shoulder. She didn't react. "Tess. Wakey, wakey." I shook her. Tess groaned. "Morning sunshine." I said sarcastically. Tess mumbled something incoherently. "Hm?" I brushed her hair off her face. Tess again muttered something I couldn't understand. "C'mon, T. Get up. Let's get some dinner." I said more forcefully. I couldn't tell if she was being stubborn or if something was wrong. Tess tiredly sat forward and then fell backwards against the couch. That answered my question. Something wasn't quite right. "You okay?" I asked.
"Jayyyyy" Tess whined.
That worried me. "Where are you?" I asked her. Tess mumbled some response that I was fairly sure was 'bed'. "Who am I?" She replied with a garbled 'Jay'. I didn't like those answers. I went into the bathroom and grabbed the glucometer. I sat down next to Tess and grabbed her hand. She barely flinched when I poked her finger. 54. "Damnit" I muttered under my breath. I went into the kitchen and poured a glass of orange juice and stirred in two spoonfuls of sugar. "Drink." I held the glass out for my sister. Tess looked at me blankly and shook her head. I nodded back at her. "Oh yes. Drink." I sat beside her and helped her hold the cup and guided it to her mouth. Tess grimaced at the taste. "More." I helped her take another sip and kept going until she finished the whole glass. By the time she took her last sip, she didn't need my help. "Better?" I asked. Tess sheepishly looked down. "Hand." I held out my palm for my sister. She placed her hand in mine and I pricked her finger again. "88." I said aloud. "Better than it was. You doing ok?" Tess nodded. I went back into the kitchen grabbed an uncrustable from the freezer and a glass of milk. I went back into the living room and tossed the prepackaged sandwich at my sister.
"Seriously?" She asked me.
"When I got home your sugar was 54." I told her. "Eat." Tess sighed but opened the package and took a bite.

Tess POV
I sat on the couch and begrudgingly ate the sandwich Will gave me.
"Did you even eat today?" Will asked as he sat beside me.
"I had breakfast. And got a smoothie at the mall." I told him.
"So not really then." Will summarized. I shrugged and took a bite of the sandwich. Will sighed. "You know that you have to eat. You've got to start taking care of yourself." Will held out a glass of milk, which I gratefully accepted.
"I'm sorry" I huffed. I didn't see what the big deal was. I was fine. I'm always fine.
Will sighed. "Sorry doesn't cut it, T. You're lucky I got home when I did. See, this is why we don't leave you home alone all day. You can barely manage a few hours let alone a whole day."
"But I can take care of myself!" I retorted. "I just wasn't hungry and fell asleep."
"I'm going to fight with you about this now." Will shook his head. "Mainly because I think, or hope, that deep down you know I'm right."
I finished the sandwich and milk and stared at my lap. I mean he wasn't 100% wrong. Sometimes I didn't watch what I was eating or I'd forget my meds. I was so tired of everyone telling me what to do; when to be home, what to wear, what to eat, when to take my meds. I'm the one who's sick. I can handle my own life. However, Will was right. Maybe if I actually took care of myself, they wouldn't need to keep telling me what to do.
"I'm gonna take that silence as a yes?" Will spoke up.
I shrugged. "I guess so." Will wrapped his arm around my shoulder and gave me a half hug. "But, if I promise to take better care of myself, will you let me stay home alone?" I asked hopefully.
Will smirked. "We can talk about. But we'd also have to convince Jay, and it's gonna take a little more than watching your sugar to convince him." I chuckled, knowing he was right- Jay had always been more overprotective than Will. I was just glad we started the conversation.