Hold On I Still Need You

-A Frightening Turn-

A/N: 😢😢This was hard to write. 

Keefe's POV:

I'm not sure what happens first—the way Sophie's face goes pale, or the sound of her breath hitching as if she's drowning in air. But I know I can't breathe, either. "Sophie?" I rush to her side, my hands shaking as I try to steady her. She doesn't respond—just crumples to the ground like she doesn't even have the strength to stay upright.

My heart stops in my chest. "Sophie, talk to me." She gasps for breath, and her heart is racing—way too fast. I can hear it pounding in my head, each beat like a punch to the gut. My mind is screaming for answers, for something, but all I can do is press my hand against her chest, trying to keep her grounded, trying to stay calm, even though I'm anything but.

"Sophie, please, look at me," I say, my voice shaking despite myself. Her eyes flicker open, but they're distant. Unfocused. "You're okay. You're okay, just breathe with me." I grab her hand, squeezing it as tightly as I can.

"Sophie, stay with me, please." Her pulse is erratic, her body trembling, and every second feels like an eternity. I can't lose her. Not like this. "Please, don't leave me," I whisper, though I don't know if she can hear me.

Suddenly, the door bursts open, and Grady and Edaline rush into the room, their faces twisted with panic. Grady's eyes darted from Sophie to me, and without a word, he dropped to the floor beside her.

"We need to take her to the hospital," Edaline says, her voice frantic. Grady nods, already pulling his phone from his pocket to call for help.

My breath catches in my throat. I can't think, can't process, only hold onto Sophie, praying she doesn't slip away.

I scoop Sophie into my arms and rush out with Grady and Edaline out to the car. The ride to the hospital was a blur of flashing lights and the sound of tires screeching against the pavement. My chest felt tight, like someone had wrapped a vice around it. Sophie—Sophie, my best friend, the girl I would do anything for, the girl I secretly love—was lying unconscious in the backseat, and the panic gnawed at me like a wild animal.

Grady and Edaline's faces were a mixture of worry and frustration, their usual calm shattered by the sight of Sophie's condition. But even their anxiety couldn't compare to mine. Every second felt like a lifetime. I wanted to scream, to shake her awake, but I stayed quiet, clinging to the fragile hope that she would open her eyes any moment.

We burst through the hospital doors, and within seconds, she was taken away, rushed into emergency care. The sterile smell of the hospital made my stomach turn, but I didn't care. Nothing mattered except Sophie.

Alden and Elwin arrived shortly after, their faces pale, their eyes unreadable. They ran test after test, the beeping of machines drowning out everything else. I hovered at the edge of the room, barely able to breathe. The doctors exchanged a look, and that single glance was enough to send a chill down my spine.

"It's worse than before," Elwin said, his voice unusually grim. "We don't know what's happening. Her condition is deteriorating too fast, and we have no immediate solution."

No immediate solution. The words echoed in my mind, over and over again. I felt a knot tighten in my stomach. How could they say that? Sophie was the most important person in my world.

"I'm staying," I said, the words coming out almost desperate. "I'm not leaving her."

They hesitated, exchanging a glance of reluctance. But in the end, they let me stay. They knew. They could see the fear in my eyes. I wouldn't let her go through this alone. Not now. Not ever.