Yeah, I Hate You Too, Sweetheart.

Chapter 28 - Justin

Justin

     I heard the thump echoing up from the second floor a few seconds before there was a loud shout of "MOM! KIM! JEANINE! LAILA FAINTED!"

That was all it took before I was sprinting up the long staircase to the next floor, down the hallway, banging into Laila, Maggie, and Emma's room. Patricia, Jeanine, and my mother were close on my heels, followed by Dimitri and Dad, and then lastly Emma and Nick.

Maggie was bent down beside Laila's unconscious body, a look on her face that I could honestly say I'd never seen before. She was worried, a stricken expression tugging at her features.

"Maggie!" Patricia explained, bending down beside her daughter. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Maggie exclaimed, her voice high pitched. "She was standing in the doorway, talking to me, and then the next thing I knew, she fainted."

Patricia lead her daughter over to take a seat on a bed, trying to calm her down.

Horrifying freaked out nerves started twisting my stomach into knots as I knelt on the ground beside Laila. Laying the back of my hand against her forehead, I frowned.

"She has a fever," I said to the people present in the room.

She was burning up, that was plainly obvious.

"It must be altitude sickness," Jeanine said, twisting her hands together. "She's never been this high up before."

"Laila?" I brushed back a strand of hair from her face, biting my lip. "Can you hear me, sweetheart?"

She remained decidedly silent.

"I'll open the door," Nick said before walking across the room to slide open the door that lead out to the second level of the back deck.

A soft, chill breeze floated through the room, ruffling our clothing and the curtains. I waited with baited breath, hoping that Laila would just wake up already and be all right.

Much to my relief, half a second later, Laila's sea-blue eyes fluttered open, her chest heaving she she struggled to sit up. I caught an arm around her waist and gently pulled her upright so she was leaning against my side.

"Laila?" Jeanine said in a hushed voice, bending down to her level. "Are you okay?"

"What happened?" Laila asked in a muffled voice, her head drooping against my shoulder.

"You fainted," Nick answered, his arms crossed as he leaned up against the wall.

"What - why?" she demanded, her eyes nearly rolling back in her head.

"Altitude sickness," my mom answered, her hands clasped together, looking beyond nervous. "You get sick to your stomach, light headed, throwing up - basically like the flu."

"Ughn."

I flushed bright red when Laila started dropping back to sleep again, her face buried in my shoulder.

"Let her sleep," Dad said sagely. "There's not really much you can do about altitude sickness."

"Poor Laila," Patricia sighed, looking worried. "And while we're on vacation, too."

There were muttered agreements from everyone else in the room.

"And when there's going to be another party, too," Mom added, clearly disappointed.

I cut my eyes to her in a steely glare. "Excuse me,mother?"

Mom returned my hardened look with a sheepish one, exchanging looks with Jeanine and Patricia.