Adolescent Foolishness (A Fearless Vampire Killers Fanfiction)

Chapter Thirty-Two

"It's Shane. He's awake." Kier grins. I just stare at him, the words not fully sinking in. He's joking,  he's kidding, he's making fun of me. Shane isn't really awake... Kier's just making a sick, horrible joke.

"Drew? Are you okay?" Laurence asks me, sounding worried. "Drew? Shane's awake. He's okay-"

"But I thought...I thought he-"

"He's alive, Drew." Kier smiles. "We can't see him just yet, but when he's feeling a little better they'll let us see him."

"So I can't even see him yet?" I ask quietly. I need to see him now. What if Arys' liver isn't a match, and Shane never feels "a little better"? Will I ever get to see him again? Will he even want to see me? Will he-

"Excuse me." I hear a doctor say, a man in a white coat crossing his arms across his chest and standing next to me. "I...I've been told to come speak to you, regarding Shane's health?"

I frown at him. "Uhm... Well, you're the expert. You know all there is to know."

"Not really. You see, I'm not interested in his physical health, but rather his mental health. I'm a psychiatrist. Now that Shane is awake, I've been instructed to conduct a psychological study on him. It usually takes 72 hours to observe his behaviour, take a background check, etcetera, etcetera."

"A study." I frown even deeper. "A study?! He's still dying, and if he doesn't get a matching liver he'll die! Can't you put your damn study on hold for one minute to get him a goddamn liver?!"

"Our records state that there's already a donor, so-"

"Concentrate in getting him the damn liver faster, then! Your stupid bloody study can wait a day or two!" I cut the doctor off quickly. The middle-aged man just blinks in surprise, looking clearly startled by my outburst.

"Drew, calm down!" Laurence exclaims. I shake my head, suddenly gasping for breath.

"N-no! Because Shane could still die! The liver might not be a match! I can't even see him so I might never get to see him again and this doctor is too busy running these bloody tests to worry about Shane, but you still expect me to just act like he's going to be okay-"

"Get a grip, Drew, he's going to be okay!" Kier scowls at me, the grin wiped clean off his face. Way to go, Wooly, you really know how to put a downer on everything...

"The liver is to be safely transported from Bristol as soon as possible, however for now, taking the current circumstances into consideration, perhaps it's best that I allow you to see your friend...well, if his parents will allow it." The doctor sighs, looking suddenly sympathetic. He must see this kind of thing happen a lot.

"They will." Laurence says quickly. Then, "wait, 'current circumstances? What do you mean?"

"Well, the liver's donor isn't family, and so our estimate is that there's perhaps a 30% chance it'll be a match. And, well, that's a generous estimate."

What? 30%? He's joking, right?

The doctor just looks down at me - he doesn't have to say anything else. If Shane's luck isn't within that 30%, if this liver isn't a match, then there's no hope for my Timid. This doctor doesn't have very high expectations that this liver will save Shane, that's why he's letting us see him now. And if even a doctor doesn't think Shane will make it, then...well, what else am I meant to say? How can I argue with that?

"Follow me, then. I'll talk with his parents, and requesr that you see him."The doctor motions for us to follow him down the corridor, which we do, right through the double doors and round the corner to the left, before the doctor stops walking and frowns, looking into the room through the window to the right of the door. I glance in too, and then frown deeply, my gut clenching at what I see.