Give Into Me

Chapter Nine

Ashton stood in the kitchen with Harley as she was preparing lunch. "Okay, so, what if we moved all of your stuff into my room?" Harley asked, looking at Ashton.

"Are you asking me to move in with you?" Ashton joked, smiling softly. Harley laughed, cutting herself off with a ragged cough. 

"Yeah, I think you should move in with me." She smiled. "I mean, you spend every night in my room now anyways." It had been nearly a week since Ashton confessed his love for her. 

"What about everyone else?" Ashton asked. "I thought you wanted to wait longer before telling them about us." 

"I think they know." She giggled. "At least, they know we're fucking." She coughed again, this time harder. 

"You okay?" Ashton asked, looking at her concerned.

"Yeah, it's probably just a cold." She shrugged and turned back to the food. She knew it wasn't just a cold. She had been feeling cold and achey since that night the cows got out. She thought maybe it was the flu, but the flu usually only lasts 24 hours. She had been sick for almost a week now.

"Do you need anything?" Ashton stood up from where he was leaning against the counter.

"No, Ash, I'm fine." Harley smiled softly. She tried to hold back another cough, not wanting Ashton to worry. She leaned into the counter, her head pounding. She gripped the edge of the counter as the room began spinning around her. She tried to speak, but nothing came out. She let go of the counter and tried to walk to Ashton.

"Harley?" Ashton asked, his eyes widening as she fell to the floor. "Harley!" He knelt on the kitchen floor next to her and pressed his fingers against her neck, checking her pulse. "Fuck, Harley." Ashton picked her up carefully. He carried her out to his truck and laid her in the back.

"What the hell?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows as he watched Ashton put Harley in the truck.

"God, Luke." Ashton jumped. "You scared me." 

"What the hell's going on here?" Luke asked, looking at Ashton.

"I don't know. She just fainted in the kitchen." Ashton shook his head. "I'm scared, so I'm taking her to the hospital." 

"I'm coming with." Luke got in the back with Harley, laying her head on his lap. Ashton got in the driver's seat and sped off toward the hospital. "You think it has anything to do with the night the cows got out?"

"I think so. I mean, she was in the rain for hours and then she jumped in the creek." Ashton sighed. "Something has to be wrong."

"She looks so pale." Luke sighed. He ran his fingers through her hair gently. 

"What if something's really wrong with her?" Ashton asked worriedly.

"Hey, she's gonna be okay." Luke reassured him. Ashton sighed and drove into town. He parked at the hospital and got out of the truck. He opened the back door and Luke got out. Ashton carefully picked Harley up, carrying her bridal style into the hospital. Luke jogged up to the front desk. "We need to get in right away. She fainted an hour ago and she hasn't woken up."

"You'll have to wait just like everyone else." The receptionist said without looking at him. 

"She could be dying. This is an emergency." Luke explained, hoping she'd listen.

"Have a seat and someone will be with you when it's your turn." She said once more. 

"Somebody help her!" Ashton yelled, hoping to get the attention of the nearby medical personnel. A nurse jogged over and looked at Ashton.

"What's the problem?" The nurse asked, getting a bed for Harley.

"She fainted about an hour ago. She had been coughing a lot. She was out in the rain about a week ago, and she swam in the creek." Ashton explained. He watched as the nurse laid her down on the bed, beginning to wheel her down the hallway. 

"I'm going to need you to stay here. I'll come find you when I have some answers." The nurse explained as she wheeled Harley through the double doors. Ashton ran his fingers through his hair and felt his heart beating faster. He walked back to Luke and took a seat next to him.

"What'd they say?" Luke asked, looking at Ashton.

"They're gonna come out when they know anything." He sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. "I can't lose her." 

"You won't lose her. She's gonna be okay." Luke sighed and held Ashton's hand, not caring what people would think. He wanted to be there for his friend. Ashton sighed and squeezed Luke's hand. 

"I don't know what I'd do if I lost her.." Ashton whispered. "It'd be all my fault."

"Ashton, no." Luke shook his head. "It's not your fault. You couldn't have prevented this."

"I was the one that used Raelynn to make Harley jealous. I was the one that didn't tell Raelynn what I was doing. If I hadn't done it, Raelynn wouldn't have let all the cows out. Harley wouldn't have been out in the rain or in the creek."

"You can't blame yourself for this." Luke shook his head once more. "It's not your fault."

"I just want her to be okay. I can't stand this." Ashton sighed heavily. "What if there's something seriously wrong with her?"

"Ashton, she's going to be just fine." Luke sighed, still trying to convince him. It took another 2 hours, but the nurse finally came out to the two worried boys. 

"How is she?" Ashton asked her.

"They're both doing just fine for right now." The nurse explained.

"B-both?" Ashton's eyes widened.

"Miss Davidson is pregnant." She nodded. "We've determined the date of conception to be about the middle of August. She's due May 1st." 

"Oh, God.." Ashton put his face in his hands.

"Can we see her?" Luke asked.

"Yes, but we ask that you both wear a mask."

"What? Why would we wear a mask?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows.

"Harley has pneumonia. We don't want you two to catch it, so we're asking that you wear the masks to keep yourselves from becoming sick." The nurse handed them each a mask. 

"Pneumonia? Is the baby okay?" Ashton asked, feeling more worried than he was when he didn't even know that Harley was pregnant.

"For now. We have the infection stabilized. We'll need to keep her in the hospital until we're sure the medications are safe for the baby." 

"We need to see her now." Luke nodded and put his mask on. Ashton sighed and put his mask on, following the nurse back to Harley's room. Ashton sat down next to her bed with Luke on the other side of the bed. "You're pregnant?" 

"I guess so.." Harley whispered, clearly still dazed from having fainted. 

"Is it mine?" Ashton asked, cringing slightly. 

"I-i don't know.." Harley looked away from him. "It could be Chase's." 

"But, the middle of August. That was when we went out." Ashton squeezed her hand.

"Yeah, but I fucked him within 48 hours of that date.."

"How many times did you fuck him since we went out?"

"The third time was the one you walked in on." Harley sighed, tears pricking her eyes. "I don't know what to do." 

"Hey, it's okay." Luke sighed, grabbing her other hand. "You just focus on getting better. You can worry about this later." 

"Please, don't tell anyone, Luke." Harley pleaded, a tear slipping down her cheek. "I want to wait until I know who the father is before telling anyone about it." 

"It's our little secret." Luke smiled softly and rubbed her hand.