Bloody Texas

Guys, Chill.

"Please help him!" Keith panicked as he stood beside Lance's bed clutching his hand.

Lance sounded like he was coughing up a river. His breathing was strained and he writhed in pain. Various doctors and nurses hooked him up to machines. One nurse with a blonde ponytail turned to him, "Who are you?"

"I'm his husband!" Keith was breathing rapidly and his hands were shaking.

She nodded, "Okay, can you tell me if he has any allergies?"

"I'm—" Keith ran his free hand through his hair, "No, he doesn't. But he's uh—"

The nurse turned back to Lance and slipped an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth. "What is it, sir?"

"He has sickle cell and AIDS." Keith held Lance's hand tighter. "And he's had a stroke."

All of the hospital staff stopped to look up at Keith, then Lance. They all passed around the same doubtful and horrified look.

Keith could feel his heart in his throat, "Please help him!"

A doctor shot the blonde nurse a look and she turned to lead Keith out of the room. "I'm sorry, sir, but we have to take care of your husband." Keith was reluctantly led to a chair in the waiting room away from the other patients. The nurse took a clipboard from the front desk and sat down next to him. "Okay, sir, can you tell me your name?"

"Keith," he tried to calm his shaking hands, "Keith McClain."

She kept her eyes on the paper as she wrote down his answers, "And your husband?"

"Lance McClain." He took a quick look back to the room Lance was being held in. "Is he gonna be okay?"

"We're gonna do everything we can."

"Please don't bullshit me."

She looked up from the clipboard to give him a solemn look. She sighed, "Well, it doesn't look good."

"What's wrong with him?" Keith resisted the urge to jump up and run back to him.

She shrugged, "We aren't exactly sure yet. I'm sorry, Mr. McClain."

"Oh," Keith's heart hammered against his ribs.

She placed her hand on his arm, "Can I ask you a few more questions? It will help us greatly."

Keith nodded, "Sure."

The nurse asked him a lot of questions about Lance's medical history. Some of them, Keith didn't even know. These questions specifically made him even more distressed. It felt like he was holding Lance above a cliff, trying to pull him up. Every time he couldn't answer, Lance's grasp loosened. Keith wasn't stupid. He knew. He just knew Lance wasn't doing well. He knew that Lance may never get well. After the nurse finished, she left him with the promise of updates. Keith sat in the chair holding his head in his hands, staring down at the floor. If it were anyone else, he wouldn't be this worried. However, every little sickness could kill Lance. Easily.

Keith sat there alone. Who would he call? Shiro was probably already notified, most likely on his way over right now. Keith remembered how it was when Lance had his stroke. The waiting room was full of family. His parents, his friends, his brothers. He stopped with a slight gasp. Mark. Keith never understood why Lance invited him to the wedding, let alone as his best man. The realization crashed down on him like a bomb. He quickly pulled out his phone and found Mark's number.

"Hello?" Mark's voice was groggy. He must have gone to sleep early.

"Mark? It's Keith."

Keith heard shuffling, "What the fuck do you want?"

Keith held back the urge to break down, "It's Lance, Mark."

Mark's tone morphed into that of the worried brother he never was. "What about him? What happened?"

"He collapsed." Keith fidgeted in his chair. "I'm at Arlington right now."

"What?!" Mark spoke to someone Keith couldn't hear, then returned to the phone. "Why did you call me?"

"Mark," Keith sighed, "I think Lance wanted you here."

Mark was silent for a few moments. "You mean—?"

"Yes." Keith held back his sobs. "Will you come?"

Mark sighed, "Of course I will. I'll be there in ten minutes."

Keith lowered the phone to his lap and leaned his head into his hands. What else? What else did Lance show him? Keith raked his mind for any loose ends that Lance had so skillfully hid from him.