We're Not Sleeping, We're Just Dreaming (Waterparks fanfic)

Twenty Two - Awsten

I rolled over gently underneath blankets as I reached my hand to my face to rub the sleep from my eyes - panic attacks were exhausting.

"Hey."

I glanced over at where the voice was coming from. Geoff. Sat in the chair to the side of the bed the nurse had let me sleep off the panic attack in. I smiled a little. 

"Hi."

He leaned forward in his chair and smirked. "You're looking better."

I slowly tried to raise my body from the bed, heavy but not as heavy as before. My chest persisted a dull aching pain but considering I'd had what that nurse insisted on calling a "severe" panic episode, I wasn't too surprised. 

"Keon. Where's Keon?"

Geoff sighed, pulling his chair forward to sit closer to me. I tried not to let a new wave of panic consume me as I fiddled with my fingernails.

"Otto went to check whilst I stayed with you. He's fine, he's stable. They're getting to the bottom of it but they're pretty confident it was just a little bump in the road."

I breathed a massive sigh of relief, the anxiety beginning to eliminate itself from my muscles. I heard the latch in the door click and turned to see Otto, walking in quietly but making no attempt to hide his smile.

"Afternoon, sleepy."

I smirked a little, before opening my mouth to ask the question but he interrupted me with the raise of a hand.

"He's fine, Awsten. He's going to be okay. They're talking about what they're gonna do next."

I made a confused face for a moment. "Next?"

Otto sighed. "Awsten, it's not our place to say, we don't get to decide. We aren't his family, we aren't doctors or nurses or social workers or any of that."

I heard the door click again and turned - it was the same nurse as before.

"Hey buddy, you're looking much better! How do you feel?"

I sighed. "Better. Less pain."

He smiled. "That's good. See, told you guys, Jawn's got it under control."

Aha. This is Jawn. Things were starting to make more sense now, I thought to myself, as I rolled out of the bed and reached for my shoes, which I remember Geoff had pulled off my feet when I laid down to rest. My fingers tangled around the shoelaces before I raised my head to look at Jawn.

"Can we see him?"

He sighed.

"Well....clinical lead is currently making a decision about what we do next."

My face became confused again, and he noticed.

"Okay, in simple terms - the doctors looking after Keon are having a bit of a disagreement about what happens now. There's two arguments - we try and wake him up and see how he is, or they keep him in a controlled coma for a little bit longer and run some more tests. Make sense?"

I nodded.

"Because they disagree, they're taking Keon's case to the clinical lead who will decide what happens next based on the evidence, and then they do whatever is decided."

"So he might wake up?"

Jawn nodded. "They're arguing they can get a better picture of his health, physical and mental, if he's awake. They're worried that it will cause him some distress but I think a psychologist is going to look at his case too and help make the decision."

My heart started to beat faster in my chest, as I reached for Geoff's hand, squeezing it.

"Can we see him now?"

Jawn thought for a second.

"You could wait in the waiting room and I'll come and get you when you're allowed to see him?"

I nodded. "Deal."