With a heavy and frustrated sigh, she left Jason a message informing him it was urgent and to call as soon as possible. Immediately after hanging up she decided to text him, and vowed to continue to do so until she got a response. A response, she hoped, that would be followed by his ass on a plane back to Texas.
~*~
With the music from his mp3 player still playing in his ears, Jason had finally fallen asleep on the couch. Sleep was something that, over the last couple of months, had turned into a double-edged sword for him. He needed the rest desperately, yet most of the time his anxiety level was too high for him to relax at all. On the rare occasion he did manage a good deep sleep, he dreamt of Kara. She held a starring role in all his dreams, and this night was no exception.
Tonight, they were together on his couch, with her on top. She was nipping, biting, sucking on his neck - marking him, and intermittently whispering naughty things in his ear. His senses were on overload as her hands worked him up, and his undid the buttons on the shirt she was wearing. His shirt. Jesus, he loved it when she wore his shirts. Finally, with the buttons undone, he slipped his hands inside, parting the shirt while lightly grazing her nipples. As he pushed it off her shoulders, Kara pulled away from his reach, kissing her way down his chest. Oh God, she was going to use her mouth tonight. Jason absolutely loved it when she used her mouth; so hot and wet…
He jerked awake and bolted upright as he yanked the ear buds out of his ears, the music having ended long ago. He snatched the phone off the coffee table, as his heart began to decelerate. Jaime. His evil, cockblocking, twin of a sister; even in his dreams she managed to keep him from getting laid. This time he would answer it and let her have it. How many fucking times did she have to call him in one day?!
“Jaime,” Jason spit out her name, “this had better be good. I was sleeping, and lately sleep has been pretty hard to come by.” He knew he was being rude, but damn it, she’d interrupted what was turning out to be a stellar dream! He sure the hell wasn’t getting that kind of action while he was awake.
Jaime was having nothing of it, “Shut it, Jason! It’s about time you answered the phone!” she shrieked, forcing him to pull the phone away from his ear as he flinched. “Is it too much to ask that you at least check your messages?!” she continued, still yelling, as he slowly brought the phone back to his ear.
“Jesus, Jaime! What the fuck?!”
“Paul was in an accident! You would have known that two hours ago had you answered your damn phone, or, I don’t know, looked at one of the ten thousand texts I’ve sent you!”
Jason immediately launched himself off the couch and into action. “What happened?” he asked, looking around his apartment for his keys, feeling his panic rise as he realized he couldn’t use them to actually go anywhere.
“He lost control of his car and hit a tree. He’s stable right now, but Kara’s a mess.” Jason’s breath caught at the mention of Kara’s name, and while Jaime’s voice had softened, he could still hear her irritation with him.
“What hospital?”
Before he was even off the phone he was powering up his laptop and pulling up a travel site. Booking a non-stop flight to Houston, he grimaced at the price, but it would get him to Kara in less than six hours - if he left in the next twenty minutes. With his flight itinerary settled, Jason ran to his room and grabbed the duffle bag off his closet floor. Quickly he threw in the basics: a few pairs of boxer briefs, socks, jeans, and the first few shirts hanging in front of him. Racing to the bathroom he didn’t bother with packing his normal travel case of necessities; instead he grabbed his toothbrush off the counter, toothpaste, and deodorant, and quickly zipped up the bag. Wallet and keys in hand, Jason was out the door in less than fifteen minutes.
He made the drive to the airport in a ridiculously short amount of time, speeding along on luck and a prayer, and as he made his way toward the terminal he briefly considered leaving his car in the drop off lane, knowing they would tow it. He quickly realized that plan would probably just end up getting him arrested, and delay him even further. Turning at the last minute he chose to go with the short term parking, with their outrageously over-priced fees, to get as close to the terminal as possible.
As soon as the car was in park, Jason had his duffle bag in hand as he jumped from the car and slammed the door behind him. Taking off in a sprint, he held the key remote above his head to lock the car doors, not caring if he heard the chirp of the alarm or not. In his haste he nearly took out an old lady making her way through the parking garage. He called out a sincere apology over his shoulder, and almost stumbled when it appeared she flipped him off. He shook his head, hoping it was just his imagination. An eighty year old surely wouldn’t have given me the finger, he thought.
It wasn’t until Jason was seated on the plane that he realized he hadn’t even thought about calling the hospital to inform them of the situation. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he typed up a quick email to the head of his department, explaining it was urgent he fly to Houston for a family emergency, and that he would return in a couple of days. There was a part of him that secretly hoped they might fire him for the short notice; as it would make his life a lot less complicated, although Jason knew they wouldn’t.
~*~
Immediately after arriving at the hospital Kara checked in at the front desk to receive directions to the surgery waiting room. She snickered at the difference between this woman and Laura from the ER at Mercy ER. Grateful to hear her father’s surgery went well, and that he was in recovery, she followed the directions she’d been given and collapsed into a chair to wait. It wasn’t long before Eva and Eric showed up, flanking her in chairs on either side. Evalyn slipped her arm around Kara as Kara rested her head on her shoulder.
“He’s in recovery,” Kara mumbled, exhaustion setting in.
“Good. They said everything went alright?” Eva let her head drop back to lean against the wall.
“Yeah. We can see him in about an hour. They want him to wake up first and they’ll need to monitor him a little before they move him to a room.”
Eva placed a kiss on Kara’s on the forehead, then rested their foreheads against one another.
“Jaime called,” Eva announced, breaking the silence. “She was checking in. Asked for an update as soon as possible; do you want me to call her now?”
Kara nodded her head, agreeing, and watched as Evalyn pulled her phone from her purse and dialed Jaime’s number.
“Hey, we’re here, Paul’s in recovery,” Eva began to give the update and Kara zoned out until Eva suddenly got quiet.
“When?” Kara caught the glance Eva shot her, and grabbed Eva’s wrist, stopping her as Eva began to get up from her chair. “I’ll call you back.”
“What?”
Evalyn pursed her lips in thought, but didn’t answer.
“What, Eva?” Kara demanded.
Sighing, Eva relented, “Jason’s on his way.”
Dumbstruck by Evalyn’s announcement, Kara whispered, “When?”
“Tonight. He took the first flight out.”
“What?! Why?” Kara stood from her chair, anxious and overwhelmed. “Why now?” she demanded, beginning to yell. “I can’t deal with this now! Why did Jaime call him?”
“Jesus, Kara!” Evalyn stood, heading her friend off. “She called him because your dad was in a serious accident. Of course she would call him! Of course he would want to know! And if Paul hadn’t been in an accident, I would hope she would have called him soon anyway because whatever little emo virus you and Jason contracted, apparently it needs a fucking bio-level four antiviral serum – and sadly the rest of us are fresh the fuck out!” Eva’s frustration exploded.
Kara gaped at her friend, stunned.
“Seriously, Kara!” Evalyn continued, “We’re tired of being on suicide watch. I love you, you’re my best friend, my sister; I’d help you hide a body even, but Jesus Christ, woman! You love the guy, you’re ‘in love’ and all that sappy cra
p that goes with it. Now, according to Jaime, he feels the same, and yet the two of you are so God damn ridiculously hopeless that you can’t see past this,” her arms flailed radically in the air trying to find the words, “whatever, and get over yourselves.” Eva was practically panting with exertion, but just as quickly as her ire had ignited, it flamed out.
“So yes, Kara” Evalyn sighed, “Jaime called Jason so he could come and be here with you.”
Evalyn’s indignant wrath left Kara speechless. With her rant over, it took less than a second for her outburst to finally register in Eva’s brain, and as it did her hand flew to her mouth in mortification.
“Oh Kara! I’m sorry!” Eva exclaimed, as she grabbed Kara and pulled her into a tight embrace. “I can’t believe I just unleashed on you in the hospital waiting room. I’m such a bitch.” Kara hesitantly raised her arms to return the hug.
Stepping in, Eric gently pulled on his wife’s shoulder to release her grip on Kara, “Babe, why don’t you go see if there are any updates.” Evalyn pulled back and looked between Eric and Kara guiltily, nodding her head in agreement. She stared at the ground as she walked away and made her way to speak to somebody at the information desk.
“You know she didn’t mean to lash out at you, right?” Eric circled his arm around Kara’s shoulder and pulled her tight to his side, before dropping them both down into the chairs again. Kara didn’t respond, still in shock over what went down. “And if we weren’t here in this situation, Evie would have approached that whole thing from another angle.”
“What do you mean, another angle?”
Eric chuckled, “I mean we would have done some sort of after school special intervention, probably with some sort of Powerpoint presentation by Jaime and Ryan. I’m pretty sure you had only days left, if not hours, before planning got under way for that to happen.” Eric smirked, and squeezed Kara’s shoulder.
Kara groaned. “Have I really been that bad?” she asked, looking up at him as innocently as she could, although she knew the answer.
Eric guffawed loudly and patted Kara on the head like a dog; in return she elbowed him in the ribs.
“Kara, we love you, but we seriously considered slipping anti-depressants into your food.”
Kara rolled her eyes and leaned against him once more, not replying to his comment.
“Jason coming; this is a good thing,” Eric continued, “And first flight out? That means something, Kara,” he said seriously.
Evalyn returned to her seat next to Kara, sitting stiffly in her chair with her hands folded in her lap. “They said he woke up for a minute, and his vitals look good. They’ll be moving him soon and then we can see him,” she informed them quietly. Kara pulled away from Eric and hugged Evalyn, letting her know she wasn’t angry about the outburst.
~*~
“Hi, can you tell me what room number Paul Baker is in?” Jason hurriedly asked the lady at the front desk.
She clicked the keys on her keyboard and looked up at him, “He’s post-op, room four-oh-two,” she answered. “The elevators are around the corner,” she finished, pointing in the direction of the elevators.
“Thanks.” Jason gave a weak smile and took off, darting around the corner to the waiting elevators. After punching the button he waited impatiently for the doors to open, and as soon as they did he hurried on. He selected the fourth floor and once again waited impatiently, gripping the inside rail along the interior of the elevator while tapping his foot, as the lift took its time to get to the right floor. As soon as the doors opened, Jason jumped out, searching for any sign directing him to Paul’s room. Spying one and gaining his bearings, it took everything he had not to run down the corridor, but to instead walk at a brisk pace, as he hurried to the room.
The door to four-oh-two was closed and Jason barely hesitated before knocking. He took a deep breath, raised his hand, and gently tapped on the door. A faint reply on the other side told him to enter the room.
Slowly pushing the door open, he immediately saw Kara, Eva, and Eric surrounding the hospital bed. He entered quietly and closed the door gently behind him, and dropped his duffle bag in the corner before he approached the group.
Walking straight to Kara’s side, he slipped his hand beneath the hair on her neck and caressed it gently as she looked up at him.
“How is he?” Jason asked, searching Kara’s eyes for acceptance of his presence. Finding fatigue but no anger in her gaze as she gave him a small smile, Jason breathed a sigh of relief.
“He’s stable,” she answered him softly. She was sitting bedside, holding Paul’s hand, and a quick glance around the room showed no other chairs available, so Jason squatted down next to her. His hand slipped from her neck as his arm moved to wrap around her shoulders, pulling her toward him while he nuzzled her temple. Squeezing his eyes closed he took in the moment as he allowed his senses to revel in Kara’s closeness.
“We’re going to head out,” Eric announced, breaking the quiet. Standing up, he pulled Eva up beside him. Jason arose as Eric walked to him and held out his hand. Jason took his hand and shook it, startling slightly in surprise when Eric pulled him into a hug. “Thanks for coming, man. We’re getting a room at the Inn; want us to reserve one for you?”
Jason felt the weight of his guilt give and breathed out a sigh of relief, grateful for Eric’s quick forgiveness. “That would be great, thanks,” he answered. Eric nodded his head and began to pull Evalyn away but she resisted. Taking a deep breath she stepped forward and hugged Jason as well.
“Just fix it, okay?” she whispered into his ear.
Jason squeezed her tight for a second in silent promise, and before letting go replied just as softly, “I will.”
Chapter Nineteen
Eric and Eva left, closing the door silently behind them. The room was quiet, the only sounds were Paul’s vitals monitor and the muted sounds of the hospital beyond the door. For all intents and purposes, Jason and Kara were now alone standing side by side, as Paul lay asleep and sedated.
“You didn’t have to come,” Kara murmured, not looking up as she spoke to him.
“I wanted to be here for you.” Jason fought the urge to reach out his hand to touch her, clenching his fist and pulling it back before he made contact.
Kara simply nodded her head, letting him know she had heard what he said.
“I’d like to look over his chart if that’s alright with you?”
Kara’s head snapped up at his inquiry, looking surprised by his request, and a little worried.
“You’re not worried are you? Do you think he’s in worse shape than they’re saying?”
“No, I just want to look it over, read the notes. For my own peace of mind.”
“Okay,” she said, nodding after a moment. “Do I need to go with you?” It was clear she really didn’t want to leave Paul’s side.
“No, I still have my Texas license and medical identification; they shouldn’t have a problem with my looking at it - with your permission. If they need to they can come speak to you here.” His need to touch her overwhelmed him. He finally gave in and reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, then stroked her cheek gently before turning to head out to the nurses’ station for the chart.
When he returned to the room, Paul was awake and alert, talking quietly with his daughter. Clearly surprised to see Jason enter his room, Jason observed the rapid, confused, look between Paul and Kara, before Paul silently questioned his daughter about the situation with a raised eyebrow. Kara’s reply was a small smile, which softened Paul’s features as his own smile slowly slid onto his face. The subject was dropped before anything was ever said out loud.
“You need sleep, Kara,” Paul’s voice was gruff and barely above a whisper, as his throat had to be sore from the breathing tube inserted during his surgery.
“I’m not leaving.” Kara dismissed him before he could say the words suggesting she actually leave him.
“I’m not going anywhere, kid,” Paul tried to
joke, but grimaced when Kara blanched at his statement.
“I’m going to be alright, Kara,” Paul said as sternly as he could.
“I know,” Kara sniffled, the emotional day having caught up with her.
“Then go with Eva and Eric to the hotel, and get some rest, baby. You can come back and see me tomorrow.” He turned his attention to Jason, who was still standing near the door, not wanting to intrude. “Can you see that she gets to the hotel safely?”
“Yes, sir,” Jason nodded his head.
“Go, get some rest, and I’ll do the same.” Paul pulled his hand from under Kara’s and covered hers, as he patted it gently.
She stood slowly, silently relenting to Paul’s request, and whispered something in his ear as she leaned in and kissed his cheek.
“Love you too, kid.”
~*~
Leaving the hospital, Jason and Kara walked quietly beside one another before Jason realized he didn’t have a car, as he’d taken a taxi from the airport. He was about to say something when he realized Kara had already led him to her van. The day having taken its toll, she didn’t even put up a fight when he insisted he drive her to the hotel, and they drove in companionable silence, both lost in their thoughts. Once parked, neither of them made a move to get out of the car. He gazed at her for a few minutes before she finally looked over at him.
“You’re here.”
“I’m here.”
“Thank you, Jason. Thank you for coming…” Her voice broke as a tear slipped down her cheek. She turned away from him, to look out the window.
“I’ll always be here, Kara,” Jason whispered as he reached for her hand, anguished at seeing her cry.
She turned back to him with a disbelieving scoff, compelling him to pull back his hand before it reached her. He swore he saw anger flash in her eyes. “Always?” He couldn’t miss the insinuation in her tone.