Holding On

The clock struck eleven and he stumbled in, coughing. Water soaked his clothes though and his black hair was stringy and wet. "Aw, man!" gasped a curly haired kid that was holding the dripping boy up on his right, "We were just playing around. We didn't mean for him to fall in!" The boy coughed up water and slumped over. Nurses were rushing over at this point, taking the injured boy, who was now a deathly pale, and hoisting him up onto a gurney. The ER buzzed with movement as people strained to see what was going on. "Is he going to be okay?" inquired the other boy, who was carrying him on the left. He had wide brown eyes and he nervously ran his fingers though his mousy brown hair. He was ignored as the nurses shouted orders to one another. "Hook him up to an oxygen tank, stat!" yelled a scrawny male nurse who was almost as pale as his patient.

The male nurse bored his soulless eyes into the boy with the curly hair. "What is his name?" he ordered. The boy stumbled over his words, "Percy! I mean, well, his real name is Perseus but he hates that." The nurse had no tolerance, "Last name?" he demanded. The boy with the brown eyes piped up, "Jackson."

"And you are?"

"Grover and Tyson."

"How old is he?"

"Sixteen."

"Contact one of his guardians and tell him or her to come right away."

Percy was being rolled down the long hallway along with three female nurses. The male nurse stayed with the boys. "My name is Nico Di Angelo but you can call me Nurse Di Angelo, is that clear?" Grover and Tyson both nodded so fast, they were surprised their necks didn't snap. Nico pulled out a note pad and an expensive looking pen.

"Now, I need to know exactly what happened so your friend can get the care he needs. Care to elaborate?"

Tyson and Grover both told the story, interrupting each other to add details. As they rambled, Nico scribbled down notes in his book. When they were done he summarized their story in order to know if he understood them right.

"So," he began, "You all were by the public pool, after hours, and he slipped in because he was running. He was supposedly a good swimmer but hit his head on the edge before he hit the water. He then neglected to resurface so you dragged him out and brought him here. Now, at any point was he unconscious?"

"Um, yes." Grover squeaked, "For about a minute after we got him out of the water."

"Thank you very much and I can assure you he will get the best attention we can give him."

Nico strode down the hall, his footsteps echoing, as Tyson franticly dialed Percy's mom. When Nico entered the room, Percy had his hand on his chest and was breathing in only small puffs of air. "Hit his head and inhaled an unknown amount of water," Nico stated to the other nurses, "Possible concussion, and was unconscious for about one minute after resurfacing with the help of two peers." Percy finally spoke and his voice was uneven, "My head hurts." Nico glided around the nurses and watched as blood trickled down Percy's neck. "I am going to set up and x-ray." he announced, "Someone bandage that wound and someone begin pumping the water out of his lungs. "What?" Percy nervously croaked as Nico exited, the door shutting behind him.

Nico had a successful career, working in the local hospital for almost three years alongside his sister, Bianca. He was known as the best nurse in New York. He was 23 years old, also the youngest nurse in all of New York. Living alone in an apartment not far from the hospital, he worked six days a week around the clock. Some people might call him lonely and in need of a girlfriend, but he believes that being alone is the key to success. No distractions, an open schedule, a nice and quiet lifestyle.

Several hours later, whilst studying Percy Jackson's x-rays, he concluded that he had a fractured skull. "Memory loss is likely." Nico muttered to himself while tapping his pointer finger to his puckered lips, "Concussion definite. I will need to speak to him immediately." He spun on his heel and marched down the white hallway, antiseptic tickling his nose, white a clipboard in hand.

"Hello, Percy." he greeted as he entered the room, "You can call me Nurse Nico. I have a few questions for you if that's alright."

Percy was sprawled on the bed, his hand on his forehead. His eyes peeked open at Nico's entrance.

"Yeah, I guess I'm up to it." he mumbled, sitting up and pulling his hand away from his face.

"Wonderful." Nico caught a glimpse of Percy's stomach and quickly shut his jaw that had dropped open. Needless to say, Percy was ripped. His eyes darted around the room for a second before he cleared his throat and looked down at his clipboard. Percy squinted suspiciously. Damn it, Nico, he thought, Focus.

"You may have some memory loss," Nico informed, "And you do have a concussion. Your thoughts may be a bit fuzzy but I would like you to answer my questions honestly and as well as you can. Can you do that?"

"Yeah," Percy shrugged, "Shoot."

"What is your full name?"

"Percy Jackson. My real name is Perseus but please don't call me that."

"Middle name?"

"Don't have one. Some heritage stuff."

"Can you recall the events that occurred in order leading up to the accident?"

"Uh, I guess. I was hanging out with Grover and Tyson at the pool. I was running and fell in. I guess I hit my head too, but I was pretty much out for the rest of it."

"Do you remember arriving at the hospital?"

"Vaguely."

"Alright, I don't want to tire you out too much so I'll let you get to sleep. Oh, did you have any visitor's perchance?"

"Uh, my mom and stepdad came in a while ago."

"Okay. I will come in later to check on you. If you need anything, push that button."

Percy glanced over to where Nico was pointing. A blue button was on the side of the bed.

"Sweet." Percy smiled, his pearly white teeth glinting.

Nico hurried out before his jaw dropped again. Pull yourself together, he lectured to himself, What is wrong with you? He's a stupid sixteen year old, and your patient. You'll take care of him just like you do to every other boy and girl who walks through those doors. Get over it.

He tried to convince himself of it even though the connection he felt with Percy was the strongest one yet.