"Did you hear about the accident on the interstate?" Carlisle asks flatly as he stares at the wall in Esme's hospital room.
"Naw." Jasper responds in a deadpan voice.
"Twelve car pile up. One hit a patch of black ice and spun out, and the others followed suit. I had to treat six kids, three teenagers and ten adults. We lost a seven year old boy and a twenty-one year old girl." Carlisle sighs and switches the focus of his gaze to the monitors next to the bed. "And then their was a gunshot victim. He's in the OR now. Once he left, I had a child who was mauled by a dog. She needs plastic surgery. And then I had a seventeen year old who drove his car into a tree going seventy miles an hour. His cell phone was still in his hand when they brought him in. We worked so hard on that kid. He looked like Edward. That always gets me, when they look like one of my kids."
Carlisle shakes his head and puts on a tough face to cover up the hurt.
"I mean, we always do everything we can to save a patient, but there's just so much emotion when that patient looks like someone you love."
"Did he make it?" Jasper asked quietly. Carlisle sighs.
"No. He flatlined and we couldn't bring him back."
"I'm sorry, Carlisle."
"I was trying to keep this kid alive. We were busting our asses trying to keep him alive and as we are, this lady is screaming at us," Carlisle's voice starts to shake. "About how she needs our attention because she has asthma and can't breathe. She was standing the middle of the hallway, screaming and waving her hands around. She was breathing just fine. And as that boy died, she kept screaming. She was screaming at the top of her lungs that she couldn't breathe while I fought to save the life of a boy who looks just like one of my kids."
Tears start to trail down Carlisle's angry face. He tries to hold them back, but it's a losing battle.
"I was suppose to treat her, but I lost that boy and I had to pass her off to another doctor. I went to my office," he trails off for only a second before finding his voice again. "And I was so close to screaming myself. I wasn't even in there for two minutes when the new student nurse came in. She told me about an ambulance coming in for a woman who had a seizure. I yelled at her, said 'I told you to have Dr. Brooks take it' and slammed my fist on the desk. I know I scared her. She was ready to cry. She looks at the ground and said 'Dr. Brooks told me to tell you that it's Mrs. Cullen'. My heart just dropped to the floor."
"I couldn't remember what you told me to do. I wasn't listening very well." Jasper admits.
"You did exactly what you were suppose to."
Jasper shrugs. He doesn't feel like he did everything.
"What's the scan going to do?" Jasper asks.
"The CT scan is looking for any bleeding under her skull or in her brain tissue."
"Her brain might be bleeding?" Jasper asks in disbelief. "Are you serious?"
"Don't worry, Jasper. She's in good hands."
Jasper nods and they both fall silent, lost in their own thoughts. Carlisle's medical mind runs wild. If her medication is no longer working, what else can they try? He runs over the steps that will follow the scan, the tests and treatments he will order the nurses to do. That is, until he remembers that his co-workers banned him from working Esme's case. It was common practice in the hospital. The fear for the health of a loved one could too easily cloud a doctors judgement. That doesn't mean Carlisle won't try to order them around.
Jasper tries to wrap his head around the concept of a bleeding brain. The picture of Esme fall back and nailing her head on the kitchen counter before hitting the floor replays in his mind. The fact that she hit hard is undeniable, but was it enough to cause damage like that? He should have been there. She called for him. He should have gotten off his lazy ass and rushed to her side instead of looking at her funny. He could have caught her, he could have kept her from hitting her head, he could have avoided this whole scan if he would have just-
"Hey there, fam!" Emmett says as he barges into the room. His loud voice pulls Jasper from his self loathing. "How's Mom doing?"
"She'll be back from her CT scan any minute now." Carlisle answers after checking his watch.
"It's to check for bleeding. In her brain." Jasper adds on. He sinks lower in his seat.
"I know, bro. She's had a few of them. Don't worry," Emmett pats Jasper's shoulder. "Mom is resilient."
"Thanks for coming, buddy." Carlisle sighs. "Take Jasper home. You can explain all this to Edward and Rosalie, right?"
"Done it a million times."
"Here," Carlisle stands and digs for his wallet. He hands Emmett a hundred dollar bill. "Get them something to eat, rent a movie, something to keep their minds off Esme. Get something Edward will like. He always struggles with this."
"I don't need a hundred. A fifty will do."
"Just take it. Keep whatever you don't use. Listen, Edward just got his new phone. If he acts up, remind him that I said he has to behave to keep it. Don't be too hard on him, though. You know he always takes this the hardest. I don't know how Rose will take it. And Jasper," Carlisle sighs, looking at his blonde haired boy. He pulls his wallet out again and hands Jasper two tens. "Go to the cafeteria. Get me a caramel mocha and get whatever you want. Emmett needs a Mt. Dew and a cheeseburger."
"I'll go down with you."
"No," Carlisle puts his hand on Emmett's shoulder. "I need to talk to you."
"Okay. Make it two cheeseburgers." Emmett requests.
Jasper nods and drags his feet out of the room. He really doesn't want to leave, but he wondered the halls until he found the cafeteria. He stands in line patiently and barely mumbles a thank you when he pays for the tray of food. He finds the room much quicker than he found the cafeteria, but he stood with his back against the wall next to the door that was slightly cracked open.
"I just want you to think about it, okay?" Carlisle's tired voice says.
"Dad, I'm not moving back in. It's time for me to make my own life." Emmett responds. "You know your house will always be my home, but I need to do my own thing now."
"You can do your own thing at home. I'll modify the rules for you."
"Dad, I got the job." Emmett says quietly. Carlisle sighs.
"Really?"
"I went in yesterday for my drug test. Once that comes back clean, I'm going to start training."
Carlisle doesn't respond, but that doesn't bother Emmett.
"I'm only going to be making ten dollars an hour, but once I get off the probation period, I'll be bumped up to fifteen dollars. And then I have opportunities for raises if I meet the quota every quarter. This is a good thing, Dad."
Carlisle still keeps his mouth shut. Emmett waits for a response, but when none is given, Jasper decides that it's a good time to walk in with the tray.
"Got the food." He announces. He sets the tray on the foot of the empty bed. Emmett smiles and grabs the two cheeseburgers wrapped in orange foil.
"Thanks man."
"Thank you, Jasper." Carlisle murmurs and takes his coffee. He sips it while Emmett devours his burgers and Jasper eats a few bits of his chicken wrap. He knows he needs to eat something- he's gone all day without a single bite- but he can't seem to find any urge to finish it. He sets it back on the tray.
"You can have that, Carlisle. I'm not hungry."
Carlisle gives Jasper a sympathetic nod and eyes the boy before patting his shoulder.
"You did well today, son. Emmett, take him home."
"Aye aye," Emmett agrees, snatching the Mt. Dew bottle from the tray and stuffing it under his arm before taking another big bite of his burger. Jasper stands, and as they head for the door, Carlisle stops them.
"Hey, boys?" He calls. Jasper and Emmett look at him over their shoulders. "I'm proud of you. Both of you."
Jasper pauses for a moment, unsure of why Carlisle would be proud of him. He didn't know what to do. Why is that something to be proud of. Emmett smiles and thanks Carlisle for the both of them before wrapping his arm around Jasper's shoulders and leading him outside.
"Usually when someone says they're proud of you, you're suppose to say thank you." Emmett says with a chuckle.
"I just don't know why he's proud of me. I didn't know what to do." Jasper admits.
"You're too hard on yourself, Jasper. You took care of her the best way you could." Emmett explains. Jasper shrugs, not truly believing him. "You did what you should have, brother. You took care of her."
"Holy shit," Emmett gasps as he look at the kitchen floor and the puddle of dry blood by the stove. Jasper sighs.
"Told you there was a lot of blood." He murmurs.
"We have to get this cleaned up before Edward sees it. There's a spray bottle with a pink label on the top shelf in the laundry room. Grab that, the bucket and two scrub brushes." Emmett instructs. "Once we get this cleaned, we'll have to move the stove and clean under there. Looks like some blood seeped under it."
Jasper nods in agreement as he peers at the stove.
He enters the laundry room and sighs as he remembers how Alice perched herself on top of the drier. He would love to have her here again, but knows that that's unlikely. He's already ruined that relationship, though.
Jasper grabs the cleaning products and sullenly returns to the kitchen. The blood makes his stomach twists. Emmett takes the products and kneels down, waisting no time with scrubbing the floor. Jasper doesn't jump in, though. He watches Emmett and wonders how he can so easily clean up his mother's spilled blood. Jasper can't even shake the feeling of it seeping into his jeans.
"Dude, you okay?" Emmett asks. "You're pale."
"I'm fine." He mutters.
"Why don't you do me a favor? There are still collapsed boxes in the garage from the last time we moved. Can you get those, fold them back up, then start filling them with things out of my room? You don't have to sort through my things. I'll do that later. Just throw whatever is on the ground into the boxes."
"Yeah, sure." Jasper nods and heads towards the garage door, happy to have a reason to leave the blood cleaning to Emmett.
"Thanks bro. I'll be up there to help once this is cleaned."
Jasper gives him another nod before going to grab the boxes. As he passes through the kitchen, he keeps his head turned so he doesn't have to see the blood again. He tries to focus on calming his nerves while he walks to the second floor and into Emmett's room. He folds the first flattened cardboard box up and pushes a pile of dirty clothes to the side so he has enough room to kneel on the carpeted floor with the box next to him. Why is Emmett having him do this, he asks himself. His keeps questioning this, letting his mind wonder.
"But she's okay. Dad is going to stay with her tonight." Emmett explains calmly. His voice is even and strong, and he keeps his arms crossed over his chest. Jasper watches from the other side of the couch, and can't help but notice how much Emmett is acting like Carlisle.
"If she's going to be okay, why are they keeping her over night?" Edward asks frantically. Rosalie looks up from her place next to Jasper to Emmett, anxiously wanting for the answer.
"It's just because she hit her head. That's all. And you know how Dad is," Emmett waves his hand as if he's waving away Edward's worries. "He's probably driving the other doctors crazy. Remember when you were ten and she had a seizure and hit her head on the corner of the wall? Dad was bossing them all around, ordering tests and procedures. He's just being cautious."
Edward furrows his brown and nods as he drops his gaze to his lap. He doesn't respond, even when Emmett gives his shoulder a playful smack.
"Hey, man, I need your help real quick. Yours too, Rose." Emmett says, changing the subject. "I need to get the last of my stuff packed in my room. Jasper and I already started. If all four of us work on it, we'll be done in no time."
"Why do I gotta help?" Edward says with the slightest growl to his tone.
"Because if you help me get my stuff cleared out, then we can all help Jasper move into my room, and then we can all help you get your room back to the way it was." Emmett responds. He ignores Edward's attitude, knowing all to well that he never handles their mother's seizures well. The mention of getting his own room again, makes him lift his head and smile.
"Seriously?"
"Yeah, seriously." Emmett smiles, then wags his eyebrows. "And then I got us a little something to help us relax."
"It's puff, puff, pass, Edward. Not puff, puff, puff, puff, puff!" Emmett says with a laugh. Edward chuckles and takes another long drag before passing the joint to Jasper sitting next to him in the backseat of the Jeep.
"It's so cold!" Rosalie complains with a shiver. She rubs her hands on her arms and looks at the frosty windows. Emmett knew that Carlisle and Esme would notice the smell of weed in their home the moment they walk in, so he did what he's always done. They pulled the Jeep out of the garage and into the driveway before lighting up.
"The heat's all the way up." Jasper say. He passes the joint up to her. She nervously puts it to her lips for just a moment before passing it to Emmett in the drivers seat. He sucks on it for a moment, then hands it back to Edward.
"I'll go get you a blanket. I'll be right back." Emmett grins. He flings the door open and hops through the three inches of snow that's accumulated on the driveway since they plowed it last. The snow never seemed to stop during the day, but it kicked into high gear at eleven PM. After finally boxing up everything in Emmett's room, they were able to put Jasper's sheets on the bed and move his Texas poster from Edward's room to his new room before they all agreed they had enough.
"Have you smoked before?" Edward asks, passing it again to Jasper. Jasper nods.
"A few times."
"How about you Rosalie?"
"Not really." She admits. She curls her nose up as Jasper blows out a cloud of smoke in her direction. As soon as he notices her disgust, he waves it away from her.
"Sorry, Rosie." He apologizes.
"It's fine." She murmurs to herself, but doesn't take the weed when Jasper offers it to her again. He shrugs and hands it to Edward.
"I got the blankets!" Emmett yells over the whistling wind as he opens the drivers door. He tosses in the blankets before climbing in himself. He hands Rosalie one, then passes two to his brothers in the backseat. What he sees out the rear window, though, makes him freeze.
"Oh, shit," He murmurs.
"What's wrong?" Rosalie questions. He points out the window.
"See those headlights pulling in? That's Dad."
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