Isaac and I walk into back into the living room and find Noah completely unconscious, slumped over the arm of the couch. At first glance, it looks like he's just sleeping, but then I notice the way his eyes are squeezed shut tightly, as if he's in pain even when he's sleeping. The towel he was holding is now bloodied and dangling from his open hand. "Shit." Isaac says, kneeling in front of Noah. I watch as Isaac digs his knuckles into Noah's sternum. "NOAH! HEY, NOAH. CAN YOU HEAR ME? NOAH. HEY." Isaac says loudly and yet very calmly. His voice doesn't shake the way I'm sure mine would if I tried to speak right now; he's done this before.
Isaac leans forward and tilts Noah's head up before frantically rubbing Noah's legs. "Damn, he's breathing but he's unresponsive. I think he's having a mini seizure; the poison is overwhelming his nervous system. But, I've only seen this stage of mercury poisoning once before so it's hard to tell. We usually just found the bodies after the dread doctors were done with their experiments; we were always too late. We didn't need to try and save anyone." Isaac says, tossing a pillow on the open wood floor away from the coffee table. I feel dizzy thinking about the scenario Isaac just casually mentioned and I have to fight to stay focused on the situation at hand.
Isaac picks Noah up by his arms and drags him over to where he threw the pillow. He lays him carefully on the ground, making sure his head is supported. I toss Isaac the blanket Noah was using and he drapes it over Noah's chest and shoulders. "I have to hold Noah's head to make sure he keeps breathing and I also need to be ready to restrain Noah if he wakes up in a panic or to turn him over if he throws up. So, I need you to bring that towel over and keep pressure on these gashes Liam gave him because they're not healing." Isaac instructs. "Scott should be here any minute now."
I scramble to grab a clean towel off the couch before kneeling on my good leg next to Noah and holding the towel to his side where blood is already pooling and dripping onto the floor. I press down with as much of my bodyweight as I can, both to add as much pressure as I can to stop Noah's bleeding and to try and stop my hands from shaking. I see movement from the corner of my eye and when I turn my head to look at Isaac, I see him using the sleeve of his sweatshirt to wipe away the stream of silver liquid coming from the corner of Noah's mouth. I suddenly feel the warmth of Noah's blood through the towel and I shudder at the strange sensation. "Are you ok?" Isaac asks softly, glancing over at me. Before I can say anything, the door is thrown open and I jump. Scott and a man I don't recognize walk in.
"Emma, this is Dr. Deaton and you remember Scott, right?" Isaac says, quickly making introductions.
"I only wish we were meeting under better circumstances." Deaton says, shooting me an apologetic and almost sad smile before taking the stethoscope off his neck. He immediately begins examining Noah, taking his vitals and probing Noah's torso with his hands. Noah begins to cough and Isaac jumps into action, rolling Noah on his side. I move forward too, trying to keep holding the towel on Noah's wounds. Noah coughs up a puddle of thick silver liquid onto the floor. Deaton makes a concerned face and then looks in Noah's ears and nose. "The same liquid is coming out of his ears, this is definitely supernatural mercury poisoning. Scott, start appropriate fluids." Deaton says before gesturing at me to move over. He lifts the towel and my stomach lurches when I realize I can see layers of muscle and fat under the skin. "Isaac, typically we would have to start the healing process by creating more pain in order to trigger a shift. Noah isn't healing because he's in an in-between state and doesn't know how to control his shifts. But, Noah's nervous system is too overwhelmed right now, hence the seizure. We need to remove some stimulus. So, Isaac take as much of his pain as you can."
Isaac grabs Noah's hand, closes his eyes, and lets his veins turn black. Scott inserts an I.V. into Noah's arm, which wasn't hard to do because Noah's veins are so swollen, and then holds the I.V. bag above his head. Deaton rifles through his medical bag and takes out a needle and a roll of synthetic thread. He cleans the claw marks in Noah's torso before lining up the edges of the wound. Deaton begins stitching Noah up without anesthetic, making the first knot in the middle of the gash. Everyone is preoccupied with their various tasks and I suddenly feel very awkward and useless. "Wow, Liam really did a number on him." Scott notes, also watching Deaton work.
"Liam actually showed an incredible amount of restraint in this situation. Noah went after Liam's alpha, you. His protective instincts were urging him to do a lot worse I'm sure." Deaton explains to Scott and I shiver.
Noah is in good, knowledgeable hands; I can try and relax now. I look down and see that my own shaky hands are bright red and slick with Noah's blood. The world seems to go out of focus for a second and my chest tightens uncomfortably. I grab a clean section of towel and try to wipe my hands clean, but blood is sticky and stubborn.
I grab my crutches and hurry to the bathroom, making sure to lock the door behind me. I grip both sides of the sink for support and then I stare at myself in the mirror. There is blood streaked across my forehead from when I had to push my hair out of my face. What the hell is happening, none of this feels real. The words werewolves and dread doctors keep bouncing around in my head, as if the more I hear them, the more I'll be ok with this weird supernatural information. Now that I'm alone, I notice my breathing is shallow and erratic. But, when I try and take deep breaths, my ribs ache sharply.
When Noah first showed up and stepped towards me, I really thought it was over for me. I thought he was going to kill me. The thought overwhelms me and makes me want to cry. I'm exhausted and the pain in my entire body feels almost suffocating right now. "You're fine, everything is fine." I say, feeling strangely numb and lightheaded. If I say that enough times, maybe I'll start to believe it. "Ok, what do you smell?" I ask myself softly, trying to do a mental exercise to calm myself down since deep breaths are not an option. Blood. "What do you see?" Blood. Ok, this is not going to work. I'll just be anxious and on edge then. I balance on one leg and begin vigorously washing my hands. I wash them three times for good measure, scrubbing up to my wrists and getting under every nail. I lean down and splash water on my face, patting it dry with the hand towel hanging on the hook. I look in the mirror one more time, fix my hair, and then leave the safety and quiet of the bathroom.
I walk back into the living room and peer over Deaton's shoulder, he's about to put gauze on the wounds he just stitched up. The stiches look good, neat and clean. "How is he?" I ask, glancing over at Noah's face. He looks a lot more at peace.
"He might not wake up for a while, what just happened was very taxing on his body and his mind. He also lost a lot of blood. I hope he starts healing before the side effects of the drugs we gave him take over. We're going to take him to Derek's now, we need to monitor him carefully and if he wakes up in a rage he shouldn't be around humans or he could do some serious damage. He needs to learn control before being around anyone, really. Poor kid was thrown into this just like you." Deaton says, shaking his head slightly.
"Wait, don't take Noah to Derek's. I don't want him to wake up in a room full of strangers staring at him, that will definitely make him panic. The last time that happened to him, he was probably looking at the people who did this to him. He knows Isaac and me though, we should be there when he wakes up." I say in a rush, feeling weirdly protective over Noah despite everything that's happened.
Deaton stares at me for a moment. "You're right, but I didn't think you would want to be involved further in any of this. It's ok if you don't, you can just go on with your life as if none of this ever happened."
"I'm already involved, I might as well be helpful." I say with a shrug. The truth is, I feel weirdly bonded with this group of people after surviving the scariest moment of my life with them. I have felt alone for so long and when I'm around everyone in Scott's pack, I don't. Especially when I'm with Isaac. With Isaac I have never felt safer, more seen, or more cared for. And I've known him for a day.
"Ok then, it seems you've made up your mind. I don't think Isaac is in any condition to go anywhere anytime soon anyway. I'll leave you two here with Scott's car, we'll take mine to Derek's. Scott will text you when he thinks Noah is going to wake up." Deaton says.
"What happened to Isaac, where is he?" I ask, looking around the room for the first time and noticing his absence. My heart skips a beat with worry.
"He just went too far, took too much pain. He always does. Isaac always cares more about other people than he does for himself. I brought him upstairs to lay down, I hope that's ok. It was too loud and chaotic down here." Scott answers for Deaton as he walks back in the living room.
"Yeah that's totally fine, whatever he needs." I say.
"Are you sure you guys will be ok here?" Scott asks and I just nod. "I'm really sorry you got caught up in all of this. Thank you for your help. I heard you and Deaton talking, I will make sure to text you before Noah wakes up."
"Thank you both for everything."
...
After everyone leaves, the first thing I do is take two extra strength Tylenols. Scott and Deaton already made quick work of cleaning up the medical mess in the living room so there isn't anything for me to do right now except wait for Isaac to wake up. I look around the living room; the towels and trash were thrown away and the floor was scrubbed clean. I almost wish Scott and Deaton didn't clean up because now I feel like I dreamt up today's events without the mess here to prove me wrong.
I should check on Isaac. I hobble over to the stairs and decide that sitting down and scooting up them would be my safest option. It takes me five sweaty, exhausting minutes to get upstairs. I peek into my dimly lit room and see Isaac lying in my bed, sprawled out on his stomach. "Hey." He says, his voice scratchy, and I jump.
"I thought you were sleeping!" I hiss, trying to slow my now frantically beating heart. "You scared the shit out of me."
"I passed out for a little bit, how long have I been up here?" Isaac asks, turning over and struggling to sit up. He looks paler than I ever thought a person could be and a bead of sweat drips down his face.
"Almost an hour. Are you ok, do you need anything?" I ask, worried for him.
"I feel like shit, but I'll be ok. Always am. How are you?" He asks, rubbing his eyes.
"I'm fine, don't worry about me."
"I could sense your anxiety earlier, I wanted to come down and check on you, but I couldn't move." Isaac says, wincing and rubbing his temples as if even speaking was painful.
I forgot that Isaac could sense emotions. "Yeah I've been anxious for a long time, it's ok. There's just been a lot for me to wrap my head around in the last twenty-four hours, it's a bit overwhelming. I just need some time to process and adjust." I say softly, embarrassed that I was anxious earlier. "You look like shit though, worry about yourself." I tease and Isaac gives me a half smile.
"Do you want to come downstairs? I was going to bring you soup, but I can't carry anything with these stupid crutches. You're going to have to come downstairs and get it, sorry." I ask, changing the subject. Isaac suddenly looks close to tears. "Oh jeez, I'm sorry. Do you hate soup or something?" I ask, feeling bad for making him upset.
"Uh, no." Isaac says, his voice shaking. "Wow, I'm so sorry, this is very embarrassing. I don't know why I'm getting emotional, it's been a long day."
"I'm sorry for bringing it up!" I say, panicking slightly. We both go silent.
"It's just that, uh, one has ever offered to do anything like make me soup before." Isaac says quietly after a moment. "That was very sweet, really caught me off guard."
"Not even when you're sick? I was just going to heat it up from a can though, it's really not a big deal." I say, trying to make him feel better.
"That was such a weird reaction, I'm so sorry." Isaac says, putting his head in his hands.
"It's really ok." I say as reassuringly as I can. Isaac is still embarassed and doesn't say anything. "Hey, I would be honored to be the first person to make you soup when you're not feeling well. Besides, it's my turn to cook. I made a fool out of myself earlier trying to make breakfast. Let's go downstairs."
"Ok." Isaac agrees quietly.