Isaac's POV:
Things start to go downhill shortly after we get in the car.
"My bike." Scott groans from the passenger seat, leaning his head on his hand that is resting on the center console.
"Already taken care of. I sent Malia our location earlier and she can track Isaac's scent right to it." Stiles starts and is cut off by Scott groaning loudly again.
"No Stiles, not Malia. Something weird is going to happen and I'm going to get the bike back in pieces." Scott protests, sounding devastated. His words are slightly slurred because of his head injury.
"I hate to break it to you buddy, but your bike is probably already in pieces. Also you need to trust Malia more. She isn't, ya know, feral anymore. Hasn't been for years actually, if you haven't noticed. She's doing you a huge favor here. You don't still treat me as the guy who hit one of our classmates with his car." Stiles rants, gesturing with his hands occasionally to emphasize his point.
"I know." Scott mumbles.
I was so distracted by Stiles and Scott's back and forth that I didn't notice how quiet Liv has gotten. She stops answering questions, staring at me blankly instead with glossy hazel eyes. I can't help but notice that she must have hit her face at some point because her eye and cheek are already bruised and swollen and I can tell she's going to have a black eye. "Hey, are you hanging in there?" I ask, jostling her slightly with my shoulder because I'm using my hands to apply as much pressure as I can to her leg to help stop the bleeding. My cardigan is almost soaked all the way through. Olivia's head just bumps against my chest when I move the arm that's supporting her. Her eyes flutter shut and she takes a shaky deep breath. Despite Stiles having the heat on full blast to keep Scott and Liv warm and the fact that it's summertime in California, she continues to shiver violently. Even though her teeth are chattering, I see the smallest bit of sweat beginning to bead on her forehead. I focus my ears and hear her heartbeat pounding quickly. Too fast.
"Fuck, she's starting to go into shock." I say quietly, clenching my teeth in frustration because there's nothing else I can do for her.
"Are you serious?" Stiles yelps and I hear more than feel the old Jeep we're in accelerate. "Do not let her die in my car. Why are people always trying to die in my car?" he mutters, saying the last bit mostly to himself.
I ignore Stiles as I let go of Liv's knee for a moment to ease her body off mine and help her lay as flat as possible in the tiny space we're in. I'm desperately trying not to focus on the latter and how suffocated I feel. I fold my body so my knees are in the air before laying her legs on top of mine so they're elevated. Then, I press down with both hands as hard as I can again on the area that's bleeding the most.
"Stiles, time check?" I yell, gritting my teeth as I try to keep my anxiety at bay. I need to keep track of how long it's been since she went into shock.
"Six thirty-two." He calls out, glancing over at Scott who also keeps going in and out of consciousness. "How are you doing over there, buddy?"
Scott just grunts, not having the energy to muster a real response.
"Stiles, how much longer?" I hiss, worried that I can't get Olivia to open her eyes for more than five seconds at a time. That's never a good sign. "Hey, you need to stay awake. Can you tell me something about yourself? Anything, middle name or favorite color could work." I say, shaking her gently again. Liv just groans, the energy of her response similar to Scott's.
Stiles makes a wild right turn and I have to brace with my legs to keep from slamming into the side of the car. "We're here!" He yells, whipping into a spot and throwing the Jeep in park. Stiles rushes to let us out of the trunk since there's no way to open it from the inside before moving to help Scott out of the car. He throws Scott's arm over his shoulder and wraps his own arm around Scott's waist. With Stiles half-carrying, half-dragging Scott, who is very disoriented and leaning heavily on him, and me carrying Olivia, we hurry to the side door of the hospital where we usually meet Mama McCall. Stiles texted her and told her we were coming.
Melissa appears and leads us wordlessly to an exam room, closing the blinds and locking the door behind us once we're all inside. I immediately lay Olivia flat on the bed, shifting so I can still keep pressure on her leg wound.
"Hi baby, are you ok?" I hear Melissa say and turn in time to see her pulling Scott in for a quick hug.
"I'm ok, mom." Scott says, sitting down heavily in the only extra chair in the room with the towel still pressed to his head. Melissa looks him up and down and sighs before moving to examine Olivia. I can tell it hurts her to not take care of her son first.
"Alright, who is this girl? Any claws or venomous tails I should watch out for? What have you gotten her caught up in?" Melissa asks in a rush.
"This is Olivia, she's human. She started going into shock about five minutes ago. We have no idea who she is, an omega in the area attacked her. We didn't realize there was even an omega in Beacon Hills until today. We were trying to track said rogue werewolf and when Scott finally found him, he was attacking Liv. We know it's a he now for sure, but we don't know where he came from or what he wants. Scott tried to get her away from the omega, but it went after both of them on the bike. We have no idea how she's connected or why the omega targeted her. It's also not like a werewolf to keep pursuing prey that has escaped so far. It's unusual." I explain.
"Poor girl." Melissa murmurs sadly, lifting the cardigan to peek at the wound underneath. "One of you did a good job stopping the bleeding, I'm assuming it was Isaac because of the sweater."
"Yeah." I say softly, warmth running through me at her praise. I'm relieved I was able to do something actually useful and protect Olivia from further medical distress. It's also not often we're appreciated for any of the work we do.
"I also already explained the whole we're not actually admitting her to the hospital situation and she agreed so you're good to go ahead and do whatever you need to do." I add. Nurses typically aren't allowed to do things like sutures so Melissa likes to get patient consent when she can.
"That's great, thank you. Melissa says softly, distracted. The whole time we've been talking, she has been taking Olivia's vitals and doing a quick visual examination. I look away when she raises Liv's shirt. Melissa holds Liv's eyes open and shines a tiny flashlight in them before turning to the cart of medical supplies behind her and pulling an I.V. bag out of the drawer. She hangs the bag, tilts the top of the bed down so Olivia's legs are slightly above her heart, cleans her arm thoroughly, and then inserts the bag into the crook of her elbow. "I'm going to give her fluids to boost the volume of blood in her body to stabilize her before stitching her leg and potentially the gashes on her shoulders. It's very important we keep her warm. Hopefully then she'll start coming around." Melissa states before leaving the room. Stiles and Scott are eerily silent and when I look over, they are staring at Olivia with grim looks on their faces. I need to remember to check in with them later.
Melissa comes back with a stack of blankets and hospital issue clothing. "Heated blankets for the injured." She says, tossing a blanket to Scott and handing the other two to me. She sets the clothes on the supply cart. I drape one of the blankets over Liv's torso, making sure to leave the arm connected to the I.V. out so the tube doesn't get in the way of the blanket being tucked somewhat snugly around her body for maximum warmth. The blanket from Stiles' car is covering her lap so I gently lift Olivia's shoulders off the bed so I can wrap the other heated blanket around her upper arms and chest so she doesn't get cold from having one arm exposed.
"I've been taking her pain ever since we found her. "
"That's good because I can't give her pain medication since she's not officially a patient." Melissa explains before turning to address Olivia herself, who is in and out of consciousness. "Olivia, I'm Nurse McCall. I'm Scott's mom. Can you hear me?" Melissa asks gently, raising her voice to hopefully get Liv's attention and keep her from giving into sleep. Her eyes open for just a moment before she lets her head loll to the side. She's tired, but she's trying to be present. She's fighting for it. For some reason, that sight upsets me.
"That's alright, just get some rest. I'm going to fix you up." Melissa says soothingly.
I'm used to people being injured, often injured much worse than this. Sometimes they're people I love, and sometimes the injured parties are total strangers, bystanders caught in the crossfire. I have seen countless people bloodied, passed out, or on the verge of death and I'm able to stomach it just fine. Compartmentalize. I have been one of those people many times. But, seeing Liv injured and incapacitated brings up strange feelings for me, makes me feel sick to my stomach. Why do I care so much, why am I so invested in her well being?
I don't know her and yet I'm so drawn to her. I haven't seen someone so tough, so determined to take care of themselves without help, even while bleeding out on the forest floor, in a long time. Not since I first met the members of our current pack. Olivia pulled herself up off the ground when she physically shouldn't have been able to. She looked so determined when I first saw her, I wonder what she was thinking about. She didn't even seem to care about her own injuries, the fact that she was quite literally dripping with blood. If she wasn't worried for herself, what was her motivation for doing what she did? Scott, she was probably trying to get to Scott, I realize. The first thing Liv did when she saw me was ask if I had seen him. Even after something so terrible happened and Olivia was left standing in the woods full of pain and fear, she wasn't thinking about herself. Then it hits me.
I haven't seen that stubborn resilience or reckless selflessness in anyone since Allison. Stiles takes a while to trust. He would do anything for his inner circle, the people he loves, but is more hesitant when dealing with anyone else. Scott does what he does out of a sense of duty and because he doesn't want to waste powers ordinary people don't have access to. This girl has no abilities and knows none of us, but was willing to risk it all, even further injury to herself. I'm suddenly overwhelmed by emotion and tears spring to my eyes. I look at the ground in order to properly focus on keeping them from falling. I have spent so long trying to get over Allison, but there are reminders of her everywhere. I'm also moved just by Liv's actions.
"I'm going to wait in the car, Stiles can I have your keys?" I choke out, having trouble speaking around the sob rising in my throat. I cough to disguise the distress in my voice.
"Uh sure, is-" Stiles begins, but Melissa cuts him off.
"Oh no you are not, this girl doesn't have anyone right now. She was dragged into the supernatural world against her will, she didn't ask for this. We can't even admit her to the hospital in fear that she might tell someone what she saw before you guys have a chance to explain everything to her. We can't call her family. You guys are asking her to do all of us in this room a huge favor by keeping quiet. Olivia is sacrificing having the comfort of a support system she knows during a very scary time in order to protect you guys. When something happens to any of you, you have the luxury of not being alone because your family unit has the inside supernatural scoop and you don't have to worry about things getting out. So, Isaac, you are going to come over here and hold her god damn hand until I'm done. Stiles, you are going to help Scott clean the wound on his head and bandage it properly, not with some dirty towel from your car." Melissa says in a rush, her tone scarily firm despite her emotional words. Melissa is good in crisis, for obvious reasons. Her words feel like a slap in the face though and the emotions I felt suffocated by moments before are gone in an instant.
I want to hit myself for being so selfish right now.
"You're right." I say softly, stepping forward and taking Olivia's hand into my shaky one. It's eerily cold.
"I don't mean to be hard on you guys though, I know you boys didn't ask for any of this either." Melissa adds, her voice much softer as she looks around the room meaningfully at each of us. I just nod. Mama McCall can be hard on us, but it's all out of love. Always.
Stiles and Scott both hold up their hands in surrender, weirdly in sync. "I will do anything you want me to, I live to serve." and "Of course, mom." Is said at the same time, Scott and Stiles' voices overlapping.
"Thank you." Melissa huffs, giving a soft smile before turning to the cart full of supplies. She throws a saline bottle, gauze pads, and butterfly bandages haphazardly in Stiles and Scott's direction, knowing they're going to catch them. I glance back at Olivia who is still shivering on the bed. I siphon more pain from her, wincing as I physically feel my energy being drained. As I do, she relaxes a little and the shivering becomes less intense. With my free hand, I tug one of the blankets up under her chin so it covers more. Melissa sets thread, scissors, saline, a plastic waste container, non-stick dressings, gauze, and tubes of ointment I can't identify on the metal tray table next to the bed.
I glance over and see Stiles irrigating the wound on Scott's head and dabbing up the liquid that runs down Scott's face as a result, his face hardened in concentration. That's exactly what Melissa is about to start doing. I look back at Olivia and brush the light brown hair that's plastered to her forehead out of her face, tucking it behind her ear instead.
"I can keep taking her pain while you clean her wounds and stitch her up. It usually makes people sleepy and hopefully it will keep her unconscious and from feeling anything while you work." I say, glancing up at Melissa who is putting on gloves.
"That's great, the less she feels of any of this, the better. Just be careful, don't take too much."
…
About an hour after we arrived at the hospital, Melissa kicked us out of the room so she could cut Olivia's clothes off and finish her examination. It feels like it's been an eternity though, time passes so strangely in hospitals. Scott, Stiles, and I are sitting in the visitor chairs in the hallway and it's very awkward. All of us are pack now and that's a bond you can't walk away from, even if you may want to at times. I love and care about them of course, I would die for them, but we aren't really that close. I know they feel the same way.
Us being in rival packs at first really put a damper on our friendships from the start. Me dating Allison put further stain on my relationship with Scott, which I understand. I was wrong for that one. Leaving to Europe with Chris Argent after Allison died didn't help things either. I don't know if it was simply me moving away and missing out on a lot or the fact that I have always been closer with Chris than Scott ever hoped to be that made things weirder.
Stiles and I just never really clicked. Scott, Lydia, and his dad were his people and they took up most of his time and thoughts. Scott and Stiles were both also busy constantly saving Beacon Hills. I recently just came back and have been trying to help them out whenever situations arise. But, things are awkward to say the least.
"Dude, you look terrible. You shouldn't have taken that much pain." Stiles says softly, breaking the heavy silence. His brown eyes peer harshly into mine, reprimanding me for putting someone else's well being before my own, again. I tend to do that.
"Olivia has been through enough today." I grumble, leaning back in the chair and crossing my arms. I am exhausted.
"This is so weird, I feel like we've taken her hostage. We've never really had to babysit a victim this way before, not to mention a total stranger. Normally we stop whatever the threat of the day is before too many innocent people are involved. Usually no one witnesses anything strange or the victims die before we can get to them. No explanation of the supernatural required." Stiles murmurs.
"Feels wrong." Scott agrees softly. "I feel really bad about what she had to go through, but she seems to be handling everything weirdly well. I would be terrified, I was terrified when I was first bitten. Liv wasn't bitten, but her experience is close enough. She got a better look at a werewolf than I did the night Stiles and I went to look for Laura's body in the woods. We need to have an emergency meeting tomorrow. We need to bring this guy in. Someone needs to watch Liv's house tonight though until the omega is caught or until we can at least figure out why she was targeted."
"I can take first watch." I say.
"Are you sure? You look wiped." Stiles asks apprehensively.
"I'm sure, I'm fine. You can take Olivia and I to her house and then drive Scott home. There are less trips that way. Scott is injured and is out for the count tonight so that means if you want first watch you would have to drop Olivia off, take Scott and I back to our places, and then drive back to Liv's. So many things could happen in that time." I insist, panic rising in me at just the thought. I don't know why I feel so strongly about this.
"You're right. I do need to sleep this off, I need to heal. I'll pick you up in the morning, you can take some time to rest, and then we'll talk tomorrow night." Scott declares. I nod in agreement.
"Isaac, why did you want to wait in the car earlier? You just got back, are you handling everything alright?" Stiles asks, suddenly changing the subject. I can't tell if he's just curious or he genuinely cares. I don't feel comfortable talking about most things though, especially not about Allison with Scott.
"Oh that? That was nothing." I say quickly and before Stiles can protest about my obvious lie, Melissa waves us back in the room. Relief rushes through me. The first thing I see is Olivia wearing sweats that are three times too big and the sight would make me laugh under any other circumstances. She looks so comfortable and peaceful and I hope she stays feeling that way for a while. I know when she wakes up she's going to be anything but.
"Ok, Scott come here and let me look at Stiles' patch job." Melissa says, followed by a tired sigh. Scott shuffles toward her and she gently lifts the gauze taped to his forehead. "Good job boys." She hums in approval, patting it down again, apparently satisfied. "It's nice to see some of my lessons stuck with you. Alright, normally I couldn't discuss Olivia's treatment or condition with any of you, but these are clearly far from normal circumstances. She's sleeping right now and out of it, so I'll tell you what you should tell her. She has stitches in her shoulders and knee that can't get wet for forty-eight hours. She isn't going to be able to walk without crutches until I take the sutures in two weeks and I can't give you any from the hospital. So, stop by my house after this to get some, I have a million pairs in the garage. Liv is going to be out for a while, she experienced a couple forms of shock. Luckily, she doesn't have a concussion so just bring her home and let her sleep." Melissa says quickly, pausing to take a breath and to let us process all of this information. "It's so important that she stays hydrated, so make sure she drinks plenty of fluids. She has a few bruised ribs, so no strenuous activity for a while. Also, tell her to change her bandages every day. I will come by to check on her when I don't have work." Melissa instructs. "Got all that, will you make sure to pass all of this on? In detail? Need I remind you one more time that this is very important?"
"Got it, will do." I whisper.
"Thanks, Mom." Scott says, pulling her in for a quick hug. She hugs all of us actually.
"Alright, go before anyone sees you."
Hey guys! Please let me know how you're liking the story so far. Your comments really keep me going and I love feedback. I have a few exciting chapters coming up. Thanks for reading :)
-Anonymous367