Chapter 32

"What happened?" asked the nurse as they rushed to help Penny and their neighbor Sammy in getting Leonard out of the car.

"I don't know. I just saw him lying unconscious in our living room." said Penny as another nurse came out, pushing a gurney to put Leonard on it.

"Okay on the count of three...one...two...three." said the nurse as they laid Leonard on the gurney before rushing him into the emergency room with Penny and Sammy following close.

"Okay, what do we have here?" said the emergency doctor as they attend to Leonard.

"I think my husband had another heart attack. Doctor please do everything you can to save my husband!" said Penny.

"Mrs. Hofstadter, please stay over here and let the doctor and nurses do their job." said a nurse, leading Penny away from Leonard as the doctor and nurses attach different instruments onto him.

"Oh my god! Oh my god! Leonard!" Penny said, crying her eyes out as Sammy went near to console her.

"Don't worry Penny, I'm sure Leonard's gonna be alright." Sammy said.

"Thank you Sammy." she said.

"Don't mention it." he said while rubbing his hand on her back, letting her sit down. "Do you need anything? Coffee? Water?" he asked.

"No thanks. I'm good." said Penny.

"Do you mind if I asked what happened?" said Sammy.

Penny didn't respond and just looked down on the floor, not wanting to face the fact that her husband might not survive this heart attack.

"Hey if you don't want to say anything, it's fine." said Sammy, realizing he might be overstepping. After a few minutes, his sister Kelly came in as Penny rushed to hug her, crying her eyes out.

"Shhh, it's gonna be alright Penny." Kelly said, trying to console her friend.

"Kelly, I'm scared for my husband." Penny said while crying on Kelly's shoulder.

"Don't be scared Penny. I'm sure he's gonna be fine." Kelly said when they saw the nurses pushing Leonard's hospital bed.

Penny ran to find out what's happening. "What's happening?" Penny asked the doctor.

"We're gonna take him in and run some tests. Hopefully it's nothing bad." he said as they wheel him in, with Penny holding her husband's hand.

"Doctor please save my husband!" said Penny as they bring Leonard into a room while a nurse told Penny to stay outside.

"You need to wait here Mrs. Hofstadter." said a nurse as she closed the door behind her. Penny slumped on the floor, crying her eyes out while Kelly and Sammy held her, leading her to sit at the waiting area.

"Don't cry Penny, it's gonna be alright." said Sammy.

"Where's Sarah anyway?" said Kelly.

Penny didn't respond and pulled out her phone, scrolling on the screen.

"Who are you calling?" asked Kelly.

"My son." said Penny as she brought the phone to her ears.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile in New Jersey, William was typing on his computer when he saw his mother's name on his phone. He pressed the green icon and put it on speaker phone so he could continue typing.

Wi: "Hi mom! What's up?"

P: "Sweetheart your father!" Penny exclaimed while crying.

William immediately knew that something bad happened to his father.

Wi: "Mom, why are you crying? What happened to dad?"

P: "Sweetie!" Penny said, unable to say the words as she continued crying.

Wi: "Mom what happened to dad!?" he yelled as he began to tear up.

P: "He had another heart attack. I'm at the hospital now. Sammy helped me bring him here!"

William gasped and was unable to speak, fearing for his father's life.

P: "Sweetheart are you still there?"

Wt: "Yeah, I'm still here mom. Tell me what happened,"

P: "Your sister and I had a fight and your father tried to intervene which he usually does. Sarah ran away and Leonard ran after her. When I went downstairs to follow them, I saw your father already unconscious on the floor.

Wi: "Where is Sarah now?"

P: "She ran away. I don't care about her right now and if she shows up here, who knows what I'm gonna do to her!"

Wi: "Okay mom, why don't you relax and stay with dad. I'm gonna go to my place to pack and go to the airport."

P: "Okay sweetheart. Just hurry up. I need you here now."

"Don't worry mom, I'm going now." he said, ending the call before getting his things before leaving the office. He passed by his supervisor's office and told him what happened, letting him know that he's going home to be with his family. His supervisor was surprised with the news and told William to go and be with his family, wishing him good luck.

William reached his apartment and immediately packed his duffel bag, throwing in a few clothes and putting all his essentials in it — passport, laptop, money and everything he saw on his desk. He decided to take a quick shower and put on some new clothes before heading out, making sure he had everything he needed. He went out and locked his apartment door, going downstairs to catch a cab to the airport, deciding to book his flight there to get on the next plane to California.

He arrived at the airport and went straight to one of the airline desks, asking for the immediate flight to California. After almost thirty minutes, the airline desk handed him his boarding pass with his flight going out in three hours. William then realized that he forgot to tell his girlfriend about his situation so he pulled his phone out to call her.

E: "Hi babe! What's up? Are you home yet?"

Wi: "Babe I have something to tell you."

E: "What is it?"

Wi: "I'm at the airport right now. I have to go home to California?"

E: "Why? Is there something wrong?" she said, not liking the tone of her boyfriend's voice.

Wi: "My dad was rushed to the hospital. He had another heart attack."

Erin gasped and couldn't believe what William said.

E: "What?"

Wi: "Babe, my dad had another heart attack. I have to go home. I'll call you when I arrive over there okay?"

E: "Oh my god! What happened!?"

Wi: "I'll tell you when I get there alright?"

E: "Uh, okay. Do you want me to come with you?"

Wi: "No it's alright. Just don't worry. I'll call you as soon as I land in California."

E: "Okay. Give your mom and sister a hug from me."

Wi: "I will. Bye." he said before putting the phone down

William then went straight to the boarding gate thinking about how devastated his mother is right now, feeling anxious at how helpless she must be feeling right now. He then pulled out his phone and started texting his uncle Sheldon and aunt Amy.

[Hi uncle Sheldon, it's William. My dad had another heart attack and my mom is with him in the hospital right now. I'd appreciate it if you and aunt Amy could be with her. Thanks.]

After a few minutes, Sheldon replied.

S: [We already called your mother. We're on our way now.]

S: [Where are you now?]

Wi: [I'm in the airport now, waiting for my flight to California.]

S: [Okay, we'll wait for you here. Be safe.]

Wi: [Thanks uncle Sheldon.]

S: [Leonard's my brother. Of course I'll be there for him.]

S: [Don't worry, we'll make sure your mother's alright.]

After a couple of hours, William stood up to join the other passengers boarding his plane to California. He was thankful that he was able to get the next flight out and didn't need to wait for hours just to get out of New Jersey. He entered the aircraft and found his seat, putting his backpack on the overhead storage before settling down, feeling tired after basically running from the university to his apartment and then straight to the airport.

After almost half an hour of preflight preparations, the airplane taxied on the runway and throttled its engines, sending them off the ground and up into the air towards the west coast of the country. William slowly closed his eyes and let sleep take over him, hoping that when he wakes up, he'll be closer to his family.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, back in California...

"Sarah, are you sure you want to stay here tonight?" asked Sheryl.

"Yeah, knowing my mom, she'll bite my head off right now. I'll just let her cool off for a bit." Sarah said as she sat on Sheryl's bed. "I'm sorry for crashing here."

"Hey it's not a problem, but I think my mom would insist on you going home." said Sheryl.

"Yeah, I kinda hope you would say that." said Sarah, giving her weak smile

"What do you want me to do? I mean, we're both underage and besides, no matter how angry your mom is with you, she'll still be worried for you, right?" Sheryl said.

"I guess. Just let me stay here for as long as I can, okay?" Sarah said.

"Yeah sure." said Sheryl. "If you wanna use the bathroom, it's the second door on the left."

Sarah stood up. "Thanks." she said before turning around to freshen up in the bathroom. Sarah closed the door when she saw Sheryl's mom coming up the stairs.

"Hey Sarah, what are you doing here?" said Mrs. Denton.

"Hi Mrs. Denton, I'm just hanging out with Sheryl in her room." said Sarah. "But I gotta use the bathroom first."

"Oh, okay. You girls have fun!" said Sheryl's mother as Sarah went inside the bathroom.

After a couple of hours, Sarah and Sheryl went downstairs while Mrs. Denton and Sheryl's younger brother Ned were preparing the table for dinner.

"Sarah, why don't you join us for dinner?" said Sheryl's mom.

"Thank you Mrs. Denton." said Sarah.

"I told you, call me aunt Sylvia." said Sylvia.

"Okay, aunt Sylvia." said Sarah as she decided to help out in preparing the table with Sheryl.

"How's your mom and dad anyways? And Sheryl told me that your brother already has a girlfriend in New Jersey?" said Sylvia, trying to keep the mood light. "Have you met her?"

"Yeah. Her name's Erin." Sarah said.

"It must be hard for Halley when she found out that William is moving on huh?" Sylvia said.

"Mom!" Sheryl said, giving her mother a stern look.

"What? I'm just curious." Sylvia said.

"Halley didn't take it so well." Sarah said. "We kinda fought about it when she confronted me and I told her that it's not my business who my brother dates."

"Oh my god, she took it out on you?" asked Sylvia.

"Yeah, she told me to stay away from her so I told her the same thing!" Sarah said.

"I'm sorry honey. I'm sure you and Halley can work it out." said Sheryl's mom, consoling the young lady. "How about your mom and dad?"

Sarah kept quiet and avoided looking at Sheryl's mom. Sylvia immediately sensed something wrong so she decided to make them talk. "Sheryl honey, did something happened?" Sylvia said to her daughter.

"Nothing mom." said Sheryl.

Sylvia looked at the girls and knew something wasn't right, that they were somehow hiding something from her. "Okay, you two better be straight with right now!" she said.

"You two are in trouble now!" Ned chimed in, earning a look from his mother.

"Sarah I'm gonna ask you again, are you here because you're hiding out from your folks?" asked Sylvia while folding her arms, giving the two girls a stern look. Sarah and Sheryl didn't answer so Sylvia decided to pick up the phone from the wall and started dialing Penny's number. "I'm gonna call you mother and tell her you're here. She must be getting worried about you."

"Aunt Sylvia please don't!" Sarah said. "My mom and I kinda fought earlier. Please don't call her!"

Sylvia sighed and put the handset back on it's cradle. "Fine, but after dinner, I'm driving you back to your house, you understand?"

Sarah looked and Sheryl and knew she had no way out of it. "Thank you aunt Sylvia." said Sarah.

Sylvia smiled and pulled Sarah close, hugging her to make her feel at ease. "Don't worry honey, I'm sure your mom is worried sick about you." she said. "Now let's eat, it might make you feel better."

"Okay." Sarah said as they sat down and started putting food on their plates.

After dinner, Sarah and Sheryl decided to help in cleaning up the table and washing the dishes before Mrs. Denton could drive Sarah back to their house.

They arrived at the front of Sarah's house after ten minutes.

"Thank you aunt Sylvia. I appreciate you driving me back." said Sarah.

"Hey it's almost dark and it's not safe if you would walk home alone." said Sylvia.

"Text me when you get home alright?" Sarah told Sheryl.

"Okay, just don't meet your mom head on. You know you can't win against her, right?" Sheryl said.

"Yeah I get it." Sarah said as she opened the door and stepped out of the car. Their neighbor Mandy then saw her on the sidewalk and decided to walk towards Sarah, slightly surprising her.

"Sarah, what are you doing here? is your father alright?" asked Mandy.

Sarah looked at her, not understanding her question. "What do you mean? What happened to my dad!?"

"Oh my god! I thought you were with your mom when my brother helped her out in carrying your dad to the car." said Mandy.

"What do you mean by that?" Sarah asked as she started to freak out.

"Your mom had to bring your dad to the hospital, like three hours ago. She said she found him unconscious in the living room so she called Sammy to help her out and bring him to the hospital. My sister Kelly is there too." said Mandy.

Sarah fell on the pavement and started crying as Sylvia and Sheryl got out of the car to find out what happened.

"What's happening?" asked Sylvia as Sheryl went down to console her best friend.

"Mr. Hofstadter is in the hospital right now. I think he had another heart attack or something." Mandy said.

"Oh my god!" Sylvia exclaimed, unable to react to the horrible news.

"Mom we have to bring Sarah to the hospital now!" Sheryl said.

Sylvia nodded. "You're right honey." she said as she pulled Sarah up on her feet. "Come on honey, I'm gonna bring you there." she said as Sarah wouldn't stop crying while Sheryl helped her back into the car.

"It's my fault! It's all my fault!" said Sarah as Sylvia drove down the road. "I'm the worst daughter in the world!" she added while crying on Sheryl's shoulder.

"Come on Sarah, it's not your fault. You didn't know that this was gonna happen." said Sheryl.

"She's right honey. For all we know, they're keeping your dad for observation and they'll let him out first thing tomorrow morning." said Sheryl's mom.

"You don't understand. I'm the one who gave my dad his heart attack!" Sarah said.

"What do you mean?" asked Sylvia.

"Sarah, are you sure you want to talk about this?" said Sheryl, knowing how mothers will react to a sensitive subject.

"Wait a minute, what are you girls not telling me huh?" asked Sylvia.

"Mom, it's really none of our business." said Sheryl.

Sylvia suddenly stopped the car, pulling over to the side of the road before facing the two girls. "Okay, you two better come clean right now. What do you mean when you said you caused your dad's heart attack?"

Sarah wiped her tears and took a deep breath. "My mom and I had a fight when she found out that me and Jason...well...when she found out that we did it." Sarah said.

Sylvia gasped and froze, unable to take the shocking news. "Oh my god! Oh my god!" was all Sylvia could say. "Did you know about this?" she asked her daughter,

"Mom!" said Sheryl.

"Never mind. I guess your dad couldn't take the news when he found out huh?" Sylvia said.

"Aunt Sylvia please!? I need to see my dad right now!" Sarah pleaded.

Sylvia sighed and turned around before putting the car in gear. "Sorry, I guess I just wasn't ready to hear this kind of news." she said. "You're like a daughter to me Sarah, you know that right?" she added.

"I know aunt Sylvia. I'm sorry." Sarah said while Sheryl consoled her friend.

"It's alright honey, you don't have to apologize to me." said Sylvia as they drove back on the road with Sarah feeling both anxious and afraid in facing her mother who will surely blame her for Leonard's present predicament.