Disclaimer: The OC and its characters belong to someone with much more
money than me.
Author's note:
See, I'm updating. I'm all about the update. I'm on fire with the update. I know the chapters are short so I'm trying to compensate with quick postings. I'll have another up tomorrow. Many thanks to my beta Liz.
Antigone 11, at first I was confused by your comment about the writing style, so I re-read everything and I think I know what you mean. Let me know if I'm back on track. I'd appreciate it.
Thanks for reading everyone. I never expected so may reviews. Hell, I never expected anyone to read it! Thanks for taking the time. And now on with the drama...
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Thursday Afternoon
Chapter Six
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Seth Cohen is feeling minty.
Sort of.
Ok, so the whole big needle in his back, extendo Q-Tip up his nose was maybe...not so much fun. And the constant dry heaving; maybe... not so much fun. Killer headache? Third verse same as the first.
But now?
The drugs have begun.
Doctor Holbrith promised him that if he was a good little boy for the lumbar puncture and nasal swab, he would be rewarded with a snazzy IV cocktail chock full of a bunch of drugs whose names he can't remember.
Names are not so important at this moment. Results are all that count. And Seth knows that he is feeling shiny. He's sure that the fact that his core temperature is exceeding maximum overdrive is most likely a problem he should be disturbed by and that without the aforementioned drugs he'd currently be trying to vomit up an internal organ, but Seth Cohen can't be concerned about that now. Thanks to his intravenous cocktail, the headache is receding.
Seth settles back into a dream. Summer, a boat, Tahiti. Summer in a little bitty bikini, sailing on a boat, to Tahiti, with him.
"Seth?" he hears a nurse call. She's told him her name, but he can't seem to recall it. "Seth? Can you wake up? Your dad's here to see you."
Seth loves his dad, really he does. But no man can compete with Summer and that dream he keeps having every time he closes his eyes. Sandy Cohen will have to wait.
Seth drifts off, feeling his father's fingers combing through his hair.
------------------------------------------
Ed Carden picks at his meal. He's not hungry. He shouldn't have wasted money on food he had no intention of eating. If Sara were alive, she would be chastising him. But she's dead, his boys are a thousand miles away, and his heart is breaking. He can't stop thinking about Ryan, even saying the name out loud several times, just to make it more real. Sandy Cohen seems like a nice guy, but he is a lawyer and will no doubt demand a paternity test before he even allows a single communication with the boy. Hell, barely a boy. Ed realizes his first-born son is almost a man. No, not first-born, possibly first-born. But if Ryan is his, will tests and court dates rob what little of the kid's childhood Ed has left?
All those years lost. Ed knows deep down in his soul why Dawn never told him about the boy. He would have flown to Fresno and claimed Ryan, saved him from Dawn and her demented husband and their dysfunctional lives. For whatever reason, Dawn wanted to keep Ryan for herself. Maybe she wanted to save her marriage. Maybe she wanted Trey to grow up with a sibling. Maybe she was just being selfish, or scared, or didn't even realize what had happened until she saw Ryan for the first time and recognized Ed in him.
When it was all said and done, the results were the same. Dawn had kept Ryan for herself, and then she had thrown him away.
But the kid had survived. He seemed to be thriving if Sandy Cohen and his family picture were to be believed.
Ed wasn't a man of beliefs. He didn't believe in fate or destiny or even religion. But still, the timing of all this was just too eerie. Sara had been ripped from his life, and now Ryan delivered into it.
Shoving his dinner aside, Ed retrieves Sandy's business card. How hard would it be to find the Cohen's house? Probably not too difficult. He picks up his laptop and heads for the hotel's recreation room. He remembers seeing a sign there, promising DSL service for a reasonable rate.
------------------------------------------
Sandy finishes removing a pale yellow hospital gown and exits Seth's room. He makes his way into the isolation waiting area. Kirsten looks up at him expectantly.
"He's asleep," he tells his worried wife. "I don't think he's in any pain. He looks peaceful."
All Kirsten can think about is the lumbar puncture. Seth had been scared to death and Kirsten had been able to do nothing but hold his hand and tell him that he was doing great. She had sounded like a goddamn cheerleader. The nasal swab was worse. Sandy should have been there. He should have checked his cell phone sooner. He should have been there for his son.
"Kirsten," Sandy interrupts her aggressive thoughts, "We need to call Ryan. He's going crazy. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he's on his way right now on that damn bike of his."
Kirsten wearily rubs her forehead. God, in all the frenzied activity, she forgot about Ryan. Her last words to him were a promise to call.
"I'll do it," she tells Sandy. "I'll call Ryan, I'm overdue."
"What are you going to tell him?" Sandy asks. Ryan can be unpredictable, short on patience and temper. All they need now is to be worried about him as well as Seth.
"I'm going to tell him the truth, Sandy," Kirsten states, short tempered herself. "He's a big boy, he can take it."
Sandy watches his wife make her way to a secluded corner of the waiting room. How many times can he talk to Kirsten without mentioning Ed Carden? The results of Seth's test for meningitis will be back soon, the doctor mentioned that it would only take a little over an hour. Sandy decides to wait until at least the test results comes back before speaking with Kirsten. She's so upset about Seth right now that she wouldn't be able to process the news anyway.
Leaving Kirsten to her phone call, Sandy returns to Seth's hospital bed. He repeats the visiting procedures. Puts on the unfamiliar hospital garb.
His son is still asleep.
Watching a nurse replace the ice packs positioned around Seth's body, Sandy wonders how in the hell the kid can sleep with those mini-glaciers on him. Then again, Seth was always a heavy sleeper.
Sandy waits until the nurse leaves and then leans over, putting his hand on his son's chest. "I'm right here Seth," he assures the sleeping boy. "Everything's okay."
------------------------------------------
Kirsten dials her home number; after a few rings, Ryan answers.
Before she called, Kirsten considered feigning cheerfulness. But she's too tired and Ryan's too smart for that nonsense.
When she hears his soft inquiry, "Kirsten?" She answers with a lethargic, "Hi Ryan. Are you still talking to me?"
When he doesn't respond one way or another right away, Kirsten wonders if he is considering her proposal. After a few more seconds Ryan asks, "Is Seth okay? Sandy said you guys are at HOAG. What the hell is happening?"
Kirsten sighs to herself. "It's complicated Ryan. They think Seth might have meningitis. Even if he has that, they still have to determine if it's viral or bacterial, and then they have to figure out what strain, and decide how to treat it. I don't know if we'll have definite answers tonight or not. Right now we are just waiting on the initial test results for meningitis."
"You should have let me come with you," he blurts out, and then backs off slightly, "I could be there to help."
Kirsten glances at her watch. Forty minutes have passed since the lumbar puncture.
"You're right Ryan," she concedes. "It was stupid to leave you at home and I should have called a lot sooner. I've been very inconsiderate, and I'm sorry."
"I was just worried," the boy says in his usual distant manner. "I knew something was wrong and no one called."
"Of course," Kirsten responds. "This won't happen again Ryan. You won't be left out of the loop again."
The other end of the receiver is silent.
"Ryan," Kirsten continues, "How are you feeling? Any sign of a fever, neck stiffness, anything like that? This is important Ryan. If you feel the slightest bit sick, I need to know about it now."
"I'm hungry."
Kirsten decides that her ears must not be functioning properly. "What?" she inquires in an attempt to clarify.
"I'm hungry," he repeats.
Kirsten laughs. "Well we don't need a doctor to diagnosis that problem."
Ryan is still reserved. His hesitantly asks, "If I can bum a ride, can I come down there?"
Kirsten was waiting to field this one. "No, Ryan. You couldn't see Seth right now even if you managed to get here. They have us isolated until they determine whether or not he has meningitis. If he does have it, a certain strain, Sandy will run out to the house and pick you up. There's some kind of treatment for family members." Kirsten waits for Ryan to say something.
"I'm gonna go look up meningitis on the computer."
"It may not even be that Ryan, let's not jump to any conclusions until the test results come back," she urges him.
Ryan thanks her for calling and Kirsten reminds him to eat something.
As she hangs up, Kirsten promises herself that this is the last time she will overlook Ryan. She knows Ryan well enough to recognize the tone of disappointment that was in his voice. He was sitting at home by himself waiting for her to call and she let him down.
-------------------------------------------
To Be Continued
Author's note:
See, I'm updating. I'm all about the update. I'm on fire with the update. I know the chapters are short so I'm trying to compensate with quick postings. I'll have another up tomorrow. Many thanks to my beta Liz.
Antigone 11, at first I was confused by your comment about the writing style, so I re-read everything and I think I know what you mean. Let me know if I'm back on track. I'd appreciate it.
Thanks for reading everyone. I never expected so may reviews. Hell, I never expected anyone to read it! Thanks for taking the time. And now on with the drama...
------------------------------------------
Thursday Afternoon
Chapter Six
------------------------------------------
Seth Cohen is feeling minty.
Sort of.
Ok, so the whole big needle in his back, extendo Q-Tip up his nose was maybe...not so much fun. And the constant dry heaving; maybe... not so much fun. Killer headache? Third verse same as the first.
But now?
The drugs have begun.
Doctor Holbrith promised him that if he was a good little boy for the lumbar puncture and nasal swab, he would be rewarded with a snazzy IV cocktail chock full of a bunch of drugs whose names he can't remember.
Names are not so important at this moment. Results are all that count. And Seth knows that he is feeling shiny. He's sure that the fact that his core temperature is exceeding maximum overdrive is most likely a problem he should be disturbed by and that without the aforementioned drugs he'd currently be trying to vomit up an internal organ, but Seth Cohen can't be concerned about that now. Thanks to his intravenous cocktail, the headache is receding.
Seth settles back into a dream. Summer, a boat, Tahiti. Summer in a little bitty bikini, sailing on a boat, to Tahiti, with him.
"Seth?" he hears a nurse call. She's told him her name, but he can't seem to recall it. "Seth? Can you wake up? Your dad's here to see you."
Seth loves his dad, really he does. But no man can compete with Summer and that dream he keeps having every time he closes his eyes. Sandy Cohen will have to wait.
Seth drifts off, feeling his father's fingers combing through his hair.
------------------------------------------
Ed Carden picks at his meal. He's not hungry. He shouldn't have wasted money on food he had no intention of eating. If Sara were alive, she would be chastising him. But she's dead, his boys are a thousand miles away, and his heart is breaking. He can't stop thinking about Ryan, even saying the name out loud several times, just to make it more real. Sandy Cohen seems like a nice guy, but he is a lawyer and will no doubt demand a paternity test before he even allows a single communication with the boy. Hell, barely a boy. Ed realizes his first-born son is almost a man. No, not first-born, possibly first-born. But if Ryan is his, will tests and court dates rob what little of the kid's childhood Ed has left?
All those years lost. Ed knows deep down in his soul why Dawn never told him about the boy. He would have flown to Fresno and claimed Ryan, saved him from Dawn and her demented husband and their dysfunctional lives. For whatever reason, Dawn wanted to keep Ryan for herself. Maybe she wanted to save her marriage. Maybe she wanted Trey to grow up with a sibling. Maybe she was just being selfish, or scared, or didn't even realize what had happened until she saw Ryan for the first time and recognized Ed in him.
When it was all said and done, the results were the same. Dawn had kept Ryan for herself, and then she had thrown him away.
But the kid had survived. He seemed to be thriving if Sandy Cohen and his family picture were to be believed.
Ed wasn't a man of beliefs. He didn't believe in fate or destiny or even religion. But still, the timing of all this was just too eerie. Sara had been ripped from his life, and now Ryan delivered into it.
Shoving his dinner aside, Ed retrieves Sandy's business card. How hard would it be to find the Cohen's house? Probably not too difficult. He picks up his laptop and heads for the hotel's recreation room. He remembers seeing a sign there, promising DSL service for a reasonable rate.
------------------------------------------
Sandy finishes removing a pale yellow hospital gown and exits Seth's room. He makes his way into the isolation waiting area. Kirsten looks up at him expectantly.
"He's asleep," he tells his worried wife. "I don't think he's in any pain. He looks peaceful."
All Kirsten can think about is the lumbar puncture. Seth had been scared to death and Kirsten had been able to do nothing but hold his hand and tell him that he was doing great. She had sounded like a goddamn cheerleader. The nasal swab was worse. Sandy should have been there. He should have checked his cell phone sooner. He should have been there for his son.
"Kirsten," Sandy interrupts her aggressive thoughts, "We need to call Ryan. He's going crazy. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he's on his way right now on that damn bike of his."
Kirsten wearily rubs her forehead. God, in all the frenzied activity, she forgot about Ryan. Her last words to him were a promise to call.
"I'll do it," she tells Sandy. "I'll call Ryan, I'm overdue."
"What are you going to tell him?" Sandy asks. Ryan can be unpredictable, short on patience and temper. All they need now is to be worried about him as well as Seth.
"I'm going to tell him the truth, Sandy," Kirsten states, short tempered herself. "He's a big boy, he can take it."
Sandy watches his wife make her way to a secluded corner of the waiting room. How many times can he talk to Kirsten without mentioning Ed Carden? The results of Seth's test for meningitis will be back soon, the doctor mentioned that it would only take a little over an hour. Sandy decides to wait until at least the test results comes back before speaking with Kirsten. She's so upset about Seth right now that she wouldn't be able to process the news anyway.
Leaving Kirsten to her phone call, Sandy returns to Seth's hospital bed. He repeats the visiting procedures. Puts on the unfamiliar hospital garb.
His son is still asleep.
Watching a nurse replace the ice packs positioned around Seth's body, Sandy wonders how in the hell the kid can sleep with those mini-glaciers on him. Then again, Seth was always a heavy sleeper.
Sandy waits until the nurse leaves and then leans over, putting his hand on his son's chest. "I'm right here Seth," he assures the sleeping boy. "Everything's okay."
------------------------------------------
Kirsten dials her home number; after a few rings, Ryan answers.
Before she called, Kirsten considered feigning cheerfulness. But she's too tired and Ryan's too smart for that nonsense.
When she hears his soft inquiry, "Kirsten?" She answers with a lethargic, "Hi Ryan. Are you still talking to me?"
When he doesn't respond one way or another right away, Kirsten wonders if he is considering her proposal. After a few more seconds Ryan asks, "Is Seth okay? Sandy said you guys are at HOAG. What the hell is happening?"
Kirsten sighs to herself. "It's complicated Ryan. They think Seth might have meningitis. Even if he has that, they still have to determine if it's viral or bacterial, and then they have to figure out what strain, and decide how to treat it. I don't know if we'll have definite answers tonight or not. Right now we are just waiting on the initial test results for meningitis."
"You should have let me come with you," he blurts out, and then backs off slightly, "I could be there to help."
Kirsten glances at her watch. Forty minutes have passed since the lumbar puncture.
"You're right Ryan," she concedes. "It was stupid to leave you at home and I should have called a lot sooner. I've been very inconsiderate, and I'm sorry."
"I was just worried," the boy says in his usual distant manner. "I knew something was wrong and no one called."
"Of course," Kirsten responds. "This won't happen again Ryan. You won't be left out of the loop again."
The other end of the receiver is silent.
"Ryan," Kirsten continues, "How are you feeling? Any sign of a fever, neck stiffness, anything like that? This is important Ryan. If you feel the slightest bit sick, I need to know about it now."
"I'm hungry."
Kirsten decides that her ears must not be functioning properly. "What?" she inquires in an attempt to clarify.
"I'm hungry," he repeats.
Kirsten laughs. "Well we don't need a doctor to diagnosis that problem."
Ryan is still reserved. His hesitantly asks, "If I can bum a ride, can I come down there?"
Kirsten was waiting to field this one. "No, Ryan. You couldn't see Seth right now even if you managed to get here. They have us isolated until they determine whether or not he has meningitis. If he does have it, a certain strain, Sandy will run out to the house and pick you up. There's some kind of treatment for family members." Kirsten waits for Ryan to say something.
"I'm gonna go look up meningitis on the computer."
"It may not even be that Ryan, let's not jump to any conclusions until the test results come back," she urges him.
Ryan thanks her for calling and Kirsten reminds him to eat something.
As she hangs up, Kirsten promises herself that this is the last time she will overlook Ryan. She knows Ryan well enough to recognize the tone of disappointment that was in his voice. He was sitting at home by himself waiting for her to call and she let him down.
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To Be Continued