When he returned an hour later, he got the shock of his life.
Chapter 19
"What's going on?" Nathan asked, worried to find Haley, Brooke, and Peyton standing in the hallway outside Lucas's hospital room. He wondered if his half-brother had gone on to a better place. But then he noticed—the girls were all smiling.
"He's getting better!" Haley said excitedly. "The fever has broken, and Dr. Li is in there examining him now."
"Where's Karen?" Nathan asked.
"Bathroom," Brooke explained.
"Oh," Nathan said, still blown away. "Well, who's hungry?" He held up the fast food bags.
"I, for one, am starving," Haley said, reaching for the food.
"I must admit," Dr. Li said as they ate in the waiting room, "that I am surprised with young Mr. Scott's progress. I had not expected it at all. While it is encouraging, I must remind you that he is not out of the woods yet. It seems that he is fighting off the infection successfully. But some of his organs have been in failure for over twenty-four hours, and there is no way of knowing whether he will regain their function or not. Luckily, his heart and brain are still functioning. But his lungs are still too weak to support breathing on his own, and his digestive system is in failure as well—he's still being fed via a tube. We should know in a few days what the extent of the damage is."
"That guy can really kill a party," Nathan said, breaking the awkward silence that followed Dr. Li's departure from the waiting room.
"For real," Brooke said, stuffing a few more french fries in her mouth.
Despite their best efforts to remain positive, there was a nervousness among them that weighed heavily. They knew Lucas was still in danger. But now it seemed he was on the upward swing. Things were getting better.