A Heavy Heart 6/20
Chapter Six:
Alan can't move.
He can't speak, can't see, can barely breathe.
Laurel is pulling at him, trying to get him to go to the car but Alan can't move.
His brain can't form sentences. It's stuck on two words: Charlie, heart.
Charlie... Heart...
If his brain were functioning, it would be sending messages to his muscles, telling him to jump up and run to the car.
But it's not.
Charlie... Heart...
Laurel pulls at him again and is probably yelling at him to move but Alan can't hear, can't respond.
He only snaps out of it when she slaps him.
He looks at her, dazed, his awareness coming back to him.
"Mr. Eppes, please! Come with me, now!"
Alan lets Laurel pull him up and push him towards the car. She finds his keys on the hallway table and locks the door behind them, something Alan wouldn't have thought of in his condition.
The ride to Huntington Memorial is quick but painful. Every moment that passes could be his baby boy's last.
Alan sends out a little prayer, to god, to his wife, he's not quite sure. 'Please, don't take him yet. It's too soon...'