I hope you guys have been enjoying the story so far. I haven't had much time to write lately and I'm not really sure of how to link the past to the present, but I'll figure something out. Anyways, hope you keep reading and reviewing!
Disclaimer: Title of this chapter is a song by Lifehouse
Chapter 10: Storm
As Peyton lay her head down onto Lucas's chest, she listened to the beat of his heart. The beats were slow, but steady. A small smile crept across her lips as she listened to the rhythm. Slowly the rhythm began to quicken. Her tuned ear noticed the change almost immediately. Peyton sat up and looked up at Lucas's face.
The slow, steady beeping of the heart rate monitor became increasingly irregular as Lucas slowly came back to consciousness. He struggled to open his eyes, desperately trying to wake up from his nightmare.
"Peyton…" Lucas mumbled in a voice that was barely audible.
"Hey, I'm right here," Peyton whispered softly while she cradled his slightly bearded face, trying to calm him down.
He tossed his head from side to side as he fought to wake up.
"Lucas, open your eyes. Wake up," Peyton encouraged while squeezing his hand.
A patient Peyton waited for Lucas to come around. She watched him struggle for a few moments longer before his eyes finally fluttered open along with a loud gasp. The world around Lucas was nothing but a blur. Still used to the darkness, Lucas's vision slowly adjusted to the lights.
"Peyton," Lucas said with a weak smile. Although she was nothing but a blur, Lucas knew it was her, holding his hand.
"Hey," she replied, brushing her hand through his thick hair.
Lucas blinked his eyes a couple of times, trying to adjust to the blinding light. Finally, Peyton's curls began to come into focus, followed by her hazel eyes and beautiful smile. He stared back at her with a happy gaze. Lucas had his chance to make things right for him and Peyton.
"I'm sorry," he said in a weak voice.
Peyton shook her head, "Now's not the time," Her smile was now gone.
Even though Lucas felt exhausted, he was determined to tell Peyton everything. "I need…" he tried to sit himself up, "to tell you…" Suddenly, Lucas stopped when he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He quickly clutched his chest, showing Peyton his discomfort.
"Lucas, stop. Please. We can talk later. Just relax," She remained calm and helped him lay back down, "Take smaller breaths, slowly,"
Lucas obeyed and took smaller and slower breaths. The pain in his chest gradually disappeared. Lucas looked at Peyton, wondering how she knew what to do.
"Dr. Morgan came in during the night," she began to explain...
FLASHBACK
Karen had just left with Roewan and Sawyer, leaving Peyton alone with her husband. She felt awkward, sitting there, staring at a sleeping Lucas. She hated hospitals almost as much as churches – as neither gave her very happy memories.
"Excuse me, Mrs. Scott?"
Peyton looked up at the door to find a middle aged man wearing a white coat.
"Yes?"
"Hi, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'm Dr. Morgan. I tended to your husband when he came in," he explained as he checked the monitors and Lucas's heart rate.
Peyton stood up and walked to the opposite side of the bed – out of the doctor's way, "Is he going to be ok?"
Dr. Morgan nodded his head, "He gave us all quite a scare, but he should be able to make a full recovery,"
Peyton squeezed Lucas's hand when she heard the good news.
"He may, however, experience some chest discomfort when he wakes up, but that it's normal for patients who've just had a defibrillator implanted. Just tell him to take short, shallow breaths if he does,"
Did she hear him right? "A what implanted?"
"A defibrillator," Dr. Morgan routinely flipped through Lucas's medical charts, "We were able implant the cardioverter defibrillator without any problem,"
"Wait, I don't understand. Nobody told me he was having heart surgery…don't you need permission or something?"
"Mrs. Scott, we did have permission…" Dr. Morgan flipped to another page on the chart. He pointed out Lucas's signature on the bottom of a page. "He signed the permission papers when he was prescribed the new medication,"
"New medication?"
Dr. Morgan was confused by Peyton's surprised reaction. "Mrs. Scott, how much do you know about your husbands heart condition?"
"Um…just that he's been taking Propranolol for his HCM,"
The doctor scratched his head, feeling a bit uncomfortable, "Mrs. Scott, I'm sorry to be the one tell you this, but Lucas's initial HCM condition worsened in the last couple of months. He was advised to have a defibrillator implanted and to quit playing basketball as soon as possible. When he refused they prescribed a much stronger medication. Actually, even with the meds, he shouldn't have been playing. I'm pretty amazed that it took this long for his heart to stop,"
Peyton's face dropped at news. Her gaze left Dr. Morgan's solemn face and ended up on Lucas'. Slowly, her thoughts came together and suddenly, Lucas's behavior over the past two months made sense. But now she didn't know if she should be relieved to know that Lucas was OK or angry that he risked his life and kept it all a secret.
END FLASHBACKLucas shamefully looked away. He noticed that her hand was no longer in his. She was hurt by his secrets and angered by his selfishness. To make matters worse, Peyton learned everything from a complete stranger.
"Peyton," his voice was raspy and dry, "I was going to tell you after the game…I'm sorry,"
"I know and I don't care. All of that doesn't mean anything. All that matters is that you're ok," She then took a step back. Blinking back tears, Peyton turned and began to walk towards the door. Her emotions were beginning to catch up with her. There were so many thoughts and feelings flowing through her veins; it was beginning to suffocate her. She needed to get out of there. The four white walls seemed to be caving in on her; she felt trapped. Air…some fresh air would help, she thought.
"Peyton, don't go,"
She gave him a weak smile, "I'll be back,"
Peyton closed the door behind her. She could breathe again. She wiped her eyes as she made her way past the nurse's station.
"Look, is that her?" a young girl asked the man, who was talking to the nurses.
The taller man stopped mid-sentence as he turned around and looked into the direction of her pointing hand. It was her.
"Peyton," he called out.
The curly blonde stopped in her tracks and looked up. She first saw the girl. Peyton didn't recognize the brown haired girl, but there was something familiar about her face. Peyton's gaze then fell on the man who was standing beside her. His face was even more familiar…older, but familiar. It took her a few seconds longer before she recognized him, as it had been years since she last saw him, "Jake?"
