"What happened to his head?"
"He hit a chair when he fell. It was cushioned, but he hit the ends. They're classic chairs, and I think he hit the metal beads on the end."
"It doesn't look too bad, but if he's got what everyone else has, I don't think I can medicate him for it. We're still looking for some kind of antibiotic that fights this, but so far, we haven't gotten anything. AJ? AJ, can you hear me?"
Robin was back in town? Did AJ really avoid the hospital so much that he didn't realize that? Or maybe he just avoided all people associated with his brother. That could have been it. If he could do it, AJ would stay away from everybody that had ever thought Jason was better him.
But, was that really Robin? He couldn't remember a time that she actually said those words. Maybe his memory was failing. If he were strong enough to do so, he would have laughed at that. Maybe he had hit his head hard enough that he was going to lose all his memories, too. Wouldn't it be great to get a chance to start all over?
"AJ, if you can hear me, squeeze my hand."
He could do that, at least. His fingers wrapped around Robin's hand, and he gave a small squeeze. It was all that he could muster. His strength wasn't what it used to be. Golden Gloves boxer. He couldn't box a kitten right now and come up on top.
"We need to get him into a room. We're moving everybody as quickly as we can, but not everybody's going to get a room. I would say it could wait, but with the head injury, I want him away from areas where it could do more damage. If he wakes up and tries to get out of bed, he could do some serious damage to himself."
Who was she talking to? God, AJ wished he could actually say something. He was stuck in a state between consciousness and darkness. He could move, he could hear, but he couldn't open his eyes. He couldn't verbally respond.
"First things first, we need to get his head bandaged. Then we need to get the fever down. He should have been brought in before he got this bad. Weren't there any signs before he dropped?"
"Signs of what? That he wasn't just sleeping off a binge? It's AJ, Robin. We can't always be sure what's wrong with him."
"Way to go, Ned. Ya know, you could learn a few things. You could learn how to be a little more compassionate and maybe a little more forgiving. Have some faith in somebody once in a while. It would do you good."
Ned. Yeah, like that was ever going to happen. Ned's faith in AJ had run out long ago, and he couldn't really blame him. At some point, AJ had lost faith in himself. When he first woke up feeling like death warmed over, he'd had to think hard as to what he'd been doing the night before. A full ten minutes had passed before he was able to convince himself that he hadn't been out drinking. That there was actually something wrong with him. So, no, he couldn't blame Ned for not having faith in him. He just wished that, one time, one of them would have switched positions. That even if Ned had no faith in him, he could have faith in Ned.
"Nothing—" AJ cleared his throat. His eyes slowly started to open. He was laying down and, looking sideways, he could see the hospital streaking past him. "Nothing to drink," he muttered.
"I know, AJ." The gurney stopped and Robin looked around. She flagged someone over, and the two studied a clipboard. "Are you sure?" The nurse nodded and Robin groaned. "Damn, I was hoping that there was room."
"What?" Ned actually sounded like he might have given a damn. "Is he going to have to wait in the hall?"
"Worse." She sighed and looked down at AJ. "I'm really sorry about this, but the only room left open right now… is with Sonny."
"My girls—" Alexis clawed at Stefan's arms frantically. "Where are my girls? I have to get to my girls."
"Natasha—" Stefan took in a deep breath and held it. "Alexis, your daughters are fine."
"No, you don't understand. He'll take them. Molly's not even his, but he'll take her, too. He'll take them while I'm in the hospital, and I'll never see them again. Stefan, you have to get me to them. You have to get me to my girls."
Alexis's eyes were wide. Her chest rose and fell in a furious pace. She couldn't think straight. All of her warning signals were going off. There was more wrong than a simple illness. Sonny-- He had to be behind this. He had done something so he could get her girls. He'd done the same thing to Ric because he knew Ric wouldn't let him have them. Sonny—
"Where's Ric? Where's my husband?" Alexis was pushed back to the bed, but still she struggled. "What did you do with him, Stefan? You don't like him, I know that, but you couldn't…" Alexis's eyes started to droop and her body was going limp. She'd expended too much energy. She was tired, now, but still worried. "You can't hurt him."
"I did nothing to Lansing," he said crisply. "You should be more grateful, Alexis. You could have been waiting in the hallway for hours had I not stepped in."
"The hallway?" Her head rolled to the side. She was in a room? Wasn't she just in the hallway? Just in the ambulance, actually? "Where am I?"
"You're in a room with Nikolas."
"Nikolas—" Alexis tried to push herself up, but Stefan held her down. "What's wrong with Nikolas?"
"The same thing that's wrong with you, and no, the doctors do not know what it is. I've heard theories, ideas as I tried to get more information. Something about a chimpanzee."
Alexis groaned. Luke and his stupid chimp. Sure, it was nice of him to bring something back for his daughter, but couldn't he be like other fathers? Couldn't he bring her jewelry or island trinkets? Of course not. That would have been too much like normal, and far be it for Alexis to call Luke Spencer anything anywhere near normal.
"Stefan, my girls…"
"They are safe. Kristina called for an ambulance. You've taught her well, Natasha." He lightly grazed her cheek with the back of his hand. "Now, do not put her efforts to waste. Lie still before you make yourself worse."
Stefan's touch was too soft. He could be gentle with those he deemed worthy, but so often, Alexis had found herself on the opposite side. So many times she'd unwittingly put her trust in others and she'd seen the harsh, unforgiving side of her brother. She couldn't remember what terms they were last on, but even if they were good, would he have been that gentle? Maybe. Possibly. She didn't know.
"It's bad, isn't it?" Alexis groaned. "You had us put in the same room, so you could be with either of us if one of us died."
"No one said anything about death. I simply didn't want either of you to be alone, and I prefer not to split my time. I also prefer my family to be treated with the utmost respect. I find nothing respectful about ill people being left in the hallways of this hospital."
"So you say, but I don't buy it." Alexis groaned and rolled her head to the side. She could see Nikolas now, and he looked at lot worse than she felt. "How long has he been sick?"
"Hours." Stefan released her to turn towards Nikolas. "Emily brought him here. Tell me what you knew of this engagement."
"Stefan, I don't think now is the time." Grunting, Alexis pushed herself up in the bed. "There are more important things than who your nephew fell in love with."
"So you say."
"I do, and I realize that we're having this conversation because you're worried. You can deny it, but you think we're going to die." Watching Nikolas huddling beneath the covers, sweat drenching his face, Alexis couldn't say that she thought differently. "And you have us here because you want to be there when it happens."
"You're delirious. Nikolas was this way, calling for his mother." Stefan turned to her and sighed. "Sleep, Alexis. There will be plenty of time for discussion later."
"So, you say." She rolled her eyes and groaned. "If you really want me to rest, find Ric, and find my daughters. Have a doctor tell me they're okay, then I'll rest. Until then, don't bet your life on it."