The Heist: Chapter One

Mercedes stretched her short brown body slightly as she slowly rolled over in the warm bed. Peering out the corner of her eyes she sighed deeply seeing the flashing lights shining brightly through her rundown New York City apartment window. She licked her full brown lips, stretching a little bit more, letting out a soft groan as she turned her brown eyes to the clock on her nightstand. 1:30 AM. Running her hands through her messy bed hair, she lazily slid out of the bed, dragging her feet tiredly, carrying herself to her bathroom.

Mid-way there her phone began to buzz on the nightstand and she turned back around, furrowing her eyebrows slightly, wondering who in the world would be calling her at such an ungodly hour, as she moved to pick it up. Reading the caller ID, Mercedes let out a soft sigh – it was her younger cousin, Chasity. "Hello?" She answered the phone, speaking softly, as she sat back down on her bed.

"M-M-Mercedes." Chasity breathed out harshly. "I need y-you. I-I need your h-help." Chasity cried on the phone. Mercedes froze slightly, every muscle in her body stiffening at the urgency and panic in her cousin's voice.

"What's wrong?" Mercedes asked quickly. Her instincts had instantly set her into motion and she jumped up, rushing to grab a pair of jeans. Somehow she managed to balance the phone between her shoulder and her ear as she wiggled the jeans onto her body, snatching the denim material up her thighs until she was buttoning them up. Yanking a t-shirt down from the closet she stayed silent, listening to any indication from Chasity that everything was okay, waiting for a sign that said she didn't have to panic herself

"I-It's PJ. 'Cedes… I-I d-don't know what h-happened. His b-babysitter doesn't k-know either. I don't k-know." Chasity stammered out and Mercedes licked her lips, throwing on a pair of sneakers.

"Calm down. Okay. Where are you? I am coming to you okay." Mercedes told the younger girl swiftly.

Chasity nodded her head on the other end of the phone as she paced hospital floors. Just being there sent a shiver down her spine. She was still trying to wrap her brain around how one second her son, her beautiful baby boy, could be so lively – a perfect little five year old, bouncing around and playing – to being a sick toddler who was barely clinging onto life the next.

"Mount Sinai hospital." Chasity rushed out as she tried to calm down like Mercedes instructed her to do. "H-hurry. 'Cedes I-I d-don't understand." She hiccupped, trying to take deep breathes.

Mercedes nodding slowly as she snatched up her purse, barely checking to make sure she had everything inside of it, before she grabbed up her keys off her island in her kitchen. She rushed out the apartment, stopping for just a moment to lock the door it behind her.

"J-just give me thirty seconds Chaz… Where is Puck Sr.?" Mercedes asked rolling her eyes slightly at the simple thought of him. She jogged down the two flights of steps, taking them two at a time until she was rushing towards her car, mindful of her un-tied shoe laces. Her eyes scanned around the dark parking lot, checking to make sure no one was around her for a moment, still very mindful of the neighborhood she was in, even in her state of panic, before she unlocked her Toyota climbing in and tossing her purse into the passenger seat.

"He's o-on his way." Chasity said.

Chasity sat in the waiting room of the cold hospital building, her leg bouncing up and down slightly, her eyes watching the clock, counting the seconds. Licking her full lips slowly, she rubbed her arms gently – goosebumps had risen hours ago and refused to leave because of the pure nervousness and anxiety she was feeling.

"Chasity?" Noah said suddenly as he jogged towards her.

Chasity whipped her head up, looking over to see Noah and she jumped up, running towards him until she was able to wrap her short arms around his tall, slender frame holding him tight. "I-I don't k-know what's g-going on." She told him, burying her face deep in his chest.

Noah rubbed her back gently, trying to soothe her even though he was confused beyond belief. He, for the life of himself, couldn't understand what was happening to their son. He wasn't the healthiest child - PJ had gone through a few medical emergencies in his short life span, but what child hadn't? Even with the small runs to the ER for a raisin stuck up his nose or a brutal cough that wouldn't go away. Noah never saw anything bringing him close to death, not at the tender age of five, he was still a baby.

"What did they say?" Noah asked softly as he lifted Chasity's head up by her chin, forcing her to look at him and she shrugged still trying to piece what the babysitter had told her and what the doctors were saying together for herself.

"I don't know." Chasity stressed to him again. "His babysitter said he was running a fever. She doesn't know what happened because he seemed fine when she put him to bed. When she went to check on him an hour or so later she said he was foaming at the mouth." She rushed out, cupping her forehead with her hand as she began to cry once more. "When I got here, the doctors said he had a seizure. They said something about his brain… and this… and that. Things I don't understand." She cried and Noah wrapped her up in his arms again.

"Shh… it's okay. I am going to make sense of this. We need to know what's going on. We are his parents." Noah said to her.

"I'm here." Mercedes exhaled loudly, rushing down the hall as she moved towards her cousin and her baby daddy.

"Mercedes!" Chasity gasped out as she pulled away from Noah moving to grip onto the older girl tightly. "T-thank you." She said and Mercedes hugged Chasity back tightly, her eyes drifting up to Noah as she glared at him, rubbing Chasity's back gently.

"I got you." Mercedes whispered into Chasity's ear, rocking her from left to right gently, her eyes still locked on Noah until she allowed them to flutter shut, letting out a shallow breath. Slowly she pulled away from Chasity, her hands moving to cup her cousin's round face, holding her cheeks as she looked her in the eyes. "What is going on?"

Chasity placed her hands over Mercedes' on her face, blinking slowly, her tears slowly sliding down her face, hitting their hands. "I-I don't know…" She stammered out slightly before she went on to repeat herself, telling Mercedes exactly what she had just told Noah. "I-I just want to see him…" Chasity breathed out, sniffling a little as she bit back a small sob.

Mercedes listened to Chasity and she nodded slowly, taking it all in before she sighed out, trying to remain calm and strong for her cousin, though inside she was panicking just the same. "Okay… We're going to figure it out. Alright Chaz."

Chasity nodded her head, gazing at Mercedes with sad eyes until Mercedes pulled away from her all together.

Walking over to Noah, Mercedes placed her hand on his arm, pulling him off to the side. "Do you know anything else?" She asked him softly, looking up at him through her eyelashes. She couldn't stand him for various different reasons. Most of the time, even the sight of him made her sick, but at this moment none of that mattered.

Noah looked at Mercedes, scrubbing his hand down her face. "I got the same call you did." He told her with a small huff, puffing his chest out a little. "I don't know any more than you do right now…"

Mercedes dropped her head, sighing deeply before she looked back over her shoulder at Chasity, who was sitting back down, bouncing her leg once more. Closing her eyes, Mercedes thought to herself for a moment before she removed her hand from Noah's arm. "I'm going to go see if I can get someone to talk to us… Stay with her." She told him before she walked off in search of answers.