(Darry's POV)
Once Ponyboy fell asleep after receiving pain medication, I thought the worst was behind us and he'd get better. Man, I hate being wrong.
Pony slept fine for a short time, but then he became restless. Even in his sleep, he was groaning and tossing and turning his head. I thought he was having nightmares, but Soda knew Pony better than anyone and he said our brother wasn't having a nightmare; he was probably just uncomfortable and in pain. We told the nurse that came to check on Pony about him being agitated in his sleep, and she told us that he'd get some more pain meds as soon as he was allowed another dose.
He never got that next dose.
Once the nurse left, Soda and I sat quietly in our chairs, watching over our brother. His painful groans became more frequent, and even in the dimly lit room, I noticed he started breathing more rapidly. Something was really bothering him, but there was no way for me or Soda to know what it was. Even in slumber, Pony can't catch a break.
"What can we do?" Soda asked quietly. His legs were bouncing a mile a minute and he kept his protective sights on Pony. "We gotta do something."
"There's nothing we can do," I said reluctantly. I wish there was though. I'd do anything to take his pain away. I was getting anxious and worried, but I couldn't let Soda see that. Instead, I had to stay logical and keep him calm. "The doctors and nurses know what's best. We have to listen-"
"But they don't know Pony," Soda shot back, his voice full of emotion. He looked at me with bloodshot eyes, and I realized how much of a toll this was taking on him. I knew I should've made him go home to shower and get some sleep. "They don't know him like we do. There's something wrong."
"Like you said, he's probably in pain," I said with a hint of bitterness in my tone. I hated to see Pony in pain, and I hated even more that there was nothing I could do about it and nobody I could get even with for causing my brother distress. "They can't give him any more medication yet. You don't want him to overdose on pain meds, right?"
Soda looked like he wanted to say something, but he must've not had a good enough argument because he bit his lip and continued to watch our brother like a hawk.
We sat in silence once again, and a while later, Pony's tired voice mumbled. "I don't feel good."
Soda and I both moved immediately to comfort our brother.
Soda asked, "What's wrong, Pony?"
"What hurts?" I asked, needing answers immediately.
Pony wrapped an arm around his abdomen. "I think I'm gonna be sick."
I sprang to my feet, grabbed the waste basket, and handed in to Pony. As soon as the bin was in his lap, Pony ducked his head into it and wrapped his arms around his head. He coughed a couple times, but he didn't throw up.
"Let it out, Pony," Soda said soothingly. "You'll feel better if you throw up."
I know concussions can make you feel sick and all, but I've never seen one this bad.
I reached forward to move some of Pony's hair off of his sweaty face, and I was shocked at how warm his skin felt. I thought he was just sweating because he's about to throw up. "Glory Pone, you're burning up."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Soda put his hand on Pony's back. Moments later, Pony let out a heartbreaking yelp and reached towards his back. "It hurts. It hurts real bad."
"Lemme see, Pony," Soda said gently. He moved Pony's gown to see his back, then Soda inhaled sharply. "Shit," he gasped. Then he looked at me with wide eyes. "Dar?"
I moved so I could see Ponyboy's back, and right when he started vomiting into the garbage, I spotted practically all the colors of the rainbow painted on his back. He had the nastiest and darkest bruise I've ever seen, and scattered throughout his back, there were multiple cuts and scrapes that had been stitched or bandaged up. No wonder his back hurts.
When he was done vomiting, Pony seemed to sway a little, but he managed to stay in the hunched position over the trash can. Alarm bells started ringing in my head. Something isn't right. This isn't just a concussion or something minor. He started throwing up again, and I knew I had to do something.
"I'm getting the doctor," I said as I shot up to my feet.
"Hurry," I heard Soda say softly as I rushed out of the room. I still heard Pony's gagging even as I turned to go down the hallway.
I passed about three rooms before I heard a familiar voice. "Whoa Superman, where's the fire?" Two-Bit said from somewhere in front of me. I turned to find him, and he was up the hall just a few rooms down. He walked towards me with a couple brown bags in his hands, with what I assumed was food. "I'm on break and figured y'all could use some-" he cut himself off, likely due to the facial expression I was sure I had. He got serious instantly as he stood in front of me. "What's goin' on?"
"Something's wrong with Pony. I have to find a doctor," I said. Neither us had to say anything to know what we were going to do. Wordlessly, I continued down the hallway while Two-Bit rushed towards Pony's room.
Just a few moments later, I found the man I was looking for.
"Dr. Ferguson, something's wrong with my brother," I said, completely skipping a greeting or any polite form of conversation. Lucky for me, the doctor didn't seem to mind my rudeness.
"What's going on?" Dr. Ferguson asked, putting the file down that he was looking at when I approached him. Even though I was being completely rude, he was being polite and professional.
"He's throwing up and he says his back hurts," I replied. I realized that those might sound like minor things to a doctor, but I had to get him to at least check on Ponyboy. "He's burning up too. I think he has a fever."
For a second, I was worried that he'd brush me off and say Ponyboy was fine, but Dr. Ferguson nodded. "Okay, I'll take a look at him." He put the file down on the counter he was leaning against, said something to the nurse, then walked with me to Pony's room.
"How long has it been going on?" the doctor asked as we both practically jogged to Pony's room. I was glad that the man was keeping pace with me.
"Not long, he just woke up and said right away that he felt like he was going to be sick." How will Pony be when we get back there? Better? Worse? "He was restless when he was sleeping though. Something's really bothering him."
When we got to Pony's room, I was met with a sight that made my stomach drop. Worse. He's definitely worse.
Two-Bit was moving the garbage can to the side of the room, Soda was sitting on the bed and practically holding Pony up by the shoulders, Pony's eyes were closed and his chin was down at his chest, and the monitors attached to him were blaring alarms.
"I need a nurse in here!" Dr. Ferguson yelled into the hallway before rushing to my brother's side. He started looking over Pony while I went to the other side of the bed to be next to Soda and Pony.
"Doctor's here, Ponyboy," I said in my best attempt of a gentle voice. I didn't get any sort of response back, so I looked at Soda. "What happened?"
"I think he passed out," Soda said with a shaky voice.
A couple nurses ran into the room, and Dr. Ferguson and them started saying all kinds of medical things so fast that it made my head spin. The only thing I could distinctly hear was something about Ponyboy being in shock. I didn't know exactly what that meant, but I knew it wasn't good.
The nurses were starting to move quicker and they tried to cool Pony down. One of them asked Soda to move away from Pony so they could get him to lie on his back, but Soda stubbornly stayed put. "Won't that hurt him? He kept sayin' how much his back was hurting," Soda reasoned.
"Let me take a look," Dr. Ferguson said, showing small signs of being frantic. I help Soda maneuver Pony so the doctor could get a look at his back. After analysis, Dr. Ferguson stood up straight and looked directly at one of the nurses. "Prep OR 3. I think he's bleeding internally."
It felt like all the blood drained out of my body.
"I thought he was all fixed up." Two-Bit said from behind me, his voice thick with nervousness.
That's what I thought. I thought everything was going to be fine now.
As Dr. Ferguson and a nurse eased Pony down onto the bed, Soda moved to stand next to me. He was trembling and his eyes were watery, but I knew he was trying to be strong. Let it out, Soda. Only one of us has to be strong.
Once Pony was situated and a nurse was dealing with the wires and monitors, Dr. Ferguson spoke to us. "He might have reaggravated an injury or one was missed. Either way, he needs emergency surgery. The blood loss seems to have caused him to go into shock."
Soda was by Pony's ear, saying all sorts of comforting things, but I stood there like a wall, unable to move as everything happened in front of me. My brother's losing blood. He's going into shock. Glory, could this be it? Could Ponyboy… no, he won't. He can't. I can't lose him.
Suddenly, all the emotions I was trying to contain flooded out. I bent down and held Pony's limp hand with tears in my eyes. "Hold on, Pone. Keep fighting, kiddo." The medical staff unlocked the bed and I was told I had to move so they could get Pony into surgery. Before they wheeled him off, I managed to say one more thing to my kid brother. "I love you, Ponyboy."