Heeey :)
I'm back. I don't know how I've managed to write another chapter so soon, but I did. I hope you like it.
Once again your feedback was absolutely amazing, so here are the personal responses.
CBloom2: Thank you for the good wishes. I'm really glad you enjoyed it and thank you for the idea. I will definitely take it into consideration when I'm writing my future stories. You get a little glimpse of it in this story though…
WinchesterShaw: Thank you, that's really good to hear. You're not the first one to request a story based on something a little more psychiatric, but I gotta admit I'm a bit scared to write it, since I have no personal experience on that topic… I'm definitely open to the idea though and since many of you seem to have the same wish, I'll try my best.
floopdeedoopdee: I looooooove your idea and I feel exactly the same. I will definitely write something like that for your (and my) favorite TV boyfriend. Maybe you get a little hint of that in this story… we'll see where it takes me :)
Guest: Oh you went a little more exotic… I like it. Thank you :)
Sasa Camilla: Yes. Yes I can. And I would love to, so… I suggest you keep reading ;) By the way, can you read my mind? That's exactly the kind of story I was going to write next, so seeing your request was kinda creepy and absolutely amazing at the same time :)
TeamSeveride: Hello :) I hope I made you happy once again. You can't imagine how nice it is to read reviews like this. It really makes writing worth it. Thank you so much for your good wishes and thank you for the brilliant ideas. I will take them into consideration :) Have a nice day!
: Thank you for your requests. I absolutely love them, so I will definitely try to incorporate them into my future stories. As for more scenes with the Halstead brothers, I completely agree. We don't get enough of them and the writers could really have the fandom write an episode based on what we wanna see ;) I did however take your wish into account and this story is going to contain a lot of Jay and Will, so I hope you like it.
Part 1
Will's P.O.V.
The second I walk through the front door, the only thought in my head is my lovely comfortable bed. It's two in the morning and the twenty hour shift I just finished drained me to the point where I don't even have the energy to eat. And that says something.
I head straight for my bedroom, but not before I pause in front of Jay's room. Ever since we've been living in the same apartment, I've felt the need to always check on him before I go to sleep. You know... make sure he actually made it home alive and didn't die on a bust or something.
I can hear him breathing through the door, which allows me to relax and become even more exhausted, if that's even possible. Just as I'm about to walk towards my room, Jay coughs. Normally, a simple cough is nothing to worry about, but not when it comes to Jay.
I open the door as quietly as I possibly can and stick my head inside the room. It's pitch black, which means I can see absolutely nothing, but I can definitely hear the constricted breaths coming from my brother. Great. I was right, this wasn't just a random cough. I manage to run into the corner of Jay's bed and almost break my pinkie toe off. After cursing for a good ten seconds, I continue my way towards my brother who has yet to wake up. I find that extremely strange and not at all calming, because my normally very jumpy brother, who often reminds me of a cat, usually wakes up before I even leave work. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but any sort of sound freaks him out on his bad days.
My point is Jay should've definitely woken up when I crashed into his bed, and the fact that he hasn't... worries me to say the least.
My eyes finally adjust to the darkness and I successfully reach his side. I can't actually see him, because he's drowning somewhere among the blankets and pillows, but after a bit of digging I manage to touch his clammy skin.
"Jay. Hey, wake up, you're wheezing" I whisper, trying not to startle him. We all know how that would end. Scaring a former ranger... not a smart choice.
He doesn't seem to hear me, so I shake him a little, while uncovering his head. Now that I think about it, the wheezing is actually a lot worse, than I thought it was. The blankets must've muffled some of the sound.
"Come on, Jay. Time to wake up" I try once again, receiving a soft moan, followed by a coughing fit. I wait for the coughing to subside, before I continue. "You're wheezing, Jay, so we need to get that under control, okay? I'll let you go back to sleep soon, I promise."
He doesn't respond, which makes me wonder whether or not he fell back asleep. I guess it's time to become the mean brother. "Alright, have it your way" I announce, before dragging all of the blankets off of him, making him shiver.
"Mmm" he moans, coughing a little. "Wht you doin?"
"Trying to wake you up, so are you awake or do I need to get a bucket of ice cold water?"
"M'awake" he responds quickly, flipping around. "Gimme my blankie."
Yeah. He still acts like a five year old when he's tired, if you were wondering. But I gotta admit it makes waking him up way more fun for me.
"Where's your inhaler?" I ask, ignoring his adorable request.
"Blankie" he whines again, before taking some very horrible sounding breaths and burying his face in the pillow.
"Alright here's the deal. You tell me where your inhaler is and I'll give you your blankie back."
"Tpdrwr."
I roll my eyes, trying my best not to laugh at him. "I'm sorry, I don't speak muffled pillow."
He groans and lifts his head. "Top drawer."
"Thank you" I respond, throwing the blanket over him and hoping he doesn't fall back asleep in three seconds. I dig through the mess inside of his drawer and find his old inhaler, which I haven't needed in years. I'm going to be really happy if it's not expired.
"Come on, sit up a little" I order, dragging Jay into a half sitting position. The movement makes him burst into a coughing fit as his breathing becomes even more labored. "Here, two puffs" I say, pushing the inhaler in Jay's hand.
He makes a face, but complies.
I give him a minute to catch his breath, before speaking up. "You okay?" He nods, sliding back into a laying position. "Can you breathe okay?" He gives me another nod and closes his eyes. I guess that's my cue to leave him alone and let him sleep.
"Alright, if anything happens-"
"I'll wake you up. I promise" he cuts me off.
"Okay. Good night, Jay."
I don't close the door behind me, because the knot in my chest refuses to go away for some reason. Maybe it's because Jay hasn't had problems with his asthma in years and this came as a total surprise. I hope it was just a one time fluke though, because I have no desire of reliving his old attacks from childhood.
I finally get into my bed, keeping an eye out for any sign of wheezing from the room across the hall, but eventually, I fall asleep.
Will's P.O.V.
3:47
That's what time it is the next time I almost have a heart attack.
I am out of the bed and sprinting down the hallway in two seconds, trying to get to my brother as fast as humanly possible. I slam the door open even wider and immediately notice the source of my awakening.
Jay is collapsed on the floor, gasping for air. The drawer, containing his inhaler is open wide and the things that once used to be inside of it thrown all over the floor.
"Shit" I whisper, dropping down next to him. "Jay? Can you hear me?"
He doesn't answer me verbally, he does however blindly reach for my shirt and entangles his fingers into it.
"Okay, just relax. How bad is it?" I'm not sure why I felt the need to ask that question, since I can obviously tell he's struggling.
"Ba- d" he wheezes in between gasps.
"Have you used your inhaler?"
"Nt wrkin."
Damn it. "Okay, don't talk" I say as calmly as I can, given that I'm in panic mode. "I'll go get your nebulizer, okay?"
He nods, so I jump on my feet and run towards his closet. I'm hoping that's still where he keeps all of his medicine, otherwise a 911 call is going to be my only option, and I'm guessing Jay won't be too happy about that.
"How you doing, buddy?" I ask while throwing everything in my reach out of the closet. Wheezing is the only answer I get. "Just hang in there, we'll figure this out." I finally find the right box and rush back over to my brother, who's now lying in a fetal position, gasping for air.
"Here we go, just a little longer" I say, pulling a packet of Albuterol out of the box and unwrapping it. I fight to open one of the plastic nebules, constantly aware of the fact that my brother is barely breathing anymore. "Stay with me, buddy. Stay with me." I fill the medicine cup and turn the machine on.
I quickly put the mask over his face and secure the strap. One of my hands ends up on his chest to monitor his breathing, while the other one is squeezing his hand.
"Here you go, buddy, slow deep breaths. Come on, nice and easy."
Jay doesn't respond to me, but he does breathe in the mist. His shoulders are barely moving and his eyes are open, but completely unfocused. This has to be one of the worst attacks he's ever had.
I am only now able to wrap my head around what has just happened. And it scares me. He could've easily stopped breathing. And if I hadn't woken up when I did… I shouldn't think like that. Not right now.
"Wi-" he wheezes from under the mask, but I interrupt him.
"Shh, don't talk. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere. Just breathe."
I wish I could just snap my fingers and this would all be over, but I know that's impossible. I have to give the medicine time to start working and since this was a pretty bad attack it might take a bit longer.
After about fifteen minutes, he looks much more comfortable and his breathing sounds way better. He's exhausted though, coming in and out of consciousness.
I know he needs to rest, but I feel like it's too soon to move him to a bed, so I lay down on the floor next to him and start dozing of myself. I'm still dead tired, but I never let go of his hand.
I don't know how much time passes by, but next thing I know, the clammy limp hand resting inside of mine moves and squeezes. I snap my eyes open to see bright blue eyes staring back at me. He looks much more alert than before.
"Hey" I whisper, rubbing my hand over his arm. "Can you talk yet?"
He blinks a few times before giving me a tiny nod.
"Good" I say, removing the mask and turning the nebulizer off. "How're you feeling?"
"Like a truck is parked on my chest" he whispers barely audibly. I can definitely still hear the wheeze, but it's much better than before. And more importantly not as life-threatening.
"That great, huh?" I sigh, relieved he's somewhat okay for the time being. "How about we get you off this floor?"
A glimpse of a smile appears on his face, so I carefully help him sit up and lean against the side of the bed. I notice his eyes are squeezed shut, knowing what that means.
"You okay?"
"Dizzy" he whispers.
"That's normal, just rest a little." It takes him a few minutes before he opens his eyes again. "You good?"
"Yeah" he responds, trying to stand up. I grab his arms before he can get very far though, hopping to prevent a face plant.
"How about letting me help you?"
He smirks, letting me take most of his weight. After a bit of struggling, he's sitting on the edge of the bed, looking just about ready to collapse. "Come on, lay down" I say, guiding his legs on the bed and helping him get settled. The wheeze is still there, so I decide not to let him lay completely flat on his back, just to be on the safe side.
"How about we lift you up a little more to help you breathe better?"
I pull him into a sitting position and jam every pillow he owns behind his back, so that he's at a 45 degree angle, before covering him with a blanket.
"Scoot over" I order, waving my hand in front of his face. He shoots me a disapproving glare, which I disregard. "Forget it, I'm sleeping here tonight."
He rolls his eyes, but I can see a smile appear on his face.
I climb into bed next to him and he immediately snuggles up against my chest, his breathing evening out. Just like old times.
I'm starting to think he's sound asleep when he whispers "Thank god you're here." I can't keep the tears from falling down my cheeks.
"I'm glad you're okay."
Will's P.O.V.
Jay's alarm goes off at six in the morning, scaring the hell out of me. It must be the loudest thing I've ever heard in my life.
It takes Jay a while to hear it, but as soon as he's halfway awake he's up and out of the bed. I don't miss the swaying though, so I get up, ready to catch him if he collapses.
"Where do you think you're going?" I ask, making him pause for a second.
"Work."
That's it. That's all he says. I swear that one little word is gonna drive me nuts someday.
"What do you mean work? You just had two asthma attacks in one night after going years without them. You're taking a day off and we're getting you checked out."
"No way" Jay replies as he walks into the bathroom and slams the door in my face.
Well, that went well.
I realize that I'm probably not going to make him budge, so I might as well make him a decent breakfast and force him to eat it before work. Fifteen minutes later he walks into the kitchen fully dressed, with damp hair and horrific bags under his eyes.
I eye him critically, pushing a plate of food towards him.
"Eat."
"I'm not hungry" he replies, heading for the front door, before I step in his way, making him stumble directly into me. Wow, his reflexes are slow.
"I don't care. You're either eating it or I'm calling Voight. And he will bench you."
I can tell Jay's not happy about the turn of events, but he turns around and eats everything without another word.
"Take it easy today okay?" I say, earning a glare from him. "And if you feel bad or can't breathe well-"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll stop and call you" he cuts me off.
"You don't have to call me, but please tell somebody, so they can help you." I pause, fully aware that he's annoyed. "Promise me."
"I promise, mom" he says as sarcastically as he possibly can and walks out the door.
You gotta love him.
Jay's .P.O.V.
My lungs feel so tight it's unreal.
And in case you were wondering, it's the most inconvenient timing ever, since we're in the middle of a bust.
It's a simple drug dealer bust, which happens to take place in a warehouse, but not just any warehouse. No. A five story high warehouse. And why is that bad? Because I'm the fastest one on the team, therefore I was one of the three people to have to take the top floor. And all of the fifty thousand stairs that lead to it. Awsome.
"Hey, are you okay?" Adam asked me when we were about half way up, having noticed my heavy breathing.
"Yeah…" I say, completely out of breath. "I just have a cough."
I don't think he bought it though, because he's been looking at me sideways ever since.
Once we finally reach the fifth floor, we walk into a pretty dark room made with no windows, the only source of light coming from a small cieling light. Normally, I would've been iffy about walking into such a room, but I was too busy trying to catch my breath to actually care.
Antonio and Hailey come running in after me, when all of a sudden, an incredibly loud bang is heard.
The door.
Remember how I mentioned that the room has no windows? Well it only has one door, which happens to made of steel. See where I'm going with this? That very same door has just closed and now that I look at it more closely, I notice the fact that there is no handle on the inside, which means we're trapped. An there are wires on the side.
Either that's just an extremely bad coincidence or we've just been ambushed.
"Damn it" Dawson curses, throwing himself against the door, hoping to get it open.
It doesn't work.
And my chest feels even tighter.
"Sarge… we have a bit of a situation" Ruzek radios Voight, while Dawson seeks for an exit.
"Meaning?" Voight asks, clearly confused by Adam's sarcastic comment.
I try to suck in a deep breath, but failing, which interrupts Adam's explanation of our current situation midsentence.
Both of my teammates stop what they're doing and stare at me, waiting for me to say something. But I can't. My inhales are coming in sharp and there is definitely a noticeable wheeze.
Shit.
I'm guessing this bust is about to go a little bit sideways.
"Jay?" Tony asks, carefully approaching me, probably unsure whether this is my claustrophobia kicking in or my PTSD or something completely different. Now that I think about it, it might me all of the above.
I stare in his eyes, terrified of what's about to happen.
We've just been ambushed, we're stuck in a room with a limited airflow and I'm having an asthma attack. Which my team doesn't know about, because I've never told them about it.
Talk about regretting my life choices.
"Jay, what's wrong?" Dawson asks, once he's only a few feet away from me. Adam quickly mentions my 'cough' that I lied to him about, before my head starts to swim and my knees buckle.
"Jay!" Dawson barely manages to catch me, before I collapse on the floor, heaving for breath. "Jay, can you hear me?" he asks, giving me a once over, seeking for any sign of injury. But there obviously isn't any. "This is not a cough" he states as Adam crouches down next to us, clearly worried about me.
"Jay? Tell me what's wrong" Adam demands, rubbing a hand on my chest. This is it. I have to tell them the truth or I'm gonna die.
"Will" I gasp, unable to get more than a word out.
"Call his brother right now!"
To be continued…
Oh my, I am so mean. Once again I'm leaving you with a cliffhanger, but what can I say… I love them (plus I really wanted to post this as soon as possible and I really need to get some homework done, so there's not enough time to finish it today).
Big thanks go to Sasa Camilla and floopdeedoopdee (wait for it in the next chapter…) for giving me this idea. I hope you liked it :) I'm thinking this story is only going to have two chapters (unless I get really carried away while writing), so I'll try to post the second part as soon as possible. I'm really excited about it and literally can't wait to post it.
Thank you for reading and have a nice day.
Love, N