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“Evening son. I’m Dr. Ortega. Are you the ones that were with Jace McConnell tonight?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Are you family?”

“Not by blood, but he’s like a brother to me.”

His eyes skated around the room. “Are his parents here tonight?”

“His mom is on her way. We don’t live in town, but she should be here very soon. Is Jace going to be okay?”

The doctor rolled his lips between his teeth, flattening them. His gaze wavered to the floor. “I’m sorry, but I must speak with his mother first.”

“Just tell me this, is he alive?”

Sympathy weighed heavily in his tired eyes and John feared the worst. Jace was no longer alive. He knew out on the street that Jace was gone, but seeing it in the doctor’s eyes confirmed it. The waiting room grew small, his vision turning into a long narrow tunnel. John began breathing heavily, emotions rolling up and taking over. No … this can’t be happening …

Tears welled in his eyes. This can’t be happening.

The sound of sliding doors drew John’s attention. Jace’s mother, Maryanne, rushed toward him, her eyes wide and frantic.

“John! Have you heard anything?”

John shook his head. “No. The doctor won’t tell me anything because I’m not related by blood.”

“Nonsense!”

“Ma’am. I’m Dr. Ortega. I’m one of the doctors who assisted tonight.”

“How is he?”

“How about we take a seat somewhere private?”

John wrapped a strong arm around Maryanne. She was crumbling before the doctor had hardly spoken a word. “Just give me something,” she began shaking her head hysterically.

Dr. Ortega turned around and began proceeding to his office forcing them to follow him. “Follow me to my office, please.”

John glanced over his shoulder to where Alyssa was sitting. She wiped her red-rimmed eyes. Her cheeks were pink and her nose swollen from crying. He wanted to hold her and wipe away her tears. He needed her as much as she needed him, but right now Maryanne was his top concern. With a small nod of his head and a tight lipped frown, he followed the doctor.

Dr. Ortega opened the door and once inside, he handed Maryanne a few tissues. She took a deep breath and wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes. He looked to the ground, grief written all over his face. He didn’t have to say a word. It was written in his eyes.

“Nooooo …” she wailed, falling into John’s chest. Her cry was pure agony, splitting right through John. He felt her pain, her loss, her suffering. Maryanne’s emotions poured out of her as her sobs grew louder. She could hardly catch her breath as she clung to John’s bloody t-shirt. Jace had been her only child, and his best friend. Listening to his best friend’s mother cry her heart out brought tears to his own eyes. Tears he fought to keep in but wouldn’t let out. He had to be strong for her.

Jace was gone.

Dead.

A life cut short. All because they got a little too reckless one night.

They thought they were on top of the world, kings that no one could touch in their small town. Little did they know, they were just pawns in the grand scheme of things because when death came knocking, it didn’t matter who you were or what you did, death took who it wanted. When it was your time to go, that was it. You could fight it all you want, but you don’t have a choice. They say only the good die young, and it was true. Jace was one of the good ones–a great friend and the perfect son for his mother who struggled. But he didn’t have a leg to stand on when his truck wrapped around that tree. He probably died instantly.

“Mrs. McConnell …”

“What …” she choked, gasping for air. “Please. Tell me what happened. I want to know it all.” She begged, her voice shaky.

Clearing his throat, Dr. Ortega nodded. “Alright. This is never easy to do. As much as I love my job, times like these are when I wish I had chosen another career. When Jace was brought in, he was covered in blood. So much that we didn’t know where it was coming from. His pulse was low, he was hardly breathing. After running diagnostic tests, we were able to tell that the blood was coming from multiple places in his body, one being his chest, the other his brain. He must have banged it on the windshield, but the EMT wasn’t sure since Jace was unconscious.”