Page 28

Carson

The whistle blew, slicing through the air, signaling the end of practice. My heart was still pounding, the rhythm of my pulse filling my ears as I wiped sweat from my face. My body ached from the relentless drills, muscles sore, but the exhaustion didn't seem to matter. I felt restless—like something was off, something was wrong, but I couldn't place it.

There was a gnawing feeling in my gut that something wasn't right with Eve, and it was unbearable. The air around me felt heavier, like I was waiting for a storm that was about to break.

I turned to head toward the locker room, wiping my brow, but before I could take another step, I heard it.

"Man, you wouldn't believe it," I heard Jake say. His voice carried through the noise of the group, like a sharp knife cutting through the chatter. "I saw Eve. She was in an ambulance... like, rushing to the hospital."

My stomach dropped, the world around me suddenly feeling like it was tilting. Ambulance. Eve. The words echoed in my mind as I froze mid-step, my heart pounding harder with every beat. A wave of dizziness hit me, and my breath caught in my throat. I turned toward Jake, my eyes wide, my pulse hammering in my ears.

"What?" I asked, my voice hoarse. It barely registered in my head as I spun around, eyes locking onto Jake, my heart threatening to leap out of my chest.

"Yeah, dude. I saw it... She looked messed up, man. They were rushing her to the ER."

I felt like the floor was slipping out from under me. "What do you mean 'messed up'?" The words left my mouth before I could think them through, but Jake's face was pale now, like he knew he'd said too much.

"I don't know, man. I just heard... She was beat up, real bad. That's all I know. I'm sorry, Carson."

The words felt like a slap. Beat up. My mind short-circuited, and for a moment, I couldn't process anything beyond the weight of that one terrifying detail. My chest tightened, panic rising like a tidal wave, drowning out all reason.

didn't wait for any more details. Without a word, I turned and bolted from the locker room. My legs burned with every stride, but I didn't care. I didn't care about the pain or the exhaustion. All I cared about was Eve. I had to get to her. I had to make sure she was okay.

The world around me blurred as I ran, every step a desperate plea for her safety. I didn't stop until I was standing in front of the hospital. Sweat streamed down my face, my muscles screaming for a break, but I didn't even slow down. I shoved through the glass doors, ignoring the startled looks from the reception staff, my body on autopilot, eyes frantically scanning for any sign of her.

A nurse tried to stop me at the front desk. "Can I help you?" she asked, her tone polite, but I didn't care about manners or procedure.

"Where is she? Eve Beckett. I need to see her. Now!" I demanded, my voice breaking, raw with panic. My chest tightened with every breath, like I couldn't get enough air.

The nurse hesitated for a moment, her eyes flicking over my disheveled appearance, before she nodded, pointing down the hall. "Room 307."

I didn't thank her. I just ran. My heart was in my throat, each step feeling like it was going to tear me apart. Every instinct in my body screamed that something was terribly wrong, but I couldn't focus on that. I could only focus on Eve.

My shoes slapped against the cold hospital floor, and I kept my eyes straight ahead, barely registering the faces around me. All that mattered was reaching her. I was almost there when I saw him.

Luke.

He was pacing, his eyes darting nervously between the door and the floor, like he didn't know what to do with himself. He looked like a ghost—haunted, lost. His face had a haunted look I hadn't seen before.

Be okay, baby. Please be okay, I begged in my head.

But Luke was no comfort to me now. He was a stranger. My anger flared as I spotted him, my emotions swirling into a messy storm of confusion, guilt, and fear. I couldn't stop myself. I stormed toward him, my heart racing.

Luke saw me, and his eyes narrowed. The anger in his gaze was palpable. Without a word, he moved toward me, his fists clenched by his sides.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Luke's voice was low, but the rage simmering beneath the surface was clear. His face was twisted with fury.

"What do you think, Luke?" I shot back, my hands shaking as I took a step toward him. "I'm here for Eve. Where is she? What happened to her?"

Luke's face twisted with something darker, something I couldn't understand. His expression went from anger to raw pain in an instant, and before I could process it, his fist slammed into my jaw. The hit was brutal, sending me staggering back, the sting radiating through my skull.

"Stop it!" I shouted, trying to steady myself. My hands balled into fists, but I wasn't about to back down. I couldn't. "What the hell is your problem? Where the hell is Eve?"

"You think you can just waltz in here after everything you did?" Luke's voice cracked, raw with emotion. "After you broke her heart, after everything she did for you? She's in there because of you, Carson. Because of you!"

The words landed like punches, knocking the wind out of me. I couldn't catch my breath. My chest was tight, the air fleeing from my lungs. "What are you talking about?"

Luke's eyes blazed, and for a moment, it seemed like he was going to break apart right in front of me. "She broke up with you because she was trying to protect you! She didn't want you to get hurt—because of our father. He told her if she didn't end it, you'd pay the price. But you were too goddamn clueless to see it. You don't even know what she went through!"

His words hit like a sledgehammer, shattering every belief I had. I was reeling, my heart cracking with the weight of the truth.

Before I could say anything, the emergency room doors flew open, and a nurse came rushing out. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with panic.

"Code blue! Room 307—NOW!" she shouted.

I barely processed the words. All I could hear was the thundering in my chest. The weight of the nurse's command felt like a slap across my face.

Eve.

Without a second thought, Luke and I locked eyes, and then we both turned and sprinted down the hall. My legs burned, my mind spinning, but I couldn't slow down. Not now. I had to get to her.

I burst through the door to room 307, my breath coming in desperate gasps, but everything else fell away. I saw her—Eve. She was pale, motionless, her body connected to countless wires and machines. My stomach dropped, my breath stuck in my throat. Her chest wasn't rising. The heart monitor was a flat line.

"No," I whispered, my voice breaking. I took a step forward, my hands reaching for her, but nothing felt real. "No, angel. You don't fucking die on me."

"Eve!" I screamed, the sound tearing through my chest.

I reached for her hand, but before I could touch her, Luke shoved me aside, his face twisted in grief and fury. "Get out of the way, Carson! Let the doctors work."

The room was chaos. Nurses and doctors moved around her, shouting orders, but it all felt like a blur. Everything was happening in slow motion. I could barely breathe, let alone speak.

"Please," I whispered, my voice hoarse, cracking with desperation. "Please don't leave me."

A nurse shouted, "Clear!" and the room fell silent. The sound of the defibrillator charging echoed in the space, and my heart froze.

"Clear!" another nurse called, and I watched in agony as they shocked her, the electrical pulse surging through her body. The seconds stretched on forever, and for the first time, I wasn't sure if she was going to make it.

Then, finally, after what felt like an eternity, the heart monitor beeped. It was faint, but it was there.

A pulse.

Her pulse.

I collapsed to my knees, tears streaming down my face, my body trembling with relief. "She's alive," I whispered, my voice broken. "She's alive."

But Luke wasn't moving. He stood there, frozen, staring at her with an expression of disbelief. "She can't be... not like this. Not after everything."

Before I could respond, my vision blurred. The weight of the night crashed down on me, and I suddenly felt lightheaded, like the world was spinning around me. My legs gave way, and I reached out for something, anything, to hold onto.

But my body betrayed me, and everything went dark.