Juggling (Book Two)

A Sequence of Events

A/n hey guys! This part is all about Nathan and the event leading up to his collapse etc. please enjoy!

The media:

Image - Sebastian Stan who plays Nate in this book

Video - My latest youtube video

Previously:

“Nate are you okay?” She asks with a look of concern after seeing that her boyfriend looks as if he is in discomfort. Nathan does not respond like he cannot hear. His breathing becomes erratic and he grimaces in pain. “Nate!” Everyone gets to their feet and crowd around the American. Tom and Benedict help him to sit upright with the back of the sofa supporting when he starts to splutter into a tissue which Lauren had passed him. He pulls the tissue away as he begins to shake to reveal blood on the tissue. “Call an ambulance!” Elli yells.

“On it.” Benedict responds as he presses his mobile up to his ear as he hears the dial tone. Every ring Nate’s eyes droop lower and lower until they are shut but still his body quivers and the blood leaks out of his mouth. “We need an ambulance.”

 

Earlier that day:

Nathan Ryder Smith runs his left hand through his dark hair while he is rolling his tablets between his fingertips of his right hand. Peering at his reflection in the mirror he can see how tired he is but he knows that he has to stay strong for Elli and his unborn child. He thinks of his beautiful ex-girlfriend, Cleo and their unborn child and mutters a prayer to keep them safe up in heaven. He misses her but Elli has seemed to make his life all better and he has to focus on the future. “Nate!” Elli calls. Nathan knocks back the pills with a glass of water he had ready by the sink. “Nathan?”

“Give me a second honey.” He replies after he swallows. He turns on the tap and splashes some cold, refreshing water into his face before exiting the bathroom to see his girlfriend looking at herself in the tall mirror. Her shirt is rolled up to just below her bosom as she inspects her stomach.

“I am getting tubby.” She comments causing him to laugh.

“Honey, there is a baby growing in there.” He replies, “A little bit of you and a little bit of me. You will always look beautiful plus we will be changing diapers before we know it.”

“Nappies.” She corrects him making him roll his eyes, “Hey you live in England, so you can speak the language properly.” She moans about his Americanism for a good five minutes which he puts down to hormones until he yawns. “Babe are you sure you are okay about today?”

“Of course I am!” He defends, “I am just spending the day watching a game. It will be fine.”

“I know but you had treatment yesterday so you are meant to be resting.”

“And I will be.” He replies, “While watching the game with a beer in my hand.” Nate ruffles his hair as he looks in the mirror before slipping on his red hoody.

“Why do you care about the match, it is an England match?”

“Soccer is soccer.” He responds with a cheesy grin.

“Football.” She corrects him once again. He runs his hand along his throat, “Everything okay?”

“Have we got any painkillers?” He asks and she nods as she points to the medicine cabinet in the bathroom. He walks into the bathroom and pulls open the cabinet door prior to removing a packet of paracetamol from the top shelf.

 

An hour later:

Nathan and Elli wander down the corridor towards their friends’ apartment hand in hand in a comfortable silence. When they reach the door, Nathan knocks a couple of times and then the door is opened by Benedict who is wearing a simple pair of jeans and a navy jumper. He looks cosy. “Nate! Elli!” He greets them and engulfs them both into a hug individually. Elinor then rushes to welcome back Steph whose plane landed last night, leaving Nate stranded in the doorway with Benedict. “So how have you been?” Ben asks.

“Good good.” Nate mumbles and passes Benedict to take a seat on the sofa. Tom enters the room wearing casual wear and forms an embrace with his partner. “Have you got any beer?” The American asks which is quickly followed by Tom face palming himself.

“I am so sorry Nate.” He apologises, “I was meant to get some and then Emmy begun to cry and-”

“No worries man.” Nathan smiles, “I will go and get a couple of packs from the local store.”

 

At the store:

Nathan skims the aisles for some packs of good beer none of the cheap rubbish. He grabs a couple of packs of Carling and carries them to the checkout where there is a slight queue but that does not bother him too much. The pain in his throat worsens so has to take a couple of deep breaths after placing the beer down onto the checkout. “Sir are you alright?” The checkout assistant asks with a look of concern plastered onto her face. He nods but cannot talk due to the pain. “Do you need help?” The pains subsides and he smiles.

“No I am fine but thank you for your concern.” He responds which relieves her and she begins to the scan the items.

 

Fifteen minutes later:

He pushes open the door knowing he left it on the latch before he left and kicks it shut behind him. He places the beers in the middle of the floor near where his friends have seemed too convened and states “voila” before falling into the sofa. His girlfriend buries into his chest and he puts his arm around her protectively. He knows that his health is not great and the pain is worsening but he does not want to ruin this occasion.

Half way into the match there is an exclamation of “I am back!” drawing everyone’s attention to Anthony Barr who is standing prim and proper in the doorway with Tom. Elli quickly rushes over to him and hugs him tightly which makes Nate wish he had that much energy. She is pregnant but still has more energy than him. The pain returns and he gazes at Lauren who mouths ‘jealous’ which tells him that he is showing the pain on his face. The rest of his visit at Tom and Benedict’s apartment passes uncomfortably quickly because of the pain and him flowing in and out of consciousness. It is the next moment that he hears “Call an ambulance!” coming from his girlfriend’s mouth and soon his eyes are shutting.

 

In the ambulance:

He cannot speak. He cannot move. He can barely stay awake. He notices the rattling of the metal ambulance around him as they are travelling at full pelt through the streets of London. He feels needles being jabbed into him and oxygen being fed to him through a mask but it is painful every time he takes a breath. He sees Elinor Henson sobbing uncontrollably in the corner on a chair into a tissue. He wants to tell her everything is going to be okay. He wants to talk about the future. He wants to discuss baby names. He wants to kiss her. All goes black. Darkness. 

A/n thoughts? Please vote and comment! <3