Teenage baller Kaden Hastings has a fit when his family moves to California. He can handle the new medical diagnosis that slowly eats away at his life, but when his parents separate him from his teammates and girlfriend to move him to California to...
My head won't stop reeling. I've been sitting in this waiting room for what feels like hours, and no one's come to tell me anything. My brother could be dying right now, and I'm just sitting here.
Dad and Mom come through the automatic doors to the ER. I jump to my feet. It's about time they got here! Dad runs up and grabs my arms with shaking hands. "Logan! Is Kaden okay?"
"I dunno-"
Mom comes up behind him. "Logan, what happened?!"
I hold up my hands and shake my head. You should have been there! You should have been here with me, so that I didn't have to be alone in this damn waiting room. I swallow hard and say, "Why weren't you guys at the game?"
Dad glances at Mom and says, "We had car trouble, but we're here now, Logan."
Mom pulls me away from Dad and hugs me. I cling to her, all too aware that my eyes are filling with tears, and I'm going to cry again. At least this time, I'm not alone.
"He just fell over, Mom," I say around the knot in my throat. "And he started shaking and wouldn't stop and it was so scary. They took him away and no one's come to tell us anything, and-" I take a breath and shudder with silent sobs.
"Shh," Mom says softly, holding my head against her shoulder. Then she lets me go, and I turn around to see a doctor standing with Dad. I wipe my face and sniff softly.
The waiting area gets quiet fast as all my teammates turn to listen up.
"Go ahead and take a seat," the doctor says.
Mom and Dad stand frozen in place. I step forward. "What's happening?" I demand.
"Can we see Kaden?" Mom asks. "I want to see my son."
The doctor holds his hands up. "Of course, but I'd like to explain what's happening . . . Kaden had a prolonged seizure. Convulsive status epilepticus. It's a very serious medical condition. He didn't respond to the medications we gave him. We had to stop the seizure, so we put him in a medically induced coma."
"Coma?!" Mom and Dad say at the same time.
"Kade's in a coma?" I ask.
"It was our last option. He was shaking for almost an hour. The seizure is over, and he's stable now. I'll take you to him." He turns and leads us around the counter and down a hallway.
"Why is this happening?" Dad asks as we follow the doctor.
"There are many causes for epilepsy. We won't know until we run all the tests."
My head is reeling. Coma. Epilepsy? My brother?
"You can diagnose him that quickly?" Dad asks.
The doctor stops in front of a door and spins around. "With the history we were given, it seemed obvious to us that Kaden has epilepsy."
"What-who gave you his history?" Dad asks.
The doctor shrugs. "A teammate maybe?"
Dad studies my face. Why is he looking at me? I didn't say anything. Then I realize that Jake talked to a nurse. I slowly turn around and look back at Jake, who stands behind us. He can't look either one of us in the eye.
Mom follows the doctor into the room, and I shake my head at Jake and go in after her.
I can barely see Kaden underneath all the medical stuff-tubes in his mouth and nose, a jungle of wires sprouting from his head and chest, the IV in his arm. Mom stumbles forward, grabs Kaden's hand, and falls to her knees by the bed. I stand frozen in place, suddenly realizing how real this is.
My twin brother's in a coma in the hospital.
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