Reaching for Rebecca

Chapter 39

ALEX'S POV

I knew something was wrong when I felt Becca's body slump against mine. My first thought was that she fell asleep but I could tell that wasn't it. I tried to move my shoulder so I could see her face but that just caused her to fall forward until her chest hit her legs.

"Becca!"

I quickly lifted her back and leaned in front of her. Her eyes were closed slightly but the only part I could see was white. I remember this happening last time she fainted so hopefully that was it. I lifted her, not so gently but it worked, grabbed a pail just in case, and carried her deadweight body into the truck. Fastening the seatbelt around her waist, I took off and called Ryan. Of course he didn't answer since he was in practice but I left a message.

"Hey, uh it's Alex." I flashed a look to check on Becca who was still unconscious. "So, I don't really know what to do right now. Becca got like really sick when we got home and she's currently passed out. I'm in the truck driving towards the city to bring her to Matt's house. I didn't think it was safe to bring her to the hospital with her step-dad being who he is." I looked over when she made a gurgling sound and it looked like she was choking. "Shit." I pulled over and grabbed the pail for Becca before tipping her head over it. She immediately started coughing and vomiting into the bucket with tears streaming down her face. Once she was done, she was gasping for breath but passed out again soon after. Remembering that I was still in the process of leaving a voicemail for Ryan, I picked up the phone and pulled the truck back onto the road. "I'll let you know what's going on once we get to Matt's." I hung up rather frantically but I had an excuse - I was rather frantic at the moment.

I decided to call Landon since I'm sure he knows more about Becca's situation than I do. It was half my fault since I've been so 'preoccupied' lately but it still hurt to know my brother trusted his friend with this information than me.

I found Landon's number in my contacts and put it on speakerphone in case Becca had another wave of sickness coming. It rang a few times before he answered with a questioning "Hello?" I guess I had never really called him before but whatever.

"Landon, it's Alex."

"I know. You are programmed in my phone." Landon could be quite a dick sometimes. I don't know how Ryan got along with him so well.

"I didn't know if I was or not." I kept talking so he could keep his smartass comments to himself. "I need help."

My tone must have changed because he dropped the sarcastic attitude and responded: "What is it?"

"Becca got really sick when we got home from school and she passed out. I called Ryan but it went right to voicemail." I heard him moving in the background.

"Are you still at home?"

"No, I'm bringing her to Matt's. I'm about a half hour away from his place. I didn't think I should bring her to the hospital because of her step-dad."

"Good thinking," he complimented roughly. "I'm leaving now. Meet you there," and with that he hung up on me.

Then I finally called Matt and put it on speakerphone again.

"Matt?" I didn't even give him a chance to say hello once I heard him pick up. "I'm going to be in your house in about a half hour with Becca. She got really sick when we got home from school and then passed out. Ryan isn't home and I couldn't get a hold of him since he's in practice..." I got cut off from my rambling.

"Alex, slow down. Becca got really sick? What do you mean." Matt always acted like a professional and kept the panicking to a minimum. It was great to talk to someone who wasn't as stressed out as I was.

"She was looking pale during school but didn't have a fever or anything. When we got home she ran straight upstairs so I ran behind her. She threw up in the sink and then the toilet when the first wave stopped. I asked if she was alright but she seemed kind of out of it so I sat next to her in the bathroom and she just kind of slumped over," I explained.

"Did she fall?"

"No. She was leaning her head on my shoulder and just went dead weight. She slumped forwards and her chest hit her legs, like flat on the floor, but I lifted her up right away after that."

Matt was quiet for a few seconds. "Okay anything else?"

"Yeah, when I was just leaving I heard her make a gurgle sound so I pulled over and tilted her head over a bucket and she threw up some more but didn't wake up."

"Christ," Matt said under his breath. "I'll get my stuff set up in the living room alright? Call me when you get here and I will help you carry her in."

"Thanks Matt," I said hastily and then ended the call.

~~~

Thankfully, Becca's stomach decided to keep its contents for the remainder of the ride. I pulled into the parking lot for the twin's apartment complex and was surprised to see Landon hopping off his motorcycle. As soon as I parked, he ripped the passenger door open and hoisted Becca out with a lot more grace than I had used to get her in the truck. He was halfway to the entrance by the time I got out of the truck and texted Matt.

___
|Alex > Matt - 5:02pm|
Sent: Landon's carrying her up right now.
Received: Ok. Door's open.
___

Running to catch up with Landon, I noticed that he looked scared. I never thought I would see that look on his face, especially because of his 'badass' façade.

"Did she get sick anymore after you called me?" His voice was terse but he showed no signs of running out of breath as he easily carried Becca up multiple flights of stairs.

"No. She didn't wake up either." We got to the fourth floor and saw Mike holding the door open with wide eyes. He must have been sent out by Matt.

"What's going on?"

"He'll tell you," Landon muttered through his teeth before pushing past Mike and laying Becca on the sheet covered couch in the living room. Mike's face scowled at Landon before looking back to me for an explanation.

"She got really sick and has been unconscious for way too long." I gave him the short version.

"Where's Ryan?" he asked. I remembered that he was quite flirty with Becca until Ryan made him back off when they came over for lunch.

"Practice. I left him a message though." Our conversation got cut off when I heard Becca whimper from the other side of the room.

"Landon pick her head up!" Matt yelled from the kitchen. I recalled what happened in the truck so I sprinted over with the half full puke bucket in tow and held it in front of her just as Landon pulled her forward. He shot me a strange look but was soon thankful when sounds of Becca's vomiting filled the room. She kept going and Landon pulled her hair back and soothed her.

"It's okay Becca. You'll be okay," he kept repeating in a soft voice. He was sure surprising me with his actions today.

After that, Becca seemed more coherent and was obviously confused about where we were and why she was here.

"Where's Ryan?" she croaked out.

Just before I could answer, Landon replied: "He's at practice sweetheart but he'll be here soon okay?"

"Alex, you and Mike head in the kitchen and give Ryan an update. I need to talk to Becca," Matt ordered.

"What about him?" Mike scoffed, pointing to Landon. Landon's eyes went dark and Becca clung to his arm.

"Let's just go Mike," I said and nudged him towards the doorway. As we were leaving, I heard her start crying before another bout of sickness came over her.

I sat at the table and started texting a friggen paragraph to my brother who wasn't here. Hopefully he wouldn't be too worked up over this but I knew that was impossible.