Without a Clue {Diall}

Chapter Forty-Six: The Reassuring Boy

Chapter forty-six word count: 6002 words

The times I've been woken up by Grayson's monitor have been, by far, the most terrifying experiences I've ever had. It really never gets less jarring. Today wasn't as bad as it usually is. The sound woke us up around five in the morning, Niall and I blurrily trying to make sense of the numbers on the nightstand as the alarm blared through the room. G's levels weren't actually that low, in the upper eighties, flicking to ninety as well. We were both wordlessly confused about why the alarm was going off, and then G's levels fluctuated a bit, going down until they blipped all the way to 81 before heading back to the mid-eighties. Niall and I stumbled as quickly as we could to G's nursery, the indicator lights on G's monitor flashing red even though we don't have an audible alarm enabled in the nursery. There's no reason to scare Grayson awake because he's got low oxygen blood saturation.

Grayson was coughing in his crib harshly, wheezing as his face strained. After Niall flicked the light on, it was easy to see Grayson was struggling, his face red from exertion, lips pale. He was awake, and began crying upon seeing us in his room, reaching out towards me as I got closer to his crib. I could hear Niall on the phone through my haze, but I didn't really think much of it, just focused on Grayson and trying to decipher if he was having an asthma attack or not. There was a break in his coughing though, where he just cried against my chest, wheezing a bit as he whined that his throat hurt.

I didn't really think he was having a full blown asthma attack. He was definitely still breathing, albeit not very well. However, if he's still breathing, the way we treat his lungs is far different from if he were getting no air at all. That has only happened once when I was there.

"It's not an attack." I rattled off to Niall, rubbing at Grayson's back. Niall nodded, evidently having just got through to Grayson's pulmonologist. Grayson was crying against me as he coughed, evidently uncomfortable as he gasped for air. God, I was just grateful that he was conscious and breathing. This situation wasn't half as urgent as it could have been.

Niall came over with the portable oxygen machine then, handing me the mask for Grayson as he spoke on the phone.

G wasn't having an attack, so if we were going to the hospital was kind of up in the air. It really just depended on if Grayson's doctor thought there was a chance his lungs would lock up tonight. Just low ox-sats isn't enough to take Grayson to the hospital unless it's severe. If the only thing wrong was his amount of oxygen, they'd just give him some at the hospital, but we can do that at home.

I watched Niall carefully as he spoke, waiting for him to say if we had to leave or not. After a minute or two of speaking with G's doctor, Niall nods his head towards me, grabbing G's backpack, then heading over to the closet and getting the bag we'd packed just for when we've got to take Grayson to the hospital. It's got extra clothes for him, pacifiers, and a few smaller toys that he still likes but aren't necessarily his favorite.

I shifted, grabbing the strap that holds Grayson's oxygen machine and put it on my shoulder. Grayson's got the kind that takes oxygen from the air around us, running on batteries rather than just pressurized air that needs to be refilled. I grabbed some socks, putting them on Grayson before picking up Leo and his blanket. After Niall and I slipped on some clothes and grabbed the bag of our stuff, ready for a quick hospital trip, we were in the car, Niall driving as I sat in the back with Grayson.

Grayson's fine now, though. He hasn't had an attack yet, so the hospital is just monitoring him closely for the time being. He's been sleeping since shortly after we got here. After he was settled into a room and his doctor came and went, I (with much difficulty) convinced Niall to get some rest as well, me staying up to talk to the nurses when they come to check on Grayson or give him medication.