Something - Quinn Fabray

Chapter 89

Sirens blared as an ambulance raced through the streets in a frantic dash to Lima Memorial Hospital. The white van swerved around the evening traffic, its paramedics inside focused on one goal: to get their patient to the hospital still breathing.

"How far out are we?" James yelled at his partner.

"Five minutes!" Lisa yelled back, lights and sirens at full blast as the vehicle surged forward, intent on making it to the hospital as soon as possible. James looked back down at his patient. "Ryan? Come on, buddy, hold on, we're almost there," he coaxed desperately. Suddenly the ambulance jerked violently. "What the fuck was that?!"

"Sorry!"

He ignored the apology, instead checking Ryan's stats again, praying that he'd stay stable, that by some miracle he'd wake up.

James didn't understand what had happened, Ryan had been fine, he and Shelby had called him after their competition, totally psyched that they had won. He hadn't been able to make it since he was on shift, but they'd understood. Ryan was supposed to be on their way to a wedding, this wasn't supposed to happen. Everything was going too fast.

..

"This is unit 12-43, responding to the 911 call from Lincoln Avenue," James spoke into the ambulance radio as his partner Lisa Vance sped them towards their latest target. "On route now, ETA two minutes." He grabbed onto the roof handle when Lisa made a sharp turn. She glanced at him.

"What have we got?"

"Van T-boned a car at the intersection," James answered tersely. "Looks like two people in the car, one in the truck."

"Shit."

"Yeah." This was going to be messy. He hoped they didn't have a DOA. The radio blared to life.

"12-43, we have reports of multiple victims, unit 9-54 is on route to the site, four minutes out, over."

"Must be bad," Lisa noted, stepping on the gas. They made it to the scene in 1 minute and 40 seconds, the two paramedics hopping out of the car and taking in the grisly sight of the two mangled cars.

James saw the van first. He winced as he took in the wrecked bumper and the smashed windshield. Fortunately the door was open and it seemed that the driver had managed to get out by himself.

Then his focus shot to the other car, and he felt his breath leave him, feeling like someone had just punched him in the gut. "Oh my God."

"What?"

"That's my son's girlfriend's car." James surged forward to the red VW, peering into the driver's side window.

Oh God, no, no, please, no.

He choked back a sob as he took in the sight of Ryan and Quinn unconscious in the car. The car was crumpled beyond belief, passenger's side was dented in; there was blood everywhere and he didn't know where it was coming from. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think -

"You got a pulse?"

James' eyes flicked up to his partner, who was on the other side of the car checking on Quinn. The question kickstarted his training, and he automatically reached through the shattered window to search for a pulse on Ryan's neck. Panic spiked as he couldn't find one - wait, there. "I got it."

"Good," Lisa nodded. "I've got one too. Faint, but it's there."

James nodded as he tried the door. Focus. This was his job, he did this all the time. Focus on the medicine. This was just another patient.

It wasn't, of course.

Thankfully the locking mechanism had failed, and it opened easily. He leaned in, looking at his son frantically. "Ryan? Hey, buddy, it's me. Can you open your eyes for me?"