Time stops meaning anything.
Minutes swell into hours, hours stretch into something cruel.
Every time the automatic doors whoosh open, my heart stumbles. I sit, stand, pace, sit again. People shift around me, but everything feels muffled, like I am underwater, watching the world move while I am held still in fear.
Finally, a doctor steps into the room.
“Ethan Hawthorne’s family?”
Every Hawthorne stands at once, like the word Ethan is a rope pulling them upright.
Josh and Lily hurry forward.
The doctor clears his throat.“Ethan has a dislocated arm, some bruised ribs, and a burn on his side he will need to monitor. No signs of significant smoke inhalation, but we want to keep him overnight for observation.”
I feel my knees weaken with relief. Not okay, but alive.
“Can we see him?” Lily asks, her voice trembling.
“Of course,” the doctor says gently.“Once he is settled. Only two at a time.” He glances at the crowd of family members and soot-covered firefighters like he already knows it is about to become an organizational nightmare.
Five minutes later, a nurse comes. Josh and Lily disappear down the hallway.
“What about Asher?” Grace blurts, stepping forward, her voice shaky.
“I am sorry, ma’am,” the nurse says softly,“but that information can only be given to family.”
Grace’s face crumples.“But they live in Chicago now, he is alone. I need to see him.” Her voice cracks, raw.
Dex pulls her gently away, wrapping his arms around her.“We will figure something out,” he murmurs into her hair.“I will call his parents. They can get information.”
I watch Grace sag against him, her hands fisting his shirt, and my heart twists.
Thirty agonizing minutes later, Cas and Jude step out of Ethan’s room.
Dex turns to me.
“Summer, come.”
My breath lodges somewhere between my lungs and my ribs.
“What?”
“To see Ethan.” He holds out his hand.
“I do not know…” My voice falters. What if Ethan does not want to see me? What if I make everything worse?
“Please,” Dex says gently.“For Ethan.”
For Ethan.
I swallow hard and take Dex’s hand.
The walk down that hallway feels endless. Every step is louder in my ears than the last. Dex opens the door.
And there he is.
Not in bed.
