Taking Chances (Remember to Forget Sequel)

Chapter 12

Luke's POV

As always, just as things start going great, something goes wrong. Today is that day where something went wrong.

When I woke up this morning, there was two missed calls from Michael from about an hour ago, which is weird because he rarely ever calls. And he's rarely ever awake so early. I've been frantically trying to call him back for the past 10 minutes, but he isn't picking up. I wait a few minutes and call again. He finally picks up.

"Hi, Luke. I'm sorry for calling so early, it's just Michael wanted me to and-" someone says. It's not Michael. It's a lady speaking.

"Sorry, who is this?" I ask, cutting her off.

"Oh, sorry! It's Karen, Michael's mom." She sounds nervous, and she's talking really quickly. Something is definitely wrong.

"Oh, okay. Is everything alright?" I ask, worried.

"Michael's in the hospital," she says quietly.

"Wait, what? Why? What's wrong?" I ask frantically. I quickly start getting dressed while staying on the phone. I don't remember Michael seeming sick. He seemed fine the last time I saw him, which was just a few days ago. Horrible thoughts start racing through my mind as to what might have happened.

"He had a very bad panic attack around midnight. I brought him to the ER, but he's finally in a room now. I didn't want to call you that early though and worry you. But he wanted me to call you," Karen tells me.

"I'll be over soon. Is he okay now?"

"He's still a little shaken up. It was one of the worst he's had."

"Okay. Tell him I'll be right there."

I hang up and quickly finish getting ready. I knock on my dad's bedroom door, but he's still asleep.

"Hey, Dad?" I whisper, walking closer to him. I've never had to wake him up before. "Dad?" I poke his shoulder a little, and he wakes up.

"What's wrong?" he whispers.

"Can we go to the hospital?" I ask him.

He bolts up frantically. "Why? What's wrong? Are you okay? Are you sick?"

"I'm fine. It's Michael. He had a panic attack. Can you drive me?"

"Yeah, of course. I'll be ready in a few minutes."

"Okay, thanks."

I wait nervously in my room for my dad to get ready. I hope Michael's okay. I know how bad it can be. I'm thankful it wasn't something life threatening like a car accident.

I'm also nervous to go to the hospital. I hate hospitals. Nothing good ever comes from them. Terrible news surrounds hospitals every day. The only good news is finding out you're being released.

Once my dad is ready, we start heading to the hospital. I anxiously tap my fingers against the window while we drive, wanting to get there as soon as possible. Michael's told me about his anxiety before, but he always said it wasn't too bad. He always said he could deal with it. But if he had to go to the hospital, I can imagine how awful it must have been.

After a few minutes, we finally get there. I tell my dad I want to go in by myself, and I'll call him when I'm ready to leave. I head to the front door slowly and take a deep breath before walking inside. I try my best to avoid hospitals all the time, but I have to see Michael. I had my first panic attack in the hospital, after Delia died. According to my doctor, a lot of people try to avoid places where they had a panic attack, which is why I hate hospitals so much, and why whenever I'm in one, my anxiety gets worse. I just have to deal with it.