Cross My Heart

Chapter Fourteen

I am so excited. You guys are gonna love this. Sadly it's coming to a close, this whole fanfiction, but I love you guys so much. Keep reading and commenting, it means the world to me! Enjoy...

     - Dan -

Dan drives as carefully and as fast as he can. He doesn’t take Katie to the hospital, but instead finds a small doctor’s clinic nearby.

            Wild thoughts race through his head. What if the lake damaged her more? Is she gonna be okay? What if it’s worse than we know?

            He smacks the steering wheel and scolds himself, “Stop it, Dan. Just get her to the clinic, she’ll be fine. It’ll just be a minor concussion. Memory loss is common there. She’ll have to stay on bed rest for the next couple of days. You can buy her ice cream and visit her. Maybe she’ll let you—” His face burns at his own imagination and he turns on the radio.

            The stations fuzz in and out until finally one comes in. Let Her Go by Passenger is playing and Dan’s throat seizes up.

            He changes the channel.

            Minutes fly by and Dan doesn’t even pay attention to the songs until he pulls into the clinic parking lot. He glances over at Katie, who is either asleep or out cold against the window. He hesitates before getting out of the car and running into the clinic.

            “Thank God,” he murmurs as he realizes it’s still open. He bursts in and rushes up to the check-in counter. “Excuse me? My friend, she—she’s out cold in the car,” he tells the tired secretary. She blinks at him from behind black-rimmed glasses. “I think she may have a concussion.”

            “Sir, do you have an appointment?” she asks plainly. She has dark skin and red lipstick on, her brown hair pulled into a wavy ponytail.

            Dan doesn’t notice this as he sighs angrily. “Well—no! She just started forgetting everything and—Look, can I just see a doctor? Can somebody tell me if she’s going to be okay?”

            The secretary’s nametag reads Dianne. “Alright, let me see if somebody’s free,” she says after a moment. Dan purses his lips in frustration as she slowly wheels away from the counter and saunters down the hall.

            He drops his head to his hands before jumping away from the counter and running back out the doors. He carefully opens Katie’s side and pulls her out by her arms.

            Just as he realizes he’s not going to be able to carry her all the way in, a doctor comes rushing out. His black-grey hair is thinning but he has concerned eyes.

            “Here, let me help,” he tells Dan, helping to carry Katie out of the car. Dan blushes, feeling awkward carrying a twenty-four-year-old woman into a building with another man.

            The doctor presses the handicap button and the doors swing open for them. From there, Dianne buzzes them in and they make their way down the hall. Dan resists throwing an annoyed look at Dianne.

            “Here, take her to my room,” the doctor points Dan to a room. Dan nods and puts Katie down on the examination table.

            “What’s wrong, Mister…?” the doctor asks, turning to Dan and brushing himself off.

            “Smith. Dan Smith,” Dan answers quickly. “My friend, Katelyn, she might have a concussion.”

            “Why do you think that?”