Feeling Faint (BxB)

Chapter 6

I wake to Ben rubbing my shoulders gently. "Hey sleepy head. My dad is here." I mumble something and close my eyes again. "Jay." He says, tapping my nose.

I sleepily crack an eye open and look at him. "Hmmm." I say. "You need to wake up." He insists. I hear a voice across the living room say, "It's okay, we can just start by you bringing me up to speed." Ben's voice is a low rumble as they discuss my condition.

I'm really not paying much attention; I'm stuck in a world between sleep and awake. I nearly drift off again when Ben squeezes my arm gently. "Jay, how's your head been lately?" I groan at him. "Horrible." I complain.

In fact, it's mostly my head that's keeping me from sleeping. It's either a constant sharp ache, or moments of white hot fire that nearly paralyze me. I close my eyes again, trying to block out the sounds around me and the ache of my head. I slowly drift into a restless sleep as they are finishing their conversation.

----------------------------------------------

I yawn, opening my eyes and taking in my surroundings. I'm still on the couch, but Ben and his dad are both gone. I check my phone and see a message from Ben.

"Went to the store to get you some things, didn't want to wake you. Be back soon." I smile, and it's not until I go to stretch that I realize something is horribly wrong. I can't feel my left leg at all.

At first, I assume that I just slept on it weird and it fell asleep. I pinch my leg, trying to wake it back up, but I can't even feel the pinch. After a few minutes, panic starts to set in.

Something is wrong. The thought hits me full force as I realize... this has to be much more than me overexerting myself. The horrible head pain, the time I seemed to have lost, and now no feeling in my leg. And on top of that I keep getting a fever, which isn't exactly helpful. Slowly everything starts to really register. I can't feel my left leg. What's wrong with me?!

My breathing quickens and I start to freak out. Tears are beginning to spill down my face and I can hardly see straight. My chest is constricted and I can't focus on anything else. My head is still a sharp ache but it seems to be slowly getting worse. The room is starting to darken and I can't breathe. What's happening to me? I scream inwardly.

The door suddenly opens. Ben takes in the sight of me and drops his bags, throwing the door shut and running over to me. "Jay can you hear me?" I reach out with shaking fingers and grip his hand, trying to nod. "Hey it's okay, just focus on me."

His hand runs down the side of my face, wiping up tears even though they continue to flow. His hair is flopping in his eyes, wet from the rain. "I'm right here. Can you take some deep breaths for me?" I continue to gasp, shaking my head as I grip his hand tighter. "Jay you can do this."

My gaze drifts away and he gently uses his hand to guide my head back. "Hey, hey, eyes on me. I'm not going anywhere." I continue to gasp and the room dims momentarily.

I clench his hand tightly again, still overrun by fear. He pulls me into his arms and I sob into his strong shoulder. He rubs circles into my back as I pant for air. He's whispering soothingly into my ear as I clench his t-shirt in my hands. My breathing is slowly becoming less gaspy, but it's still shaky.

He pulls back from the hug, holding onto my shoulders. "Can we try some deep breaths together now?" He gently asks.

I take his hand again and squeeze it once, looking into his eyes. I shakily take some deep breaths with him and start to calm down. We sit in silence as I let my breathing fall back into a normal rhythm.

It's then that I glimpse my legs stretched out on the couch and remember what I need to tell him. My breathing hitches, but he draws my attention back to him. "Is it your head again?" He asks softly. I take a deep breath and shake my head no.