Realistic or Modern Don’t Tell Me to Calm Down

[decadent-rider]

He smiled and watched her for a minute before answering. “I helped a couple of their guys out while I was inside, kept them safe. So when I got out and told them I needed a job they offered me one… and their protection should we ever need it.” He told her quietly. “That’s all.” He promised

She grabbed them a few bits from the convenience store across the street, getting back in at the same time Grace was arriving. “Grace. Hey sweetheart, come with me.” She murmured, hugging her tightly. “I’m just giving your dad a little time on his own with him before we go back up. You okay?”

 

[Forever6A7X]

Max gave a small nod before resting her head on his shoulder "So just for their mechanic shop...no kind of illegal business. Do you think they'd want you to join them?" She asked quietly while she traced soft patterns on his chest.

Grace ran to her mom and hugged her tightly shaking her head some "I can't sleep, neither can Maya but we didn't want all of us up here." She said quietly before taking a shaky breath "Dad....dad said he may not wake up..."

 

[decadent-rider]

He nodded and smiled a little. “They’re not gonna force me to. Probably wouldn’t want me doing that with who I used to work for.” He mumbled, starting to go quiet with the pain from his side, closing his eyes

 

[decadent-rider]

Carmen frowned and nodded. “He had a stroke baby. They’ve done some scans and they’re just waiting on the results and we’re just … it’s just waiting now.” She mumbled, keeping her close.

 

[Forever6A7X]

Max nodded but frowned when she saw the pained look on his face "I'm gonna go ask them how the tests are coming." She said softly before getting up to go speak with a nurse.

Grace took a shaky breath before she broke down crying holding onto her mom "I don't want to loose another sibling Momma!"

 

[decadent-rider]

She got her to sit in a chair in the hallway, just holding her tightly and nodding. “I know baby I know.” She murmured, trying to soothe her until she saw eddies head poking out of the room and she tapped her back. “You wanna go talk to him?” She asked her quietly, helping her up to get her in the room.

He nodded and frowned then quickly changed his mind and grabbed her arm. “No. No don’t go.” He muttered, gripping at her hand desperately

 

[Forever6A7X]

Eddie led Grace into the room when she agreed and sighed heavily "We'll be right outside okay?" He said quietly before going back to Carmen just holding her and staying quiet.

Max frowned deeply at him but gave a small nod and pressed the call button "I just want an update babe, its gonna be okay." She said quietly as she went to sit back with him

 

[decadent-rider]

She frowned and swallowed back tears, resting her head on Eddie's shoulder "I called Josh, he said him and the guys would try and get down here. Ed even if he wakes up... That would have been a major stroke.... He's gonna need a lot of help." She mumbled. "I don't want the girls feeling like they gotta put their lives on hold."

He just nodded, his hand shaking uncontrollably while he lay there trying to breathe through it all until he started woozy again, soon passing out from everything

 

[Forever6A7X]

Eddie frowned deeply and nodded some "They won't have to. We'll take care of Lucas, but they qill be able to move forward. I'll make sure of it." He whispered confidently to her.

Max frowned deeply pressing the call button repeatedly seeing him shaking "Clay? Babe?" She said quietly starting to panic when he passed out and alarms started going off.

 

[decadent-rider]

She frowned but nodded, gripping at his shirt. “You remember the day he was born? He was so small. Insisted on being born three weeks early and scaring me.” She smiled at the memor a little.

His nurse came in quickly with a few others and got him settled quickly. “Mrs Cardenas. Sorry for the wait. We can top up his painkillers for now but we’re still waiting on his test results ourselves so it’s going to be a while before I can get those for you.”

 

[Forever6A7X]

Eddie chuckled softly at the memory and nodded some "Uh huh, head full of hair too. Poor soul got my curls." He murmured softly

Max took a deep breath and nodded softly "Okay thank you for the update...what kind of tests did you run?" She asked softly

 

[decadent-rider]

She frowned and just held onto him tighter until Grace came back out of the room and straight over to them, just hugging her tightly. “You gonna be okay driving home by yourself?” She asked her.

She sighed a little and made a couple notes on his chart about the painkillers before answering. “MRI and some blood tests.” She told her.

 

[Forever6A7X]

Grace sniffled and pulled back from her mom "Yeah I'll be okay....I'm gonna bring Maya up here in later." She said softly before huggimg her dad as well and taking off.

Max nodded some and thanked the nurse before she left. She ran her fingers through his hair gently and gave a heavy sigh.

 

[decadent-rider]

it was the following afternoon that Lucas started waking up, small twitches soon turning to him opening his eyes and looking around confused, seeing Emily talking to his dad and crying but he couldn’t move to get to her. Couldn’t remember what happened after he’d gone down for a snack.

Clay woke up a little later and glanced at the time frowning “do you need to go pick up the kids?” He asked her quietly, still looking quite pale and uncomfortable

 

[Forever6A7X]

Eddie was busy chatting with Emily about what had happened and Lucas' chances when he heard a small groan. He spun to the direction of the bed and broke into a big smile "Lucas?! Shit okay, Emily stay here I'm gonna go grab a nurse." He said quickly before rushimg out of the room.

Max saw the time and gave a small nod "Yeah...they get out in an hour." She said softly before giving a heavy sigh "I don't know if they'll let them come back here."

 

[decadent-rider]

He frowned and shook his head. “I don’t want them here.” He told her quietly. “They might be letting me go soon though anyway.” He mumbled, giving her hand a squeeze.

Emily moved over to him quickly, taking his hand tightly. “I thought I told you not to scare me.” She smiled at him, staying where he could see her until his doctor was coming in and they were being asked to leave so they could run a few more short tests, stepping out with his dad and frowned. “He couldn’t hold my hand. Couldn’t move his fingers.”

 

[Forever6A7X]

Max frowned shaking her head some "Clay they haven't gotten your results back, I don't think they're gonna let you go." She said softly and gave a heavy sigh.

Eddie frowned deeply as he heard Emily and gave a small nod "Its not a good sign, but it could possibly be reversable....we'll have to wait for the doctor's diagnosis." He explained quietly

 

[decadent-rider]

They were eventually allowed back into the room by the time they were done and his doctor turned to look at them “good news is he woke up. And he’s breathing on his own enough for us to let him. So we’ve got him off the ventilator. Bad news. He can’t talk, can’t move and he can’t swallow. Our goal now for him is going to be to help him be as comfortable as possible for as long as possible because this is not going to get better.” He told them both slowly and as gently as he could but there was no getting around the fact that Lucas was certainly not getting any better.

He frowned a little and squeezed her hand again. “Querida, they’re gonna send me home.” He told her quietly, looking to the door when his nurse came in with a few papers and told them all tests came back inconclusive so they were gonna send him home, “Try to take some ibuprofen for the pain and if it doesn’t clear up in a week or two, come on back.“ she told them both, getting his discharge papers for him and having him sign them.

 

[Forever6A7X]

Eddie took a deep breath and tried to find some kind of words to ask the doctor all the questions that were running through his mind. After about a minute he finally found them "There is nothing we can do? N-nothing to try and help him regain those functions?" He askes quietly

Max gave a heavy sigh as they brought through his discharge papers shaking her head a bit "You better do as they say mister. I don't want a call again saying they're taking you in because you wouldn't get checked out." She said seriously before kissimg his cheek gently.

 

[decadent-rider]

He shook his head and frowned. “I can get the photos from the scans if it would help to explain but those cells are dead. It was a major stroke and a long while before he was received any medical attention for it… we can keep him mostly free of pain but I would estimate he’s got at most six months. Let me give you all some time but when you’re ready to discuss options just let the nurse know and we can move on from there.” He assured them both, leaving.

Carmen had been af home since last night, getting the kitchen cleaned up properly as well as getting the girls set up with their last bits and pieces for graduation, making arrangements with the salon and she’d finally stopped for a bite to eat when the phone rang. “Hey babe, I was just about to head back over there you want me to bring you some food or anything? … Ed?”

Clay thanked them quietly and signed the papers, waiting til they brought him some clothes and he headed out with her slowly, not saying a word til they were in the car. “I’ll only end up back in there in a week.” He muttered, rubbing at his face. “I told you they’re not taking it seriously.” He muttered, leaning back while she drove to pick up Jose from daycare,

 

[Forever6A7X]

Eddie sat dialing Carmen trying to figure out how to explain things while Emily cried in the background quietly. He took a shaky breath as he heard her voice "Caremn....I uh...he uh....he's....come back please.." he said quietly unable to get the words out over the phone. He knew she needed to be here to hear it, not some store over the phone.

Max frowned deeply and shook her head as she started to drive "Well its bullshit, and I'll get some other doctor if they won't help. Something is definitely wrong and we'll figure it our." She said seriously before falling silent for the rest of the drive.

 

[decadent-rider]

He hummed in response, closing his eyes and just trying to relax a little the whole time they were picking up the kids. Lilah wasn’t happy that he was sleeping so she couldn’t have her music but got over it quickly, playing with her brother once they got home and clay snuck off to go lay down. It wasn’t until the late evening just after max had come to join him in bed that he got up, going straight to the bathroom to be sick.

She frowned but agreed and hung up, heading over there as quick as she could, heading up to the room and went inside, seeing Lucas was just starting to fall asleep again but feeling relieved he was awake. She took a seat next to Ed and took his hand. “What’s going on?”

 

[Forever6A7X]

Max went on with the evening like normal. She made her way to bed a little past nine thirty and frowned seeing Clay rushing to the bathroom. She followed him inside when she heard him getting sick and frowned deeply rubbing his back some "Babe? You okay?"

Eddie gulped as she sat beside him giving her hand a squeeze "He....he woke up...but the stroke, it was severe and they...there is nothing they can do but make him comfortable." He said quietly letting a few tears fall as he tried to hold it together "They gave him six months..."

 

[decadent-rider]

He groaned quietly, not able to respond to her before continuing to be sick for a little while until finally he felt good enough he could lean back, his whole body covered in a sheen of sweat. “I don’t feel so good.” He told her quietly

She frowned and just watched her younger son, not answering for a few minutes. This is what she’d been expecting from the moment they’d called him emergency services but it still wasn’t easy. “Then we make him comfortable.” She told him quietly. “And we control the media around all of this.”

 

[Forever6A7X]

Max frowned deeply and nodded some "Baby you're burning up." She said quietly before getting him a cool flannel to try and get him comfortable. She went to flush the toilet for him as well but frowned seeing his vomit with a pink tinge to it from blood "Okay thats it, ambulance." She muttered going to grab her phone quickly.

Eddie gave a small nod and sighed heavily "I want this room on lock down, I know we have no unapproved visitors, but I want nurses vetted as well. And him not to be alone."