Page 14 of Impacted by Love

"What's going on, Mom?"

"He… he?—"

Wee-ooh. Wee-ooh.

The sound of a siren causes me to swallow the moisture gathering in the back of my throat, and my blood pressure spikes.

"Where are you, Mom?"

"O-on the way to the hospital. Yo-your dad…" Mom's words trail off, and her sobs penetrate my ear canal, causing me to stand swiftly, heading toward my front door.

"Which hospital are they taking him to?"

Mom and Dad are between Ribax Medical Center and Shadow Stew Memorial, so I need to make sure I'm going to the right place.

"Sh-Shadow," Mom utters through a brief pause in her crying.

"I'm on my way. I'll meet you there. Calm down, Mom. I'm coming."

Not waiting for her response, I disconnect the call, grab my keys from the hook beside the front door, and quickly exit, rushing through the process of securing my home.

My mind is reeling with what could be happening with Dad, and my shaking hands nearly make it impossible to start my vehicle a second later.

"Jesus. Lord, I don't know, but you do. Please go before me. Intervene as only you can."

* * *

Running into the emergency department of Shadow Stew Memorial, my heart feels like it's on the outside of my chest. Seeing the security checkpoint, I rush to it, out of breath, while searching the waiting room.

"My… my dad was brought in by the squad," I say breathlessly.

"Empty your pockets and come through the scanner. Then you can take a seat. Someone will assist you," the security guard directs without the presence of his eyes.

"Man, did you hear me? My dad?—"

"Did you hear me, though? Everybody is here for one reason or another. You still need to go through the security scanner like they all did." The security guard cuts me off with a bite in his tone that instantly contorts my face and increases the heat within my body.

My chest rises and falls with mounting tension, my nostrils flare, and my hands ball into fists, yet seeing Mom enter the waiting room and look around reminds me of why I'm here.

"Mom! Here I am." Quickly emptying my pockets into the bin, I rush through the metal detector while Mom rushes in my direction.

"Come on, Asaiah. Come on," Mom says frantically.

Mom's attire has my brows hiking and wrinkles dancing on my forehead from the slip and legs covering her body. The worn house slippers on her feet have my jaw clenching.

What the hell is going on that she came out of the house like this?

Swiftly grabbing my belongings from the bin, I rush behind Mom, whose legs move faster than I've ever seen.

"Come on, Son. We need you to help us. You want Mommy and Daddy to be happy, right?"

Nodding, I stare into Mom's withdrawn eyes, and my chest tightens at the thought of disappointing her. I want her to be happy, and I want to please her, so maybe she'll take me to the park to play basketball with my friends.

"Okay. Okay. Go in my room, take your clothes off, and do whatever Mommy's friend says. When this is over, I'll get you that game you asked for last year." Mom gives me a weak smile before rushing out the front door, leaving me to head toward her bedroom to do what I'm told.

"Your father overdosed, and we had to pump his stomach," Dr. Freeman reports, jolting me out of my thoughts.

Hearing the information a second time doesn't make it go down any easier for me because my gaze is on Dad lying still in the bed with Mom practically lying on top of him. This isn't the first time Dad has had a near-death experience with drugs.

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