Page 60 of Jump Back On

I just glanced down at his body. "Are you?"

"Just make sure she knows," he told me. "Please?"

"Ok," I promised.

"And tell Tanner not to fuck up my truck. Or you."

I laughed once at that. "I know how to drive a truck, dumbass."

"That's my rookie," he mumbled before twisting to suck in another breath. "Fuck, Doc!"

"That's your ribs," Doc told him. "Shut up and you'll breathe easier." Then Doc turned to me. "Cody, you need to make sure they don't give him any opiates, ok?"

"No opiates," I repeated. "Allergy?"

"Addiction," J.D. mumbled. "Pain killers."

"So no opiates," Doc said again.

I just nodded. "Got it."

And for a moment, I was able to stand there, petting J.D.'s hair back from his head. Doc moved around me. No one else seemed to care I was in the room. They were all busy, and it seemed all of it was for J.D.

Tanner waited back against the wall holding the phones I'd given him. When I looked over, his eyes were on J.D., and they looked worried. Yeah, I was pretty sure I wasn't much better, because this was bad. He wasn't dead, but was this career-ending?

How would J.D. take it if he couldn't ride again? How long would he be out, and would he miss finals? I had a feeling those two things might be some pretty big fights, and I didn't know if he'd have them with Doc or me. I was simply terrified that trying to help him too much would make him walk away from me as easily as I'd left Ty.

While I was worrying about that, a pair of men walked in with a wheeled stretcher. It was the kind that came with an ambulance, and from the uniforms they wore, they did too. Doc told me it was time to go, then the crew all moved into place again.

I drifted towards Tanner, unable to peel my eyes away. On the count of three, they moved J.D. from the table to the stretcher, but that was enough to make him cry out in pain again. It wasn't as anguished as before, but the sound still made me want to cover my ears.

"We've already given the emergency room a heads-up," Doc told the paramedics. "He's stable, and here's what he's had so far." He passed over a piece of paper.

The closest paramedic took it, nodded, and then they wheeled J.D. out.

I stood there, watching them go, and it felt so final. This was the part that sucked, and while we all joked about it, things were different when it happened to someone I cared about.

"What do we do now?" I asked, turning to Tanner.

"We go to the hospital," he told me.

I glanced back to the doors, knowing the arena was out there. "Aren't you still working?"

"The guys got it," he assured me. "They told me to go."

"Ok," I breathed. "Um, we have his truck. Shit! I didn't get his keys out of his bag!"

"Then let's start there," he decided.

Grabbing his hand, I pulled him behind me, knowing he had no idea where our stuff was either. The hall outside was empty, the paramedics already out of sight. Then again, it wasn't that long of a hall. So while J.D. left, I guided Tanner further into the building.

"It's right over here," I said, seeing our bags.

"Ok, we need his rope and helmet too," Tanner said.

But we weren't alone. Moving in from the other side, Jake stepped into view. "Ty just went to go get those. He said he'll handle the bags. What do you two need?" He paused, scanning my face first, then Tanner's. "Shit, that bad?"

"They just sent him off to the hospital," I said, standing up with J.D.'s keys in my hand.

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