Chapter 3
"Kevin! How is he?" Nick begged. Kevin looked at
Nick's desperate face and the tears streaming down his cheeks.
"I...I don't know." he said numbly.
"Wh-what do you mean you don't know?" Nick stated.
Kevin took a deep breath and sighed slowly.
"His heart stopped on the way here,” he finally said.
Everyone went silent. Howie blinked back a tear and laid a hand on Kevin's
shoulder. "They were able to shock him until it started again but it
doesn't look good. He's still unconscious."
Nick
nervously ran his fingers through his blond hair.
"Nicky...I don't know what else to say. The doctors are
doing everything they can." Kevin sighed.
"I don't believe you." Nick said softly.
"Come on Nick. Don't make this harder than it already
is." AJ coaxed.
"No AJ! Kevin is lying. He has to be. Brian is going to
be fine! His heart will be fine!" Nick protested. His eyes were full of
hurt and anger. His emotions took over and he fell to his knees, sobbing uncontrollably.
Kevin bent over and wrapped his arms around him. "I hate Brian! I hate
him! How could he do this?" Nick cried, pounding on Kevin's chest with his
fists. Kevin's eyes began to water and he pulled Nick closer to him in a tight
embrace.
"I don't know, Nicky. I don't know." Kevin cried.
At that moment a man in scrubs entered the room and scanned each of them with
his eyes.
"Are any of you here with Mr. Littrell?" he asked.
AJ approached him and nodded.
"Are you his doctor?" AJ asked.
"Yes, I'm a specialist, one of them. My name is Dr.
Lake."
"How's Brian?" Howie asked quickly.
"Well, he's in the operating room as we speak."
Dr. Lake said.
"Operating room?" Nick jumped to his feet in
protest. "They cut him again?" he panicked, wiping his eyes.
"What Mr. Littrell experienced today was no
stroke," Dr. Lake continued. "It was a full blown heart attack."
"Twenty-five year olds don't have heart attacks!"
Nick argued.
"Calm down Kaos, let the man talk." Kevin urged
him.
"He has a condition where the main artery that supplies
his heart with blood has been blocked. It cut off the blood flow to the muscle,
that's why his heart stopped." the doctor explained.
"Can't you use a balloon to clear it?" Howie asked
out of the blue. They all eyed him strangely. "I saw it on ER once,
okay?" he defended himself.
"I'm afraid an angiogram won't work,” the doctor said.
"The artery has hardened beyond repair."
"Then why are you cutting him?" Nick demanded.
"It's called a bypass. The idea of the surgery is to
use another vein and make an alternate route for the blood to reach the heart
muscle." Dr. Lake said.
"Will that work?" Kevin asked.
"It has been very successful in the past. Your friend's
condition is extremely severe and there are a lot of outside factors that enter
in but it's the only option he has left."
"How long will the surgery be?" AJ asked.
"Another 3 hours, maybe four. I need to get back to the
O.R. now." The doctor turned and
left the waiting room. Nick sighed heavily and turned to look at Kevin.
"I didn't mean those things, Kev,” he said slowly.
"I don't hate Brian. He's my brother. I don't hate him at all."
"I know Nick, I know." Kevin said softly. He
patted Nick on the back and shook his head hopelessly.