Snow Lodge
Chapter 33
Jonesy led Kevin down the corridor to Brian's room, opening the door to let him inside. Kevin entered, his steps faltering the moment he saw his cousin. Brian looked pale with large bags under his eyes, looking nothing like his usual self. He looked tired and haggard, even though he was asleep. Kevin recovered quickly and headed to Brian's bedside, taking his hand in his own.
Brian's skin felt slightly cold to the touch, and was red and blotchy, effects of the cold weather. The skin on his face also looked slightly sore and his lips were chapped from the cold.
Jonesy smiled at the obvious display of concern that Kevin showed. He had seen how they had reacted to all of this, and he was sure that the close bond they had displayed would help to get Brian through the next few days, whatever happened.
"Oh Brian, what happened?" Kevin whispered sadly, brushing his hand over Brian's curls, sweeping them back off of his forehead. Brian had no answer for him though, still asleep and blissfully unaware of the painful reality that faced him.
Jonesy sighed, Brian was going to need all the support he could get when he found out about AJ. Hopefully though, AJ would be out of surgery by the time Brian awoke, and they would have a better idea of his chances.
He walked over to Brian's bedside and checked his chart before looking at his watch.
"He won't be awake for a while, the sedative was pretty strong. He was more worried about AJ than himself. The fact that we weren't telling him anything was only making things worse."
"Why didn't you tell him?" Kevin asked.
"Brian was, to put it bluntly, a complete wreck when he brought AJ in. He had been up there taking care of AJ for 3 days, of that time AJ had been unconscious for two of those. He was physically exhausted, having barely slept or eaten in that time. But we were more concerned about his emotional state. He was feeling guilty, saying it was his fault that AJ was hurt, and knowing just how bad it was would only have made things worse."
"But not knowing is surely just as bad." Kevin argued.
"Normally I would agree with you. But Brian was simply in no condition to be told. He was in shock already, and he was quickly heading for a collapse, he had already pushed his mind and body beyond their normal limits. He was exhausted. He needed rest, and the only way we could do that was to sedate him." Jonesy told him.
"However, now that you are here and Brian has had some rest, I don't think we should keep it from him any longer. One of the other reasons why I didn't want him told was because he had no support here. That is one thing we couldn't offer, we simply don't know him like you do. You know how he feels, how he reacts to things, and you can understand him much better than any of us could. Just being here for him will be a help, stop him from feeling so isolated and alone."
Kevin nodded in understanding and Jonesy turned to leave.
"I will go and let the other's know where you are so they can find you, and then I will go and check on AJ." Jonesy told him.
Kevin thanked him and Jonesy opened the door.
"If you need anything, just buzz and Shelly will come. She will know how to find me if you need me for anything else. I will be back when Brian wakes, okay?"
"Thanks." Kevin smiled gratefully at him as he left and closed the door behind him before turning his attention back to his cousin.
