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faofinn · 1 year

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Day 10 - Short of Breath

@mediwhumpmay

Arthur liked school. It’d been overwhelming to start with, but having his sister there helped, and he soon settled in. The shyer one of the pair, he let Beth do all the talking and stuck around her, essentially acquiring friends by association. As he got older, and moved up into year 3 he was chattier and more confident, talking to others by himself and not needing his sister so much. They still did most things together, of course, especially PE. They were both sporty kids, having inherited Fao’s active genes, but Arthur had to admit he wasn’t feeling excited for it today. It was cold out, and he hadn’t been feeling great for a while. Tired, but his parents had told him he was probably getting poorly, that he could rest during the Christmas Holidays soon.

They were playing football, which wasn’t his favourite but was usually fun enough. However, today it was just rubbish. After running around after the ball a bit, he really didn’t feel good at all. His chest felt all weird and tight, and breathing was hard, but not like normal when he’d been running. It was all fast and uncomfortable, and he wobbled standing up. His sister spotted there was a problem before everyone else did, abandoning her game to go over to her brother.

“Arthur?” She asked, frowning at him.

“Don’t… don’t… feel well.” He whimpered, trying to catch his breath. He couldn’t breathe, and it was scary. What would happen? He needed to breathe, and he couldn’t. He was clutching at his chest, the fear rising and making it even harder to breathe.

Once the PE teacher realised there was a problem they came rushing over, calmly helping Arthur to the side of the field and getting him sat down. Beth sat with her brother, concern written on her face. The nurse came down quickly, and the decision was made to call an ambulance.

They called his parents, of course, to let them know what was going on, but both of them were stuck in a complex surgery and as much as they wanted to drop everything and go, they couldn’t. Fao asked them to call Harrison, knowing that although he was at work he might be able to get away enough to help, and if not then he could at least make sure Arthur was okay when he got to hospital.

Harrison was typing notes when his watch buzzed. It was the school calling, but not for his lot. He frowned as he answered. "Harrison speaking."

“Hi, Dr Cunningham. It’s the school, we’re calling about Arthur Blackwood?”

"Is he alright? Have you tried Fao or Ely?"

“Yeah, I’ve spoken to Fao, he asked me to call you. We’ve had to call an ambulance for him, I’m afraid. He’s had an incident during PE.”

"What's happened?" He moved the phone. "I need to go, one of the kids is sick."

It had to be bad for Harrison to even think about leaving. "The manager was in the ambo bay, they were going back for lunch. I'm sure they'd drop you off."

“Uh, I don’t know the details exactly, I’ve been told he became very breathless. He’s been seen by the nurse and they’re just waiting for an ambulance now. Obviously his sister is very upset…”

"I'll be over as soon as I can. Tell them I'm coming?"

“Of course. Thank you.”

"See you soon." He replied, standing up. "Tell Sam I'm going on my break. I'll be back with Arthur in a bit."

He made his way to the ambulance bay, finding the car quickly. Knocking on the door, he gave a sheepish smile, well aware he was pushing his luck.

"My godson has taken ill at school and a crew is already on their way to him…" He pulled a face. "Would it be possible at all if you were maybe heading that way?"

"Get in." He sighed. "Where are we off to?"

Harrison grinned. "Thanks. I'll buy you a coffee when you're next in."

He laughed as he pulled away. "I'll hold you to it. Let me radio control."

It wasn’t long before the ambulance turned up at school, with a worried looking Arthur and an even more worried looking Beth with him. The rest of the class had been moved away, to go and do something in the hall, to give the twins some space. They’d tried to get Beth to go with them, but she’d been having none of it, and refused to be anywhere other than at her brother’s side.

They'd not long started to assess Arthur when Harrison arrived, the manager having driven on blues to join them. Harrison was already out of the car before the ignition was off, sprinting across the carpark and swearing at his prosthesis. He was quickly shown to the field, and spotted the twins surrounded by teachers and medics. Arthur looked shocking, pale and worried, an oxygen mask on his face. Beth didn't look any better, worried beyond belief and almost breaking her brother's hand. Arthur had a neb up and running which, while not great, was good. It meant they'd started treating, had started helping, so he just had tohope it made the difference.

"Hey kids. Mum and dad couldn't get out of work, so I stole an ambulance and came to see you." Harrison winked, exaggerating the truth. "How you doing, squirt?"

Beth launched herself at him, relieved to e see a familiar face. She’d wanted her parents, her dad, but Harrison was family and he’d do just as well. “Uncle Tomcat!” She exclaimed. “Arthur’s really poorly.”

He pulled her in for a hug, holding her close. "He's gonna be okay, though. He's had you looking after him."

“He couldn’t breathe.”

"He's looking better now, the paramedics here have done a really good job too. Want me to talk you through every squiggle here?" He asked, moving to ruffle Arthur's hair as he sat next to him.

Arthur too, was relieved to see his uncle, leaning into him. He still felt bad, but the breathing wasn’t so bad as it had been. He could breathe, it was just really really hard. The paramedics had been nice and explained everything, and it hadn’t been so scary. “Am I dyin?” He managed to get out, looking up at his godfather with big, wide eyes.

"No, no. It probably felt like that, though, didn't it? You've been so, so brave." He said gently, running his fingers through his hair. "You've had an asthma attack, by the looks of things. Your dad has had a few, and I did when I wasn't very well when I went to live with grandad Steve. You've been so much braver than we were. I was crying the whole time."

He looked at him. He’d been crying, but had stopped now. He didn’t quite believe his godfather. “Braver than you an’ Dad?”

"A thousand percent! You can even ask grandad Steve, he'll tell you the same. I think we'll all have to go back to my work though." He pulled a face. "Especially me, I escaped to come see you guys."

“Will Mum and Dad be at your work?”

"They might not be there straight away, because they're dealing with someone else who's really poorly, but they're in the same building and they'll get there as soon as we can. We can ring them again together, if you’d like?"

“In s-surgery?” He asked, stumbling over his words.

"They are, yeah."

He nodded to himself. He wanted his parents, but Harrison was nice and he’d keep him safe. “Don’t mind going to your work.”

"Don't tell anyone I told you, but Jamie brought in cupcakes this morning. I think you both might deserve one, don't you?"

His eyes widened and he nodded, though he didn’t speak, focusing on his breathing again.

Harrison couldn't help glancing over the machine, watching everything carefully. "Has he just had the salbutamol?"

The paramedic next to him nodded. “Yeah, that’s right.”

"Do you mind if I have a listen?" He knew it was unorthodox, but he couldn’t help himself.

It was a crew that knew Harrison well, had worked with him a lot, and after a minute they nodded. “Go on then, if Arthur says it’s okay. We can bend the rules.”

"Can I? You know how nosey I am." He winked at Arthur. "You can even tell dad how much of a pain in your bottom I've been."

He nodded. “Yeah.”

"Thanks, kiddo." He pulled his steth out of his scrubs pocket and listened to his godson's chest. "Oh, that sounds so much better! You've done an amazing job, Arthur! Do you wanna have a listen?"

He shook his head. “Can I have a hug instead?” He asked.

Harrison had already pulled him in for one, squeezing him gently without making it harder for him to breathe. His hand was still in Arthur's hair, and he stoked it gently, his other rubbing his back. "You've been so, so brave, Arthur. I'm so proud of you, mum and dad are gonna be super, super proud of you.

“I was scared.” He admitted.

"It's okay to be scared."

“Is it?”

"Of course it is! More than okay." He sighed. "Can I let you into a secret?"

He nodded. “Yeah?”

"When school called me to say you weren't very well, I was scared. And I'm a big adult and do this every day."

“Oh.”

"And when I got hurt, just after dad did, I cried the whole time. Last time I had an ambulance, I was really really scared then too. I made Tai go back inside to get my tomcat and then come back to hold my hand the whole way." He lowered his voice to a stage whisper. "When I had my scans then, I got upset that Tai couldn’t be in the room, so I made him sing daft songs to me to make me feel better. The whole department heard about it, too."

Arthur nodded sagely. “Dad sings when we’re scared, like after a bad dream.”

"I would sing for you guys, but I'm a really bad singer."

“So’s mum.” Beth chipped in, less worried now that Arthur seemed better and Harrison was looking after him.

"I think uncle Finn might be the worst. Or Scout."

That made both of them laugh. “He’s a dog!”

"That's no way to talk about uncle Finn!" He teased.

There were more laughs, more giggles from both of them, Harrison having put them at ease, despite the situation. The paramedic spoke after a minute, interrupting their moment.

“Sorry, it’s good to hear you giggling away. We wanted to get moving into the ambulance now, if that’s okay? Then we can get to hospital and find mum and dad.”

Arthur agreed, wanting his parents more than the ambulance ride worried him. He was feeling better now, the stuff they’d given him had helped and breathing was much easier. Once they were inside, everyone settled, and Beth gravitated towards Harrison again. She was trying to be brave, like she always was, but it was hard to be brave all the time. She was worried about her brother. He was her other half, and he was never sick.

As Arthur was wheeled through to paeds, Harrison turned to Beth. He could see the worry on her face, as much as she tried to hide it behind her immense bravery, and he sighed.

"Come here." He grinned, picking her up and resting on his hip. "Only fair you get a free ride too, eh?"

She wrapped her arms around him, glad of the attention. Usually she’d protest being picked up, especially now. She was a big girl, she didn’t need to be carried. But right now, she didn’t feel much like a big girl. She felt small, and the hospital was loud and intimidating.

He pressed a kiss to her hair, making sure she was safe. "Do you wanna go with Arthur and get him settled on one of our beds, or do you want to come steal some cupcakes?"

“Stay with Arthur.” She said softly. “I have to look after him, I’m his big sister.”

"That's super brave of you." He said with a smile. "Do you want to come pick out a stuffed animal for the pair of you?"

“Do you have a bear? Or a wolf?”

"I'm not sure." He admitted. "Shall we go have a look?"

She hesitated. “Will I have to leave him?”

"Just for a second. The cupboard is just here, and they're just going down there."

Deep in thought, Beth finally agreed to pick out a friend, still bundled in Harrison’s arms. She found a little wolf and was quite pleased with herself, but the fear crept back in when they went back to see Arthur.

Fao and Ely appeared not long after, having managed to get free. They’d both rushed down from theatres, Fao’s hair a mess and Ely looking pale and worried. It wasn’t hard to find Harrison and their kids, and they slipped into the bay.

Harrison still had Beth on his lap, leaning over to stroke through his godson's hair as he spun stories and tall tales to keep them distracted. Arthur was doing so much better than when he'd first seen him, but they were still worried about him. He looked exhausted too, which wasn't surprising in the slightest. As awful as it sounded, he knew he was just a placeholder for their parents, that the kids wouldn't feel completely okay until they came down. He was just glad he'd been able to be there for them, though he knew he'd do it a thousand times over.

Ely gravitated straight to her son, at his side immediately and fussing, asking a million questions to make sure he was okay. He was thrilled to see her, a big smile on his face, as he tiredly reached out for a hug, which Ely gave him immediately.

“Oh, baby. You had me so worried.”

Fao, on the other hand, focused on Harrison and his daughter. He didn’t want to completely smother Arthur, his wife was doing s good enough job of that, he’d be able to fuss over him in a moment. Despite looking comfortable enough in Harrison’s lap, Beth had a look to her that was pure fear, and it broke Fao’s heart. He gathered her up in his arms, murmuring to her in Gaelic before he looked at Hars.

“God, Tomcat. What would we do without you?”

Harrison gave him a smile. "You'd have done the same for me."

“A thousand times over.” He agreed, kissing Beth’s cheek. “Did Uncle Tomcat look after you?”

Beth nodded. “Yeah. He looked after us lots.”

"They've been no bother." He ducked his head, feeling like a spare part. "I need to get back to the ED. I don't want to be too much here."

“Thank you so much, yeah? I knew when I told them to call you that you’d be the best person to be there.” Fao told him. “I can always count on you.”

Ely pulled away from her son for a moment to speak to Hars, and pulled him in for a hug. “Thank you, Hars.”

"You guys are welcome." He muttered, uncomfortable with the attention. "I'll catch you guys later, yeah?"

Arthur piped up, still very tired. “Will you come back?” He asked his godfather.

"Course I will." He promised. "But you've got mum and dad now, so I need to get back to work. You’ve been so, so brave. You should be super proud of yourself."

He nodded sleepily. “So long as you come back.” He mumbled. “Was brave cause of you.”

Harrison made a quiet noise. "Nah, you were so brave before I'd even got there! You've been super brave all day."

Fao reached out to squeeze his shoulder with the arm not holding Beth up. “Don’t want to take up anymore of your time when you’re supposed to be working, but I’ll text you, give you updates. You can always sneak back in, too.”

"Thanks, Fao. I'll catch you later."

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