Once in a Lifetime

by Caila Olsen

  Chapter 21

  RILEY

  “Can you hold my bag for me while I go try this on?” Sam asks me as she tosses her purse in my direction.

  “That’s a cute skirt,” I say as I catch Sam’s purse.

  “I know right?” Sam says examining it. “They only have it in a size medium, so I want to make sure it will fit. You know how it is, you could fit a small in one brand and in another you need a size up.”

  “I know all too well,” I say. “Do you want me to come in with you?”

  “No, I should be good for this one,” Sam says.

  “Okay, I will be over here looking at the shoes,” I say.

  “I will be out in a flash,” Sam says, turning to go to the change rooms.

  A few moments later I feel someone’s phone going off in Sam’s purse. Sam banned me from all communication with Aden this week so I can just think of me for once. If it’s my phone going off I am sure I can sneak in this one call before Sam gets out. Tomorrow we are headed back home and I haven’t made one text or phone call since being here all week. I think I deserve to talk to Aden.

  I was right, it was my phone buzzing. I pull it out and I notice it’s not Aden who is calling. I recognize the number, but I can’t remember where from.

  “Hello?” I ask as I answer the phone.

  “Hi, Riley,” A female voice says. “This is Nurse Daisy.”

  My heart starts to race a million miles a minute. This can’t be good if Nurse Daisy is calling. I knew I should have kept in touch with Aden. What if he was in trouble and had tried calling before. Maybe I could have helped somehow. “Hi. Is everything okay?” I ask.

  “Yes, everything is okay as far as I know,” she says. I let myself breathe, nothing is wrong. “I was just calling to inform you that Aden is here at the hospital right now….”

  “Wait, what? I thought you said everything was okay. Aden at the hospital doesn’t sound okay to me,” I say cutting her off as I starting to panic again.

  “Don’t worry Riley, Aden is fine,” Nurse Daisy says calmly. “He and Ethan were doing some training today and Aden passed out, but it is nothing major. We have had extreme heat these past couple days and Aden simply suffered from some heat exhaustion that is all. Dr. Harley did a scan on Aden’s brain just to make sure everything is still all good, but we are pretty sure that nothing affected it. The doctor just wanted me to call you just to inform you. It’s nothing you need to worry about.”

  “So you don’t know the results of the scan yet?” I ask.

  “We will know by the end of the day,” Nurse Daisy says.

  “And you are certain that nothing should be wrong,” I say.

  “Positive. We just performed the scan to be sure,” she says.

  “But there is still a chance?” I ask.

  “A very small percentage Riley,” Nurse Daisy reassures me.

  “Aden just doesn’t know when to stop. He pushes himself too much,” I say talking to myself, ignoring the fact I am still on the phone. “Maybe I should just come back today. I think I should be there with him to hear the results just in case something is wrong.”

  “Riley, you don’t need to come back for this. I will call you as soon as the results are in,” Nurse Daisy says. “I am going to need to go now. I am being paged for something. I promise I will let you know as soon as I get the results.”

  Before I can say anything, she hangs up on me. I can’t believe it. I told Aden specifically not to overwork himself. I knew he would end up doing something stupid like this. What if this messes up the chance of him ever speaking again?

  “Hey! Why is that phone in your hand?” Sam scolds me as she grabs it from me. “I leave for a minute and this is what you do.”

  “I want to leave today,” I say plainly.

  “What do you mean you want to leave today?” Sam asks. “We still have a full day ahead of us. One call to Aden and look what it does to you. I am sure you can wait until tomorrow to see him Riley.”

  “Aden is in the hospital,” I say.

  “What? Why? Is he alright?” Sam asks all at once.

  “I guess there is a heat wave back in L.A right now. Ethan and Aden were training and Aden passed out. Nurse Daisy said it was just heat exhaustion, but they did an MRI just to be on the safe side,” I say.

  “So he is going to be okay then? He is going to live?” Sam asks.

  “Well, yes but…” I start to say.

  “Then why can’t we just leave as planned tomorrow?” Sam asks. “I am sure Aden doesn’t need you there. He is fine, you will see him tomorrow.”

  “But what if the results of his scan come back and it’s bad news? Shouldn’t I be there with him for that?” I protest.

  “If the doctors aren’t worried then you shouldn’t be worried,” Sam says. “This is why I didn’t let you have your phone this week.”

  “It could have been something serious,” I say. “What if I missed the call for that?”

  “I have had everything under control all week Riley. If it was an important phone call I would have let you know,” Sam says. “You have been having so much fun this week and actually have been letting loose for once. This has been good for you, getting away from it all. This is your last day to have freedom from the stresses in your life right now Riley. Enjoy your last day here because after today, you are back in the real world again. If Aden is going to live, then I refuse to take you to the airport. You know what? If you leave today that means I have to leave too. You might not realize that I might actually be having fun here and want to stay our full time planned here. The whole world shouldn’t stop just because you want it to Riley. I don’t mean to sound harsh, but it’s the truth. Just because you say so, shouldn’t mean everybody else around you has to suffer. Take Aden for example. The whole time we have been gone, he has been enjoying his time doing something he loves to do. Football is the next important thing next to you. Since you have been away, he can actually focus on doing the things he loves. Sure, he might have pushed himself a little too much today, but it’s nothing major. Anyone could have passed out because of heat exhaustion in that type of weather. I could be walking down the street and pass out because of the heat. At least he was enjoying himself. So no Riley, we are not going to leave today, we are going to stay here and make the most of our last day in San Francisco.”

  I have no response for that. I just stare at her blankly as I process what she just said. I guess I never thought of myself being so selfish before.

  “I am sorry Sam. I never thought of it like that before,” I say as a small tear forms in the corner of my eye and rolls down my cheek.

  “Come here Riles,” Sam says as she wraps her arm around my shoulder. “I don’t mean to be mean, but you need to realize that there are other people here too who have feelings and you can’t just control them all the time.”

  “I know, but it’s just that it has been so stressful. All of this. I just wish everything could go back to how it was before the accident,” I say. “I guess I didn’t realize how much I was controlling everyone like that.”

  “That’s what friends are for,” Sam says. “It may hurt, but someone has to tell you how much a bitch you can be at times.”

  “Isn’t a bitch a little bit of an over exaggeration?” I say with a small laugh.

  “No, not really,” Sam says laughing.

  “Thanks Sam,” I say smiling at her, “For telling me like it is. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

  “I don’t know what you would do without me either Riles,” Sam says grinning.

  “So what else is on the agenda for our last day?” I ask.

  “Well I’m going to buy this skirt,” Sam says. “It fit perfectly. I think Ethan will like it on me.”

  “Oh good! It is too cute to put back on the rack,” I say. “I think I will just get these little rose earrings.”

  “Those are adorable! Is there another pair in a different color?” Sam asks.

  “Y
es, there is a pair of baby blue and also a pale yellow,” I say.

  “Do you mind if I get the yellow ones?” Sam asks.

  “Go right ahead,” I say. “It will be just another thing I can borrow from you later on.”