I Could Rest Beneath Your Smile

Max burst into the twins’ room, and he saw Brooklyn standing over Elise’s crib, her hand over her mouth, and tears streaming down her face. “Brooklyn, what’s…” he began before he walked over to the crib and saw what Brooklyn was screaming about. Inside the crib, Elise was having a seizure, something neither one of them had seen before.

He heard footsteps come in the room behind him, and he turned around, yelling, “Call 911!” Jocelyn immediately obeyed after seeing Elise in the crib, and she stepped out of the room to talk to them.

“What in the world is going on in here, Brooklyn? What kind of person screams for another person instead of simply walking down the hallway?” Eve questioned.

Jocelyn pushed past her, running back into the room. “Ambulance is on its way now. Should be here any minute,” she told them, and both simply nodded their heads, continuing to watch their daughter. Moments later, they heard a banging on their front door along with someone announcing they were a part of the EMS. Jocelyn let them in, and they pushed everyone out of the way to get to Elise.

“Max,” Brooklyn cried as they watched the paramedics do their job. He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her in close. He kissed the side of her head and watched the scene before him.

“The parents can come with me,” the paramedic ordered, carefully picking up Elise after she had finished convulsing. “Everyone else can meet us at Community Hospital,” he ordered.

“Jocelyn, can you take Noah?” Max asked, and Jocelyn nodded her head, as Max guided Brooklyn out of the room, trailing behind the paramedic. Jocelyn grabbed Noah out of his crib, following Max and Brooklyn outside and watching them get into the ambulance with their daughter.

She turned back around to see Max’s family all alarmed, not knowing what to do, while Eve was simply standing there, looking bored. “Do you have a car?” Jocelyn asked Serge, who nodded his head. “Okay, can you all follow me to the hospital then?” she asked, and they immediately agreed. “Mom, if you’re going to be there to support them then you can follow me, too. But, if you’re just going to bitch the entire time then I expect you to go home right now. They don’t need that right now.”

“Do not speak to your mother that way!” Eve exclaimed, but Jocelyn simply ignored her, walking towards her car. “Of course I’m going to the hospital,” Eve continued, as Jocelyn put Noah into the car seat in the back of the car, and got in the front, starting her car and pulling out of the driveway, making sure Serge was following her.

A few moments later, she realized that she needed to call Sid, Kris, and Tia to let them know what exactly was going on. She put her Bluetooth in her ear and dialed Sid’s number. “Hey, babe, what’s up?” he asked her when he answered the phone.

“Sid, something’s wrong with Elise,” she told him.

“What?” he asked, immediately alarmed. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know exactly. Eve went over to Brook and Max’s house, and Max and her got into an argument, and Brook went to go check on the kids, and the next thing I know, she’s screaming for Max. And, when we went back to see what was wrong, Elise was having a seizure. I called 911, and they’re on their way to the hospital right now. I’ve got Noah with me, and we’re meeting them there. But, I knew you needed to know, and so does Tanger and Tia, and…” she trailed off, taking a deep breath.

“Jocelyn, don’t worry,” Sid began.

“How can I not worry?” Jocelyn cried. “My niece was having seizures. We don’t know if everything’s alright or not.”

“Jocelyn, I’ll meet you at the hospital. And, I’m going to call Tia and Tanger to meet us there, okay? Just remain calm. That’s what Brooklyn and Max need from you right now. Can you do that?” he asked softly.

Jocelyn nodded her head and then realized he couldn’t see her. “Yeah,” she said quietly.

“Okay, I’ll be there as soon as I can. I’m leaving my place right now. Community Hospital, right?” Sid asked, just to make sure.

“Yeah,” she sighed. “Thank you.”

“It’s no problem. I love you,” he told her. “And, I’m going to call Tia and Tanger right now.”

“Thanks. And, I love you, too. I’ll see you in a little bit,” she said, hanging up the phone. She sighed, concentrating on getting to the hospital as fast and as safely as she could, especially since Noah was in the back seat.

As soon as she walked into the hospital, followed by Max’s family and Eve, who Jocelyn still couldn’t figure out why she had come, Jocelyn just wanted to break down and cry. She asked one of the nurses where she could find Brooklyn and Max, but they said that they weren’t allowed to tell her. She tried to explain to them that she was Brooklyn’s sister, and the people with her were Max’s family, and that she even had Brooklyn and Max’s son, but she wouldn’t listen to her.

Serge and Lucie had gone off in one direction and Francis and Will in another direction to try to find someone that could direct them in the right way, leaving Jocelyn at the front entrance with Noah. Eve had walked off somewhere, but Jocelyn didn’t know where exactly, nor did she care at this moment. She was close to tears when she felt someone put their hand on her shoulder. She spun around to see Sid standing there, and he pulled her into a hug, being careful of Noah in her arms. “What’s going on?” he asked her.

“No one will tell me,” she told him. “Everyone’s trying to find someone who will tell us where they are, but none of the nurses will tell us anything. Did you get a hold of Tia and Tanger?” she asked, wiping her eyes as Sid took Noah from her.

“Yeah, they were home, and they’re on their way here. Why don’t you take Noah for a minute, while I try to see if I can talk a nurse into telling me what’s going on?” he suggested.

“Thanks,” she told him, taking Noah back. Moments later, Tia and Kris ran into the hospital, and they stopped when they saw Jocelyn standing there. “No news,” she told them before they had a chance to ask.

“Come on, we found them,” Will called, motioning for them to follow him. They went into the elevator and up a few floors, and as soon as they got off, they saw Max and Brooklyn standing in the hallway. Brooklyn was in tears, and Max was holding her in his arms. Eve was standing off to the side, watching with disgust. Jocelyn couldn’t figure out how she had gotten up there so fast, and she really didn’t care.

“Any news?” Jocelyn asked, and Brooklyn spun around at her sister’s voice. She saw Noah in her arms, and she started to cry even harder. Jocelyn immediately handed him over to his father, knowing that they needed to be closer to their child than she did at the moment.

“They don’t know what caused the seizures,” Max told them, shaking his head. “But, she hasn’t had another one since we left. They’re keeping her here, though, in case she starts again,” he said, kissing his son on the top of his head.

“They’re doing a bunch of tests,” Brooklyn spoke. “They said something about an MRI and EEG and some other ones that I can’t remember what they’re called, let alone what they’re for.” She held her hands out for Noah, and Max passed him along to her. As soon as she got him in her arms, she started cradling him, never wanting to let him go. “Why did this have to happen? Why to her? She’s just an innocent little baby,” Brooklyn cried.

“I don’t know,” Jocelyn said quietly.

“It’s not fair,” Tia agreed.

“I’m sorry,” Brooklyn apologized. “Can you give me and Max a minute?” she requested.

“Of course,” Jocelyn said. “Do you want us to take Noah?”

“Thank you,” Max said, and Brooklyn handed him over to Sid who was standing there with his arms open. Everyone gave their condolences, leaving Max and Brooklyn alone in the hallway.

“Max, what are we going to do?” Brooklyn asked desperately, looking up at him, tears streaming down her face. “What are we going to do if everything’s not alright?”

“She’s going to be fine,” Max assured her. “Her seizures have stopped,” he reminded her.

“Yeah, but the doctors don’t know if or when she’ll start again. Max, what happens if something is really wrong with her? What have I done to her?” she questioned.

“Brooklyn, look at me,” Max ordered, putting his hand underneath her chin. “You didn’t do this to her, okay? This was just something awful that happened. We will be okay. She will be okay.”

“What if she’s not? Max, she’s our little girl. I don’t know what I’ll do if something happens to her,” Brooklyn told him.

“Brook, you can’t think like that. You’ve got to think positively. Elise will be okay. She’s just like you, she’s strong. She’ll make it through whatever this is,” Max promised.

Brooklyn looked up into his eyes, and she hoped that he was right. “Okay,” she said softly, nodding her head as Max once again pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. Now, if only he could believe his own words.