Carry On

Brian felt like his head was going to split in half. He slowly opened his eyes, expecting to be in his warm bed at home, when he realized he was in a hospital bed. He groaned and sat up, looking around as he felt the pain in his head increase, "What the fuck..." He muttered, looking down at the IV's attached to him.

"Welcome back," Matt smiled at him. He turned to see the singer sitting in a chair, his feet propped up on the edge of the bed. He looked exhausted, "How are you feeling?"

"Like I got hit by a truck. What the hell happened?" Brian asked and Matt frowned. He took his feet of the bed so he could sit up straight and look at his friend.

"You don't remember anything?" Matt asked and Brian shrugged, "Brian," He sighed, "We had to chase Liza to the pier," He stated lowly.

"W-What?" Brian questioned and Matt sighed, "What happened? Tell me everything."

"Please don't make me," Matt shook his head.

"Tell me!" Brian exclaimed.

He took a deep breath, bringing a chair over closer to the edge of the bed, "You called us in a panic," He started, "Liza was gone and we headed to the pier. She was standing on the ledge and you tried to talk her out of it. She panicked and just jumped," He paused, taking another deep breath as Brian watched him fight back tears, "You jumped in right after her. No hesitation at all. I blinked and you were already in the water. It was like instinct," He explained, "We all panicked. Dan jumped in after you. He's the most athletic out of all of us. Matt and Jason were next while the rest of us ran around to get to the shore. Dan carried you to shore while the twins found Liza. She... She was pretty bad. We had to wait for an ambulance. You talked with her for a while before they finally took her."

Suddenly, everything came back to Brian. He remembered the panic he felt when chasing after her, the sudden rush of cold he felt when he jumped into the water, and holding his daughter on the shore of Huntington Beach.

"W-Where is she?" Brian asked.

"She just went into surgery about twenty minutes ago," Matt stated softly, "Zack is with her, but as her legal God-father, I was the one to sign the papers," He explained.

"I have to see her," Brian went to stand but Matt was quick to stand up and pin him back down to the bed and his heart began to race.

"You need to calm down before they sedate you again," Matt warned.

"Again?" Brian questioned.

Matt nodded, "You woke up a while ago and you were freaking out. The doctor sedated you, which is probably why you don't remember much."

Brian sighed and leaned back down, listening to Matt, "What happened? How did we get here?"

"As soon as the paramedics got Liza in the ambulance, you passed out," Matt informed him, "They said that you were so focused on Liza, that you didn't even realize that you had a concussion from the break against the water. But when she left your body gave out. So Zack rode with Liza in the ambulance while we took care of you. By then there was a crowd forming on the beach. Some people caught videos and pictures of you, but none of Liza."

"Fuck," Brian hissed, "Then tell the media I had a surfing accident or something. Leave her out of this," He stated and Matt shook his head.

"It isn't that simple, Bri," Matt sighed, "They're already making accusations towards her online. The fans are pissed. They think you're on the verge of death because of her. Unfortunately, Larry can't make a statement until we get permission from the label."

"Fuck the label," Brian growled, "We dropped the album and we cancelled the tour. They don't control us any more, Matt."

Matt put his head down and sighed, "Regardless, Brian, the fans are pissed. They know we cancelled the tour and they know they're not getting an album. It isn't looking good for any of us, especially for you two."

Brian groaned. He knew the pressure from the fans would just stress out Liza more. Even if she did get out of surgery, he wasn't prepared for another fight for her life with the added stress. He had almost lost his daughter twice in the past sixth months, "I have to keep her safe, Matt," He sighed.

"I know, Bri. But we don't know how to do that. We thought she was safe back home with you and look where that ended us," Matt pointed out.

"She would have been safe if I wasn't so focused on the album. She's not leaving my sight, Matt. And when we get out of here, we're leaving."

"What do you mean leaving?" Matt questioned.

"You know Huntington isn't good for her, Matt. You can't go anywhere before passing the pier. You think she wants to see that every day? Do you think I want to see that?" Brian snapped and Matt sighed, putting his head down.

"The fans...."

"Don't need an explanation. We don't owe them anything, Matt."

"We owe them everything, Brian. They're pissed because we don't give them anything. So let me handle this before you do something else to fuck everything up," Matt growled and Brian's eyes widened, "I... I didn't mean that."

"Y-You didn't mean it?" Brian choked out and Matt felt guilt rise in his chest, "Like I didn't mean to be a shitty father?"

"No, Brian, that's not..."

"Like I didn't mean to raise a suicidal daughter that would eventual toss herself over the pier!" He exclaimed as his voice cracked and Matt could feel the corner of his eyes start to sting with hot tears, "Jesus, Matt, I fuck everything up. Every single thing I do regarding Liza, I've messed up. The only thing I've gotten right was the band. How did I manage to fuck up the most important thing in my life?"

"Sometimes we can't control what happens, Bri. This could have happened to anyone," Matt tried to reason and Brian shook his head and looked up at him.

Matt saw the pain directly in Brian's brown eyes as they glazed over with tears, "Would this have happened had she been your daughter?" He whispered and Matt's heart sunk, "Would she have been this unhappy had she been Zack's?"

Matt looked down at the ground, "I don't know," He whispered.

Brian looked away, anywhere but his best friend. He managed to keep himself put together for the most part, despite wanting to just jump out of the bed that was holding his weak body. Before Matt could say another word, the door opened and a doctor stepped inside, "Mr. Haner," He greeted.

"Please tell me about Liza before you say anything about me," Brian stated firmly and the doctor sighed.

"Unfortunately, Mr. Haner, Liza isn't under my watch. She has a separate doctor in a separate wing. After I go over some things with you, I'll send her doctor in. But we really need to discuss what's happening."

"Okay," Brian sighed.

"Your stress levels are extremely high. There are irregularities in your brainwaves caused by extreme stress. Given the situation, I understand, but it appears this is just months of stress added up. If you have any plans to get better, Mr. Haner, you need some time to yourself."

"I know," He nodded in agreement.

"As for your physical injuries, I'd say you're very lucky. A fall like that should have done some damage, even to a man of your stature. Thankfully, you landed on the water in a flat position so none of your limbs were broken. You'll feel pain in your head for a couple days, but that's about it. I'm prescribing you some aspirin for the pain. You'll be free to leave after you sign some paperwork."

"Thank you."

"No problem. I'll send Liza's doctor in right away."

Matt stood up from the chair and began to pace the floor, watching his friend nervously. He hadn't heard any news from Zack, who was on the other side of the hospital, and that worried him. Zack promised to keep the entire family updated, but no one had heard a word.

"Mr. Haner?" A voice called and Brian looked up to see a woman in a white coat, "I'm Doctor Kelley. I've been assigned to Liza."

"What's going on with her?" He asked.

She looked down at her clipboard, "The good news is that the MRI showed no signs of brain damage. That's pretty miraculous after having such a big impact against the water. Her arm is broken and she has some damage to her collar bone. She went into surgery for her ribs as soon as they brought her in."

"How is she doing?" Brian asked.

"Well," She sighed, "The surgery was successful. We straightened out her ribs and her lungs are perfectly safe. They're a little damaged from the water, but it'll pass within a few days."

"What else?" Brian asked, "There's something you're not telling me."

She sighed, "Although the surgery has proven to be successful, Liza has yet to wake up. Given the type of surgery it was, she should have woken up about an hour ago."

"Why isn't she waking up?" Brian demanded.

"We're trying everything we can, Mr. Haner. Sometimes the body just needs a kick-start to be pulled out of the anesthesia. But we can't run any more tests on her today. Her body can't handle it."

"So then what can we do?" He questioned.

"Wait," She answered truthfully, "The only thing we can do is wait."

Brian shook his head, panic rising in him. He wasn't going to wait in a bed in the opposite wing from his daughter. He was going to be by her side. He didn't care if he had papers to sign.

"I need to see her. I'm not going to wait in here," He stated firmly.

"We can move you right away. You'll be escorted to her room on the other side."

Brian nodded and began to sit up, taking it upon himself to start detaching the wires stuck to his skin. The doctor made no moves to stop him. He was putting himself in any danger, so she made no effort to stop him.

"Mr. Haner," She questioned and Brian looked up at her, "I'm not supposed to do this, but is it alright if I give you my opinion?"

"Does it change anything?" Brian questioned, "You're a doctor. You believe in science. What would your opinion have to do with anything?" He asked bitterly.

"Because sometimes we have to believe in something else."

"Then what do you believe?" He asked.

"The surgery we put Liza through," She paused and looked over at Matt. Brian watched the two of them make eye-contact before his friend gave her a subtle nod, as if giving her permission to speak, "We did it as a last resort. Liza should have died on the way here to the hospital," Brian's breath caught in his throat, "After making it here, she shouldn't have made it through the surgery at all. In fact, we even debated operating on her."

"So what is that all supposed to mean to me?" He asked, his soul even more worn down than when he woke up.

"Isn't it obvious?" She questioned and he shook his head. He looked up at her and she saw her smile. The first smile he had seen in a long time. He had been around misery too long.

"She's fighting."