The game is tied. 

Throughout the game, Melissa's words were echoing: "Congratulations on your new relationship." 

Was she talking about Mike? Had he said something? Did I care? 

What the hell is happening to me? 

"Howard for the hand off, wait, he's faking, left, running, Howard is going for the full field run!" The announcer bellows through squeaky speakers, and my mind snaps out of my thoughts. 

I see Nolan, who is, indeed, running towards the end zone, dodging tackles left and right. 

Wow, he's fast. Despite his towering height, he moves like a speedy squirrel, swooping under arms and over legs with impossible accuracy. 

He's twenty yards away now...fifteen. The crowd is going absolutely insane, feet stamping rhythmically onto the metal bleachers, the mechanical hissing of old parts making it seem as if they're about to break. 

Nolan leaps forward for the end zone, and I'm already on my feet, screaming and cheering at the top of my lungs. 

And then the world stops, as he's smashed to the side by a defender. The crowd gasps, going silent. Even the cheerleaders drop their arms from the air, many of them placing hands in front of their mouths in shock. 

Nolan lays on the ground. He's not moving. 

Why isn't he moving? 

A few shouts from his teammates, waving their arms, signaling for help. 

My heart leaps into my chest, and before I can even think, I'm jumping down the crowded steps of the bleachers, my small converse squeaking slightly on each skip. I can hear my heart in my ears as I watch several medical assistants swarming Nolan, their shouts unintelligible. 

I'm finally at the fence separating the bleachers from the field, and I don't know what comes over me as I leap over it, racing over to the crowd. People shout after me, telling me to stop, but I don't care. 

I push my way through his teammates until I'm at Nolan's side. They've taken off his helmet, and thankfully his eyes are open, but they're scanning the air above him rapidly, as if he can't control his own vision. 

"Miss Reynolds, step back." I hear the coach behind me, as an arm clasps around my elbow, attempting to drag me back. 

"No! That's my best friend!" I shout, and he stares at me in surprise, not expecting my outburst.

"Fine, you can stay with him, but let the meds do their job." He relents. 

I feel wetness on my cheeks and I realize that I'm crying, and I swipe the salt trails away, not wanting to scare Nolan. 

I squat down next to him, grabbing his hand, which is laying at his side limply. It's massive compared to mine, but I squeeze it tightly, three times fast, like we used to do as kids during scary movies. 

It's Oh-Kay. 

One squeeze for each syllable. 

They've placed a neck brace around his neck now, and are moving him onto the stretcher, and as he moves, his grip on my hand tightens sharply, but I don't let go. 

"M'am, you need to let go." A medical assistant barks at me angrily. 

"No." I hear Nolan grunt weakly, and the medical assistant gives a sigh of relief at the sound of his voice. 

"You've got magic powers, Miss." He says, shrugging his shoulders. "We'll let you come into the ambulance with him, but in order for us to carry the stretcher, you need to let go." 

I relent, trailing behind the team of men carrying the stretcher. 

They look like pallbearers, carrying a casket. 

Don't think like that. Don't think like that. 

I shake my head, focusing on Nolan. Only Nolan. 

We make it to the ambulance, and I can hear the sounds of the stadium behind me, the announcer saying something that I can't make out and I don't really care to. 

They hoist Nolan into the ambulance, and I climb in with slight difficulty, my short stature hindering me. 

I sit at a bench near his head, placing my hand on his hair lightly. It's sweaty, but I don't care. 

I slowly trail my fingers through it, like I did whenever he was nervous as a kid. 

"Piper..." He whispers, his voice guttural. 

"I'm here, Ducky." I whisper back, leaning down to place a kiss on his forehead. "I'm here."

~~~~~~~~~

They took Nolan into some room for tests as soon as we reached the hospital. I called Mrs. and Mr. H on the ride here, and they said they would be here any minute. 

I'm in the waiting room, the white walls infuriating me as I hold Nolan's jacket in my hands, the blue and gold fabric rubbing comfortingly against my palms. 

I don't know how long I've been here, but it feels like an eternity. Many nurses have come by, offered me water, blankets, or told me to stop pacing as it was worrying the rest of the people waiting. I sat down for maybe thirty seconds before I was up again, burning a hole into the linoleum floor. 

I hear footsteps down the hall and I see Nolan's parents rushing towards me, and Mrs. H reaches me, grabbing me quickly into a hug. 

"Oh, honey, what happened?" She asks, and I can see tears on her cheeks. 

"He got tackled, badly." I choke out, my voice hoarse. 

"Jesus." Mr. H groans, raking a hand through his silver hair. I've never seen him so worried, he's usually the calm one. 

"When can we see him?" Mrs. H asks me quickly, holding me out at arm's length and staring intently into my eyes. 

"Whenever he's done with the tests, they said they're going to give him some meds to help with the pain." I explain, wringing the jacket in my hands. 

Mrs. H nods, and slumps into a chair, shaking her arms with nervous energy. 

Just then, a nurse walks to us, a clipboard in hand. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Howard?" She asks, popping her gum slightly as she speaks. 

"Yes?" Mr. H responds, and Mrs. H stands up so quickly I know she must be dizzy. 

"He's out of the tests, he's going to be okay. He has a strained neck and a few broken ribs, but he'll make a full recovery. You can come see him now." 

"Oh, thank the Lord." Mrs. H whispers, hugging her husband at the side. 

They begin to walk, and I trail behind them, until the nurse puts out an arm to stop me. 

"Family only, Miss." She grunts, and I want to punch her so hard that her gum will fall so far down her throat she'll be breathing in bubbles. 

"That's his sister." Mrs. H lies, grabbing my hand in her's. 

I smile at her with gratitude, and she nods, giving the nurse a glare before marching down the hall to his room. 

We walk in, and there he is, sitting upright in the bed, a small brace around the back of his neck, dressed in a hospital gown. He has bruises on his cheek bones, and his eyes are shut. 

"Honey?" Mrs. H asks, moving to the headboard. 

He opens his eyes, and he smiles slightly when he sees her. 

"Hey, mama." He whispers hoarsely, and she sobs, kissing him on the forehead. 

"Son." Mr. H says, choking slightly, and he does the same as his wife, kissing Nolan's forehead and ruffling his hair. 

"Where's Pip-" He begins to ask, and then his eyes land on my figure in the doorway, rubbing my hand against my arm. 

"Hi." I whisper, moving forward slightly. 

He looks so relieved to see me, his entire body relaxing as I walk closer. 

"You gave me a scare, Ducky." I say softly, moving to the foot of his bed. 

"I'm sorry." He whispers, a frown growing on his face. His eyes land on the jacket in my hands, and he smiles oddly. 

"I'm so glad you're here." He says, and I see tears welling in his eyes. 

"I'm glad you're okay." I place my hand on his leg, rubbing slightly to comfort him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mr. and Mrs. H went down to the cafeteria for food, but I stayed, sitting next to Nolan on the bed, our sides completely touching. 

"That was a good play you had, Duck." I compliment, trailing my hands slowly through his hair. He lets his head lean against my hand, closing his eyes slightly. 

"Yeah, but the ending needs some work. I'll make sure to watch the highlights in order to try it again." He jokes, chuckling slightly, but wincing at the pain in his ribs. 

"I was so scared." I whisper, leaning my head against his shoulder. 

"Hey," He says, nudging my head with his shoulder to get me to look up at him. "I'm sorry for scaring you, but I'm so thankful that you stayed with me." He lags off slightly at the end, his eyes slightly glazed. 

"They've got you on a lot of pain meds, huh?" I ask, giggling slightly. 

"Just a lil bit." He mumbles. "They're kicking in now." 

"Do you want me to go so you can sleep?" I ask, moving to get up. His arm shoots out and grabs my leg, stopping me. 

I turn to him, a confused frown on my face. 

"What?" I ask, shifting my head to the side slightly. 

"I-" He stutters, and his gaze is scanning my whole face, his expression so undeniably odd. 

"What, you can tell me anything." I reassure him. 

"I love you so much." 

"I love you too, Duck." I laugh slightly. "That's not a big secret." 

"Yes, it is." He whispers. He frowns slightly, looking down at the cheap sheets covering his legs. 

"How?" 

He looks back to me, and his eyes are completely glossed, and he opens his mouth slightly. 

"Nolan, are you okay?" I ask, placing a hand on his. 

He doesn't respond. 

"I love you, Piper." He breaths, so quiet I almost can't hear it over the slight buzz of the hospital machines. 

"I know." I respond. 

He must be so drugged up. 

"Piper doesn't know I love her." He's rambling now, looking at me but not focusing, as if he's gone somewhere else inside his mind. 

"Hello?" I ask, waving a hand in front of his face to try to get him to focus. 

He grabs that hand with his other one, dragging it down so that I'm leaning over him, our faces very, very close together. 

Even with all the chemical smells of the hospital, I can still smell the sandalwood of his body wash, the familiar scent of his cologne. 

"Nolan?" I ask, confused and slightly concerned with how fast my heart is beating. 

His eyes scan my face again, and this time, they're all too focused. 

He leans forward, and I think he's going to tell me some-

He kisses me. 

I'm stunned, my body completely frozen, his warm lips pressed against mine. 

What-

Why is he kissing me? What is happening? Why am I starting to kiss him back? 

His hand is still gripping my arm while the other one snakes into my hair, holding me to him. He kisses me so softly, that I can barely feel it against my lips. 

What am I doing? 

I pull away sharply, looking at him, my face a million degrees and no doubt as red as a tomato. 

"You can't tell Piper I kissed her okay?" He whispers, and laughs to himself. 

Oh, phew. He's so drugged up. That explains it. 

I breath a sigh of relief, slightly smacking myself in the cheek. 

"You're so high." I laugh. 

"Yeah. Piper, you're my best friend in the whole wide world, like the whole world, like the-". And then he's asleep, his head slouching against the pillow. 

I chuckle, moving to the chair next to his bed. 

I'm probably just tired, that's why I kissed him back. 

That's probably why. 

Why am I trying to convince myself of that? I don't kiss Nolan. It's not what we do. 

But then why do I want him to do it again?