𝒩ℯ𝓌 𝒴ℴ𝓇𝓀, 𝒜𝓊ℊ𝓊𝓈𝓉 27, 2019

Alice was rushed to the hospital. Maximus got his cut easily covered and he held his twin's hand in the ambulance the whole entire way, no one asked him any questions yet, they were all focused on trying to keep Alice stable until they reach the hospital. He felt his phone buzzing in his pocket but he refused to answer it until he knew Alice was safe. They got to the hospital and Doctor Zander immediately ran over to Alice and nodded at the EMS,

"We need this girl in an emergency room NOW,"

Her gurney was led into a room, directed by Doctor Zander, while a nurse carefully directed Maximus to a chair, he saw that someone was trying to ask him questions...but he couldn't hear anything, there was a ringing in his ear. The next thing Maximus knew, there was a light shone into his eyes and he swatted at it,

"I-I'm fine,"

The nurse sighed,

"Sir, you are in shock,"

Maximus shook his head,

"I'm fine. I just need my sister to be okay,"

The nurse sighed,

"Is there anyone you want to call?"

Maximus shook his head,

"They should be here soon,"

The nurse nodded.

W̷i̷t̷h̷ C̷o̷s̷m̷o̷

Cosmo drove as fast as he could under the speed limit. He glanced quickly to Nicholas,

"Can you get my phone out for me?"

Nicholas nodded and took it out,

"What do you need me to text and who?"

Cosmo glanced at him and stopped at a red light, he quickly grabbed his phone and opened a group chat:

A̳l̳i̳c̳e̳ P̳r̳o̳t̳e̳c̳t̳i̳o̳n̳ S̳q̳u̳a̳d̳

T̳h̳e̳ R̳i̳c̳h̳ G̳u̳y̳
Code Red

T̳h̳e̳ Q̳u̳e̳e̳n̳
What happened?

T̳h̳e̳ R̳i̳c̳h̳ G̳u̳y̳
She fainted! Max is with her
right now and they are going
to the hospital in an ambulance

T̳o̳o̳ E̳n̳e̳r̳g̳e̳t̳i̳c̳☠̳️̳
How bad??

T̳h̳e̳ R̳i̳c̳h̳ G̳u̳y̳
Bad...I'm not at the hospital
yet but I'm heading there right
now. I'm with Jackson and
Nicholas

T̳h̳e̳ U̳n̳c̳l̳e̳
How did they get with u?

T̳h̳e̳ R̳i̳c̳h̳ G̳u̳y̳
They were with me and Alice
before she fainted. They wanted
to come to the hospital with me

T̳h̳e̳ Q̳u̳e̳e̳n̳
We don't know anything?

T̳h̳e̳ R̳i̳c̳h̳ G̳u̳y̳
No. I doubt Max will answer
his phone for a long time

T̳h̳e̳ U̳n̳c̳l̳e̳
I'll come as soon as I can, I
have to finish this lesson and
then I'll say it's a family
emergency

T̳h̳e̳ Q̳u̳e̳e̳n̳
Adam and I are off the court
in thirty min, then we will
head over

T̳h̳e̳ R̳i̳c̳h̳ G̳u̳y̳
Thank u

T̳h̳e̳ U̳n̳c̳l̳e̳
No, thank you, Cosmo

Cosmo looked up quickly as soon as the light turned Green and handed his phone to Nicholas to put away. Jackson looked up,

"Who did you text?"

Cosmo nodded at his phone,

"Amaury, Adam, and Okan. They said they will come as soon as they finish,"

Nicholas nodded,

"Okay,"

W̷i̷t̷h̷ M̷a̷x̷i̷m̷u̷s̷

Maximus looked up as soon as he saw someone leaving the room where his sister was,

"H-How is she?"

Doctor Zander frowned and sighed. He patted his shoulder,

"Take a seat,"

Maximus frowned and sat down next to Zander. Zander turned to Maximus,

"Alice's heart is failing. Right now, she is stable...but she needs a new heart,"

Maximus's eyes widened,

"S-So get her one!"

Doctor Zander sighed,

"I put an order to get one as soon as it's humanly possible...but these things can take time,"

Maximus put his head in his hands and carefully looked at Zander,

"H-how much time...how much t-time does sh-she have?"

Zander sighed,

"A few days...maybe a week,"

Maximus looked at him,

"Wh-what can I do?"

Zander sighed and patted his back,

"The same as all of us...pray and hope,"

Maximus sighed and Zander got up,

"From what I know fo her, Alice is a strong person, we just have to have faith,"

He left and Maximus burst into tears.

Cosmo ran into the hospital, closely followed by Jackson and Nicholas. Then Cosmo saw Maximus with his face in his hands and ran to him and pulled him into a tight hug, letting Maximus clutch onto him and cry harder.

"Shhh...shh. Maxie...it's alright...I got you,"

Maximus shook his head and held tighter,

"N-No i-it's n-not o-okay,"

Cosmo just held him tighter and rubbed his back,

"I got you, don't worry,"

He felt Maximus finally loosen up and let go of him. He felt a pang of pain at how broken he looked,

"Max,"

Maximus looked up at him and shook his head,

"I-I don't want to talk about it,"

Nicholas walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder,

"And you don't have to, we are here for you,"

Maximus simply nodded and sat down on the floor, letting his head hit the wall.

Cosmo sat down next to him against the wall. Jackson sat on the other side of Maximus and Nicholas sat down next to his brother. Cosmo looked at Maximus,

"Amaury, Adam, and Okan are going to come after they finish work,"

Maximus nodded,

"Yeah, I figured they would after someone told them,"

Cosmo wrapped an arm around his shoulder,

"Do you want me to text my mom?"

Maximus sighed,

"Your choice,"

Cosmo nodded,

"I will later,"

Cosmo glanced at the boy,

"I'm going to see what we can do about some blankets, I'll be back,"

Maximus simply nodded and Nicholas looked up at him,

"Can I come with?"

Cosmo nodded,

"Yeah,"

They both got up and Jackson nodded,

"I'll stay,"

Nicholas nodded and the two left the small waiting room. Nicholas glanced at Cosmo,

"You aren't going to get blankets, right?"

Cosmo shrugged,

"I will, but not until I speak to Doctor Zander and find out what made Maximus break down like that,"

Nicholas put a hand on his shoulder,

"You sure about that?"

Cosmo glanced at Nicholas and nodded,

"I gotta know,"

Nicholas nodded,

"Do you want me to come with you?"

Cosmo subtly nodded,

"If you can,"

Nicholas smiled softly and squeezed his shoulder,

"Of course,"

The two walked into an office and Zander looked up and smiled sadly,

"Ah, hello Cosmo, and who is your friend?"

Cosmo smiled sadly at Zander,

"Nicholas Mendes,"

Nicholas nodded,

"Hello,"

Zander shook his hand and looked at Cosmo,

"You are here to know about Alice's condition, I assume?"

Cosmo nodded,

"Max is in no condition to explain anything,"

Zander sighed sadly,

"Sit down, both of you,"

They immediately followed instruction and Zander sighed sadly,

"I explained earlier that Alice will be set far back if she has another attack before she makes a full recovery...of course, it was mostly theorized...but this is worse than what my team and I imagined and for that, I am deeply sorry. She fainted from lack of oxygen...and also, heart failure. Alice's heart is dying quicker now...and I put an order for a new one as soon as possible...but if we don't get one in a few days, she won't make it,"

Cosmo felt his breath catch in his throat,

"Sh-she might..."

Zander nodded sadly,

"Yeah...she has a few days...maybe a week,"

Nicholas wrapped an arm around Cosmo's shoulder carefully and Cosmo sighed out,

"What can we do?"

Zander sighed,

"Hope,"

Cosmo shook his head,

"Expenses?"

Zander sighed,

"A lot...I'm really sorry,"

Cosmo shook his head,

"It's not your fault,"

He got up and Nicholas quickly got up with him. Zander sighed,

"I'll keep you all updated,"

Cosmo nodded and smiled sadly at him,

"Thanks,"

He left and Nicholas sighed when he left with him,

"You okay?"

Cosmo sighed and shook his head,

"No...but I will be once Ally is,"

Nicholas sighed and hugged him again,

"She's a fighter,"

Cosmo nodded,

"Yeah...I know,"

He took out his phone and Nicholas looked at him in confusion,

"What are you doing?"

Cosmo nodded at Nicholas,

"We have a huge ass hospital bill coming our way...and I know Maxie won't want me paying the whole thing, Amaury won't be able to convince him either,"

Nicholas's eyes widened,

"Wait...Amaury and you pay the bills?"

Cosmo shook his head,

"Not all the time. Amaury does whenever they have trouble with it...and now I do whenever I won't get punched by Ally for doing so,"

Nicholas nodded,

"So what are you going to do?"

Cosmo smiled sadly,

"watch and see,"

He opened Instagram and posted on his public Instagram account story:

Nicholas looked at him,

"That's a huge thing to do,"

Cosmo nodded,

"I'm sure Alice and Max will both murder me when they find out that I did this,"

Nicholas smiled softly and opened the link,

"Well, count me as first,"

Cosmo smiled softly as he sees Nicholas donating $100. Nicholas patted his shoulder,

"We will get through this...I'm going to call my mom and tell her that Jack and I will be home late,"

Cosmo smiled softly at him and nodded,

"I'll actually get those blankets,"

Nicholas chuckled softly and nodded. The two quickly went to do their task.

W̷i̷t̷h̷ J̷a̷c̷k̷s̷o̷n̷ a̷n̷d̷ M̷a̷x̷i̷m̷u̷s̷

Jackson glanced at Maximus,

"What's going on in that big head of yours?"

Maximus sighed as he glanced sadly at Jackson,

"Alice and I have always had each other...we do everything together unless we are out with friends to ignore reality. When we were younger...we were inseparable...I like to think we still are. I always was with her whenever she was in the hospital, I made sure that she stayed calm at home and everywhere we went together. I made sure that Okan and Adam were up to date with Ally so they could watch over her during tennis if I was in a different group from her. I was with her when she fainted the first time ever with Amaury...we have always been able to tell what the other was feeling...but I fucking messed up by not knowing that she was about to collapse when she did. I got a bad feeling the second she told me that our mom wanted to talk...but I ignored that fucking feeling and didn't fight more to make sure she never entered that fucking building. When we were getting her results the first time...you know what she said? She...she made me promise to not be miserable without her here...I think she knew something like this would happen...and that hurts like fucking hell. I don't know what I'll do if I lose her man...she's my everything."

Jackson frowned sadly and pulled him into a side hug,

"I may not have known Al as long as you...but she's strong. If anyone can survive this...it's her. And, we will all be with her throughout this, and we will get through this Max...You both are my close friends okay? I got your back,"

Maximus nodded sadly,

"I...I know...it's just so hard. It's so hard growing up like this...constantly fearing that she won't make it the next time something like this happens. It's so fucking exhausting...but I would do it all over again if it gives me another chance with her,"

Jackson smiled sadly at him,

"Don't give up just yet Max, she's going to make it through this,"

Maximus sighed,

"I...I'm just os terrified that she's not gonna pull through, Jackson."

Jackson nodded,

"I get that...I'm scared too,"

Maximus sighed sadly and leaned his head against his shoulder,

"I can't do this without her,"

He whispered it so softly, that Jackson could hear the pain in his voice without any trouble. He looked down and saw that he passed out on his shoulder from lack of sleep. Jackson sighed sadly and wrapped an arm around his shoulder and patted his head softly,

"We will be here for you, Maximus,"

Then he closed his eyes and leaned his head against his.

Cosmo walked in with Nicholas and he smiled softly at the two on the floor,

"They seem to have gotten some talking done,"

Nicholas chuckled softly and nodded,

"Yeah...Jackson hasn't been sleeping well the past few days either. He told me he's been having nightmares,"

Cosmo frowned sadly,

"Yeah, Max hasn't been able to sleep for a long time...he's been very worried about Alice since she got operated on not too long ago...and even then,"

Nicholas sighed and glanced at the two sleeping guys,

"I don't think they would be able to handle if anything happened,"

Cosmo sighed,

"I don't think I would either,"

Nicholas wrapped his arm around him again,

"It will be alright,"

Cosmo only sighed and nodded slowly. They heard a small commotion and turned to see Adam and Okan running in.

"Men are here!"

Cosmo and Nicholas chuckled softly as to not wake up the sleeping friends. Okan looked down at Maximus and sighed sadly,

"Oh Max,"

Okan knelt down in front of Maximus, he looked up at Cosmo,

"When did he last sleep?"

Cosmo sighed sadly,

"Few days,"

Adam frowned,

"And Ally?"

Cosmo just slowly shook his head,

"Not looking great right now,"

Okan frowned and softly picked Maximus up and put him on the chair and quickly did the same to Jackson, Maximus's head fell onto his shoulder and Jackson's head fell onto his head. Adam looked at Maximus,

"Did Zander say anything we can do?"

Cosmo shook his head sadly,

"Adam...she needs a new heart,"

Okan and Adam abruptly looked at him,

"A new Heart?"

Nicholas nodded sadly,

"Yeah...her heart is failing her, that's why she fainted...she has a few days, maybe a week...but they need a heart for her,"

Okan sighed and looked at Maximus,

"This is tearing him up,"

Cosmo nodded,

"I don't know what to do,"

Adam patted his shoulder,

"Cosmo, you did a lot for those two...don't think this is on you,"

Cosmo sighed,

"I let her go home,"

Okan sighed and pulled him into a careful hug,

"Nothing is your fault Cosmo, if it was, I would be very pissed at you,"

Cosmo chuckled softly,

"Yeah, I can imagine,"

Then Amaury came running in,

"News?"

He stopped short when he saw all the sad looks and the sleeping Jackson and Maximus,

"Oh...nothing good,"

Cosmo shook his head,

"Amaury...she needs a new heart,"

Amaury's eyes widened,

"None are available?"

Nicholas shook his head,

"As soon as there is, she will get it,"

Amaury sighed and sat down next to Maximus,

"They went through too much just for it to end like this,"

Everyone looked at him as he glanced at Maximus,

"You know...it started out alright at the start. Alice barely got those attacks, she got them monthly...then they started weekly when she was maybe in 7th grade...then in high school, it started almost daily. No one could find out why or how they were happening. I would be getting calls at 4 p.m. from the hospital saying that they needed me to sign a few things and ask me a few questions. I would do it. I have been doing it for nine whole years. Never would I have thought that it could ever end like this. She had so much hope that this was finally the end, that she could start living her life without fearing that she will have an episode. Maxie had hope that his sister would finally be able to live her life, make more friends. He called me one time a few years back...he was scared because she fainted at home and no one was there and he had no idea what to do...I had hope that he would never have to go through that ever again now. I know Ally is a strong fighter...but guys...keep in mind, that she's been fighting her entire life against this illness that is completely unknown to us. She told me one time that it's hard to get up out of bed in the morning sometimes because she has trouble breathing after she wakes up. She's had a hard life, I know she won't quit until her dying breath."

He was tearing up by the end of his speech and no one said anything, they let his words sink in. Okan sighed sadly and grabbed his hand,

"She won't ever give up, and we won't either,"

Amaury sadly nodded,

"Yeah."

Nicholas sighed and looked at his younger brother,

"We just have to have hope and faith,"