"Hey, it's okay. She's not here… you're at the hospital. You're gonna be okay, I promise." Mr. Brennahan whispered in return, reaching up to wipe away his tears. "Is there anything I can do to try and help your head stop hurting? Or to relax?"
"I-I don't… I dunno…" Lucas closed his eyes, breathing a bit more heavily. "I don't wanna be here… I-I can't… I can't think, I can't… breathe… c-can't… can't do this… I-I wanna go home…" He held tighter to Mr. Brennahan, still shaking violently. "P-Please…"
"Shhhh… it's okay…" Mr. Brennahan whispered, starting to gently pet him. "I don't know if I can take you home tonight. You might need to stay here so they can check on you. But I can stay here if that makes it better."
Lucas whimpered softly, keeping his eyes closed. "W-What if… what if she finds me here…?" He asked weakly. "I didn't… I didn't call the police… she was gone by the time I woke up, a-and… and I figured it would be better to call you…"
"I've got that covered. You don't need to worry about her." He stated, his smile falling. The boy was so distraught, he felt awful for not trying to be more careful about him going out. "I hate to talk about it, but do you know her name? Or anything about her?"
Lucas shook his head a bit, trying to remember. "I-I don't… maybe…? I think… I think she said her name was Robyn, I-I dunno… and… and I think my manager has her on the security tapes too, so that could help…"
Mr. Brennahan nodded a bit, pulling out his phone to check the time. "Well, I'll have to go tomorrow. It's already getting kinda late, and I don't want to bug your boss tonight." He mumbled, running a hand through his own hair. "You think you can try to sleep? Maybe it'll help your head feel better."
"Mmm… I can try…" He hesitated before closing his eyes, still seeming very uneasy in the unfamiliar place. Cody kept close to him to calm him. "Does… does Melissa know…?" He asked weakly.
"No, I haven't called her yet." Mr. Brennahan whispered, starting to pull back from him. Standing up, he went and sat in the chair that was over in the corner of the room. "I was going to wait until she got home to tell her. I didn't want her to stress out while she was at work."
"Okay…" Lucas hugged Cody tightly, burying his face in the dog's fur. He curled up into a tight ball, obviously not feeling very comfortable or safe. "I don't like it here…" He whispered. "Bad memories…"
"I can try to talk to them and get you home, but there's no guarantee they'll let you." Mr. Brennahan offered, taking his glasses off and setting them aside. Rubbing at his temple, he looked over to the bed with Lucas in it. "I'm sure Melissa would want you back home too… do you want me to at least ask?"
Lucas nodded weakly, still trembling as he clung to Cody. "I'll… I-I'll be good, I promise… please…" He whispered. "I'll… I-I…" He tried to think of something for a moment, but lost his train of thought, his eyes going hazy.
“Hey, relax. You don’t need to say anything.” Mr. Brennahan insisted, getting up from his seat. “You just lay there while I go talk to the doctors. I’m sure if I explain, they’ll let you come home. You might have to come back in for them to do a quick checkup on you tomorrow, though.”
"Okay, o-okay…" Lucas huddled up tighter, still obviously stressed and uncomfortable. He really didn't want to be here, but he also didn't know what all was wrong with him. He had no idea what the woman had given him, after all.
And Mr. Brennahan wanted to keep it that way. He didn't want to tell him and bring up memories he didn't really know he had. "I'll go talk to them, okay?" He stated softly, standing by the door. "And I'll be right back."
"Okay, sir…" Lucas replied softly, tightening his grip on Cody when Mr. Brennahan left him alone. A doctor looked up when the man came out of the room.
"He wants to come home, with me." Mr. Brennahan stated softly, putting his glasses back on his face. "Is that allowed? Or does he have to stay here for the night?"
"Well, we can check him and see if he's in a condition that he could. He would need to be monitored closely, though. At least until the effects of the drugs have worn off. He'll also need to drink a lot of water and he isn't allowed to wander."
"Of course. I'm sure it'll be easy to convince him to do that if it means he can come home." Mr. Brennahan nodded, mentally making a list of things he'd need to do once they got home. "Would I need to fill out the paperwork before we left?"
"Yes, you would. It shouldn't take you too long, though." The doctor handed Mr. Brennahan a clipboard with some papers on it. "Get those back to me once you're finished with them."
"Alright, will do." Mr. Brennahan nodded before stepping back into the room. Sitting down he started to scribble out the information needed. "He said you can come home. They just have to check up on you first. And there's more we'll have to do when we get home."
"Yaaaay…" Lucas mumbled, keeping his face buried in Cody's fur. The doctor came in and started checking over Lucas, checking his pulse and other vitals to make sure he was stable. Lucas seemed very uneasy, but allowed the doctor to check over him.
Mr. Brennahan watched him carefully as he continued the paperwork. He wanted to help relax him, but as of the moment, there was nothing he could think of to do. Letting out a soft sigh, he went back to finishing up the paperwork.
Lucas closed his eyes, holding his breath to try and avoid interacting with the doctor. Eventually, the doctor left, and Lucas relaxed a bit. "C-Can I go home now?"
"I need to finish this up, and then I'll have to call Melissa's mother. I don't have a car to get home, and I'm not walking back home through the city." Mr. Brennahan hummed softly, seeming more focused. After a couple of minutes, he lifted his head and set the clipboard aside. "We'll leave in a couple of minutes, okay?"
"Mmkay…" Lucas yawned and held tighter to Cody, who whined softly. He was still very stressed and delirious, and couldn't think about much other than wanting to go home. His head hurt, and he was generally achy as well. He couldn't remember what all the woman had done to him.
When Mr. Brennahan had gotten everything settled, two nurses came in with a wheelchair to get Lucas out to the car. "You ready to head home?" He asked softly, picking Cody up off of him so he could get in the chair. "The car is outside waiting if you are."
Lucas seemed very wary of the wheelchair, but hesitantly lowered himself down into it. "O-Okay… is Melissa here?" He asked, very tense and shaky without Cody to hold onto.
"No, she's still at work." Mr. Brennahan replied in a soft tone, handing Cody back over to Lucas when he was settled. "But she should be home in an hour or so. Mrs. Brennahan was already done with work when I called her. It was easiest to get a ride from her."
"Oh… okay…" Lucas held tightly to Cody when he was given back to him, burying his face in the puppy's fur again. He kept quiet as he was wheeled out, trembling lightly with nerves.