Long Road Ahead

[ThatSneezyGirl]

Aw poor kid! He must be miserable

[BlueKeeper]

"I was overcome with yet another wave of nausea, and I moaned and held my stomach. Scooter quickly grabbed the trash can and held it while I puked into it twice."

uh-oh. Looks like I didn't get all of it out...sorry!! I can't believe I missed that one!! That's supposed to be fluff, not puke! Urgh, stupid me

haha

[purpleninja]

_{okay, warning, this part has puking. It's not like I WANT to write about this, it's just that nausea/vomiting is a symtom of a chest infection. Also, this puking part i kinda crucial...it serves as a bridge between now and the next part of the story. Sorry!}

S c o o t e r

I watched Justin sleep for a while, till his breath hitched suddenly.

“Hupshiew!! Husshiew!!” he sneezed very messily. Pattie passed me a tissue and I gently cleaned him up. He coughed in his sleep a couple times while I got up and threw the tissue away. He slept for hours upon hours; it was around 11:00 at night until I heard him calling out for me and Pattie. I went upfront where he lay.

“Hey, Juss! How you feeling?” I asked.

“Horrible!” he answered weakly.

“You want anything to drink or eat or anything? You need to use the bathroom?” He nodded.

“Whatcha need?” I asked.

“Something to drink, please,” he said weakly. I nodded.

“Sure! Water or Gatorade?” I asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” he answered weakly, shaking violently. I got him a glass of Gatorade, and he drank half of it.

“I just need to use the bathroom,” he said apologetically.

“Okay. You want me to help you or your mom?” I asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” he repeated.

“Well, I think your mom’s still asleep, so I guess I’ll help you,” I said. He nodded, and I slowly and carefully picked him up. I carried him to the bathroom and gently set him down in the door way. I helped him use the bathroom, then he washed his hands. He started crying again as he turned the water off. He dried his hands and spun to go to the toilet, but didn’t make it. He threw up the Gatorade all over himself and the floor. He kept apologizing to me over and over, and I tried to explain to him that it was fine. He threw up again and again didn’t make it, and he apologized some more.

“Justin, it’s really fine,” I said. I cleaned up the mess and everything, then went and got another long-sleeve shirt. I came back to find that he was throwing up again. He had made it to the toilet this time, but he was a mess. I went into his room and got him a clean pair of pants and underwear, also. I then went and waited until he was finished for good to strip his clothes off and give him a quick bath. I dried him off and brought him up to the couch still undressed. I dried him off some more and quickly dressed him before he could get too cold. Then I wrapped his shivering body in a warm blanket and laid him back down. I went and threw his puke-covered clothes in the wash and started a load of laundry. He wanted to get up and brush his teeth, and I helped him. After that, I laid him back down gently on the couch and covered him with yet another blanket. I then opted to sleep on the other couch across from him in case he needed me again. He went back to sleep after I took his temperature and gave him some medicine. Then I laid down and went to sleep myself.

3:07 A.M.

“Scooter!” I heard, followed by a couple coughs, a sob, and a couple more coughs. I opened my eyes and went over to Justin.

“What’s going on, buddy?” I asked softly.

“I’m gonna throw up again,” he moaned, then gave me an apologetic look. I held the trash can under his chin while he threw up into it three times before finishing.

“You finished?” I asked him.

“Yeah. I’m sorry,” he said through his tears. I rubbed his back and kissed his temple.

“Don’t let me catch you saying sorry again, hear?” I asked. He nodded.

“You wanna go brush your teeth?” I asked. He nodded. I helped him go and brush his teeth, then brought him back.

“You need anything?” I asked.

“I’m really thirsty, but I know I’m just gonna throw it up,” he said softly.

“Well, that can be dealt with later,” I said, getting him a glass of water. He drank the whole thing before handing me the glass again.

“And just wake me up later if you don’t feel good, okay?” I asked. He nodded. I cleaned up a little and we both went to sleep.

E n d

J u s t i n

4:10 A.M.

I woke up with a start, and before I could even think about what was happening, I threw up all over myself, the floor, the blankets covering me, and everything else near me. I kept throwing up uncontrollably. My stomach kept heaving and soon I was just throwing up bile, mucus, and blood. Wait, BLOOD?! I looked down at what I was involuntarily throwing up. Yup, sure enough, the mucus I was coughing up had blood in it. And I couldn’t stop coughing for the life of me, which was making more and more blood come up. I started crying out of misery and fear.

“Scooter!” I called in between throwing up more blood. His eyes opened, and he got up immediately.

“Oh my gosh, is that blood?!” he asked, panicking. I nodded as another flood of blood came out of my mouth onto myself and the floor. He turned the light on and got the big kitchen trash can. He helped me sit up a little and held the trash can under me so I could finish. I was coughing and puking at the same time. Suddenly, I went to breathe in between coughing fits, and accidentally breathed in a whole lot of the blood and bile I was puking. I choked and coughed more, tears stinging my eyes as I felt the burn.

“Did you aspirate that?” Scooter asked, panic in his voice. I nodded, coughing hard and without stopping.

“Pattie!!!” Scooter called at the top of his lungs.

“Pattie come NOW!!!!!” he called, panicking. He felt my forehead and rubbed my back as I choked and coughed and threw up and cried and coughed some more. Soon the back door opened and my mom came up front.

“What’s going on?” she asked, sounding confused and actually a little annoyed. The moment she saw me and what was happening, she gasped and ran over to me, avoiding the puke on the floor. She got a couple paper towels and some cleaning solution and cleaned up my mess, then focused on me.

“What happened?” she asked Scooter.

“I don’t know. I just woke up and he was throwing up blood. Then I’m pretty sure he aspirated some of it,” Scooter said, still holding the trash can. I coughed some more, then stopped for a couple minutes. My mom went and got a paper towel. She ran some of it under some warm water and wiped my mouth for me. I sobbed a couple times and coughed up some more blood and phlegm.

“I’m calling the doctor,” she said quickly. I listened to her calling the doctor, though I couldn’t stop throwing up and coughing for my life. Scooter rubbed my back and tried to soothe me by brushing my bangs back and stroking my hair and stuff. He pulled my shirt up a little and trailed two fingers on my back, and I stopped crying. I gasped and suddenly aspirated even more of what I was puking. I coughed harder and couldn’t stop. Scooter rubbed my back, panicking.

“It’s okay, Juss. Get it out, it’s alright,” he said, rubbing my back in large circles, making me throw up even more. Soon I stopped throwing up and kept coughing. In about 20 minutes I had coughed up most of the stuff I had aspirated. My mom got off the phone.

“He says the blood is normal,” she said.

“What about him aspirating it?” Scooter asked, rubbing my back hard.

“He says it’ll make the Pneumonia worse and to get him to cough it up,” she said.

“Well, I think he already did that,” Scooter said.

“He says the only way to know if it’s gone is when he doesn’t have the urge to cough anymore,” my mom said. It took about a half an hour for me to finally stop coughing.

“You think you’re okay, baby?” my mom asked. I nodded.

“Do you feel like you need to cough anymore?” Scooter asked, still holding the trash can for me.

“No,” I said softly. My mom wiped my mouth and my nose, which was running. My mom took the blankets off of me and put them in the wash, then came back and stripped my clothes off down to my underwear right there on the couch. I started shivering even more and crying again. She picked me up and carried me to the bathroom while Scooter cleaned up the couch where I had puked a little bit. My mom ran the bathwater and made it really warm. She then took my underwear off and set me in the water. I relaxed and stopped crying. I coughed a couple times into my right hand, then let it fall into the water. My mom began gently bathing me, especially where I had puked on myself a little. I started to go to sleep as she gently bathed my stomach and then went down to my legs. I suddenly opened my eyes, just to close them again as a sneeze built up in the back of my throat.

“Hupshh!!” I sneezed, too tired to cover, but managed to turn away so I didn’t sneeze on my mom.

“Bless you, Sweetheart,” she said, then brought the washcloth back up and gently wiped my nose.

“I love you, Mom,” I said quietly. She smiled.

“I love you, too, baby,” she said.

“Thanks. For everything,” I said quietly. She wiped my nose again.

“There is absolutely no need to thank me. At all,” she said. I shrugged.

“Thanks anyway,” I said weakly. She chuckled and smiled to herself.

“Sure thing, Sweetheart,” she answered. She washed my hair and everything, then let the water out. She helped me stand, then wrapped a towel around me and lifted me up. She held me bridal-style, wrapped in the warm towel. I ducked my head into the towel a little bit as my breath hitched.

“Hupshh!! Husshhoo!!” I sneezed very messily. My mom got two tissues out of the box and wiped my nose, then wiped a little of the spray off my chest.

“Ew,” I said to myself. She rolled her eyes and smiled a little bit. She then wiped my nose again. She threw away the tissue and got two more. She doubled them and held them over my runny nose.

“Blow, Sweetheart. You don’t want that Sinus Infection to get any worse,” she said. I nodded and blew my nose weakly into the tissues she held. I sneezed twice into the tissue, and there was a harsh barking tone to my sneezes. They didn’t sound all wet and messy like they have lately. They sounded wet, messy, but also like a cough, too.

“Bless you. You sound horrible, baby,” she said sympathetically as I let out another cough-sneeze thing. After I blew my nose again, she wiped my nose and threw the tissues away. She brought me upfront and laid me on the couch. I didn’t really care anymore that Scooter was seeing me naked; he gave me a bath earlier, so he’s already seen everything. I don’t even care that my entire body is so tiny that most people think I’m about 7. I brought my left arm up by my head and leaned my cheek against my left forearm. I started to go to sleep right there, and soon Scooter and my mom started to talk like I was asleep.

“I think we’re gonna have to cancel a lot of shows and stuff,” my mom said.

“Yeah. I don’t want to, but there’s no way in Hell I’m letting him go on stage like this,” Scooter said.

“Oh, yeah!” I felt my mom dry me off and slip my underwear on. After that I felt a whole lot more comfortable. She then put on my shorts.

“He’s so tiny!” Scooter commented as she put my shirt on.

“Yeah, he was born so early. I guess he just never caught up,” my mom said.

“I’ve never seen someone so sick in my entire life,” Scooter said.

“Me, neither. Especially Justin. I mean, he gets colds a lot, and he gets sick once on every tour, so when he got sick, I wasn’t really too worried. But then this…” she trailed off. I coughed a couple times, uncovered so they would think I’m asleep. I felt my nose running from the stupid Sinus Infection, and my throat hurts and tickles from the post nasal drip. I coughed some more, and straining to cough made my nose run more. I kept my eyes closed, though, and acted like I was asleep.

“Scooter, can you go get a tissue, please?” my mom asked.

“Oh, sure,” Scooter said. I coughed some more, still feeling the irritated tickle in my sore throat. I was coughing like every two seconds now.

“I wonder why he’s coughing so much all of a sudden,” my mom said, and I felt her wipe my nose with a tissue. I coughed harder, trying to clear my lungs. The tightness in my chest wasn’t going away, though, and I coughed even harder and more. I felt myself being turned onto my side and a strong hand gently rub my back. I soon felt more fluid, blood, and phlegm come up, and my eyes popped open. I made it into the trash can next to the sofa that time, though. Scooter picked it up and held it closer to me. My cough sounded nasty, but I couldn’t stop. Scooter held the trash can and rubbed my back. My mom went and got a bottle of water and another paper towel. She came back and waited until I was just coughing but nothing was coming up to open the bottle and hand it to me. I put my mouth to the bottle and let some of the water run into my mouth. Just as I was swallowing, though, I involuntarily coughed again and quickly took the bottle away. I coughed again and all the water I had just drank came right back up. This went on for the rest of the night; I puked all night long. Thank goodness I didn’t puke on myself anymore, so I didn’t have to take any more baths. But I kept sneezing and spraying thick mucus all over my upper lip, so my mom kept having to clean me up. She says it’s just because of the Sinus Infection, and she made me blow my nose honestly every 15 minutes. I had no idea my body could produce that much mucus!

7:37 A.M.

“Bless you, Sweetheart,” my mom said for about the millionth time, wiping my nose. I just nodded weakly, barely able to keep my eyes open. She wiped my nose again as it started running again.

“Jazzy’s gonna be up in a little bit, so you might wanna try to go to sleep,” my mom said. I nodded and coughed a couple times into my right hand. I felt something climb up my throat, and I quickly took my hand away and Scooter brought the trash can underneath my chin for me to throw up into. He rubbed my back soothingly. After I finished, my mom came and wiped my mouth and nose. I laid back on the sofa and sighed.

“Y’all have got to be tired by now,” I said weakly.

“Honey, don’t worry about us, really. Right now you need to worry about getting better,” she said.

“Mama!!” we all heard Jazzy cry. My mom sighed a little.

“Let me go get her and get her dressed and stuff. Do you think you can handle him for a second?” my mom asked. Scooter laughed a little.

“Well, sure I can handle him! He’s really not that hard,” Scooter said, laughing a little.

“Okay,” my mom said, smiling also. I laughed a little bit, but ended up letting out a nasty cough into my right hand. My mom went in the hallway where Jazzy’s bunk is. I saw her take Jazzy out of bed and put her on her hip.

“Bieber still sick?” Jazzy asked almost immediately.

“Yeah, Honey, Bieber’s really sick,” my mom answered, taking her into the back.

“More than yesterday?”

“Yeah, Honey, a lot more than yesterday,” my mom answered solemnly. A couple minutes later Jazzy came running out, all dressed. She came over to me, and I forced a smile.

“Hey, Babygirl,” I said weakly.

“You don’t look sick, Bieber,” she said. I laughed a little.

“Good. I hope not,” I said, laughing some more. It quickly turned into a nasty cough which I covered with my right hand.

“You okay, Bieber?” she asked, trying to climb onto the sofa next to me.

“Eh, not really,” I answered, picking her up. Or trying to pick her up. Even her light, tiny body was too heavy for me.

“I heavy, Bieber?” she asked me. I shook my head “no.”

“I’m just weak, Babygirl,” I answered. Scooter then picked her up and placed her next to me. Jazzy’s tiny for her age, just like me. I could be taken for a normal-size 6-year-old or a small 7-year-old, and she could be taken for a baby, even though she’s two.

“Y’all are so freaking small for your age!” Scooter commented coincidentally. I nodded.

“You know how many comments on You Tube about my size? Millions,” I said weakly. Scooter laughed a little bit.

“How big are you gonna get?” he asked. I shrugged.

“Hopefully a lot bigger than this,” I said.

“Yeah, I hope so, too. I mean, that’s gotta get annoying to not be able to reach anything,” Scooter said.

“They got that from me,” my mom said.

“Yeah, your mom’s kinda short,” Scooter said. My mom laughed.

“Mama real short,” Jazzy said.

“I mean seriously! Justin, hold up your hand,” Scooter said. I weakly held up my left hand, and he put his hand to mine. My hand was engulfed in his, and I laughed a little bit.

“I hope you shoot up, buddy, cause you’re tiny as hell,” Scooter commented. I took my hand back and rubbed my eyes.

“Don’t do that, buddy, they’re getting swollen,” Scooter said, taking my hands away. I whined.

“It itches, though!” I whined. My mom searched in the medicine cabinet, then came out with the prescription eye drops that I take when my eyes itch from allergies.

“Lay back, baby,” she said. I laid down flat with Jazzy on my stomach. My mom came and gently put two drops in each eye, then capped the bottle and put it back. I blinked a couple times, then Scooter helped me sit up a little like before. He went and got a pillow and put it against the armrest of the sofa. I laid my back against the pillow, and Jazzy sat on my stomach. She kneeled on my lap, facing me, and kissed my cheek. I smiled.

“I love you, Bieber,” she said, kissing my cheek again.

“I love you, too, Babygirl,” I answered, kissing her forehead. She smiled and hugged me, nuzzling her face into my neck.

“Y’all are so adorable!” Scooter said, smiling.

“I’m so glad y’all love each other and don’t fight,” my mom said, smiling also.

“I’ll never fight with Bieber!” Jazzy said. I smiled again. I love my little sister so much. I miss her all the time, along with Jaxon.

“So, what’s going on up in Canada?” I asked Jazzy. She smiled.

“Grandma and Grandpa got a pool!” she told me.

“Really? Won’t it just freeze over in the winter?” I asked.

“That’s why they got it! We get to go ice skating in the backyard!” she told me. She went on to tell me all about my friends up in Canada, whom I miss very much. But I have a feeling I won’t be seeing them for a while with how sick I am. She told me all about her little school she used to go to, and the mean girl that pushed her down, and how all her friends love her because Justin Bieber’s her brother.

“Now, that’s not good. You need to find friends who love you for you, not because I’m your brother,” I said weakly. She shrugged.

“I don’t know. They’re real nice to me because of you. It don’t seem too bad,” she said, and the facial expression she made cracked me up. My laughing soon turned into a nasty-sounding coughing fit. Jazzy’s smile faded in a millisecond.

“You okay, Bieber?” she asked. I nodded and finally stopped coughing.

“Ugh…ow,” I said to myself.

“What hurts, Juss?” Scooter asked. I pointed to my head, throat, chest, and stomach. I then brought my hand back up and pointed to the space right above my eyes and right under my eyes.

“Yeah, that’s a Sinus headache, Juss. You’ve got some swelling, too,” Scooter commented. I gently pressed on the space right below my eyes, on either side of my nose. I cringed at the now sharp pain that shot from my touch, and I even felt an ache behind my eyes. I ran my fingers up and down my cheeks, and I could feel the subtle bump on my Sinuses. I shivered suddenly and coughed. I brought my hands away and sighed deeply, my eyes starting to close. I coughed again, and suddenly felt more blood, fluid, and phlegm creep up my throat. I lurched to the side and Scooter quickly brought the trash can up underneath my chin. I started to throw up, or rather cough up, phlegm, blood, and fluid from my lungs, along with just a little bit of the bile I aspirated last night. It wasn’t long, though, before I started to actually throw up, though. Of course, right in the middle of my puking, there was a knock on the door. My mom answered it, and I heard Usher’s voice. I was starting to panic, though, because I was coughing so hard that I couldn’t breathe. Also, I knew that if I breathed, what I’m puking will go straight into my lungs and I’ll be coughing up stuff for the next hour. But I started to get a little frantic. My coughs choked out as I ran out of air, but my stomach kept heaving up acids and fluids. I couldn’t take it anymore. I didn’t see a break in sight, so I just took in a big gasp of air, and felt all the puke go straight into my already infected lungs. It started to burn and I choked and coughed hard.

“Pattie!! He aspirated it again!!!” Scooter called, panicking a little. He rubbed my back as I coughed up more blood and fluid and stuff. My mom came rushing in, Usher following her. She rubbed my back also and brushed my bangs back.

“It’s alright, Sweetheart, get it out,” she said quietly as I started to cry and choke and cough at the same time.

“What happened?” Usher asked, worried and confused.

“Yesterday, big boy here was diagnosed with severe Double Pneumonia,” Scooter started.

“Aww, man, that sucks,” Usher said. I just nodded a little and kept coughing uncontrollably.

“And he has fluid in his lungs. And he’s been throwing up all night, but it’s just fluid and blood and stuff,” Scooter continued.

“Wait, blood?” Usher asked. As if on cue, I coughed some more, and this time saw the fairly sized gush of blood coming from my mouth.

“Holy crap!” Usher exclaimed. I kept coughing up the blood and fluid and bile that had made its way into infected lungs.

“Yes, blood. And he keeps throwing up and coughing at the same time, and he keeps aspirating it when he’s throwing up because he needs to breathe in between coughing,” Scooter explained. I coughed a couple times and my stomach heaved, making some more bile come up, mixed in the blood.

“How much has he aspirated?” Usher asked, concerned.

“A lot. He’s already aspirated it like four times,” Scooter explained. They kept talking about that while I coughed uncontrollably, choking on my own fluids. I finally stopped, but I was having trouble breathing through the fluid and stuff. When I told my mom this, of course she freaked out and called the doctor again. When she got off the phone, she said he was coming and he was gonna help me. I nodded hesitantly and coughed some more. Jazzy kissed my cheek again, and I stroked her hair gently. She laid her head on my chest and listened. Suddenly she gasped.

“I can hear the ocean inside you, Bieber!” she exclaimed, sitting up and looking at me. The adults in the room looked worried. Soon the doctor came and asked everyone but my mom and Scooter to please leave the room for a second. He gave me a shot that numbed my throat and chest, then inserted a tube into my lungs. He took the tube and suctioned out all the blood, fluid, and loose mucus from my infected lungs, then cleared out my bronchial tubes and windpipe. Once he was done, he gave me a shot that was gonna make me stop throwing up. He talked for a little bit, then quickly left. My grandparents, Jazzy, and Usher came back up front.

“You better, man?” Usher asked. I shrugged.

“Yeah,” I answered, my eyes drooping heavily.

“Go to sleep, Sweetheart,” my mom said. I nodded and went to sleep, vaguely aware of Jazzy laying on my stomach and the adults in the room talking about me.

[BlueKeeper]

EW, AWW, and poor thing

[Bgrace27]

Amazing please continue it's soo good

[ThatSneezyGirl]

AW too cute!!!!

[purpleninja]

hey, guys!!! SOOO sorry about not updating...I tried to yesterday, but my computer crashed

Also, VERY sorry about the puking in the last part and this part. I know, I hate it, too, but it's a crucial part of the story; a bridge between this part and the next. bear with me, guys!!

9:41 A.M.

I woke myself up sneezing messily, spraying thick mucus onto my upper lip and my shirt.

“Bless you, Sweetheart,” my mom said, coming and cleaning me up with a tissue. I coughed sleepily and sneezed into the tissue, expelling more thick mucus into it.

“Husshhoo! Hupshh!!!” I sneezed into the tissue, feeling the mucus shoot out my nose and into the white Kleenex. My mom wiped my nose gently, then threw away the tissue. I was surprised to see that it was only me, Scooter, and Jazzy in the back.

“Where’s Grandma and Grandpa?” I mumbled sleepily.

“They went in another bus to let you sleep,” my mom answered, handing me two tissues and instructing me to blow. I pressed the tissue around my nose and blew weakly. Holy crap, the stuff that I blew out! Damn! I soon felt the warm dampness soak through to my fingers, but I didn’t care. After I had completely cleared out my sinuses, I balled up the now soggy tissue and threw it away.

“Um, can I got wash my hands?” I asked timidly. My mom nodded and lifted me up. I went and washed my face, hands, and brushed my teeth. I kept having to wash my hands, though, because I kept sneezing out thick mucus and debris onto my hands. My mom didn’t seem to care how gross it was, though, and neither did the doctor, Jazzy, Usher, my grandparents, or Scooter, apparently. I finally went back to the couch, and Jazzy came back on my stomach.

“Are you gonna puke again, Bieber?” she asked.

“Oh, gosh, I hope not,” I answered.

“Yeah, I was sittin’ right here when you was pukin’ but then Grandma woke up and she picked me up and brung me away from you so you could puke,” she said. I nodded.

“Then what happened?” I asked, sniffling.

“Then the doctor came and told us to go in the back and we did and I asked Grandma what they was doin’ and she said they was vacuuming you and I asked why and they said cause you couldn’t breathe so they was takin’ all the stuff out and I said okay and then we went back up front cause the doctor left and you was asleep so then Grandma and Grandpa and Usher went into Ryan’s bus so they wouldn’t wake you up and I hads to be real quiet,” she said, using her little language that’s so adorable. I nodded and coughed into my right hand.

“Why you keep doin’ that, Bieber?” she asked.

“Because Bieber has Pneumonia,” Scooter replied.

“What’s Pnoomona?” she asked, pronouncing the word so wrong that I cracked up, but it ended in a nasty cough into again my right hand.

“Pneumonia is when you get your lungs infected,” Scooter said.

“Ew,” Jazzy said.

“I know, right?” I said weakly.

“It’s not gross,” Scooter said.

“Yeah, and apparently neither is the Sinus Infection,” I said.

“Well, it’s not. You can’t help it,” Scooter said. I sighed.

“Well, it’s embarrassing,” I countered.

“Okay, I’ll give you that. I can see where that would be embarrassing,” Scooter agreed. I nodded.

“But what can you do about it? At least we don’t care,” he said. I nodded, my eyes drooping suddenly.

“Yeah, that really helps,” I mumbled sleepily.

“You tired again?” Scooter asked. I nodded weakly.

“Goodnight, Bieber!” Jazzy said, kissing my cheek. I kissed her forehead.

“Goodnight, Babygirl,” I said weakly, then closed my eyes and surrendered.

E n d

S c o o t e r

The room was silent for a couple minutes until Jazzy spoke.

“Bieber sleeping,” she whispered. I nodded and put my finger to my lips to signal to be quiet. In the dead silence, you could plainly hear Justin’s labored, congested breathing as he tried to force air through the fluid and mucus and most likely aspirated puke in his lungs. Oh wait, they suctioned that out. He coughed slightly, his mouth still closed, and it sounded phlemy and absolutely horrible. He quickly broke into a mild coughing fit, uncovered in his sleep. Jazzy sat on his stomach, watching him.

“Why Bieber no cover his mouth?” she asked.

“He does. He’s just asleep, so he doesn’t know he’s coughing,” I answered quietly. She nodded, satisfied with my answer. I reached out and stroked his cheek once he stopped coughing; I genuinely believe you could fry an egg on his blazing skin. He was pale, with a hot pink tint on his nose and cheeks. He had dark circles underneath his eyes, and his eyes were puffy and red from crying and him rubbing them. His teeth chattered a little bit in his sleep, and he shivered violently, even though he was covered in at least 3 blankets. If you looked at him sideways, you could see the slightly raised bumps below and above his eyes from the severe Sinus Infection he’s battling. He’s got some kind of infection ranging from right above his eyes all the way to his stomach; that’s gotta be miserable! My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I answered it quickly.

“Hello?” I answered quietly.

“Hey, man! Is Justin up for some X-Box? I’m on my way over. See you in a sec!” Ryan said, then hung up quickly. I stared at the phone. Um…what??? There was a knock on the door, and Pattie answered it.

“Hey!” Ryan said, and I saw Justin’s eyes open slowly.

“Hey, buddy, go back to sleep…if you can. It’s just Ryan,” I said softly. Pattie, for whatever reason, let Ryan in.

“Hey, man, why are you still sleeping?” Ryan asked. Justin coughed a couple times, then lurched to the side. He threw up pure blood this time, coughing constantly. He made it into the trash can, but soon he was sobbing at the same time. Ryan looked shocked. I rubbed Justin’s back and held the trashcan for him until he finally managed to stop and take a breath without aspirating what he was coughing up. He burst into hysterical tears and locked eyes with me. I could plainly read the misery and pain in his eyes. Pattie came and wiped his mouth with a paper towel and tried to soothe him.

“Shh, it’s alright, baby, you’re fine,” she said softly, brushing his hair out of his face. He laid back and closed his eyes again. Jazzy went and kissed his cheek once more, then whispered something into his ear that made him smile. He gently stroked her hair, and she laid down with her head on his chest.

“Bieber, what happened to you ocean? It sounds weird,” Jazzy said. Pattie and I were immediately worried.

“Shh, Jazzy, be quiet for a second,” Pattie said. Jazzy went silent, and we could all hear Justin’s shallow wheezes as he struggled to get air in instead of mucus and fluid. He laid back weakly, his chest heaving up and down much more than it should; he was struggling.

“Um, should we call the doctor?” I asked. Pattie shrugged. Ryan, who’s usually loud and hyper, was completely still and dead silent.

“What…happened?” he asked quietly.

“He has Double Pneumonia,” I answered.

“Momma,” Justin said quietly.

“Yeah, baby?” Pattie answered, worried.

“It hurts,” he said, his voice cracking and a small sob escaping.

“Where?” Pattie asked. Justin pointed to the space above and below his eyes, his throat, and his entire chest. He then let out a harsh, nasty cough into his right hand. Pattie looked at me, and I shrugged.

“I guess we could try with the medicine,” I said quietly.

“Why aren’t y’all giving him medicine?” Ryan asked, shocked.

“Because he just throws it up and aspirates it,” I answered. He cringed.

“Ryan, I’m really sorry, but do you think we could be alone for a second? I really don’t mean to be rude and kick you out, but I kind of need to talk to Scooter alone,” Pattie said. Ryan nodded quickly.

“Oh, yeah, it’s fine. I totally understand, believe me,” he said, then quickly left. The moment he did, Justin started crying hysterically. He had been holding back his tears and God knows what else with Ryan there. I stroked his cheek and sat next to him on the couch. He coughed a couple times, then choked. I held the trashcan for him as he coughed up more fluid from his lungs. I’m starting to get a little scared. Last night, I researched Double Pneumonia and fluid in the lungs, and it said that sometimes, the lungs will fill completely to the point where the person basically drowns in their own body fluids. When Justin finally stopped coughing, he started to uncover himself.

“You have to use the bathroom?” Pattie asked. He nodded. Jazzy climbed off of him and just sat on the couch.

“You know, you’re a really good kid,” I said to her. She smiled.

“Thank you,” she said shyly. I smiled back. But her smile quickly faded.

“Is Bieber going to die?” she asked, tears filling her eyes.

“Oh, no, he’s gonna be just fine,” I reassured. She nodded, but a couple tears fell anyway. I reached out and wiped them with my thumb, then gently pulled her onto my lap.

“Don’t worry, he’s really gonna be okay,” I said soothingly. She nodded.

“I just scared for Bieber,” she said, a sob breaking her voice. I wiped more tears.

“He’s gonna be fine. You wanna help him, though?” I asked. She nodded and sat up straight, looking me in the eyes.

“Don’t cry. Be strong and happy. It’ll help him okay?” I said, wiping the last of her tears. She nodded and stopped crying.

“Be strong for Bieber,” she repeated. I nodded.

“Yup. It makes him smile, which makes him feel better,” I said. She nodded again and hugged me, then climbed back onto the couch. I swear, Pattie is the best mother ever. She raises the sweetest, most mature kids I’ve ever seen in my life. I soon heard Justin coughing hard and sobbing from the bathroom.

“It’s alright, baby, it’s fine. Calm down, Sweetheart,” I heard Pattie say. He must have thrown up again.

“I’m gonna go check on your brother. You stay here, okay?” I said to Jazzy. She nodded. I got up and went into the bathroom, where I found my suspicions were correct. Justin had thrown up all over himself and a little bit on the floor, but mainly himself. He was crying hysterically and apologizing over and over and over in between sobs.

“Shh, c’mere,” I said softly. He slowly came over to me, and I quickly stripped his clothes off while Pattie cleaned up the floor.

“Pattie, should I keep his shorts on or no?” I asked, looking at Justin.

“Um, I’ll do it,” she said. I nodded and just took Justin’s shirt off. He was still covered in his own puke, though, and sobbing uncontrollably, which was making him cough more and his nose to run. I got a tissue and gently wiped his nose. His breath hitched, and I passed him another tissue, which he held to his face just in time.

“Hupshh!! Husshh!! Hupshh!!” He sneezed three times wetly into the tissue, then threw the tissue away. I passed him another tissue and he blew his nose, then wiped it again and threw that tissue away also. By that time, Pattie had finished cleaning up the floor, and I went and got him a clean change of clothes while she stripped his clothes off and gave him a quick bath. Like always, he calmed down as soon as he was submerged in the warm water. The warmth also seemed to open up his chest a little. He was coughing constantly, and sneezing every two seconds as well.

“Honey, I can’t give you your allergy medicine. You’ll just throw it up,” Pattie said sympathetically after Justin asked her to make it stop. He nodded solemnly as his eyes closed again and his shallow breath hitched. He let out a wet triple, and Pattie blessed him and cleaned him up again. He brought his right hand up to his mouth and coughed a couple times, then sneezed twice. His sneezes sounded harsh and juicy, like a really wet sneeze and a really dry, painful cough mixed. I was overcome with sympathy as I watched his suffer. I saw his visible abs clenching and relaxing with every sneeze and cough. Soon I felt someone tug lightly on my pants and I heard a little voice.

“Scooter?” I looked down and picked Jazzy up.

“Yeah?” I asked.

“Where’s Bieber?” she asked quietly, sounding worried. As if on cue, Justin coughed some more, and she looked towards the tub. Pattie was blocking both our views of Justin’s…lower half, thank goodness. That kind of stuff is always awkward.

“Mama givin’ Bieber a bath?” Jazzy asked. I nodded.

“Why?” she asked.

“Because Bieber puked all over himself,” I answered quietly. Justin looked up at me, then broke into a little smile.

“You make it sound like I’m drunk, Scooter,” he said weakly. I laughed a little. Justin tried to, but ended up coughing again. After he stopped coughing, he kept his hand to his face and let out a harsh triple sneeze.

“Bless you,” I said softly. He nodded and sneezed again.

“Bless you,” I repeated. He nodded, but kept his hand there. In fact, he brought his other hand to his face and cupped both hands over his nose and mouth.

“Huktshoo!! Huh-kutshhoo!! Huhktshh!! Huhktshh!!!” He whimpered, and I could tell he wasn’t finished.

“Why Bieber sneezing so much?” Jazzy asked me as Justin let out three more.

“Because he has allergies and we can’t give him his allergy medicine because he’ll just throw it up,” I answered honestly. She nodded.

“What time is it?” she asked.

“Um…probably around 10:30. Have you eaten breakfast yet?” I asked. She shook her head “no.”

“You hungry?” I asked. As if on cue, her stomach growled, and she giggled.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” I said, bringing her up front.

“You like pancakes?” I asked.

“I love pancakes,” she said. I laughed a little bit and took out the griddle. I started to cook for her, and she sat at the table and talked to me. It always surprises me as to how smart Pattie’s children are. I mean, they’re like geniuses! Even though Jazzy still uses that little kid language, she communicates like an adult. I cooked her a couple dollar pancakes and put them on a plate, then buttered them and gave them to her.

“Now, watch this,” I said, smiling. I got a bag of chocolate chips out of the freezer and sprinkled a couple on top while the pancakes were still hot. She smiled. I then got the can of whipped cream and she smiled wider. I squirted a nice size swirl of whipped cream on top, then added even more chocolate chips. I then poured syrup over the whole thing, then cut it up for her. She giggled and thanked me, then dug in. Pattie came up front and set Justin, who was already dressed and half asleep, on the couch.

“Whatcha eatin’, Boo?” she asked Jazzy.

“Pancakes,” she answered, eating another bite. Pattie came a little closer and stopped in her tracks. She then looked up at me, her eyebrows raised.

“What are you giving my daughter?” she asked, smiling.

“Sugar,” I answered simply, smiling myself. She cracked up and came closer.

“Jazz, what is that?”

“What is what?” Justin asked, turning to look at us.

“I made your sister pancakes,” I said.

“Yeah, with chocolate chips, whipped cream, syrup, and more chocolate chips,” Pattie said. Jazzy nodded and took another bite.

“It’s good,” she said. Justin laughed, then coughed a couple times. He turned back and laid back down. I went over by Justin and sat next to him on the couch. He sniffled and looked up at me.

“Hey,” I said, smiling. He smiled a little.

“Aye.”

“You feeling better? You seem happy,” I observed. He shook his head.

“I feel like crap,” he said, quiet enough that only I heard it. I felt his forehead and was alarmed at how much hotter it had gotten. I grabbed the thermometer and took his temperature.

“Oh my gosh, Justin!!” I exclaimed when I pulled the thermometer out and looked at it.

“What?” he asked before sneezing four times.

“Bless you. It’s freaking 104.7!!”

“What?!” Pattie said, getting up immediately and coming over here by us. I showed her the thermometer. She looked at it, felt Justin’s forehead, then shook her head. She handed me the thermometer and felt Justin’s forehead and cheeks, then lifted up his shirt a little and laid her hand on his chest.

“Whoa, Mom,” Justin said weakly.

“Justin…” Pattie started, but seemed at a loss of words. She took her hand out from under his shirt and put his shirt back, then felt his forehead again.

“Are you hot?” she asked.

“No, I’m freezing!” Justin exclaimed. Pattie looked at me.

“Should we call the doctor?” she asked, worried. I nodded.

“Probably a good idea.” She got up and called the doctor. When she got off the phone, she went and got a pill out of one of the bottles of prescriptions the doctor gave Justin. Then she opened another one and got another pill out. Then she got him two Tylenol pills and a glass of water. She came over to him and knelt down at his level.

“Alright, baby. The doctor said to give you the medicine to sleep and let you sleep for a while. He said to give you Tylenol and the antibiotics and just let you sleep, okay?” she said to Justin. Justin nodded.

“What if I puke it?” he asked. She shook her head.

“You won’t. You’ll be asleep,” Pattie said. Justin nodded and sneezed a couple times.

“Huh-ktshoo!! Huhkshoo!! Huhktshh!! Huhktshh!!! Huh! Hushhoo!! Hukshoo!!”

“Bless you. While we’re at it, lemme get your allergy medicine, too,” Pattie said. She handed him the glass of water and the four pills and I helped him take them while she got his allergy pill. I helped him take that, too. Afterwards he took a couple more sips of the water.

“You’re getting dehydrated, Juss,” I said, brushing my fingers through his hair. He nodded and kept drinking from the glass I held.

“Be careful, Sweetheart, you might throw that up,” Pattie warned. He pulled away from the glass for a second.

“I don’t care,” he said breathlessly, then returned and drank the rest of the glass.

“Can I have some more?” he asked once he had drank it all. I looked to Pattie. She shrugged.

“Might as well,” she said. I handed her his cup and she filled it with more ice water. She came and handed it back to me and I carefully held it to Justin’s lips and tilted it slightly. He sat up a little and leaned back on his hands, just barely supporting himself. He drank the whole thing little by little. By the time he was done, he actually looked a little better but he was out of breath. I laughed a little bit and kissed his temple.

“Thirsty?” I asked. He nodded and collapsed back onto the pillow behind him.

“The medicine’s gonna work in a couple minutes, Sweetheart, so get comfortable,” Pattie said. Justin nodded and I helped him lay flat. He coughed and sneezed a couple times, and Pattie handed me a tissue. I cleaned him up, then handed him another one. He blew his nose for a little while, then threw the tissue away along with the other one. He lay back and coughed some more, his eyelids already starting to droop heavily. He lay with his left arm propped up against the back of the couch, with his head leaning against his forearm. He quickly fell into a deep sleep in that position. I covered him with another blanket since he was shivering violently.

“Can I say goodnight to Bieber?” Jazzy asked, done with her breakfast. Pattie shrugged.

“Don’t wake him up,” she warned quietly. Jazzy nodded and climbed off her chair. She ran over to Justin, stood on her tippy toes, and kissed his cheek.

“Goodnight, Bieber,” she said quietly, then kissed his cheek again.

“The doctor said he’s not gonna wake up for anything, so I’m gonna call my parents and tell them they can come back over,” Pattie said. I nodded and got up off the couch. Pattie went into the back to call Bruce and Diane. I laid on the other couch and decided to rest for a little bit; I was up all night with Justin.

20 Minutes Later

“Scooter!” I opened my eyes slowly.

“Yeah?” I asked. Pattie pointed over to where Justin lay. Somehow, while I was sleeping and Pattie was in the back, Jazzy had managed to climb and nestle herself on top of Justin. She laid half asleep by him, her head nuzzled in his neck/chest. Pattie went over to her.

“C’mere, Boo,” she said, and tried to pick Jazzy up.

“No! I wanna stay with Bieber!” Jazzy said, and started to cry. Pattie sighed a little bit and set her back down on top of Justin.

“Alright, but be careful. And if Bieber starts throwing up, you’re gonna have to move really quick, okay?” Pattie warned. Jazzy nodded and nestled her head in the crook of Justin’s neck. Justin coughed a couple times, but Jazzy didn’t even seem to care.

“He’s gonna be coughing and sneezing a lot. You don’t care?” Pattie asked. Jazzy shook her head.

“He won’t sneeze or cough on me. I’m too low,” she said. Pattie shrugged, leaned down, and kissed her forehead.

“Alright, then. You want me to put on the TV?” she asked. Jazzy nodded. Pattie got the remote and put the TV on some kids show. She then got a sippy cup for Jazzy and filled it with juice. She gave it to her.

“Thank you, Mama,” Jazzy said.

“Sure thing, Boo,” Pattie said, using one of Jazzy’s nicknames. The other one’s Squirt. Soon Justin’s grandparents came in quietly. I talked to them for a long time. They’re pretty cool people, and they seem worried out of their minds about Justin. We all are, even Jazzy. She stayed by Justin all day and refused to leave him, even when he sneezed and I had to clean him up. She just clung to him and kissed his cheek once I finished. Justin’s grandmother told me how much Jazzy loves Justin and how she cries for him all the time. It’s so sweet how much they love each other.

10:07 P.M.

“Jazzy, you gotta take a bath,” Pattie said. Jazzy clung to Justin and whimpered.

“Bieber,” she said determinedly.

“You can come back and lay with Bieber after you take your bath. You can sleep with him tonight if you want,” Pattie said. Jazzy thought it over, then nodded and let Pattie pick her up. Pattie brought her into the back and gave her a bath, then brought her back up front.

“Do I need to give Justin a bath?” she asked me. I shrugged.

“He’s slept all day and he’s not sweating. Wait till he wakes up,” I said. She nodded. We all went one by one and took our showers and stuff. Soon everyone went to bed; Pattie in the second master bedroom, and Justin’s grandparents in the bunks. I slept again on the couch opposite Justin, and Jazzy slept on top of Justin. I covered them both and kissed Justin’s temple, then went over and kissed Jazzy’s forehead, also. She hugged me and kissed my cheek back. She’s such a loving kid. I laid down on the couch opposite them, covered myself, and went to sleep.

[purpleninja]

also, I have another story for you guys!! This one's totally allergies...and a lot of hurt/comfort and stuff. Do you want it?? If so, any title ideas???

[ThatSneezyGirl]

I totally want it! What exactly is about?

[Bgrace27]

OMG. i dont care how long it has taken this is soo good please keep going!

[purpleninja]

okay, guys!! I know it's been a while, and I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO sorry!! I just now got the chance to post. Hopefully I'll get another chance soon. Been having some problems with the forum and my internet.

Also! This is a very important chapter! WARNING!! There might be puke. There is blood, and other bodily fluids. Don't worry, though, the rest I can edit out! This is the last of the puke, I think!!!

11:27 P.M.

“Scooter!” I opened my eyes slowly to see Jazzy sitting up.

“Yeah, baby, whatcha need?” I asked, getting up and going over to her.

“Bieber sneezed,” she told me. I nodded, got a tissue, and cleaned him up. I threw the tissue away.

“You want something to drink?” I asked, making Justin a glass of water.

“No, thank you,” she said politely. I nodded and went back over to Justin. I sat him up and little and put the cup to his lips. I tilted it up and let some of the liquid dribble down his throat without waking him up. I must’ve tilted it too much, though, because after a couple minutes he started to choke and cough. I took the glass away quickly and patted his back until he finished. I then took a paper towel and wiped his mouth, then continued until he had taken the whole glass. After he finished, for whatever reason, his eyes opened slowly and he coughed a couple times.

“Bieber!” Jazzy said. I immediately got a pill and gave it to him.

“What’s that for?” he asked after he had taken it with some more water.

“Because you got a lot of water and a lot of medicine today, and I don’t want you to throw up again,” I said. He nodded. The pill worked, and he didn’t throw up no matter how much he coughed. He did cough up some more fluid and phlegm, but not much. His sinuses were giving him Hell, though. His nose was running rapidly, and he kept sneezing messily over and over. I gave him a couple tissues and he blew his nose a couple times. He then threw the tissues away, but his nose was still running.

“Huktshoo!” He sneezed yet again, and it was VERY messy, just like all the other ones. He sniffled, but it didn’t help a bit. I got another tissue and wiped his nose and his upper lip. His breath hitched once again, and this time I managed to cover his mouth and nose with the tissue and catch all the thick mucus and debris in the tissue.

“Huktshoo!! Huh-ktshoo!!! Huhkshh!! Huktshoo!!”

“Bless you,” I said softly. I felt the warm dampness soak through to my fingers, but I didn’t care. I’ll wait until he’s asleep and wash my hands. I got another tissue and threw the used ones away. He kept sneezing productively over and over without seeming to stop. Eventually I gave him the box of tissues and placed another small trash can next to the sofa. He laid back down and Jazzy laid down as well. He blew his nose again, then threw the tissue away. He sniffled, but didn’t sneeze again. He sighed and stroked Jazzy’s hair. She reached up and kissed his cheek. He kissed her forehead gently.

“Why you sneeze so much, Bieber?” she asked softly.

“Because he has a Sinus Infection,” I answered for Justin.

“So?” she said.

“Well, you sneeze because you have little sensors in your nose that tell your brain when you breathe in germs. Your brain then tells your nose to sneeze out the germs so you don’t get sick. But with Bieber, his sinuses are infected, so he’s got germs all over his sensors, so his brain keeps telling his nose to sneeze out the germs, but they’re not going away because he has a Sinus Infection and you can’t just sneeze that out,” I explained. She nodded.

“So Bieber’s nose isn’t working?” she asked.

“It is. It’s just the Sinus Infection’s not gonna go away just by sneezing,” Justin asked, the congestion again ever-present in his voice. He sounded miserably stuffed up. He tried to blow his nose again, but this time he was too stuffed up and just ended up sneezing a couple times.

“Bless you,” I said again. He nodded and crumpled the tissue up. He threw it away and got another one. He wiped his runny nose and sighed. His breath hitched again, and he quickly held the tissue to his face.

“Huktshoo!!! Huktshoo!!” His sneezes sounded even harsher than before. He threw away the soggy tissue and laid back. It was quiet for a couple minutes, then he suddenly sat up a little, propped up on his right elbow.

“Huh-ktshoo!! Huktshoo!! Huktshh!! Huh! HuKtshoo!!” His hand couldn’t make it in time, and he sneezed uncovered, his head pointed downward. I could plainly see the spray from his sneezes go all over the couch. He clamped his hand over his mouth and nose and caught a couple more messy sneezes. I went and got a tissue. I wiped the fine spray off the couch, then cleaned him up between messy sneezes. He kept repeatedly sneezing all the thick mucus and debris from his infected sinuses, spraying all over himself. He was too weak for his hands to make it in time a lot, so he kept sneezing all over everything; himself, his hands, the couch, himself. Jazzy had the right sense to dodge the spray that he kept trying to catch in his hands or a tissue, but failed. He laid back against the pillow I had propped him up on. I passed him a fresh tissue and he held it near his face, ready to finally catch one in the tissue like he’s supposed to. He quickly held the tissue to his face and clamped both hand over it.

“Huhktshh!!! Huktshoo!! Huktshoo!! Huhktshh!!!” He kept sneezing rapidly in uncontrollable fits for minutes without pausing. I started to count. I had counted fifty harsh, messy, congested sneezes before he finally gasped in a deep breath and started again. He had made it to at least a hundred in a row before he finally stopped and sighed. He threw away the soggy tissue and got another one. He blew his nose and wiped it, then threw that one away, too. He plucked out yet another tissue and just held on to it.

“Damn!” I said, laughing a little. He smiled weakly.

“I have never, in my entire life, seen someone sneeze so much at once! You couldn’t even get a breath in!” I said. He nodded.

“I wonder how many times,” he said weakly.

“111. I counted,” I answered. He laughed. He blew his nose again into the tissue he held, then sniffled and threw the tissue away. I helped him lay down flat, and Jazzy lay on top of him.

“Bless you, Bieber,” Jazzy said, then kissed his cheek. He chuckled a little bit.

“Times one hundred eleven,” he said weakly. I could tell he was tired and absolutely drained. He closed his eyes.

“Huh-kushoo!! Huhkushhoo!! Huhkushoo!!!” He sneezed weakly onto the back of his wrist, half uncovered. When he took his hand away, I gently wiped the spray and mucus off of his wrist, then cleaned up the rest of him.

“Lemme go see if I have anything that would help you with that,” I said, then got up. I searched the medicine cabinet while hearing Justin’s sneezing repeatedly. I eventually gave up and grabbed the thermometer; he felt even warmer.

“Sorry, bud, but they don’t make something for that,” I said, smiling a little. He smiled.

“I wouldn’t think so,” he answered before sneezing a harsh, messy triple.

“Bless you,” I said, then felt his forehead. He was shivering violently, though his forehead felt a little clammy.

“You think you can stop long enough to keep this in?” I asked, holding up the thermometer. He shook his head, but took it from me.

“Hukshoo!! HuKTshoo!! HuhKtshoo!! HuKtshoo!! Huktshh!! HuKTshh!!” I got yet another tissue and cleaned him up, then gently stuck the thermometer under his tongue. I wiped off the couch cushion where he had sneezed on it a little, then threw the tissue away. He sniffled and his breath hitched. He whimpered a little, but kept the thermometer in. Then, without opening his mouth or taking the thermometer out, he stifled a couple sneezes into his hand, without disturbing the thermometer.

“Bless you. Try not to do that too much, you’ll pop a vein,” I said, chuckling. He nodded, but stifled three more. He whimpered again, and his breath hitched. I saw him hold his breath. Finally the thermometer beeped, and he took it out immediately and held it out to me, cupping his other hand over his mouth and nose.

“Huktshoo!! Huktshoo!! Huktshh!! Hektshoo!! Hekshoo!! Hukshoo!!! Huktshh!! Huh!! Huktshhuh!! Huktshhuh!! Huktshhhuh!! Huktshoo!!!” He stifled four more sneezes, then finally stopped and sighed heavily. I passed him another tissue, and he cleaned himself up, blew his nose, then threw it away.

“Oh my gosh!!!” I said, my jaw dropping as I looked down at the little thermometer screen.

“Whad?” Justin asked, his voice even more congested than before.

“Justin…it’s 105.1!!” I exclaimed. He looked at me, confused. I felt his forehead.

“I’m going to get your mom, okay?” I said. He nodded, looking scared. I kissed his temple.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine,” I said, but I didn’t sound too reassuring. I went and woke up Pattie, and the moment she saw the thermometer she went up front and called the doctor. Justin kept sneezing and coughing repeatedly while she called. Once she got off the phone, she looked at me, then Justin, then back at me.

“Why’s he sneezing so much?” she asked me, confused. I shrugged.

“I don’t know, but he won’t stop,” I said. She shrugged.

“Anyway, they wanna run some tests on him,” she said softly so Jazzy and Justin couldn’t hear.

“Like, the hospital?” I asked in a low voice. She nodded.

“He said to get him there ASAP. They’re expecting us,” she said. I nodded.

“He said to give him a whole pill and knock him out good,” she said softly. I nodded.

“Bieber’s throwing up!” Jazzy said loudly, and we both snapped to attention. I rushed over to Justin and sat on the edge of the couch next to him. He had managed to make it in the little trash can next to the sofa. He stopped for a couple seconds, and I picked up the trashcan and held it closer as he started again. Suddenly, while coughing violently at the same time and coughing up phlegm, blood, and fluid, his breath hitched sharply. My face crumpled a little in sympathy. I got a tissue two seconds two late. He had already sneezed messily and was again coughing up fluid and stuff, so I couldn’t really clean him up. I rubbed his back in large circles, and he seemed to stop. He stopped, breathing heavy, long enough for me to wipe his nose and throw the tissue away. I could tell he wasn’t done, though, and soon he started coughing again. I rubbed his back in large circles, and soon a lot of water, Gatorade, and bile starting coming up as well.

“Calm down, calm down, do not aspirate it,” I said slowly. He nodded and managed to stop coughing long enough to be able to take a breath through his nose. Unfortunately, though, his nose was so blocked he couldn’t breathe through it, and I realized he had no choice but to aspirate it.

“Calm down, buddy. Do not take a breath,” I said. He nodded, but started to sweat and panic. He was quickly running out of air, though, and he started to cry.

“I know, I know. Try to stop throwing up,” I said. He nodded a little and managed to stop just long enough to suck in a big breath of air and start coughing violently again. I rubbed his back hard as Pattie got him a glass of water and a whole pill to knock him out so we can bring him to the hospital. I started to panic a little when he ran out of breath again, but this time he went until his lips starting to turn purple. I tried to get him to stop throwing up, but eventually he just gave up and sucked in another big breath, aspirating his puke again. I rubbed his back harder as he choked on his own fluids. After about 20 minutes, he stopped throwing up and was just coughing violently without stopping. I rubbed his back and soothed him until he stopped. Pattie came over and wiped his mouth with a paper towel, then wiped his nose, which was running. He was crying hysterically and went right back to sneezing. He was sneezing all over himself, spraying himself repeatedly with the fine mist from his sneezes. I got him a tissue and held it to his face for him, and he soon took it and held it himself. He sneezed messily over and over and over. Eventually he slowed down, and Pattie gave him the medicine to sleep. Justin’s grandparents took Jazzy in the back with them, and we got dressed and ready to leave. Justin was in a t-shirt and basketball shorts, so we didn’t bother to change him. He fell asleep quickly, and we wasted no time getting him in the car and speeding off to the hospital. Once we got there and I carried him inside, we were met by a team of doctors and nurses who were waiting for us. One of the nurses took Justin from me, and they immediately started asking me questions while Pattie went and signed in at the desk.

“How long has he been sick?” a nurse asked me.

“About 9 or 10 days,” I answered, eyeing the nurses behind her, who were inserting an IV in Justin’s left hand and putting an oxygen mask over his face.

“I got a temp of 105.2!!” one of the nurses called out. They immediately started giving Justin random shots and everything; shooting medicine into his IV or just injecting it straight into his skin. They started a bunch of IV drip bags of various fluids and stuff.

“He’s extremely dehydrated!” another nurse called. I answered the nurse’s questions absent-mindedly, rattling off his allergies, his birth date, and other information like that. The nurses and doctors kept working on Justin right in the middle of the hallway. They gave him a shot to make him stop throwing up and another one to lower his fever quickly. Soon the nurse stopped asking me questions, and I followed the team as they wheeled Justin to a private room. I stopped and told Pattie where they were taking him, and she nodded. Unfortunately, since there were huge glass doors at the entrance to the hospital, a bunch of paparazzi had gotten a lot of good pictures of what the team was doing to Justin, and me talking to the nurse. They also, unfortunately, got pictures and videos of Justin coughing up more shit in his sleep and a nurse holding a little bin under his chin and supporting him so he didn’t aspirate that, also. Once we were in the room, a lot of the doctors and nurses left, leaving just one main doctor and two nurses. One of the nurses took Justin’s pulse and blood pressure, and another one gave him a couple more shots into a port in his IV. The doctor listened to his lungs, then immediately brought him out for X-Rays. He took a bunch of X-Rays of his chest, then a couple X-Rays and an MRI of his head, to see his Sinuses. They wheeled Justin back in and suctioned out his chest again while he slept. Pattie came in just as the doctor walked back in with a little stack of X-Ray sheet-things. He put a couple up on the little board and turned the light on. We could see a clear picture of Justin’s lungs, but with milky, cloudy white blotches all over them and all over the top little tubes. The doctor pointed out the severely infected spots, then even showed us where he had excess fluid, blood, and phlegm in his lungs. He then showed us the X-Ray of Justin’s sinuses. It was a clear picture of his skull, but there were four large white blotches where his sinuses are.

“As you can see, he’s totally blocked,” the doctor said, comparing Justin’s X-Rays with an X-Ray of normal sinuses. He then compared the chest X-Ray, and the difference was shocking.

“Now, this fluid issue is just going to get worse unless we drain it now. Draining it would require putting him under general anesthesia and inserting a tube into both lungs and draining the fluid and junk,” the doctor said. We both nodded. Pattie signed a couple consent forms, then an Anesthesiologist came in with an oxygen tank and stuff. They connected Justin to a heart monitor and a pulse oximeter. Then the anesthesiologist woke Justin up.

“Alright, I just needed to make sure you woke up. Now, I’m gonna put you back to sleep, and when you wake up, you’re gonna have a couple tubes in you. It’s gonna be fine. You’ll be asleep the whole time, and when you wake up, you won’t be able to feel the tubes at all. Okay?” the doctor said. Justin nodded weakly and coughed a couple times into his right hand. His cough sounded even worse; he sounds absolutely horrible!!! The doctor placed the mask over his face, and in seconds Justin was out cold. Pattie and I stood and watched as a nurse took 7 syringes and went over by Justin. She looked to us.

“Um, we’re gonna have to cut his shirt off. Is that okay?” she said. Pattie nodded, and they quickly cut his shirt of his body. The nurse wiped down his entire chest with an antiseptic wipe, then took the first syringe and uncapped it. She stuck the small needle into his chest and inserted the medicine. She then took a gauze pad and placed it over the needle as she took it out. She then taped the gauze pad to his skin. She did this with all seven, spread out all over his chest.

“This is gonna numb him up so he won’t feel a thing when he wakes up,” she said. We both nodded. After she had given him all the shots, she took the gauze off and swabbed iodine all over his chest. The doctors then came in with a bunch of medical tubing and stuff.

“We’re gonna do this here because he can’t make it to the OR,” the doctor said. Pattie and I both nodded, getting a little scared. The doctor then took a scalpel and sliced open the skin on the side of his chest, under his arm and down a little. Pattie and I both cringed as a nurse soaked up the blood with a sterile rag. Another nurse came and put some blankets on top of Justin, but just up to his waist. Then the doctor took out a huge steel contraption, and Pattie’s jaw dropped.

“I’m gonna have to break a couple of his ribs, but they’ll heal,” he said. Pattie nodded slightly, in shock. She looked away, but I watched, cringing, as the doctor stuck the metal contraption into his chest. There was a sickening cracking sound as he split open Justin’s rib cage. He then pierced Justin’s left lung with a large needle, and a bunch of fluid and blood came gushing out.

“Oh gosh!!” the doctor said. He quickly inserted the tube and sewed up the hole around it. He then placed his rib cage back together and adhered it. He held the skin together, and another doctor came and stapled his skin together. I felt sick to my stomach as I watched them do the same thing on the other side. I told Pattie when it was over, and she was crying when she turned back. The nurses and cleaning staff cleaned up all the blood and fluid and stuff that had come out of Justin’s infected lung. Justin had tubes coming out of both sides of his chest, attached to little bags that were already filling with blood and milky fluid. He was on a ventilator for the time being, and he had staples in both sides. The doctor came and talked to us about how Justin would have to be very, very, VERY careful when he went home because his entire ribcage had been split in two. He then told us about pain management and stuff like that. He also told us we’d have to cancel the tour because it’s going to take a while for Justin to recover enough to just stand, let alone perform or sing.

The Next Morning

“It’s all canceled,” I told Pattie, walking into Justin’s hospital room. She nodded, holding Justin’s hand. He was still on the ventilator and in an induced coma while his lungs drained completely. I went and sat next to her. A nurse came and emptied out Justin’s drainage bags again. Justin started to cough, but the tube was in his way. His chest heaved unnaturally as he tried to cough. There was a cracking sound, and the nurse gasped, quickly finished changing his bags, then pressed a button on the wall that called for more doctors and nurses. A whole team came in, and they quickly took Justin’s breathing tube out. He immediately started coughing violently, but wasn’t getting any more air in. The doctors started yelling out different things as the heart monitor started beeping loudly; the oxygen line was flat. The pulse oximeter machine started beeping as well. The doctor started to intubate Justin again, but couldn’t get the tube down.

“He’s blocked!” he yelled, then took the tube out quickly. A nurse handed him a scalpel, and he tilted Justin’s head back and sliced a small hole in his neck, then opened up his windpipe. He inserted a tracheotomy tube, then a nurse connected an Ambu bag to the trach. She began breathing for Justin, and the monitors stopped beeping and went back to normal. Another nurse got another tube ready, and they quickly switched out from an Ambu bag to a ventilator. The doctor then carefully stitched up the hole around the tracheotomy tube and put a dressing on it. A nurse changed the dressings on his chest tubes, then everything calmed down. I realized I had been gripping Pattie’s hand tightly, and I let go awkwardly. She squeezed my hand reassuringly and I smiled a little bit.

E n d

P a t t i e

I watched as the doctors and nurses slowly filtered out of the room. It hurts so badly to see my baby looking so small and weak in the bed, connected to countless tubes and wires and having a tube in his neck breathing for him. They said he would wake up in a couple days, and they couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t be in pain. They also said he’s gonna be sicker than he’s ever been in his entire life. Two nurses came in suddenly, one with a blanket, and another with a little tray on wheels. The nurse came and covered him with the blanket, which they warm up somewhere before covering him. He’s shivering violently from his dangerously high fever. She smiled a little at us, then left. The other nurse took his right arm, which was all bruised from all the shots they’ve been giving him, like his left. She held it out and tied a tourniquet around his upper arm.

“We’re gonna take some blood tests to see why he’s so sick,” she explained. I nodded. Scooter and I watched as she carefully took 6 full vials of blood. She then taped a gauze pad to the inside of his elbow where she had inserted the needle. She talked to us about how long Justin’s gonna be here and what we can do to make him a little more comfortable. After she talked to us, she left with the vials of blood.

4:47 P.M.

“I have the results from his blood tests,” the doctor said, knocking lightly on the door and walking in. Scooter and I immediately perked up.

sorry for the cliffy!!! I'll tell you what the results are in the next chapter!!

[Bgrace27]

Omg this is great I was actually thinking about this story today!

[purpleninja]

okay, peeps. I'm warning you. I'm not a doctor, so this may not be totally accurate.

But, the puking is over! YAYYYYYYY!!!!

“Well, Justin has had an Immune lapse. This is when, for whatever reason, his Immune System just shuts down. Fortunately, this is easily treatable, but there is a great risk for this happening again in the future,” the doctor said. I nodded.

“So, since his Immune System’s been shut down, all the viruses he’s been exposed to, he’s picked up. We can treat this with a blood transfusion and vitamin A, and antibiotics for a while. With time, and rest, his Immune System will strengthen, but he’s going to be very, very sick until then,” the doctor said. I nodded.

“When can he go home?” I asked.

“Well, first he has to wake up from the anesthesia, then his lungs have to get at least a little bit better, then we’re going to do the blood transfusion and let him go home after that. We’re gonna send him home with a couple IV’s and a bunch of bags of vitamin A drips. You’re gonna have to change the drip bags, change his IV’s, and inject him with antibiotics and such. We’ll show you how to do everything,” the doctor explained. I nodded, cringing at the thought of sticking my son with needles. The doctor sat down and talked to me for a long time about the countless medicines Justin will be on when he gets home, and how to administer them. He gave me an orange to practice sticking needles into, and also taught Scooter. He taught us both how to change the dressing on Justin’s chest incisions and the incision on his neck from his tracheostomy. He taught us everything we’ll need to know for when Justin comes home.

“Now all we have to do is wait for him to wake up,” the doctor said. I nodded.

Four Days Later

Over the past five days, we’ve become great friends with the entire medical staff that’s been caring for Justin.

“Usher called me. He said Jazzy’s been crying for Justin a lot,” Scooter said. I frowned.

“I have to go back there tonight to get some more clothes for you and me, so I’ll talk to her then,” I said. Scooter nodded. Suddenly Justin began to cough, something he hasn’t done since they put the trach in. His eyes opened slowly, and he immediately burst into tears.

“Shh, baby, it’s alright, you’re okay,” I said, wiping his tears while Scooter went and got a nurse. The doctor and a nurse came in and quickly removed Justin’s tracheostomy tube, then sewed up his windpipe and his skin. Justin was sobbing hysterically. The nurse gave him some pain medicine through his IV, and it started to kick in and he calmed down. She then pulled the pile of blankets he’s buried in down to his waist. Goosebumps appeared on his skin and he started crying again.

“I know, Hon, I’m so sorry. This is gonna make you feel a whole lot better, though,” the nurse said, then another nurse came in with a tray. She changed Justin’s dressings, then grabbed a roll of stretchy gauze of the tray. She pushed the button and lowered Justin’s bed so he was laying flat. The other nurse came and lifted him up a little, then held his tubes and his broken ribcage into place while the other nurse wrapped the gauze tightly around his torso.

“Honey, I need you to stop crying, you’re stressing the fractures,” the nurse said. Justin nodded and held his breath a little until he calmed down. The nurse wrapped the whole roll around him until the bandage was thick. She then took a metal plate off the tray.

“Alright, this is gonna keep your ribcage straight and together and lined up while it heals, okay?” she said. Justin nodded. She fitted two plates to his back and his chest, then wrapped more gauze around them until they were held tight. She then wrapped an Ace bandage around his torso and pinned it right on his chest.

“There you go, hon, it shouldn’t hurt at all now. We’re gonna fit you with a brace that you’re gonna go home with that will make sure it heals in the right position,” the nurse said. Justin nodded and wiped his tears. The plates were shaped to the curvature of his back, so he could lie down and sit up comfortably. He pressed the button on the side of the bed and sat up slightly, then laid back against the pillow. He had holes cut in the Ace bandage and the gauze and gaps in the plates for the tubes to fit through, even though his lungs weren’t draining much anymore.

“They’re maybe gonna take the tubes out tonight,” I said softly, stroking his blazing cheek. He nodded, still crying a little.

“Jazzy’s been crying for you,” I said softly. He smiled a little bit.

“How are you feeling, baby?” I asked. He shrugged.

“Horrible,” he answered quietly.

“What hurts?” I asked. He pointed to his head, his sinuses, his throat, and his entire chest. I stroked his cheek a little more.

“Your fever’s 103.8,” I said. He nodded.

“You’re getting there,” Scooter said.

“What happened?” he asked.

“You had an Immune Lapse, Sweetheart. Your Immune System shut down,” I said. He nodded.

“They’re gonna fix it, though, don’t worry,” Scooter said as Justin started to cry again.

“When can I go home?” he asked.

“Well, Sweetheart, we had to cancel the tour. You’re not gonna be able to do it. But you’ll hopefully be able to go back to Atlanta in a couple days. They said they’re gonna airlift you since it’s only from Tennessee to Georgia,” I told him. He nodded.

“When can I see Grandma and Grandpa and Jazzy?” he asked through his tears.

“I’ll go call them right now, hon,” I said. He nodded and sobbed a little bit. He then brought his right hand up to his face and coughed a couple times, then cried out.

“It hurts!” he moaned when he stopped coughing and I asked him what happened. He launched into an involuntary coughing fit, the crackling sound even worse than before. He started crying hysterically, which was making him cough more. He couldn’t stop and it was hurting him so badly. Finally after a few minutes he stopped coughing, but was still crying uncontrollably. A nurse came in and gave him a breathing treatment, which made him stop coughing. I went and called my parents.

E n d

J u s t i n

I have never felt so awful in my entire life. I’m freezing, my head hurts, my sinuses hurt, my throat hurts, my chest hurts SO BADLY, and all my incisions hurt, as well as the tubes in my chest. Everything hurts. Whenever I cough I can feel the tubes move and it hurts really bad. Scooter soothed me, and I eventually stopped crying. I suddenly sneezed messily, and it both felt and sounded exactly like a cough.

“Bless you,” Scooter said softly as I cried more from the pain it caused. He took a tissue and cleaned me up, then wiped off my hand with a wet wipe. I laid back and closed my eyes as he traced the planes of my face again.

3 Hours Later

“How’s he doing?” I woke up slowly, my eyes still closed.

“He’s been asleep for a while,” I heard my mom say.

“Bieber?” I heard Jazzy say in a small voice; she sounds terrified. I soon heard her start to cry softly.

“What’s wrong with Bieber?” she asked, her voice shaking.

“He’s alright, baby, he’s just sick,” my mom said. I kept my eyes closed and listened to my mom tell my grandmother everything the doctors did and said.

“No, Honey, don’t touch those,” I heard my mom say, and I felt someone touch the tube coming out of my right lung. I gasped as a sharp pain shot through my entire chest as the tube moved just a little. My eyes flew open and I burst into hysterical tears, sitting up a little and holding the tube gently. I pressed my hand to my side, the tube in between my fingers.

“Owwwwww!!!” I cried hysterically, feeling the shooting pain from my throat and chest, and the aching pain in my sinuses. I laid back, sobbing and breathing heavy.

“I hurt Bieber??” Jazzy asked, about to cry again herself.

“It’s fine, Babygirl,” I said through my tears.

“I sorry, Bieber!” she said. I shook my head.

“It’s alright,” I said, starting to calm down as the pain faded. I tried to reach over and pick her up, but just moving sent shooting pains throughout my entire torso and head. I turned back and closed my eyes, struggling not to cry again. My mom called for the nurse. I asked Scooter to put Jazzy on the bed, and he did hesitantly. Jazzy carefully hugged me gently. I kissed her forehead as she cried, her tears running down my neck and chest. I rubbed her back and soothed her.

“It’s fine, I’m alright,” I said.

“Are you gonna die, Bieber?” she asked, sitting up and looking me in the eyes. I shook my head.

“No,” I said. She nodded a little. I forced a smile, even though I’m in excruciating pain from the littlest of touches. The nurse came in, and Scooter held Jazzy while she numbed my chest with seven different shots. I got used to the pricks of needles in my thin skin. After my chest was numb, Jazzy came and laid back down on me. The nurse started a blood transfusion, and Jazzy and I both took a nap while the transfusion finished.

The Next Morning

“Yeah, and Justin’s maybe gonna be airlifted today.” I woke up when I heard my name. Jazzy was still asleep in my arms. The shots had worn off and I was in pain, but not nearly as much as yesterday. I opened my eyes and looked around. I still feel absolutely awful; worse than I’ve ever felt in my life.

“Hey, Honey. They’re gonna take the tubes out in a couple minutes, okay?” my mom said. I nodded. She took Jazzy from me, and a couple nurses came and started to wheel me out.

“Wait, where am I going?” I asked weakly.

“To the operating room. You’re gonna have the tubes taken out and they’re gonna fuse your ribcage back together,” the nurse answered. I burst into tears.

“No!” I sobbed. They stopped wheeling me, and the nurse came around to face me. She looked concerned.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Take me back, please!!” I begged.

“Honey, I can’t. You have to go in,” she said sympathetically. I cried harder.

“Please! I wanna see my mom,” I pleaded. The two nurses looked at each other.

“Go tell his mother to get in scrubs and sterilize. I’ll ask the doctor if she can stay with him in the OR until he’s asleep,” one nurse said to the other. The other nurse nodded and left, and the nurse kept wheeling me. I kept crying, getting more and more hysterical the closer we got. I started to cough and sneeze repeatedly; I was getting myself worked up. I didn’t care. I wanted my mom and I was scared, in pain, and I didn’t feel good. The nurse handed me another tissue.

“Bless you, Hon. Calm down, Sweetie, you’ll do fine,” she said, wheeling me into the OR. I saw the team of doctors and nurses and started to freak out again.

“No! Please, no!!” I begged. I wiped my nose with the tissue as I felt it running. The doctors and nurses looked sympathetic. The OR was really cold, and I started shivering more and crying harder. They wheeled me to the center of the room. A nurse came out of another room and laid another warmed blanket on me, and I was a lot more comfortable. I started to give up, though I’m still terrified. I began to whimper and ask for my mom over and over.

“Momma,” I whimpered yet again, my lower lip trembling as a sob escaped.

“Shh, honey, she’s coming,” the nurse said. She began to talk to me, trying to distract me, but she couldn’t. I kept coughing and sneezing over and over, and eventually she just cleaned me up herself. She seemed really sympathetic. After about 15 minutes, my mom came in with scrubs on.

“Hi, Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” she asked softly.

“I’m scared,” I admitted, letting a small sob escape.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, I’m right here. I’ll be here when you wake up,” she said. I nodded, but kept crying. She stroked my cheek as the nurse injected come medicine into my IV to make me calm down. I stopped crying after a little bit. I was still sneezing and coughing a lot, though, and the doctors talking about the risks of me sneezing during surgery was just making me even more scared.

E n d

[purpleninja]

will probably be posting tomorrow!

[ThatSneezyGirl]

Hey! Sorry I haven't been on lately... I've been grounded but I still love this story and I will try to update my stories as soon as possible but technically I'm still grounded so it might take awhile

[purpleninja]

Hey, guys!! I am SOOOO sorry it's been so long! Been having a bunch of problems with the forum and my internet Hopefully I'll be back for good now, though

P a t t i e

Right when Justin wasn’t looking, the anesthesiologist slipped the mask over his flushed, tear-stained face. He was out in seconds.

2 Hrs Later

I followed the nurse back to recovery, where Justin is. He hasn’t woken up yet, but she says it should be any minute now.

“Now, he’s gonna be pretty tired for a little bit, but it’ll wear off,” the nurse said. I nodded and held his hand, gently stroking the back of his ice cold hand, still making sure not to screw up his IV. The nurse came and gently took his hand from me.

“Sorry, I don’t know why they didn’t secure this like they’re supposed to,” she said. She took a roll of medical tape and curled the tubing a little, then taped it to his wrist. She taped it down a little higher.

“There we go. That had to hurt, poor baby,” she said. I gently took his hand back. I heard a small whimper from Justin, and the heart monitor beeped faster.

“He’s getting scared,” I said softly, sympathetic. She nodded and quickly placed an oxygen mask over his face.

“It’s okay, Justin, you’re in the recovery room. We had to give you some medicine in surgery that’s gonna make you really tired for a bit. It’ll go away,” the nurse said. Justin whimpered again.

“Can you open your eyes for me?” the nurse asked, feeling his forehead. Justin’s eyes fluttered, but didn’t open.

“Can you open your mouth for me?” the nurse asked, he tried, but couldn’t.

“Alright, it’s okay, baby. Just keep taking deep breaths,” she said. She lifted up his arm a little bit and took his temperature under his arm. It beeped immediately and she looked at the reading.

“104.2,” she read, sighing. She looked to me.

“How long has he been sick?” she asked me, looking genuinely concerned and sympathetic.

“Over a week,” I answered, holding his hand. She stroked his cheek gently.

“Can you feel that, hon?” she asked Justin. He whimpered.

“Is that a yes or a no, hon?” she asked. Justin whined something that sounded like a “yeah.”

“Yes?” she asked.

“Mmhm,” Justin said.

“Good, can you open your eyes?” she asked. His eyes fluttered again, but this time he opened them a little bit. They were glassy and glazed over with fever. His cheeks were flushed hot pink from the fever, and his nose was a light pink. His lips were chapped because he was still a little dehydrated. He was pale as a sheet and looked miserable. He had dark purple and black-ish circles underneath his eyes.

“Can you open your mouth?” she asked. Justin opened his mouth a little, and immediately coughed harshly. He couldn’t move his arm to cover his mouth, though, but the oxygen mask helped with that. The nurse held the mask to his face.

“Deep breaths, hon,” she coaxed. Justin stopped coughing after a little bit. He took a deep breath.

“Good. You’re doing really well, hon,” the nurse said softly. Justin moved his head a little, then his upper arms a couple minutes later.

“Good,” the nurse coaxed. Eventually the medicine wore off and Justin could move everything if he tried. But my poor baby was so weak he just laid there, completely limp. It seems that just breathing took all the energy he possessed in his incredibly weak, fever-ridden body. He weakly brought his right hand up and moved the mask away.

“No, honey, you gotta keep that,” the nurse said.

“N-no,” he said weakly, then cupped his hand around his nose and mouth.

“Huktshh!!! Huktshh!! Huktshh!!!” He sneezed harshly into his loosely-cupped hand.

“Bless you,” the nurse said softly. Justin nodded and whimpered a little, keeping his hand there. The nurse caught on and handed him a tissue. He discreetly cleaned himself up, then balled up the tissue and held it. His breathing hitched again, and his raw, irritated nostrils flared and quivered. A tiny rivulet of moisture dribbled down his upper lip. He started straight ahead, his red, tired-looking, glassy eyes squinted, his eyebrows raised in anticipation. His jaw was slack, his mouth slightly agape.

“Huh-pshh!! Heh-pzshh!! PSSH!!” The nurse gently put the oxygen mask back. Justin lifted the mask back up with his left hand and coughed harshly into his right hand; his right hand was curled into a fist around the tissue he still held. After a couple minutes, he stopped coughing and put the mask back.

“I don’t feel good,” he whimpered softly.

“I know, baby, you’ll feel better soon,” I said, stroking his hand with my thumb. He began to build up again, and he rubbed his nose, then sniffled thickly. He looked up at the light, then whimpered and looked back down, his poor red little nostrils quavering as he built up to the sneeze. Bless his heart, poor baby. The nurse passed his two tissues, and he nodded.

“T-th-tha-nks,” he stuttered, big breathy build ups interrupting him.

“HH!! Huh’ESSHH!!! Heh’EISSHHOO!!

“Bless you!” I cooed, surprised. I'm impressed; I didn’t know he could sneeze that forcefully. He then began to cough into his fist, the tissue crumpled up in his hand.

“Honey, you alright?” the nurse asked.

“Uh-uh!” Justin whimpered, then coughed some more. The nurse rubbed his back soothingly.

. “Calm down, honey, try to relax,” the nurse said.

“I would give him something to relax, but he’s got so much medicine in his system already and I don’t want him to aspirate this,” the nurse said. I nodded.

“Yeah, they’ve been giving him stuff left and right,” I said. Justin finally stopped coughing up the stuff and closed his mouth. He coughed a couple times, keeping his mouth closed, then laid back. He had tears welled up in his eyes. The nurse handed him a paper towel and he wiped his mouth. The nurse took the paper towel and the tissue from him and threw them away. She left for a second and came back with two small Styrofoam cups, one with a straw and one without. She handed him the one with the straw.

“You wanna rinse your mouth out or just drink a little?” she asked. Justin shrugged and took a small sip of water. He almost choked half to death as another hitched breath consumed his poor little lungs. He unfolded the used, crumpled tissue and waited. His head tilted back as the build-up gathered strength. He moaned softly, then held the soft fabric of the tissue against his face. His wet, congested sneezes were muffled into the fabric. I rubbed his back soothingly as another sneeze escaped from his mouth.

“Bless you,” I whispered, keeping my voice soft and soothing. I gently kissed his temple. He sighed and leaned towards me drowsy. I held him until his eyes closed.

[Bgrace27]

awwww poor kid. please keep going!!!