Zack wakes up

Zack stirred slightly. His head no longer pounded as he opened his eyes. The room was dark, but not completely black. A small outlet light plugged in near the door illuminated the room just enough to make navigation safe. Despite the exhaustion he felt, he was able to discern that it was night time, or late evening at the earliest because of how dark it was. A quick glance around the room let him know that he was not alone. Someone was dosing in a cushioned chair by the bed. The lack of light prevented Zack from seeing who it was exactly, but he could tell by the outline of their figure that it was female.

“Hello?” he grunted as sleep refused to fall from his eyes.

“Huh?” the unknown female roused slightly. “Zack? Are you awake?”

“Yeah. Sort of. What day is it?”

“Wednesday. Almost Thursday. You’ve been out since yesterday morning. Gave us all a bad scare,” the feminine voice spoke to him as she unraveled herself from the blanket she was covered in.

“Your sister’s worried about you. She called your mom earlier today. Said if you weren’t better by tomorrow that she’d come get you and take you to the doctor’s office.”

“My sister? When’d Taylor get here?”

“We rolled in yesterday about Four O’clock in the afternoon.”

“We? Hannah, is that you?” Zack asked.

“You guessed it!” Hannah Woodsen giggled.

“Where’s Taylor? Where’s everybody for that matter?” Zack grunted as he tried to sit up. Hannah hopped up out of the chair and helped him.

“Taylor’s over at our cabin getting everything ready. We’ve got a few more people coming in the next few days, so one of us needed to set things up. She wanted to stay with you, but I reminded her that I was the nursing student and would be better suited to help you. She’s been texting me non-stop four hours. Or at least she was until I fell asleep. Do you need anything?”

“I could use some water. Maybe a bite to eat in a little while.”

“How’s your head feeling?” asked Hannah.

“For a while it felt like Prince Oberyn’s did after The Mountain crushed his skull, but it’s mostly better now. Right now, I’m just tired and thirsty.”

Hannah laughed at the Game of Thrones reference, but couldn’t help but feel a little concerned for her patient.

“Not surprised. Migraines will do that to you. Stay put and I’ll get you some water. Don’t try to get up on your own.”

Hannah excused herself and stepped into the kitchen. Her sister and a few of her sister’s friends were watching television in the living room while Gavin, Brandon, and Kurt played poker at the kitchen table. Even though she was exhausted from taking care of Zack for the last day and a half, she still managed to distract the boys their card game.

“HEY SIS! What’s up?” Ashley called out as Hannah opened the fridge and grabbed a couple of bottles of water. The older Woodsen couldn’t help but feel three sets of male eyes checking her out as she bent over.

“Shh! Zack’s awake, but he’s really tired. And thirsty. He’s gonna be out of it for another few days so if you see him, take it easy on the poor guy. And if he looks like he needs help, DON’T hesitate. Don’t even ask, just get whatever he needs.”

“Can we talk to him, Hannah?” asked Heather.

“Not yet. Tomorrow morning, probably. If he sleeps well tonight. Migraines can be a bitch. Never know how someone’s going to rebound from them. Once you’re finished staring at my ass can one of you boys call Taylor and let her know that he’s up? Don’t want her worrying over there by herself any longer than she has to.”

“I’ll call her, but she’s not alone. Chloe and Vicky are over there helping her set things up. I swear Friday won’t get here fast enough now that Heather’s told her who was coming to see her,” Ashley exclaimed.

“Had a feeling Vicky would get that out of her somehow!” Hannah laughed as she collected water for Zack and a bag of chips for herself.

“Well, it wasn’t just Vicky. Chloe and I cornered her too. Thought she was making a play for Zack, but apparently she’s got something up her sleeve involving that boy,” Ashley told her older sister before she disappeared to take care of Zack.