Alarm

Time at the office flies by between meetings and contracts. Magda arrived right on time for the board meeting, and we managed to satisfy everyone in the room without breaking much of a sweat on the presentation. The whole industry knows that Ignacio's company is known for its responsibility and the quality of its products and services. In fact, things went so well that several of the new investors invited us out tonight to celebrate the signing of a corporate partnership — an invitation I obviously declined, since it's common knowledge that after work I go straight to pick up Lyon from school and then home to spend quality time with him.

"I want to thank you both. The way you handle the numbers and keep every client happy is incredible," Ignacio told us as he poured us each a glass of champagne for a toast.

"Oh, come on — you know we're the best," Magda said, giving his arm a playful swat.

"You left your humility back in the womb, didn't you?" he said, laughing, and I joined in.

"We're perfect. That's why you love us," she said, taking a sip from her glass.

We stayed a while longer chatting about nothing in particular when my phone buzzed on top of my desk.

"Good afternoon." I didn't recognize the number, but not many people have my personal phone — I usually give out the one I use for work.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Green. I'm calling from Crisol Academy. Your son had a brief fainting episode during physical education class, and we need you to come be with him while we wait for the ambulance that's on its way." The voice kept talking, but I couldn't hear anything anymore. All I managed to do was turn around, and my friends instantly understood that something was very wrong.

"What happened?" The festive mood had evaporated in an instant.

"Lyon fainted in class." My voice came out broken, and the slight tremor in my hands made Magda take the phone from me and keep getting the details while I frantically dug through my purse for my car keys.

"Go. Call me the minute you get to the hospital. Don't come back today, and take more days off if you need to." Ignacio's voice was steely, and it hit me deep. I knew he worried about my son just as much as Magda did — that was precisely why both of them were Lyon's godparents.

"Let's go. I have my keys — I'll drive." Magda grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the company parking garage.

If there's one thing I have to give her credit for, it's that her driving under extreme pressure is flawless. I probably would have crashed into more than one car. It took us less than fifteen minutes to reach the school grounds. The ambulance was already parked at the entrance.

We got out of the car and ran inside. A secretary shot us a stern look for running through the building, but Magda gave her a glare that made the woman close her mouth just as quickly as she'd opened it. We pushed through the principal's office doors, and the first thing I noticed was my baby sitting on a couch, far too pale for his natural complexion, his face drained. A paramedic was taking his blood pressure while another stood beside him jotting down everything being said.

I slowed my steps to keep from throwing myself on top of him and getting in the doctors' way. Tears poured from my eyes uncontrollably, and then he looked up and smiled at me — even though he was exhausted.

"What happened?" I asked, my voice shaking, as I took small steps until I reached him.

"I was playing volleyball. Enrique passed me the ball, but when I jumped to hit it, I felt like I was falling asleep. I woke up a little later in the coach's arms while he was carrying me here." There was something in his voice that caught my attention. Fear? Anguish?

The doctor finished examining him and found nothing out of the ordinary besides the bump on his forehead from hitting the floor.

"Ma'am, if you don't mind, we'll take the boy to the hospital for a CT scan and an X-ray so we can rule out any additional damage from the impact. As for his blood pressure, temperature, and heart rate — they're all normal. But we'll run blood and urine tests to rule out any vitamin deficiency," he told me while I held my son.

"All right. I'll ride with him in the ambulance, and his aunt will follow in the car," I said without taking my eyes off Lyon.

"Can you walk to the ambulance?" the other paramedic — the one who'd been writing on the clipboard — asked him gently.

"Yes," he answered, barely mustering the energy.

"Come on — I'll carry you on my back, like when you were little," I said, stroking his hair.

"But Mom —"

"No buts, sweetheart. Let me have the joy of carrying you again." I smiled at him, my eyes still wet.

He didn't argue. He let me crouch down in front of him and climb onto my back while Magda held the door and grabbed the backpack his teacher had brought to the office. We walked in silence to the ambulance, and I set him down gently on the stretcher before sitting across from him and holding his hand. My little boy had always been perfectly healthy. In fact, his pediatrician had just recently ordered the routine tests and the annual electrocardiogram the school requires for sports clearance, and everything had come back perfect. As I watched him, I tried to replay the entire morning sequence to see if I'd missed something, but I hadn't. Breakfast was pancakes and fruit, and he'd eaten all of it. He'd gotten dressed without any issues, and when I left, his mood had been completely different from what it was now.

Arriving at the hospital pulled me out of my thoughts, and I put him on my back again to carry him down, ignoring the paramedic who wanted to take him out in a wheelchair. The hospital already knew we were on our way, so there was no waiting in the lobby. The ambulance crew said their goodbyes, and we were left in an emergency room bay waiting for the doctor.

"Mommy, I'm sleepy," he told me the moment I laid him on the bed.

"You can't fall asleep yet, my prince. You hit your head, and you need to stay awake for a couple of hours," I said, running my fingers through his hair.

"Good afternoon. I'm Gonzalo, and I'll be taking care of you, champ. Can you tell me what happened?" The doctor who walked in to see him looked about my age and was very friendly. You could tell he was used to working with kids.

Lyon recounted everything that had happened again while the doctor noted down even the smallest detail.

"Before that, did you feel any part of your body go numb? What did you have for breakfast today? Did you eat anything else at school?" he asked.

"This morning my fingers went numb, but only for a little while. I had pancakes with juice and fruit for breakfast, and for lunch my friend and I had a hamburger with salad at the school cafeteria," Lyon told him.

"All right, we'll run a few tests and see what's going on. In the meantime, I need you to stay awake, and we'll bring you fluids to get you a bit more hydrated," he said with a smile, and then left.

"Do you want me to get you anything?" Magda asked.

"No, Aunt Magda. Thanks," he whispered back.

"You can't fall asleep, love. Doctor's orders, because of the bump on your head." I pressed his hand against my cheek and got him to smile at me again.

"Okay, Mom," he said, and propped himself up a little higher on the bed.

"I'll call Ignacio to update him and grab coffee for us. I'll be close by — let me know the second they come to take him for tests," Magda said before stepping out of the room.

When she left, I took my boy's hands and began stroking them. It was the first time I'd ever been this afraid.

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