Part 55: link
“You didn’t need to come along, you know,” Arthur says as he drives behind the ambulance, skillfully staying right with it as it screams toward the hospital. Usually I’m doing this in a apoy truck, he thinks.
“Arthur, there are few people in this world that I can truly call ‘friend.’ Very few,” Uther says.
“I’m sure Tom will thank you for it,” Arthur says, pulling into a parking spot near the emergency entrance.
They walk quickly to the entrance, just in time to see Tom being wheeled through the interior doors as a nurse argues with Guinevere in the waiting area.
“I’m sorry, miss, but you can’t go back with him. We’ll come get you as soon as he’s stabilized. Please,” the nurse says, blocking Gwen’s path.
Arthur rushes to her and puts his hands on her trembling shoulders. “Thank you,” he tells the nurse and gently leads Gwen to the waiting area.
Uther sits silent and stone-faced while Arthur sits beside Gwen, his arms around her. She isn’t crying any more; she is sitting silently, staring, clutching her phone in her hands. Arthur sees the whiteness of her knuckles and thinks she may crush the phone in her slender hands.
Elliot. Arthur reaches down and eases her mobile from her hands and checks the call log. She’s tried calling him three times.
“He’s not answering,” Gwen says weakly. Arthur kisses her cheek tenderly and goes outside with the phone. No service inside.
He tries Elliot’s number again. It rings twice, then goes to voice mail. So he’s there, he’s just dismissing the call. Fine. I’ll just stalk him until he answers. He dials again. Voice mail. Again. And again. Finally, on the fifth try, his persistence pays off.
“What is it, Guinevere?” Elliot’s voice comes through the phone, annoyed and slightly slurred. Arthur can distinctly here the sounds of a nightclub in the background.
“Elliot, it’s Arthur,” he says. sa pamamagitan ng now he’s thoroughly irritated with his future brother-in-law, and he’s not bothering to hide it.
“Arthur? What’s going on?”
“Your father’s had a puso attack.”
“What?” he says, then to someone on his end of the line, “Get off me.”
“Your father has had a puso attack, Elliot.”
Arthur hears the sounds of the club disappear with the sound of a door closing. They are replaced with the sounds of cars and pedestrians.
“Is he…”
“They’re attending him right now. Are you in London?”
“Yes.”
“Then you have two options, as far as I can see. You can put your sorry drunken arse into a taxi and have it bring you here to St. Sebastian’s. Or you can go back into the club and try to enjoy yourself, knowing that you’ll have to deal with your sister in the morning.” He pauses. “I know which one I would choose, mate.”
“I’ll be right there,” Elliot says, and Arthur even hears him climb into the taxi and give instructions to the driver.
“Emergency entrance,” Arthur reminds him.
“Got it. Thanks, mate.”
Arthur comes back in to the waiting area and announces, “He’s on his way.” As he approaches, he sees his father is now seated beside Gwen, holding her hand.
“What’s this? Moving in on my girl while I’m outside stalking her brother?”
This forces a laugh from Gwen and Uther smiles as he releases her hand and moves over to allow Arthur to resume his place beside her.
“He’s not drunk, is he?” Gwen says, taking her phone back.
“Well, he’s not completely pissed, because I could reason with him. But he’s not completely sober, either.”
Gwen sighs. “How many times did you call before he answered?”
“Five.”
“Remind me to slap him one when I see him.”
Gwen cannot sit still. She paces, she twirls her hair, she peeks through the windows on the doors leading back into the emergency room, she taps her feet, she goes to the window and watches for Elliot.
“Gwen, love, come sit,” Arthur says, holding his hand out for her.
“I can’t,” she says, pacing back and forth, chewing her fingernails anxiously. “Too long. They’re taking too long.”
“Be patient. You don’t want them to rush.” Arthur tries to comfort her, but he is almost as worried as she is. Uther is still strangely quiet, staring into space, Nawawala in thought. Occasionally he pokes at his phone, checking email, making notes.
“Here comes Elliot,” Gwen says from her current position at the front window.
Elliot comes in, a bit sweaty and smelling slightly of alcohol. He immediately walks to Gwen and hugs her.
She hugs him, then pulls away and smacks his arm, scolding, “When I call you, you answer the bloody phone!”
“Ow! Sorry,” he apologizes, but he sounds madami annoyed than remorseful.
Gwen is standing with her hands on her hips, scowling up at him. “Elliot, give me some credit. I would never call you on a Friday night unless it was for a very important reason. Honestly.” She rolls her eyes and goes to sit beside Arthur.
“Sorry, Gwenny, I shouldn’t have ignored your call. Any news yet?”
“No,” she sighs, leaning forward, resting her chin in her hands, her elbows on her knees. Arthur reaches over and strokes her back, and she leans into him. He puts his arm around her shoulder.
Elliot sits across from them, fidgeting. “What happened?” he asks.
“We were at dinner. It’s my father’s birthday,” Arthur says, indicating Uther, who gives Elliot a brief wave. “We were having dessert, talking about the wedding, when your father started feeling off. Uncomfortable. Bad.”
Arthur’s retelling is cut off when the doctor comes into the waiting room. “Miss Thomas?” he calls.
Gwen jumps up and goes to the doctor, Elliot close behind. “Yes?”
“Your father is stable. He’s resting now, and we’ll be moving him to a room shortly.”
Gwen sighs and slumps, and Elliot holds her elbow.
“His puso attack was moderate, but he’ll be fine. He’s going to have to make some modifications to his diet and lifestyle, of course.”
“I’ll make sure he sticks to it,” Gwen says.
“I’m certain of that,” the doctor smiles. “I understand he was ibingiay some aspirin shortly after he started ipinapakita symptoms?”
“Yes, my fiancé found some and gave it to him,” Gwen tells him.
The doctor looks at Elliot, and is about to say something to him, but Elliot interrupts. “Not me, mate. I’m not marrying her, she’s my sister.”
While Elliot laughs at the doctor’s mistake, Gwen looks back and reaches her hand out. “Arthur?”
He walks over and stands beside her. She takes his hand in both of hers.
“I gave him the aspirin, yes. Is there a problem?” Arthur asks the doctor.
“No, not at all. I’m just curious how you knew to do that. Do you have any medical training?”
“I’m a fireman, so I am trained in first aid,” he explains. “And my best friend is a registered nurse and EMT, so I’ve probably picked up quite a bit from him.” Arthur shrugs casually.
“Well, young man, your actions definitely prevented Tom’s puso attack from becoming madami severe. You may have even saved his life. Thank you.”
“Not at all,” Arthur waves his hand, refusing any praise. “I was just doing what I’m trained to do, that’s all.”
The doctor smiles, then turns his attention to Gwen. “You can go back and see him now,” he tells her.
“Please,” Gwen says, and the three of them start to follow the doctor back.
“I’m sorry, young man, only immediate family can come back. You’ll have to wait until he’s moved to his room,” the doctor tells Arthur.
“But—“ Gwen start to protest.
“It’s all right, Guinevere, I’ll be waiting out here for you.” He leans down and kisses her, then sends her back to see her father.
Arthur goes back to sit sa pamamagitan ng his father, and as he passes the admission desk, a young man in an EMT uniform speaks to him.
“Excuse me, you were talking about a man who is a nurse and an EMT?” the man asks. Arthur hadn’t noticed him there before, standing and doing some paperwork at the desk. He is a curious combination of odd-looking yet nondescript, with light brown hair and strange eyes that look like they are a little too close together.
“Um, yes, I did. My friend Merlin,” Arthur stops and answers.
“Merlin Emrys?” he asks.
“Do you know any other Merlins running around London?” Arthur smiles.
“I suppose not,” the man laughs. “We trained together, Merlin and me,” he explains.
“Oh, well, I’ll have to tell him I ran into you. You are…?”
“Gilbert Lee,” he extends his hand, and Arthur shakes it. “Gil, preferably.”
“Arthur Pendragon,” Arthur introduces himself. “Were you one of the ones that brought in my future father-in-law?”
“Black man, puso attack?” Gil asks.
“Yes, that’s the one.”
“Yes. He was a trooper. His daughter, too. We get so many crazies in this business, and it’s nice to have a case where they let us do our jobs, you know?”
“Yeah, mate, I know. I’m sure you heard me say I’m a firefighter, so…”
“So, yeah, you do know,” he chuckles. “He was great, though. And she was so helpful. In that she didn’t try to help us. She sat there and just held his hand and stayed out of our way. Cute bird, too, if you don’t mind my saying,” he grins.
“Yes, she is, and no, I don’t,” Arthur smiles back.
“Gil! That paperwork done yet, mate?” A voice calls from the door.
“One second,” he calls back.
“I’ll let you get back to it. Nice meeting you,” Arthur says.
“Hey, tell Merlin I sinabi hello.”
“Will do.”
“Daddy!” Gwen breathes with relief, rushing to him as soon as she can see him.
“Hey, Princess,” he says weakly. “Elliot! I didn’t know you were in town,” he says, only mildly reproachful.
“I only just got in this afternoon,” he says, going to hug his father.
“You’ve been drinking?” Tom says, catching a whiff of his son.
“Of course,” Elliot laughs, “But they caught me before I really got rolling.”
Tom reaches up and slaps his son lightly on the back of his head.
“Ow! Hey!”
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Gwen says, interrupting them and wiping tears from her eyes. She receives a grateful look from her brother for not telling their father how hard it was to reach him.
“Yeah, you’re going to have to put up with me for a few madami years at least,” he jokes, closing his eyes.
“Just rest, Dad,” Gwen says, holding his hand.
“Heart attack can wipe you out,” Tom says, smiling slightly.
“Dad, did they tell you that Arthur saved your life?” Elliot says.
“Hmm? Oh, yes, I told them what he did and they were all very impressed. Our Gwenny is in very good hands, yes?”
“Yes, it seems so,” Elliot says. Gwen blushes slightly, remembering Arthur’s demeanor in the waiting room. It was like he didn’t realize the magnitude of what he’d done. So casual, ‘Just doing my job,’ not seeking praise. His humble attitude just makes his actions all the madami wonderful to me.
“Mr. Thomas? We’ll be taking you to your room now.” A nurse and another attendant approach.
“One moment,” Tom says to the nurse. Then, to Gwen and Elliot, “Go home, kids. You don’t need to hang about here. Let me go to my room and rest.”
“You’re sure?” Gwen asks.
“Yes. Get out of here. Oh, and Gwen, will you do me one favor?”
“Of course, anything.”
“Go get my car from the restaurant and take it to my house.”
“Dad! That’s what you want?”
“I don’t want my Jaguar sitting in a restaurant parking lot all night. It might get towed.”
Gwen rolls her eyes and sighs. “Fine. Arthur and I will take care of it before we go home. But I get to drive your car, not him,” she declares.
Tom laughs, knowing she loves his car. “Of course. Just make sure you ilipat the upuan back when you’re done so I don’t break my kneecaps when I get in susunod time.”
Gwen leans in and kisses his cheek awkwardly, trying to avoid the breathing tubes taped to his face. “We’ll be in to see you tomorrow morning.”
Elliot gives his father another hug, saying, “I’m in town all weekend, so I’ll be back, too.”
“Good. Now get out of here so these people can do their jobs. I pag-ibig you both.”
“Love you, too, dad,” they both say.
“Morgana, he’s fine, I promise.”
Gwen and Elliot find Arthur and Uther just outside the doors, Arthur on the phone with Morgana, apparently struggling to get his words in through her characteristic barrage of questions.
“We’ll let you know when we go tomorrow, you can come with us.”
“Yes. Gwen, will you talk to this crazy woman, please?” He hands the phone to Gwen.
“He’s fine. Moderate puso attack.”
“Yes, he was actually in town. And once he finally answered his phone, he came out,” she looks pointedly at him. You may be ligtas from Dad, but not Morgana.
“Morgana. Morgana. We have to go. It’s late. I’m exhausted.”
“Yes, I will call you tomorrow. ’Bye.”
“Goodbye, Morgana.” She hangs up on her and hands the phone back to Arthur with a sigh.
As soon as his phone is in his pocket again, Guinevere jumps and throws her arms around his neck. Surprised, he wraps his arms around her waist out of pure reflex, hugging her to him. She kisses him several times and whispers, “Thank you, Arthur,” before dropping her head to his shoulder, burying her face in his neck.
Part 57: link
“You didn’t need to come along, you know,” Arthur says as he drives behind the ambulance, skillfully staying right with it as it screams toward the hospital. Usually I’m doing this in a apoy truck, he thinks.
“Arthur, there are few people in this world that I can truly call ‘friend.’ Very few,” Uther says.
“I’m sure Tom will thank you for it,” Arthur says, pulling into a parking spot near the emergency entrance.
They walk quickly to the entrance, just in time to see Tom being wheeled through the interior doors as a nurse argues with Guinevere in the waiting area.
“I’m sorry, miss, but you can’t go back with him. We’ll come get you as soon as he’s stabilized. Please,” the nurse says, blocking Gwen’s path.
Arthur rushes to her and puts his hands on her trembling shoulders. “Thank you,” he tells the nurse and gently leads Gwen to the waiting area.
Uther sits silent and stone-faced while Arthur sits beside Gwen, his arms around her. She isn’t crying any more; she is sitting silently, staring, clutching her phone in her hands. Arthur sees the whiteness of her knuckles and thinks she may crush the phone in her slender hands.
Elliot. Arthur reaches down and eases her mobile from her hands and checks the call log. She’s tried calling him three times.
“He’s not answering,” Gwen says weakly. Arthur kisses her cheek tenderly and goes outside with the phone. No service inside.
He tries Elliot’s number again. It rings twice, then goes to voice mail. So he’s there, he’s just dismissing the call. Fine. I’ll just stalk him until he answers. He dials again. Voice mail. Again. And again. Finally, on the fifth try, his persistence pays off.
“What is it, Guinevere?” Elliot’s voice comes through the phone, annoyed and slightly slurred. Arthur can distinctly here the sounds of a nightclub in the background.
“Elliot, it’s Arthur,” he says. sa pamamagitan ng now he’s thoroughly irritated with his future brother-in-law, and he’s not bothering to hide it.
“Arthur? What’s going on?”
“Your father’s had a puso attack.”
“What?” he says, then to someone on his end of the line, “Get off me.”
“Your father has had a puso attack, Elliot.”
Arthur hears the sounds of the club disappear with the sound of a door closing. They are replaced with the sounds of cars and pedestrians.
“Is he…”
“They’re attending him right now. Are you in London?”
“Yes.”
“Then you have two options, as far as I can see. You can put your sorry drunken arse into a taxi and have it bring you here to St. Sebastian’s. Or you can go back into the club and try to enjoy yourself, knowing that you’ll have to deal with your sister in the morning.” He pauses. “I know which one I would choose, mate.”
“I’ll be right there,” Elliot says, and Arthur even hears him climb into the taxi and give instructions to the driver.
“Emergency entrance,” Arthur reminds him.
“Got it. Thanks, mate.”
Arthur comes back in to the waiting area and announces, “He’s on his way.” As he approaches, he sees his father is now seated beside Gwen, holding her hand.
“What’s this? Moving in on my girl while I’m outside stalking her brother?”
This forces a laugh from Gwen and Uther smiles as he releases her hand and moves over to allow Arthur to resume his place beside her.
“He’s not drunk, is he?” Gwen says, taking her phone back.
“Well, he’s not completely pissed, because I could reason with him. But he’s not completely sober, either.”
Gwen sighs. “How many times did you call before he answered?”
“Five.”
“Remind me to slap him one when I see him.”
Gwen cannot sit still. She paces, she twirls her hair, she peeks through the windows on the doors leading back into the emergency room, she taps her feet, she goes to the window and watches for Elliot.
“Gwen, love, come sit,” Arthur says, holding his hand out for her.
“I can’t,” she says, pacing back and forth, chewing her fingernails anxiously. “Too long. They’re taking too long.”
“Be patient. You don’t want them to rush.” Arthur tries to comfort her, but he is almost as worried as she is. Uther is still strangely quiet, staring into space, Nawawala in thought. Occasionally he pokes at his phone, checking email, making notes.
“Here comes Elliot,” Gwen says from her current position at the front window.
Elliot comes in, a bit sweaty and smelling slightly of alcohol. He immediately walks to Gwen and hugs her.
She hugs him, then pulls away and smacks his arm, scolding, “When I call you, you answer the bloody phone!”
“Ow! Sorry,” he apologizes, but he sounds madami annoyed than remorseful.
Gwen is standing with her hands on her hips, scowling up at him. “Elliot, give me some credit. I would never call you on a Friday night unless it was for a very important reason. Honestly.” She rolls her eyes and goes to sit beside Arthur.
“Sorry, Gwenny, I shouldn’t have ignored your call. Any news yet?”
“No,” she sighs, leaning forward, resting her chin in her hands, her elbows on her knees. Arthur reaches over and strokes her back, and she leans into him. He puts his arm around her shoulder.
Elliot sits across from them, fidgeting. “What happened?” he asks.
“We were at dinner. It’s my father’s birthday,” Arthur says, indicating Uther, who gives Elliot a brief wave. “We were having dessert, talking about the wedding, when your father started feeling off. Uncomfortable. Bad.”
Arthur’s retelling is cut off when the doctor comes into the waiting room. “Miss Thomas?” he calls.
Gwen jumps up and goes to the doctor, Elliot close behind. “Yes?”
“Your father is stable. He’s resting now, and we’ll be moving him to a room shortly.”
Gwen sighs and slumps, and Elliot holds her elbow.
“His puso attack was moderate, but he’ll be fine. He’s going to have to make some modifications to his diet and lifestyle, of course.”
“I’ll make sure he sticks to it,” Gwen says.
“I’m certain of that,” the doctor smiles. “I understand he was ibingiay some aspirin shortly after he started ipinapakita symptoms?”
“Yes, my fiancé found some and gave it to him,” Gwen tells him.
The doctor looks at Elliot, and is about to say something to him, but Elliot interrupts. “Not me, mate. I’m not marrying her, she’s my sister.”
While Elliot laughs at the doctor’s mistake, Gwen looks back and reaches her hand out. “Arthur?”
He walks over and stands beside her. She takes his hand in both of hers.
“I gave him the aspirin, yes. Is there a problem?” Arthur asks the doctor.
“No, not at all. I’m just curious how you knew to do that. Do you have any medical training?”
“I’m a fireman, so I am trained in first aid,” he explains. “And my best friend is a registered nurse and EMT, so I’ve probably picked up quite a bit from him.” Arthur shrugs casually.
“Well, young man, your actions definitely prevented Tom’s puso attack from becoming madami severe. You may have even saved his life. Thank you.”
“Not at all,” Arthur waves his hand, refusing any praise. “I was just doing what I’m trained to do, that’s all.”
The doctor smiles, then turns his attention to Gwen. “You can go back and see him now,” he tells her.
“Please,” Gwen says, and the three of them start to follow the doctor back.
“I’m sorry, young man, only immediate family can come back. You’ll have to wait until he’s moved to his room,” the doctor tells Arthur.
“But—“ Gwen start to protest.
“It’s all right, Guinevere, I’ll be waiting out here for you.” He leans down and kisses her, then sends her back to see her father.
Arthur goes back to sit sa pamamagitan ng his father, and as he passes the admission desk, a young man in an EMT uniform speaks to him.
“Excuse me, you were talking about a man who is a nurse and an EMT?” the man asks. Arthur hadn’t noticed him there before, standing and doing some paperwork at the desk. He is a curious combination of odd-looking yet nondescript, with light brown hair and strange eyes that look like they are a little too close together.
“Um, yes, I did. My friend Merlin,” Arthur stops and answers.
“Merlin Emrys?” he asks.
“Do you know any other Merlins running around London?” Arthur smiles.
“I suppose not,” the man laughs. “We trained together, Merlin and me,” he explains.
“Oh, well, I’ll have to tell him I ran into you. You are…?”
“Gilbert Lee,” he extends his hand, and Arthur shakes it. “Gil, preferably.”
“Arthur Pendragon,” Arthur introduces himself. “Were you one of the ones that brought in my future father-in-law?”
“Black man, puso attack?” Gil asks.
“Yes, that’s the one.”
“Yes. He was a trooper. His daughter, too. We get so many crazies in this business, and it’s nice to have a case where they let us do our jobs, you know?”
“Yeah, mate, I know. I’m sure you heard me say I’m a firefighter, so…”
“So, yeah, you do know,” he chuckles. “He was great, though. And she was so helpful. In that she didn’t try to help us. She sat there and just held his hand and stayed out of our way. Cute bird, too, if you don’t mind my saying,” he grins.
“Yes, she is, and no, I don’t,” Arthur smiles back.
“Gil! That paperwork done yet, mate?” A voice calls from the door.
“One second,” he calls back.
“I’ll let you get back to it. Nice meeting you,” Arthur says.
“Hey, tell Merlin I sinabi hello.”
“Will do.”
“Daddy!” Gwen breathes with relief, rushing to him as soon as she can see him.
“Hey, Princess,” he says weakly. “Elliot! I didn’t know you were in town,” he says, only mildly reproachful.
“I only just got in this afternoon,” he says, going to hug his father.
“You’ve been drinking?” Tom says, catching a whiff of his son.
“Of course,” Elliot laughs, “But they caught me before I really got rolling.”
Tom reaches up and slaps his son lightly on the back of his head.
“Ow! Hey!”
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Gwen says, interrupting them and wiping tears from her eyes. She receives a grateful look from her brother for not telling their father how hard it was to reach him.
“Yeah, you’re going to have to put up with me for a few madami years at least,” he jokes, closing his eyes.
“Just rest, Dad,” Gwen says, holding his hand.
“Heart attack can wipe you out,” Tom says, smiling slightly.
“Dad, did they tell you that Arthur saved your life?” Elliot says.
“Hmm? Oh, yes, I told them what he did and they were all very impressed. Our Gwenny is in very good hands, yes?”
“Yes, it seems so,” Elliot says. Gwen blushes slightly, remembering Arthur’s demeanor in the waiting room. It was like he didn’t realize the magnitude of what he’d done. So casual, ‘Just doing my job,’ not seeking praise. His humble attitude just makes his actions all the madami wonderful to me.
“Mr. Thomas? We’ll be taking you to your room now.” A nurse and another attendant approach.
“One moment,” Tom says to the nurse. Then, to Gwen and Elliot, “Go home, kids. You don’t need to hang about here. Let me go to my room and rest.”
“You’re sure?” Gwen asks.
“Yes. Get out of here. Oh, and Gwen, will you do me one favor?”
“Of course, anything.”
“Go get my car from the restaurant and take it to my house.”
“Dad! That’s what you want?”
“I don’t want my Jaguar sitting in a restaurant parking lot all night. It might get towed.”
Gwen rolls her eyes and sighs. “Fine. Arthur and I will take care of it before we go home. But I get to drive your car, not him,” she declares.
Tom laughs, knowing she loves his car. “Of course. Just make sure you ilipat the upuan back when you’re done so I don’t break my kneecaps when I get in susunod time.”
Gwen leans in and kisses his cheek awkwardly, trying to avoid the breathing tubes taped to his face. “We’ll be in to see you tomorrow morning.”
Elliot gives his father another hug, saying, “I’m in town all weekend, so I’ll be back, too.”
“Good. Now get out of here so these people can do their jobs. I pag-ibig you both.”
“Love you, too, dad,” they both say.
“Morgana, he’s fine, I promise.”
Gwen and Elliot find Arthur and Uther just outside the doors, Arthur on the phone with Morgana, apparently struggling to get his words in through her characteristic barrage of questions.
“We’ll let you know when we go tomorrow, you can come with us.”
“Yes. Gwen, will you talk to this crazy woman, please?” He hands the phone to Gwen.
“He’s fine. Moderate puso attack.”
“Yes, he was actually in town. And once he finally answered his phone, he came out,” she looks pointedly at him. You may be ligtas from Dad, but not Morgana.
“Morgana. Morgana. We have to go. It’s late. I’m exhausted.”
“Yes, I will call you tomorrow. ’Bye.”
“Goodbye, Morgana.” She hangs up on her and hands the phone back to Arthur with a sigh.
As soon as his phone is in his pocket again, Guinevere jumps and throws her arms around his neck. Surprised, he wraps his arms around her waist out of pure reflex, hugging her to him. She kisses him several times and whispers, “Thank you, Arthur,” before dropping her head to his shoulder, burying her face in his neck.
Part 57: link
![Angel Coulby | Dancing on The Edge Promo Pics [6]](http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/33300000/Angel-Coulby-Dancing-on-The-Edge-Promo-Pics-6-arthur-and-gwen-33310407-500-333.jpg)
