American Dreams

                                    

                                          

Riverdale general was practically empty. 
                          
It had been for the passed few weeks. The amount of seizures had dropped immensely. That's why the nurses were completely caught off guard when an ambulance was called for a girl who fell into Sweetwater River at the hands of a seizure.
                          
Reggie and Sweetpea kept a solid amount of distance between them. They paced on opposite sides of the waiting room as they waited for any news about Lexy's condition. The only communication they had for the past couple hours were a few glares here and there. 
                          
On the way to the hospital, Sweetpea silently swore to himself that he would never forgive Reggie. Ever.
                          
The two started off as enemies, and then somewhere along the line, they found themselves trusting one another. But even though neither of them ever said it out loud, they both knew it.
                          
That was all over now.
                          
Fred and Archie interrupted the tension filled silence when they came through the double doors after finally talking to Lexy's doctor. Reggie and Sweetpea rushed over to them with questioning looks.
                          
"What's going on? How is she?" Sweetpea asked.
                          
Fred scratched the back of his head and tried to narrow down everything the doctor said. "Basically she swallowed a lot of water. More than usual near drowning patients because of the seizure. They had to flush it all out of her system but now she's having trouble breathing on her own. They have to put her on the ventilator."
                          
"For how long?" Reggie asked before Sweetpea got the chance.
                          
Archie placed a hand on his dad's shoulder as he struggled to get the words out. "We don't know."
                          
Reggie glanced at Sweetpea who kept his stare straight ahead of him. "You don't know how long she'll be on the ventilator or..."
                          
"We don't know if she... if she'll make it off the ventilator." Archie stuttered out.
                          
There was a long silence.
                          
"When you think about it, they not only have to treat her near drowning but also her seizure." Sweetpea stated. "And she's not even conscious. How is she supposed to be strong enough to fight through this?"
                          
"Okay, guys, enough of this. It's been a long night and none of us are thinking straight. Archie, drive these guys home, will you?" Fred asked.
                          
"We're not leaving Mr. Andrews-" Reggie tried to protest.
                          
"There's no point in staying. Nobody's allowed see her right now. And when we are it will be family first."
                          
Sweetpea opened his mouth but Fred stopped him. 
                          
"Go home, get some sleep, clear your heads and we'll call you when we hear anything new."
                          
Archie nodded in agreement at his dad's words. He was happy to drive them home. He needed to get out of that waiting room just for a few minutes to think. 
                          
The three boys exited the building and made their way to the truck. 
                          
"You guys wanna make a pit stop at Pop's? I'm starving and my dad probably wouldn't mind a chocolate milkshake." Archie suggested.
                          
"No." Sweetpea was quick to reply. 
                          
Archie looked between him and Reggie, who had a sheepish look on his face. 
                          
"Is this about what happened earlier? Are you two seriously gonna ignore each other forever now? I thought you guys were friends."
                          
"That's a stretch." Reggie mumbled.