My Hockey Alpha

Nina

“Nina… Taylor is in the hospital.”

I felt my heart drop as I registered what my mother just told me over the phone. Everything, from the Half- Moon Tournament to the Mad Wolf serum to Luke’s sudden transformation, seemed like nothing now.

“I’ll be there as soon as possible,” I said hastily, hanging up as a knot formed in my stomach.

“Nina? Is everything okay?” Enzo asked from behind. I turned around to see him still standing by the fire, looking at me with a concerned expression on his face. Luke was pulling on a pair of jeans behind him, but was also looking at me as he did so. It felt odd to see Luke with an actual expression on his face, and for there tobe meat and flesh on his bones, but right now it hardly registered to me.

“I-I have to go,” I said, taking a few steps backwards. “It’s my brother. He’s in the hospital.”

Both Enzo’s and Luke’s eyes widened. Enzo jogged toward me. “I’ll take you on the motorcycle,” he said.

“No,” I replied. “I’ll borrow Lori’s car I’ll keep you updated, though. Just focus on Edward and the Half-Moon tournament.”

Enzo nodded, and before either of them said anything else, I turned on my heel and ran back toward the campus. Lori was thankfully still awake when I got home, playing a video game on the TV

“Can I borrow your car for the night?” I asked breathlessly as I ran through to my room and began stuffing clothes and toiletries in my backpack.

Lori paused her game and turned around on the couch to face me. “Uh… Sure, I guess?” she responded. “Is everything okay?”

“It’s my brother,” I replied, running out of my room with my bag haphazardly packed already. “He’s in the hospital.”

her face drawn with worry. “Here,”

quick hug before

broken several traffic laws on the way, but thankfully there was no one

the waiting room and jumped up when I burst in through

first time in my life, my mother’s usually-cold face was full of worry. I, however, was just angry with her for not getting Taylor the help he needed and for letting it get to

he?” I

mother called a nurse over, who led us to the

pit of my stomach like a ball of

machines. There was a breathing tube down his throat, his eyes were closed, and his body

over to the side of his bed. I gripped the bed rail with one hand and squeezed his arm with

“His symptoms were so severe that the doctor had to put him under

wrong with him?” I

doesn’t seem to have any sort of tumor or anything like that I furrowed my brow as I continued

another word of apology before leaving, shutting the sliding door behind her to give us privacy. Once we were alone, I felt my mother’s hand on my

come to this,” I growled, feeling rage bubble up inside of me. “He’s been telling you for years that he’s been in

sitting in the folding chair across from it as the methodical beeping of

was tightening on Taylor’s wrist and I let go before I hurt him,

There were tears in her own

getting your son the

away, back down at my brother. He was so much thinner than he had been the last time I saw him. His

I had grown up with, who had once climbed trees and played cowboys and bandits and given me piggy back rides when we were little, now looked as though he wouldn’t even be able to support his own