CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - WHAT SHOULD WE DO?

Dashing into the adjoining room, Nick grimaced in pain as his bare toes smacked against a metal object. Locating the slumbering forms of Kevin and Howie in the dim light, Nick attacked Kevin first, grabbing the oldest Backstreet Boy by the shirt and began to roughly shake him.

“Kevin! Kevin! For God’s sake, wake up!”

“Wha…” Disoriented, Kevin tried to smack away the intrusive hands.

“Kevin! Goddamit! Wake up!” For good measure, Nick gave Kevin a couple of stinging slaps to his face. “Wake up!” He looked over at Howie, who was struggling to sit upright. “Howie! Hurry! Get up. It’s Brian! He’s stopped breathing!”

Howie, clearheaded enough to understand the situation, leaped off the bed and raced out of the room, followed closely by Kevin and Nick. He stopped abruptly, shocked at the sight that lay before him. AJ was kneeling on the bed, his arms wrapped around Brian, cradling his upper body. Brian’s sweat-soaked head was slumped back, his lips tinged blue, his arms hanging limp by his side.

Wild-eyed, AJ looked at all three. “Quick! Call 911!”

Howie disregarded AJ’s command, frightened by the pallor in Brian’s face.

“How long?” he asked brusquely.

AJ was in a state of panic. “Huh? What? Someone call 911!”

Howie kept his voice calm, in control. “AJ, listen to me. How long has Brian stopped breathing?”

“Oh, god. I don’t know! Maybe a minute, two, tops.” AJ clutched Brian possessively, looking up with a frantic expression. “Please, do something!”

Howie glanced at Kevin and Nick and knew instinctively that neither would be able to help him. Both were rooted to the spot, their fright evident as they stared down at Brian.

“AJ! I need to get Brian on the floor, now! Let go of him…let go!” He tugged hard, breaking AJ’s grip “All right, go call 911, I’ll take care of him. Hurry!”

Howie spared only a split second to see if AJ would obey before quickly laying Brian down to the ground. He snuck a hand around Brian’s neck, his fingers searching for the carotid artery. He swayed with relief when he detected a weak pulse.

“Okay, good, it’s not a heart attack.”

“How do you know?”

Adjusting his position, Howie kneeled over Brian, slipping his fingers under Brian’s neck. “Cause he has a pulse, Nick!” Howie said tersely, trying to ignore his shaking hands as his fingers explored the inside of Brian’s mouth, searching hurriedly to see if anything was lodged in his throat. There wasn’t. He could feel the nervous tension in air, the distraught voice of AJ as he talked on the phone. The pressure of the moment surrounded him and he fought to think clearly. Okay. There’s a pulse. So, no heart attack. And no blockage – so no Heimlich. That meant Brian was in respiratory arrest.

Howie quickly placed the palm of his hand across Brian’s forehead and pushed down, his other hand lifting the chin forward and up as he moved Brian’s tongue out of the airway. Pinching Brian’s nose shut, he inhaled quickly then bent down to give two slow breaths. He turned his head to listen for a second then blew another two puffs of air.

“Kevin! Check Brian’s chest! Tell me if it rises!” Howie gave another succession of measured breaths, making sure his mouth completely covered Brian’s.

“Yeah, it did! I saw it!”

Howie nodded, continuing with the mouth-to-mouth respiration.

“D, aren’t you suppose press on his chest or something?” asked Nick anxiously. Howie shook his head, not breaking his pace as he worked feverishly on Brian.

“Are you sure?” questioned Nick, now dancing agitatedly around the two.

“Yes!” Howie shouted. “His heart is still beating!”

Kevin placed a restraining hand on Nick’s shoulder. “Nick, come on man, give him some room, okay?” He guided Nick back and away and then glanced at AJ, who was still talking on the phone to 911.

Straining against Kevin’s strong hold, Nick leaned forward, his eyes riveted on Brian’s face. “Please, please, come on Brian, please,” he whispered fervently, the seconds passing by as Howie continually forced each puff into Brian’s lungs. Pausing for just a moment, Howie shouted out a frantic, “where the hell are the paramedics?” before beginning resuscitation again. Nick began to sweat, his heart pounding painfully when he realized things were turning for the worse.

“Breathe!” he hissed, shaking free of Kevin’s grip. “Breathe, damn you!” Nick crouched down next to Brian’s still body, his eyes wide with alarm. He was not willing, not ready to accept that his best friend might not make it.

Terrified, Nick looked up to Kevin and AJ, hopeful for support. He received none, discovering that both men were unable to tear their eyes away from Brian. Overcome with despair, Nick twisted his head back to watch as Howie tried his best to revive Brian. Nick saw the strain in Howie’s eyes, the worry etched into his face every time he pulled away to check Brian’s pulse. Howie valiantly continued to force air into Brian’s lungs, as Nick scanned for even the smallest sign of life, but Brian remained unresponsive, the bluish-tint that stained his lips turning even darker. Howie pulled away once more to examine Brian and caught Nick’s frightened stare. He shook his head slightly in sorrow before resuming his breathing again.

Nick gave an inward moan. Oh god, no. No!

Nick could feel the sharp sting of tears threatening to spill and he angrily forced them back. Howie was getting fatigued, weary from the strain of resuscitation and Nick ran a troubled hand through his hair. There had to be something he could do! Think, goddamnit, think!

Nick looked up. “AJ! How long before the paramedics get here?”

“I don’t know! I don’t know!” came AJ’s panic-stricken reply. “Soon!”

Nick bit his lip. By the way things were going, soon would be too late for Brian. Something had to be done now. But, what? For a moment Nick wallowed in rage, fuming over his incompetence, his inability to save his friend. The idea that Brian was slipping away, that, that. . . thing was draining the life out of Brian right before his very eyes was too much for him to bear. He wished there was some way he could crawl right into Brian’s body and physically rip that bitch out of him. Wait a second…

“AJ!” he yelled again.

AJ jerked his head, startled.

“AJ, Brian’s not going to make it! Didn’t you say hitting Brian was a way to release her hold on him?”

AJ frowned, confused. “Nick, what good would that do? Brian’s unconscious! He wouldn’t feel a thing.”

“No, but maybe she would!”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” commented Kevin, his eyes nervously darting from Nick to Brian.

“Kevin!” shouted Nick, knowing that time was running out. “Don’t you understand? Brian is dying! He’ll be dead before the paramedics arrive!” Without waiting for a reply, Nick turned and pushed Howie out of the way.

“Hey!” Howie protested and lost his balance, falling sideways.

Nick scooted up next to Brian, his fingers running lightly over Brian’s face. He was shocked at how cold and clammy Brian’s skin felt and began to panic, wondering what he should do next. He shook Brian’s shoulders urgently, coaxing him. “Come on, Brian. Wake up! Breathe for me!” He shook again, this time a little more forcefully. “Brian!” His dread increased ten-fold as Brian’s head lolled to one side, no response on his ashen face.

“Nick! Nick, let him go!” Howie grabbed his arm, pulling hard. “He still needs mouth-to-mouth!”

“No!”

Nick shoved Howie roughly away. With desperation borne out of sheer panic, Nick slapped Brian on the cheek. “Brian, breathe! Breathe!” He smacked Brian harder, giving him a brutal shake before hitting him again. Nick felt strong fingers circling around his forearms, trying to yank him away.

“No, don’t!” Nick jerked out of their grip. “Please, wait, wait!” he asked, begging for more time. “This should work!” Nick’s pleading broke down into a desperate sob as he struck Brian once more, an ugly blow that was directed right to his jaw. Nick then shook Brian like a rag doll, praying for a sign, any sign of life.

“Damnit, Brian, don’t let her do this to you! Come on, fight! Fight! Please! Please. . . oh god, noooo. . .,” Nick couldn’t finish, his hope fading away as he tearfully stared down at his best friend. He scooped Brian into his arms and began to rock back and forth, clinging fiercely to Brian’s lifeless body as he wept.

******************************************************