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I was back with Jamie and Mike in just over fifteen minutes, but I was still pretty restless to get back. I cared about all my children, of course, but at that moment, Joshua was the priority.
Thankfully, it wasn't long before Dr. Harrisson was in the waiting room, looking tired, but apart from that, his face showed no emotion at all, which I didn't know whether to take as a good sign or a bad sign.
"Hello, Mr. Carter."
We shook hands.
"Did you find anything?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Carter, but at the moment neither the blood test nor the X-ray indicate to any problem at all. Nothing showed up on the X-ray, and the blood counts are within normal ranges. I think the worst thing it might be is a slightly collapsed lung, which is quite common in tall, thin boys, like Joshua."
"A collapsed lung?"
It seemed bad, but not as bad as it could have been, so I was more relieved than anything.
"Just slightly, and that's not even for sure. In any case, I'll send him home and you can come back if it gets worse later."
"All right." I agreed, but I still felt uneasy. Two little kids, a sick teenager and another moody teenager seemed like an explosive combination, surely it was not going to be a very calm night.

* * *

It wasn't.
I spent the whole night up, first making pizza, then trying to make Josh feel more comfortable, then telling Jamie and Mike a story, and then I was with Josh for the remainder of the night.
"It's getting worse, Dad..." Josh moaned. "I think I'm dying..."
"You're not dying, Josh, gosh no, you're not dying..." I said, feverish with exhaustion and wanting to make us both feel better. Having a sick son is heart wrenching, and worse if your wife isn't alive to help you through it. I was never that good at dealing with it, and Julia was. Julia was the best mother. And I, one of the worst fathers. Okay, maybe not so bad, since all four kids are still alive and relatively intact, but I missed Julia so much. Somehow, I felt that if she'd been here Josh would already be all right, and all the kids would be under control.
"I guess we'll go back to L.P.P.H." I said.
I went to Ryan's room. I shook him gently.
"Whaaa..." he sleepily said. Then he sat up in bed. "What's the matter?"
"Josh is feeling worse, I'm going to take him back to L.P.P.H., okay? I need you to be responsible for the kids. I'll call you if I get news, all right?"
"Yeahhh..." he yawned. "That's all?"
"Basically. I'll be back soon." I hurriedly replied, while stepping into my shoes again, which had been carelessly tossed next to the couch in the living room. I grabbed my keys and hurried out to the car, where Josh was waiting for me. Before turning the car on, I felt his forehead. He was burning up with fever.
The X-ray may have showed nothing and the blood test neither, but this was no joke, I had to get to the hospital as soon as possible. Josh's very life depended on it.
To hell with "normal ranges".