All Chapters of Struggles And Obsessions: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Gwen gave Steve several breaths, all the time praying silently that he'd recover. Her heart felt colder than the waters she had so recently left. What if he died? She decided she'd breathe for him for hours if that's what it took. Suddenly she felt Steve cough. She quickly moved her lips off his and tilted his head to the side. A surprisingly small amount of fluid spilled from his mouth. Then Steve gasped for breath. Gwen watched Steve take several large breaths. Then, with tears streaming down her cheeks, she leaned back in and kissed his lips gently. She then pulled his head to her chest and hugged him as her tears of joy rained down on his face. Then she saw the blood!Steve's stomach was crimson as blood flowed down his abdomen and dripped onto the frozen ground. Gwen reached down and felt the red fluid, trying to convince herself that it couldn't be blood. As she rubbed it between her fingers, she soon realized that it truly was blood and it was coming from lacerations in Steve's

Gwen made her way back to the E.R. and explained to Dr. Masters how Coach Watkins insisted on seeing her and why. Dr. Masters excused herself and headed for the waiting room and a discussion with Steve's coach.Once his x-rays were completed and read, Steve was wheeled back to the ER. Gwen pulled back the curtain and stepped alongside his bed."Gwen, I'm not sure how to say this. I owe you my life," began Steve as Gwen stood near his bed and listened. "I'll always be available for you. If you ever need anything I have, or anything I can do for you, just let me know. I'm serious as a heart attack. I feel a tremendous debt to you and I'll spend the rest of my life trying to repay it.""That's hardly necessary, Steve. I'm just glad that I was in the right place at the right time. I have no idea how you dared dive into that water and then go into that submerged car. Weren't you afraid?" asked Gwen."I was terrified, Gwen. But I was more afraid of how I'd never be able to look in a mirror

Everyone was surprised by Gwen's vehement defense of Billy's bravery. Nothing was said for half a minute, until Charlotte began to laugh. She wrapped her arms around Billy and told him, "You are a hero, Billy. You're my hero, too.""Now that we have that settled, I've got to call Laura and ask her if she can make it early tomorrow morning for the show," stated Gwen. "She said she wanted more exposure and Steve's making sure that she gets it. I wonder what she'll say when she hears this?"Gwen spoke to Laura for a couple minutes and then returned to the living room. "She's in! She was surprised at how quickly we took her up on our promise to include her in more promotions, but really pleased. Mom, I was thinking maybe Steve could sleep in my room tonight so he'd be sure to be here and ready for the interview in the morning. Would that be okay with you?"Paula turned pale and stuttered as she searched for the words she wanted. "I, your Dad and I, we don't think, Kate's just sixteen and

Steve turned to his teammates as the defense prepared to take the field and yelled, "Guys, you've got to hold 'em and get the ball back! We can win this! Get the ball back in our hands!"The players stopped to stare at Steve as blood blotted out most of the number 12 on his jersey. Steve was waving his helmet and urging his teammates on."Holy shit!" muttered Will Stevens, the captain of the defense. "That guy's giving his blood for this team. Maybe we better stop these bastards and get that ball back!"Dr. Laura Masters had made her way to the coach's side and was engaged in a very animated conversation with him. The Sparta fans found it almost as interesting as the game. They couldn't hear what was being said, but could tell that it was emotional, and quite frank."Get your head out of your ass, Coach!" yelled the young M.D. "He has lots of blood. It always looks worse than it is. I positively guarantee that he'll easily be able to finish the game. Think of the damage you're doing t

"Hello to you, too," laughed Amber. "You must be one of the beautiful Anderson sisters, probably Lisa. Steve told me that you and Kate were drop dead gorgeous, but I thought he was probably exaggerating a little. I can see now that he was right. He did neglect to tell me just how tight your family is, however. You're ready to fight for your sister, and she was ready to fight for Steve."Lisa was flummoxed. She had verbally attacked the girl and insulted her eye to eye. She expected yelling, cursing, maybe even a catfight, but not laughter and compliments. Suddenly Kate was at Lisa's side."Steve said I was drop dead gorgeous? Did he really say that? I'm Kate, Gwen's other beautiful sister. Did Steve tell you about us the night Gwen saw you having dinner with him at Dominick's? I knew he wasn't running around on Gwen. Are you Steve's cousin or something?" finished an exuberant Kate.By the time Kate finished her rant, all the women, including Lisa, were laughing. "Everyone, I want you