Holding My Last Breath

Matt moaned as he awoke that morning. His skin felt like it was on fire and his head was pounding. His stomach felt like Hunter was pounding his ledgehammer into him. Matt tried to get up out of bed, only to collapse back down onto the matress.

Something wasn't right.

"Bye Melody, bye Carra!" Evan waved to his daughters as he left Jeff and Chris' house, having dropped his daughter's off there for the day. He smiled on the drive back, now he and Matt would have the house to themselves, and he couldn't wait to get home.

Matt tried agian to get out of bed, making it to his feet this time, before his legs gave out and he fell to the floor.

Evan was humming softly as he came in, throwing the keys down onto the counter,

"Oh Mattie!!!" Evan frowned as his happy greeting went unanswered "Matt?" he mounted the stairs in concern "Matt, you awake baby?"

"Evan," Matt's voice was weak and full of pain as he tired to get back onto the bed.

"Mattie!" Evan ran in when he saw his lover sprawled on the floor "Oh my gosh, baby what's wrong?"

"Hurts," Matt whimpered. "Everything.....hurts." Even breathing was becoming unbearable for the elder Hardy now.

"Oh Mattie..." Evan had pulled his lover up onto the bed and was holding his head in his lap "Baby you're burning up!" He fetched the thermometer from the bathroom and gently inserted it into Matt's mouth, eyed widening when it beeped, the monitor reading;

104.1

"Oh no..." Evan moaned "What do I do?"

"Evy, do.......something," Matt pleaded between labored breaths. "It hurts........so.....bad!"

Evan knew Matt needed to go to the hospital, but he also knew there was no way he could carry his lover out to the car, he was simply too big and heavy for him to hold. Knowing how Matt hated ambulances, he did the only thing that came to mind, he called Jenna,

"Jenna you need to get over here fast!" Evan was going out of his mind with worry "Something's wrong with Matt, he's burning hot and in pain, please help!!!"

Jenna didn't even answer before her phone hit the floor and she was out the door.

"Evan...." Matt whimpered

"Shhh, it's okay...." Evan whispered, crawling back onto the bed "Just relax Mattie, Jenna's gonna come and help." He stroked Matt's burning face and sighed "Just hold on" he whispered "Jenna will be here soon."

"I don't know...if I can Ev," Matt said weakly.

"Mattie you've GOT to" Evan continued to stroke his lover's face and tried hard not to cry "Me and Melody and Carra, and everyone else, we NEED you Matt, you've got to hang on."

"Ev, momma's ready....to take me home," Matt said weakly.

"Oh no no no..." Evan grabbed a bottle of water from the dresser and splashed some of the liquid into his hands, desperately trying to cool Matt's raging fever "Mattie it's not your time, stay with me okay?" he grabbed his lover's hand and held it tight "Stay here."

Matt groaned in pain, unable to speak at that moment, his heart beginnig to slow down.

"Matt NO!" Evan started to cry "Stay with me Mattie, PLEASE!!!!" he looked up when he heard the door slam open "Jenna is that you??"

"Yeah, it's m Ev," Jenna replied rushing to the bedroom.

"Alright, details, and fast!" Jenna said.

"I don't know!" Evan whimpered as Jenna began to look at Matt "I dropped Melody and Carra off at Jeff and Chris' place and when I got back he was out on the floor burning up with a fever! What's wrong with him?"

"Shit!" Jenna cursed. Her brother and his boyfriend were on their way to help, bringing the children into this nightmare.

Matt groaned and Evan shushed him gently "Jenna..." there was a slight whimper in his voice "What do we do?"

"We've got to get him into the bathtub, get his fever down," Jenna said.

"Matt!" the worried voice of Jeff Hardy burst into the house.

"Jeff!" Evan groaned as he strained under Matt's weight "Help us carry him, we need to get him into the bathroom!"

"I'll get him, I'll get him," Jeff said, picking Matt up gently.

"Evan?" Matt whimpered.