Alexa Chapter 23: Recovery
I woke up and my head was killing me. There was no light except for a
faint one at the side of the bed. I could tell by the way I was
propped up that this was not my bed. Then it came flooding back to me.
The accident. I was just telling Jenny I loved her as the light turned
green and I pulled out into traffic. Just as I was pulling into the
intersection a large truck hit the side of the car. I remember briefly
being in an ambulance, but then nothing after that. I laid there and
began taking inventory of my body. I attempted to take a deep breath
and I could feel pain in the left side of my chest and a bit of
difficulty as my lungs filled. I attempted to move my arms and
fingers, and my left wrist was wrapped but I could move my fingers. I
then moved on to the lower parts of my body. I was relieved when I
could wiggle my toes. It was when I tried to move my legs I felt
something heavy stopping my right one from moving and I got scarred.
With a cracking voice, I said the first thing that came to my thoughts.
"Jenny" The weight on legs lessened then I heard the most wonderful
voice in the world almost scream in excitement.
"Lex! Oh my god!" The blonde tornado screeched as it moved its way
from my legs and enveloped me in the greatest hug I have ever received.
She was saying something to me, but I couldn't understand her through
the tears. All I know was that I just wanted to hold her in my arms.
The memories came flooding back. I should have paid better attention.
I mean how hard is it to miss a dump truck? But I was alive. That is
all that mattered. That and the beautiful blonde who was going to
squeeze me to death. I try and push her away but all it does is get
her to begin kissing me all over. "Jenny, baby, please stop. For just
a second." Jenny slowly stops but as she gets part of the way she lays
the most deep, loving kiss in the world on me. Finally, she backs
away so I can take in her face. Her mascara may have run all over her
face and she may have looked like she had not slept all night and her
clothes and hair were disheveled but she was still the most beautiful
person in the world.
I need to figure out what's going on so I ask her to just answer a few
questions. The basic question of where am I was the first. "You're at
Methodist." My brain begins to slowly start to come online. Location
has been determined. I next ask her what time is it that's when the
first shock came to me.
"It's 6:40 in the morning. You have been out since the accident."
Before I can even react to that a nurse comes bursting into the room
and checks the monitors and then begins checking me out. She looks at
the monitors and adjusts the tube I now realize is sticking out of the
left side of my chest. She swiped a thermometer across my forehead and
reads it before beginning the questioning. "So how are we feeling
today?" The nurse asks. I tell her I am fine with a bit of a headache
but am shocked that I had been out as long as I have been. "Oh, that
was expected after the blow to your head and other injuries. Your body
needed rest." The nurse told me. The nurse disappears for a moment
and returns with a fresh pitcher of water for me and orders me to keep
drinking. She told me the doctor would be around in about an hour and
see if I can eat anything. Not less than a second after that she was
out the door leaving me alone with Jenny. Jenny instantly wraps me in
another hug. I tried to comfort her a bit, but when I went to wrap my
left arm, I hit the tube sticking out of my chest and let out a scream
from the pain. Jenny instantly let's go of me and backs off.
"I'm so sorry babe I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm so sorry." And the
water works begin again, but this time It is my turn to give the hugs.
"Jenny, it's alright. I just bumped my tube. You didn't do anything.
I'm so sorry if you thought you did something." I told my soul mate as
we once again held each other. After a few seconds of that I dive back
into my questioning. "So, do you know what happened?"
Jenny gained her composure a bit and tried to sit back in the chair at
the foot of the bed but she seemed a bit lost by doing it, like I was
punishing her. I slid over a bit and motioned her to come up by me.
You would have thought I told her that she had won the lottery. She
crawled up next to me as I tried to rest my head on her. Jenny held me
and began stroking my hair. "You and I were talking and you said you
were going to Byerly's to get something special for dinner. Then as
you told me you loved me, I heard the accident. It was the worst thing
I have ever heard in my life. Ever. Worse than when daddy told me
about Abby. I thought I lost you. I raced out of the house and boke
ever speeding record I could to come find you. The worst part is a I
didn't know where you were! I got lucky and found the accident site.
Right by Ridgedale. I asked the policemen who were there where they
sent you and I came racing here."
I tried to comfort the weeping blonde once again but don't know how to.
So, I just squeezed her tighter. "What about my car?" I asked.
"Totaled. When I saw it, I thought you were dead! I guess they had to
cut you out. If I could get by with hitting you I would. Don't ever
do that to me again!" She screamed at me and then pulled me in tighter.
The two of us just held each other and cried. I don't know how long we
were holding each other, but neither one of us wanted to let each other
go. It wasn't until the doctor came in the we finally lessened our
embrace. As he entered the room he cleared his throat I could see
Jenny instantly panicked and jump out of the bed. A smile came across
the doctor's face as he stood there. He was young and looked a bit
tired. But the smile on his face seemed to comfort me.
"I can see you are feeling better Miss Quinn. "I'm Doctor Noah Curtis.
I was the doctor on duty in the ER when you came in. I am glad to see
you are awake. You gave us all a bit of a scare last night when you
came in, but it seems like you have improved a bit." He flashed a
smart alek grin and came over and started to go over everything and
checking me. I had so many questions, I didn't even know where to
begin. I decided that the direct approach was going to be the best
route to finding out what happened, so I did and asked what my injuries
were. "Well where do I begin? Starting from the top, you took a
pretty nasty blow to the head, you have a concussion. This probably
came from you hitting your head on the windshield. Moving down, you
have two broken ribs on your left side, plus you had a collapsed lung.
That is the reason for the tube sticking out of your side." The smile
from the doctor was very comforting and his upbeat attitude was
infectious. The thought that I had scored again with doctor I had
'lucked' into. "That brings us to your wrist. You had some difficulty
moving when you came in last night, but we are not sure if it is
broken. So, for precautions, we splinted that. Other than that Ms.
Quinn you are a very lucky young lady. It goes to show what wearing a
seat belt and having good air bags can do." Once again, the smile was
back. I took in everything that he said and a feeling of relief came
over me, but I think there was someone who took it even better. Jenny
came over and attempted to hug me again as the doctor looked on, an
amused look on his face,
I started to tear up and just grabbed on to Jenny again. I was going
to be OK. Everything seemed like it was something I could deal with.
I had a concussion when I was in ninth grade in football and I bruised
my ribs once horsing around with my brothers. Knowing that my injuries
will going to take time, but were easily manageable. I asked the
question that was most important. 'So, when am I going to get out of
here doctor?" This is when I got the next shock of the day.
"The earliest will be tomorrow."
"What?!" I screamed/asked. As I tried to protest, the doctor held up
his hands and explained they wanted to keep me over one more night
because they had trouble getting my lung to re-inflate and they were
still concerned since I had been out so long. I was not happy with
this, but someone else took it harder. "She has to be able to go home
doctor. She can't stay here I'll take great care of her. I will do
whatever it takes, but she needs to come home."
"Miss, um Thompson, right?" The doctor stated "Your girlfriend has
been through a terrible ordeal. That she is laying here talking to us
is a testament to the safety changes in the new cars. If her car was
ten-fifteen years old, we would have had a difficult conversation last
night. We just want to make sure that there are no issues OK?" I
could see Jenny was not OK with this, but she did nod her head and
accepted the doctor's prognosis. "I am going to be headed out shortly.
I will be leaving some notes with the nurses. Do you feel up to eating
something? He asked. I nodded my head. "Good we will start with a
few softer things. No steak or pizza yet OK." He said with a cheesy
grin that Danny would have been proud of. "Now Doctor Rosen will be on
later. He doesn't have the charming personality I do, but listen to
what he says. He will probably stop by after the MRI. Now before I go
is there anything else I can do for you?"
That question was open ended and I knew there was one thing I needed to
discuss with him, something I needed. "Um doctor, I don't know if you
noticed, but I am transitioning and I need to take my, um, I need to
take my pill. How do I go about that?" I watched the doctor's eyes go
wide.
"You're transgender? I would have never known. Wow" I smirked as the
look of astonishment took over the doctor. He began stammering a bit.
"Ah, yeah, um we should probably contact your doctor about that unless
you have the pills with you?" I look over at Jenny. "I'll have our
roommate bring them by if that's OK? They are kind of expensive and I
don't want to get in a fight with insurance over this." Jenny tells
the doctor who nods and asks for Debbie's number. Jenny hands it over
to the doctor as he leaves. On his way out, he tells me he will stop
by this evening to check up on me. Finally, Jenny and I can relax,
well as much as we can in the hospital. As Jenny attempted to crawl
back up into the bed with me, something, suddenly came over her.
"Shit! I never called Debbie." Jenny yelled out and grabbed her
phone. After a few rings, Debbie answered and Jenny finally was able
to talk to my counselor and her boss. "Debbie! It's Jenny. Um I won't
be in today but the bigger thing is that you will be getting a phone
call from a Doctor Curtis. Um, Lex was in an accident and is the
hospital" I could hear Debs through the phone. I was a little shocked
but warmed by Debbie's concern. Jenny continued on "Yes she is fine
now but she is going to be in here overnight again. And that's why the
doctor is calling you, about Lex's prescription. Really? OK we are at
Methodist, room 520. We'll see you in a bit." Jenny hung up and
looked over at me. "Well Debs is in her way over right now. She will
deal with the doctors." As I look at Jenny, I realize something.
"If Debbie is coming I need to get cleaned up! I can't see her looking
like this!" My sudden panic causes Jenny to begin giggling and then
tease me for being so girly. First, I blush but then get a bit of a
wicked thought. "Well maybe you could give me a sponge bath babe?" I
say Jenny leans forward and gives me another long kiss. Unlike the
ones of fear and joy that I had received early in the morning, this is
one I am more used to. A loving kiss that showed the deep feelings we
have for one another. As we break Jenny slowly sits up and just
flashed her million-watt smile at me "As much as I would love to do
that, I may get into a bit of trouble." Jenny tells me and she slowly
gets up and moves off to one of the cabinets and finds a towel and wash
cloth and disappears in to the bathroom for a moment only to return
with a now damp cloth. She reaches for her purse and comes over and
begins to clean up my face a bit. And is bad as I feel between the
concussion and tube in my chest, I feel like I am in heaven as the love
of my life slowly washes away yesterday's make up. Jenny then reaches
into her purse and begins lightly brushing my hair, now I am in heaven
and the loving look Jenny flashes me lets me know all is going to be
all right. Reaching back into her purse she produces her small makeup
bag and applies some very light makeup to me and pronounces me
beautiful just as my counselor walks in.
"I hope you two aren't playing doctor in here" Debbie teases us as she
the two of us sharing a smile. "Well Alexa, you look much better than
I thought you would. I think I have said that before." Debs says to me,
before turning her attention to her summer intern, "But you look like
hell Jenny. Go clean yourself up a bit so I can talk to the patient."
I recognized that as code to Jenny that this was to be a professional
talk. As Jenny was headed to the bathroom, Debbie gave her one last
direction. 'And keep that faucet on so you are not eavesdropping!"
The smirk Debbie gave Jenny caused my partner to stick her tongue out
her boss and call her a spoilsport. As soon as we could hear the water
running, Debbie grabbed the chair and moved up next to me. In a quiet
voice, Debbie began the questioning. "So, Alexa, how are you feeling?"
I try and begin going on about the various injuries and how I was
recovering but Debbie just shook her head. "I saw your chart, one nice
thing about being a MD I can do that. I am talking about you." And
with that I could feel the smile disappear and I broke down in tears.
"I am so scared. I could have died!" I say as I bury my head in the
pillow a bit. Debbie seems to understand that but she can tell that
there is more than that going on in my head and continues to try and
prod me along to get me to open up. After expressing a few more
concerns about my own health, Debbie finally begins to get frustrated
with me. "You are holding back, what else is bothering you?" Debbie
says to me firmly. I finally suck it up and express my deep feelings
about this.
"I feel bad for what I am putting Jenny through" I say as the sobs
become deeper and louder. Through the tears I can see a satisfied
smirk come across Debbie's face before she asks me one of the easiest
questions I have ever had to answer. "Do you always do this, put Jenny
feelings above your own?" I slowly nod. The smile is still there. It
actually grows a bit bigger. She turns and calls for Jenny to come out
of the bathroom. The love of my life returns somewhat refreshed but
with a bit of a concern on her face. She walks over to my side and
reaches down for my hand as the two of us just look at the smiling
Debbie. Debbie looks at Jenny and then me and then says to Jenny, "You
realize you have a lot of work ahead of you, young lady. I am putting
you on leave effective immediately. Your new job is to take care of
Ms. Quinn here. Do you understand that?" Jenny nodded her head and
looked at me. Debbie went on, "And don't give into her. You need to
be strong and keep her in line. Do you understand that?" Jenny nodded
again, but this time the expression on her face was much more serious.
"I am going to leave you two alone, but I will be checking in on you
two. Alexa, listen to Jenny, and one other thing. Here." Debbie
reached into her pocket and handed over a brown bottle to Jenny, who
quickly dumps one pill into her hand and gave it to me. Before she
left, in a completely uncharacteristic move, Debbie came over and
lightly hugged me. "I'm glad you're OK Alexa, if you need anything,
you have my number, call. Both of you. I don't know why I was so
worried on the drive over. Once again the two of you proved you can
handle anything." We waved at Debbie as she walked out, leaving Jenny
and I alone again.
"So, what were you two talking about?" Jenny said to me and I could
feel the emotion come back to the surface and I broke down. Jenny
instantly pulled me into her arms as I wailed away. I attempt to speak
but, I was just babbling as Jenny tried to calm me through my tears.
When I finally got to a point where my speech was coherent, I told her
how scared I was looking back at it. How I could have died and what I
must have put her through. Jenny eased me up and looked into my eyes
and began crying. We held each other. Through her tears I could hear
her say "When I saw that car I thought I lost you! Don't ever do that
me to again!" We continued to try and comfort each other but all we
could do was cry. We were interrupted again, but this time by a nurse
to take me down to X-Ray and then to CT, for a scan.
I could almost see fear in Jenny's eyes as I was being helped into a
wheel chair. She was acting like I was never going to see her again.
I really didn't want to leave her either, so I asked the nurse if she
could at least walk along with us. As I was being wheeled from my room
down to first floor, the only time Jenny let go of my hand was to get
on the elevator. I knew I had to comfort her when we got alone. But
then again, I was grateful for the attention from her as I always am.
She was forced to let go of me as I went into to have the x-rays taken,
but she was standing right there waiting for me. When I finally got
out of CT she jumped out of her seat as I came out and I could see her
expression change from the nervous/sad look to one of glee when I
appeared.
The return to my room was welcome, but that feeling didn't last long as
we had visitors waiting for as when we returned. In one of the
weirdest twists I have had to deal with yet, standing there were both
my mother and Jenny's father. While the two had met a few times, I
wouldn't have called the great friends. Now I felt like we were
interrupting a huge conversation when I was being wheeled back towards
my bed. My mother was instantly all over me, like only a mother can
be. "Where were you? We were getting a bit nervous up here, wondering
where you two went. Is everything okay?" As I attempted to make
myself comfortable in the bed I notice the concerned looks not only on
my mother's face but Marty's as well. I go onto explain to the two of
them that I am fine, that I was just having some X-rays. That still
doesn't change the looks of concern but it does back them off a bit.
"Thank god it was just that." My mother said. "You had us all worried
last night, especially Jenny. I thought a couple of nurses were in
fear for their lives by the way Jenny was acting" my mother said as she
looked at my girlfriend with a big grin across her face. Jenny
instantly got shy and Marty began laughing. I asked what she did, but
the embarrassment was stopping her from talking, so her father answered
for her.
"Alexa, let's just say that my mother was proud of her." Marty said
with a big grin as he looked over at his daughter who told him to be
quiet. My head was spinning a bit so I need to ask a few questions.
"You two were here last night?" I asked and the two just nodded their
heads. I continued my questioning. "And Mary? Wait a second. How
did you guys find out?" I asked.
Mom was the first to speak. "Well Katie called me to tell me. I raced
up here as fast as I could and found everyone sitting in the waiting
room. Well everyone but Jenny was sitting. Jenny looked like a
football coach storming the sidelines." Marty nodded his head in
agreement, which earned him a slap on the arm from Jenny. For my part
I was still trying to catch up with the roll call of visitors last
night.
"Katie and Danny were here too? They are supposed to be up north. I
don't want them to be the reason for them missing their trip." I said
and began to instantly feel guilty about all this attention. "Where is
Katie now? I ask.
Mom once again handle the speaking "They went back to the apartment as
soon as you got moved up here and will be back later." Confusion once
again reigned supreme in my mind, I started to wonder if it was the
concussion that was making me slow or just the craziness of the
situation. "So, you didn't bring them with this morning?" I asked.
Marty handled the answer this time,
"Well since your mother and I were both here late, and I wouldn't let
her get a room I brought her back to the house. It was the least I
could do Alexa. I put her in the spare room upstairs and had Marta
there overnight in case your mom got hungry." I was sitting there my
mouth open trying to digest everything. My brain finally started to
catch up and the tears began. "You didn't have to stay all night
Marty. You didn't have to put mom up! But thanks." The tears really
began to flow and Jenny pulled me in. But it was the sight of Marty
hovering over me that brought the rest of the room to tears,
"Alexa, why wouldn't I be here for you? You have brought so much joy
to Jenny and heck even myself. You are part of the family and I don't
let my family just sit. Remember that encounter with Trey at the
party?" Marty asked me. I nodded my head and he went on "Well do you
remember what I said to Rob? I said that Trey was messing with my
girls. That means you too." Marty hugged me lightly but I decided to
make it a lot tighter. I thanked him over and over and I could hear
the famous throat clearing by Marty which made me begin to giggle a
bit. Jenny was a mess to my right and I could see my mother wiping
away tears. As Marty let me go I reached for my mother and pulled her
in "I'm sorry Mom" I said "I didn't mean to put you through all of
this. I let her go and she began admonishing me.
"Don't tell me sorry over something you had no control of. And I worry
about you crossing the street or going down stairs. It's called being
a mother. So, don't apologize." As she let go, Jenny instantly took
her place in the hugs. I didn't say anything to her. I think she knew
how bad I felt, mostly because she whispered into my ears "You better
not" which got me giggling. As we broke the hug, Jenny just smiled
down at me and sat partially on the bed. I looked at my mother and
noticed something in her hand. It took me a minute to realize what it
was. It was the first time in my life I was happy to see a rosary. It
gave me a chance to get out of this tear fest. I pointed at my mother
and made a comment.
"I suppose you were wearing out the beads all night?" I said as I
reached for a tissue to wipe my nose. The comment worked brilliantly
because the look on my mother's face changed from the mother who was
worried about her child to being my mom.
"It wouldn't hurt you to say a few Hail Mary's young lady." She said to
me which got us all laughing. My mother sat down in the big chair in
the corner and Marty moved to one corner. The four of us sat and
chatted about everything then I remembered something. "Oh, jeez mom.
We were supposed to take you shopping for a new car tomorrow." My
mother shot me a look as if I was nuts. "Alexa, don't worry about me.
My car can wait. You need to heal up." But no matter what my mother
said, I still felt bad that I had messed up her plans. I tried to look
at Jenny and I was met with a smile and a shaking head. I knew exactly
what she was thinking and it proved one other thing had survived the
accident, our ability to communicate without speaking. Before she
could kiss me, we were interrupted by a hospital worker bringing in my
breakfast. The girl, who couldn't have been no older than me was
followed by a different nurse. "Good morning Miss Quinn, I am Angie
and I will be your nurse for the day. I wanted to check on you and
make sure you were doing OK. If you need anything, just push this
button", and she held up the buzzer tied around the arms of the bed and
then she looked and the monitors. She moved over to the whiteboard on
the wall and wrote her name. "Now no complaining about the breakfast.
The doctor wants to see how you handle food. If it goes OK we will see
what we can do for lunch." With that she and the young girl were out
the door.
I looked at the tray and saw a bowl of Cheerios and a banana. There
was also a glass of orange juice sitting there, but it was the final
item on the tray that turned up my nose. It looked like a pile of
purple mushy blobs. It was stewed prunes, something I had always
hated. My mother tells the story of when I was little, that I once
spit the stewed prunes back out at my father as he fed them to me. I
have often joked that was when he stopped liking me. As I made a face
at the food, a voice from the past came to the forefront. "You will
eat everything on your tray young lady and I don't want to hear any
complaining about the prunes. If the doctor approved it, it means he
thinks you need them." I tried to bring back my own past and tried to
stare down my mother, but I was no match for the master. I reluctantly
grabbed the dish and began to try and swallow them without tasting
them. Jenny was laughing at me the whole time and Marty and Mom just
stood there and watched me. When I was done a proud smile came to my
mother's face and I just shot her the evils. I couldn't get my lover
to stop laughing, despite my attempts to pinch her. Finally, I came up
with a way to trump her.
"Marty, can you do me one favor?" I asked and he said anything. "Can
you take Jenny home and at least get her to clean up if not take a nap?
I know she wants to be here but she needs her rest too." Marty agreed
but Jenny did not. As she and I argued about it, I could hear my mom
wishing Marty good luck with his daughter. After a bit, I was finally
able to convince Jenny to go with her father. As Jenny broke the
goodbye kiss I saw the expression on her face change from concern to
mock indignation. "This is payback for laughing at you, isn't it?"
She asked and I just shrugged my shoulders and looked away. She leaned
in and whispered. "You are lucky you are in a hospital or I would put
you in one." She told me with a laugh and then gave me another kiss.
We just starred at each other as she left the room. I really didn't
want her to go, but I needed her to be strong and being here all day
would drain her. It also gave me time to take a bit of a nap
I awoke about an hour later and found mom reading. I ty and adjust
myself and I start to whine a bit about getting comfortable only to
hear my mother begin to babble on about how lucky I am. That I had to
listen to what the doctor said and other things that I tried to tune
out. I knew she was just being a concerned mom, but I didn't want to
hear it right now. Just as I was about to tell her to be quiet, Katie
and Danny came walking through the door "Thank god you guys are here."
I said out loud, earning me my second 'look' of the day from my mother.
Danny started laughing as he could see my aggravation with my mother.
Katie came over and gave me a hug and took the seat right next to the
bed Jenny had been glued to. "Just relax Alexa, your mother is just
concerned and scared. Getting all worked up over Char is not going to
help you at all." My big sister informed me before asking all the
pertinent questions about my health. The whole time Danny was standing
by her side and looking down on me. For the first time in my life I
saw a look of concern come from my brother's face. The tears started a
bit again and this time I pulled Katie closer to me. Katie being the
true big sister told me everything was alright and tried to calm me.
After Katie let me go, Danny came over to attempt a light hug. The
water works began again, but I was able to pull myself out of it thanks
to Danny. I could hear the 'manly' snort come from Danny, just like
the one Marty had done earlier. I began to giggle and Danny asked me
what was so funny. I began to tell him that he was and as he pulled
away I began to laugh even harder at the look on his face. As he let
go of me, I could see the concern for me on his face, but then he
accidently hit my tube and I screamed out. Panic took over my
brother's face. "Watch it meathead, that hurt." I growled through
gritted teeth. That is when he began laughing. "She's fine" He
announced, and I was.
A few minutes later, an older gentleman in a white lab coat came
through the door. This must be Doctor Rosen that Doctor Curtis had
told me about earlier. Katie and Danny quickly moved from the side of
my bed to allow the physician to begin to look at me. "Good morning
Miss Quinn, I am Doctor David Rosen and I am the doctor covering this
floor today. OK, it says here it says you were in an auto accident and
suffered a concussion and broken ribs along with a collapsed lung. All
right let's take a look here." He stood up went over to the lighted
panel on the wall and put up an x-ray of my chest. "Looks good, but I
want to try a test." He stated and brought over a device that looked
like a breathalyzer with a little ball in it and he asked me to blow in
it. "Very good" he said. "I think we can take that tube out. You're
taking good strong breaths.' He started going over my chart some more
and made note that I did not have a broken wrist and could remove the
splint but were going to keep it wrapped up a bit longer. He then took
a penlight to my eyes and checked my dilation. The light hurt a bit
and I flinched, "Seems were still having a bit of an issue with the
concussion. We are going to keep you here for another night and we
would like to keep it a little dark in here." With that he pointed at
Angie to turn off the overhead lights.
Doctor Rosen began moving from my right side to my left side, I think
to take out my tube, reading my chart the whole time. As he was
rounding the foot of the bed he suddenly stopped. He looked at me and
I could see an odd expression come over his face. It was a look of
confusion and one that appeared to be anger or sadness. I couldn't
really figure it out. He then looks up at me and I could see a look of
disgust come across his face. "Oh, you are one of them" he said to me.
I was a little slow to comprehend what he was alluding to, but Katie
was not. She instantly leapt form the side of the room towards the
doctor. "One of what?" she asked, her anger brewing. It was then I
figured out what he was implying. Before I could even open my mouth,
Katie looked at me, "Quiet Alexa." Turning back to the doctor she
launched into him again. "One of what?" she repeated. I had seen this
look before from her, but it usually was reserved for Adam.
"I see that 'Ms. Quinn' is one of those attention mongers saying they
are really a woman. There is no such thing as transgender." The
doctor said with an arrogance I had only heard from the Lake Minnetonka
crowd. I don't think he was ready for the onslaught that was about to
hit him.
'So, people can't think and feel a certain way? Is that what you are
saying?" Katie asked the doctor. My mother was about to jump in but I
could see Danny hold his hand up and turn to watch his girlfriend. He
had a smile on him like a proud parent. I was in no mood to laugh.
"Young lady I am a doctor and scientist. I believe in the body, not
the mind. I don't quite understand why someone would need to change
what they were born with the way some people do. I don't believe in
all of this plastic surgery and chemicals to make one look younger I
suppose that 'Ms. Quinn' here has had augmentation." I lost my cool at
this point. "I have not had any sort of surgery. Why don't you..."
Before I could go on Katie told me to "shut up Alexa." Before turning
back towards the physician "I think you better leave and send another
doctor in. I don't want you touching my sister." The doctor just
sneered at Katie.
"I am a physician and have sworn an oath to treat the patient as
presented to me. I might not agree with my patient's decision, but I
will treat them." The condescending tone that the doctor uttered was
making me angrier and I began to get very upset. That is when two new
voices entered the discussion.
"You do not touch her!" Screamed Jenny who came rushing to my side and
tried to calm me down. "Get him the fuck out of here!" She yelled.
Once again, the doctor said he would not leave and that he was going to
treat me. That was when the third voice of the argument joined in.
The look of bewilderment crossed the man's face. "What's all the
screaming about Katie?" Marty asked. Katie pointed at the doctor and
begin to inform my girlfriend's father of what was going on. "Stop,
right there!" Marty yelled. "You will not touch one of my girls,
doctor. As a matter of fact, I think you should leave this room
immediately." Marty stated in the authoritive voice that only I had
only heard him use once. The doctor tried to stare him down, but
unlike one of the nurses the doctor was used to dealing with, the
doctor was in a losing battle. The anger in Marty's voice shocked me.
"I am not kidding doctor. I don't use this kind of influence too often
but do you recognize who I am?" The doctor shook his head and a wicked
grin spread across Marty's face. "Well my name is C. Martin Thompson
and I happen to be on the Board of Trustees for this Hospital. I don't
think I have ever used my influence at this place, but I am not above
it. As a matter of fact." Marty stated and began moving to the phone
that was sitting by my bed and she picked it up. I watched him the
whole time even though Jenny was pulling me tight and I saw a wink come
from my great protector. He acted like he was pressing a key, but he
spoke into a dial tone. "I would like to speak with Doctor Lyle Miller
please. This is Marty Thompson" I watched the doctor panic and move
quickly out of the room, nearly bowling over Jenny's grandmother in the
process. As soon as he was gone, Mary, who had ridden over with her
son, spoke.
"About time you stood up for the girls like that young man! I keep
feeling I am the only one who does that" Mary said in classic Mary
style, causing Marty to get a little redder in the face. Katie and
Danny stood to the side trying to suppress their laughter. Finally,
Katie spoke up.
"Way to go Mr. T. Thanks for coming in and dropping the hammer on that
little turd." Katie said as Danny began laughing at his girlfriend.
"Thank you for the vote of confidence Katie. I just don't get how
someone can be so narrow minded." Marty said, causing Jenny to stop
babying me for a second and giggle at her father. "You know what I
meant Jenny. But I guess you are right. It took me awhile to open my
mind up to all this, I admit I didn't know any better. But still that
son of a bitch had no right to say that to you Alexa." Marty said as
his face continued to get redder. The interesting thing was suddenly,
he stopped. I could see something had come over him. Marty looked at
me one more time and spun on his heals and shot out the door. I began
to get a bit nervous that he might do something rash. That wasn't
Marty, was it? Mary tried to diffuse the situation.
"You two are very lucky to have someone like him who cares so much
about you two."
Mary's words convinced me that I needed to do something. I saw my
brother standing there. "Danny go see if you can track him down. Make
sure nothing bad happens." He smiled and nodded as he headed for the
door. Just before I stopped him, he turned around and looked back.
"And Danny. No physical stuff OK?" Danny just smiled at my request
before uttering "I'll try "and moved out into the hall to see if he
could find Marty.
Through all this commotion, one person had stayed quiet. I looked over
at my mother who had been sitting in that large chair the whole time
and I noticed she began to weep. "Mom?" I asked and she got up and
came over to me and wrapped me up. She kept uttering that she was so
sorry. I looked over at Jenny who put her arm around my mother and
attempted to make it a group hug. My mother kept repeating "I'm sorry
that I couldn't protect you like these people do. I feel terrible that
I never did that for you." I began weeping at my mother's comments and
pulled her tighter but I knew I had to be the one to comfort her.
"Mom it's OK. You are here now. It's all in the past. You've have
been nothing but supportive since the funeral. I love you mom." That
seemed to get her feeling a bit better. I looked around and could see
that Mary and even Katie were tearing up over this exchange. I didn't
even bother to look at Jenny because I knew she was a mess. I reached
over for her and soon had the two most important women in my life in my
arms. Just as we began to get ourselves under control, Danny comes
bursting in the room.
'I couldn't find Marty... What the hell is going on in here? I leave for
a few minutes and everyone starts crying like babies." Danny says
causing Jenny and I to begin giggling. My mother and Mary start to
admonish 'Daniel' and causes his girlfriend to lightly punch him in the
stomach before giving him a big kiss and a hug. As mom moves off and
Katie is still hugging him, Danny and I lock eyes. We share a smile
that in the past would have never have happened but now has become as
common as the sunrise. I pull Jenny in closer as I mouth a thanks to
the meathead.
Marty came in a minute later, with a doctor trailing behind. The
doctor looked familiar and Marty had a grin across his face. Mary was
the first to acknowledge his presence. 'Peter" Mary said with a look of
surprise on her face. Jenny let go of me long enough to look up.
"Doctor Fisher, what are you doing here?" Jenny asked sounding just as
astonished as her grandmother. The middle-aged doctor began laughing a
bit. "Hello Mary, Jennifer. I was getting ready to head out for the
weekend when this lout comes strolling in my office and demanding that
I come up here. Hello Alexa, we met at the party back on Memorial
weekend. Let's take a look at that tube. At first, I was a bit
nervous but the large grins on the three Thompson's faces let me know I
was going to be alright. My mother began asking Marty who this doctor
was. I couldn't hear Marty's explanation but I did see my mother's
eyes go wide. She must have been impressed. Not only her but so was
my nurse, Angie, who had come back in to check on me after the
commotion. When she saw the doctor examining my chest I thought she
was going to snap to attention like a soldier as she recognized the
doctor. 'Peter' gave her orders and she practically sprinted out of
the room to get the instruments he asked for.
Marty stood by and looked over at the doctor. 'So, can you handle it
Pete?" Marty asked. Peter began laughing again. "Let's see I've done
two quadruple bypasses and an angioplasty this week, I think I can
handle pulling out a chest tube." Doctor Fisher informed his friend
before turning to me. "Now Alexa, this might hurt a bit, but I am
going to numb it up a bit and then we will pull it out." I felt
comforted by his bedside manner. I don't know if it was his normal
disposition or if it was because he was a friend of the family but I
had calmed. Danny and Katie came over and began talking to me and Jen
while I watched my mother and Mary get into a bit of a discussion over
who should have the chair and Marty and Peter having a discussion that
included lots of laughs. I felt more at ease than I had since I woke
up a few hours ago. My 'family' had really come through for me. Soon
I was numbed enough to where Doctor Fisher slowly eased the tube out of
my chest right there at my bed and with the help of Angie closed the
wound. "Not bad for a thoracic surgeon if I do say so myself. Now
Alexa, don't be stubborn and listen to the nurses and doctors. I know
Doctor Curtis a bit and I will be talking to him later when he comes
back on. If it hurts, ask for something but don't go crazy. Pain is
good because it lets you know things are working right, but ignoring it
can slow recovery. If you need me, have Angie here page me." Doctor
Fisher told me before pointing over his shoulder at Marty "Or have the
goon over there call me. He has every number I have." Jenny and I
giggled at that before Doctor Fisher moved off. After giving Angie
orders, he talked with my mother, Mary and Marty who thanked Peter for
everything. A little more good-natured ribbing went on between Marty
and Peter but I could see a look of relief on Marty's face.
The rest of the morning went about the same. Danny and Katie took off
for the cabin they were heading up to for the weekend. Mostly because
I told them to but the other three wouldn't leave. Following my lunch
at about 11:30 I announced I was exhausted and I needed a nap. I
watched my mother, Mary and Marty begin to leave. Jenny didn't move,
not that I expected her to. She just asked the three of them to bring
something back for her and as soon as they were out the door, Jenny
crawled onto bed with me. I tried to tell her that the doctors and
nurses would think much of that. "I don't care what they say. I have
to make sure you heal in my own way. "Jenny told me is she cuddled up
next to me. And as much as the injuries hurt, If I had to be in a
hospital there was nowhere else I would rather be than curled up with
the most important person in my life. Soon we drifted off to sleep
holding each other.
I awoke to the smell of French fries. Jenny was still in bed with me,
but munching away on some fries and what looked like a sandwich. She
hadn't noticed I was a wake yet, but I let my presence be known as she
was about to bring another of the tasty morsels to her mouth, I leaned
forward and intercepted it with my mouth. God did that taste good.
"Hey young lady! I don't think the doctor approved that" she said
giggling at me. I reached up and grabbed another fry, but this time I
did not eat it, rather I let half of if it stick out of my mouth as an
invitation to my soulmate, one which we she readily accepted soon our
little sharing of food turned into something a bit more loving.
Unfortunately, we couldn't get much further.
'Enough of that you two" Marty said. "You are in a hospital." A smile
was on his face but we understood what he was saying. We shared one
more kiss before settling back into one another. Even though I was
laying in pain because of my trying to play bumper cars with a dump
truck, I couldn't think of anywhere else I would want to be. I looked
over and saw Marty studying some files that had somehow wound up here.
I saw my mother and the woman who has become closer than any of my
grandparents playing some card game. Then there was the most special
thing in the world to me, laying there stuffing French Fries in her
face. I couldn't feel more love than I did right at that moment. I
just nuzzled back into my lover and tried to beg for French Fries.
"No. You had your limit until the doctor approves it." Jenny said as
she pulled the container to the side, out of my reach. And as much as
I tried to pout there was no way she was going to give in.
As we lay there, the calm of the moment was interrupted my Mary yelling
out "Gin" and my mother groaning. "I hope you're not playing for money
Charlotte, mom is a pretty good player." Marty observed as he looked
over his glasses at the two. I couldn't hold back and began laughing.
"Watch her mom, she cheats." I call out.
"You be quiet young lady. I do not cheat." Mary told me, shooting me
her usual look when I get on her case. Marty begins laughing at his
mother while Jenny becomes indignant. "You cheat grandma? No wonder I
never win." My mother knows I am just stirring the pot and just shakes
her head at me. Mary began in on me again. "See what you started.
Mouthy little Mick." The laughter in the room grew even louder and the
warmth amongst us felt even better. I couldn't stop laughing, but the
laughing caused a new set of problems.
"You be quiet Alexa. I do not cheat. I am just very good." Mary said.
My mother looked at me mockingly while the other two members of the
Thompson family began laughing. Marty was mostly laughing at the way
Mary and I egg each other on while my mother was laughing at the
situation. It was during this little laugh fest that the reason I was
here became apparent. "Oww! I whimpered as I reached for my side.
The food container Jenny was holding instantly hit the floor as she
leaned over to see what I was complaining about. The other three
suddenly stopped what they were doing and came rushing to my side. I
didn't see it, but as I was crying, Jenny pushed the button and soon
Angie was parting my older visitors and seeing what I needed. My
soulmate instantly spoke up.
"She began laughing and then reached for her side." Jenny explained to
my nurse who simply nodded and moved off for a second before returning
with a needle and a small vial. She pulled back the plunger and
injected it into the catheter that was part of the IV in my arm. It
took a minute but soon the pain I was experiencing was gone. Jenny
began to wrap her arms around me again. Angie smiled at Jenny and told
her that Jenny's 'visiting' method wasn't exactly an approved method.
Jenny just smiled at her and said. "I will take care of my girlfriend
in the best way I know how to and that is by holding her and loving
her." Angie chuckled at Jenny and said not to worry about it but to be
careful of some of the overnight nurses. Angie made her way out and
Jenny wrapped her arms tighter around me while my mother and Mary
decided they were going to go down and get some coffee. I tried to
tell them they didn't need to stick around all day and they both turned
around and stated at my opinion didn't matter. They grabbed their
purses and moved off giggling away. It was great seeing the two of
them connecting so well.
Marty went back over to where he was going over his things and gathered
them up. Coming back over to my bed, he kissed Jenny on the forehead
and then, shockingly, me before saying he was heading over to his
office for a little bit but that he would be back. I spoke up "Marty
you don't need to come back, you have done too much already, hanging
here all day, being here all night. Go home. Take your mother and my
mother and go back to the lake. I don't deserve all this. I have
Jenny and I'll be fine." Marty leaned over and kissed me on the head
again. "Be quiet will you. We all care a lot about you Alexa, I care
a lot about you. Listen to Jenny. I'll see you two later. Call if
you need anything." With that Marty was out the door. I saw a smile
come across Jenny's face.
"See I told you he would come around." Jenny said with a giggle and a
kiss.
The rest of the afternoon consisted of Jenny curled up next to me
reading a book while I mindlessly flipped channels on the television.
Mary and my mom tried to get me interested in joining them in cards but
my head wasn't really functioning well enough to play. It was a quiet
afternoon. And like I tried to do with Marty, I told them they didn't
have to hang out all day with me. I knew there was no way my mother
was leaving, but the comment from Mary was pure Mary. "You know for
someone laying there in a hospital bed, you sure are ungrateful." Mary
said before a smile came across her face. "Alexa, I would be here for
any one of my grandchildren just like I am for you. So, you just stop
this martyr syndrome and shut up." I almost hung my head, almost. I
looked up at Mary. "You came close that time." I told her which only
earned me a light slap on my feet from my girlfriend's grandmother
"Smart alek" She said with a smirk. My mom had a funny smile on her
face over this exchange, one that brought a smile to my face.
It was nearing dinner time the next time I saw Angie. "Well Alexa. I
have talked with both Dr. Curtis and Dr. Fisher and they both think you
can eat normal food. They seem happy with everything." I kind of
groaned at the prospect of what dinner would be like. After I ate
lunch, I had it in the back of my head to send Jenny out to get me some
real food. But before I got too far in my complaining, Angie handed
over a menu. 'One of the new things that hospitals have done is try
and make the food better. We don't make you suffer through some of
that tasteless stuff. And I pulled a few strings, well Dr. Fisher did,
and you two are both getting dinner, mostly because Dr. Fisher said
that there was no way Jenny was leaving this room." I laughed out loud
at that only to be lightly elbowed in my non-broken ribs. It was funny
to see the smile of acknowledgement from Angie over me and Jenny.
Angie had been witness throughout the day to how the two of us operate
and the love we shared. She got to see Jenny be beyond concerned at
some points. And she wasn't frightened off by it. "I'll give you guys
a few minutes to look it over as I check all your vitals." And Angie
began making her notations on her tablet and took my temperature.
After deciding on a stir fry meal, Angie leaves us.
It was just as Jenny and I began settling back in that through the door
Marty came, carrying a large Nordstrom bag. Jenny started to get a bit
excited but Marty recognized the look on Jenny's face. "Don't get all
crazy you two, I did not go shopping I just have a few of your things."
He told us as he handed the bag to Jenny. "I had Julie go over to your
apartment and she said there a million of these bags around so she
figured one less wouldn't hurt" Marty said with a frown, obviously
trying to get a rise out of us. For once I got a bit embarrassed by a
Thompson teasing us. "Ha Ha, very funny daddy" Jenny said as she
reached in and pulled out her laptop and a tooth brush. Also, inside
were some clothes for the both of us. But also in the bag was my
purse. "I stopped by the Minnetonka police station to pick up the
things you had in your car. Your laptop was totally smashed Alexa." A
look of panic came over my face as I thought about everything important
that was stored on there. Marty saw the fear I had and tried to calm
me. "Don't worry Alexa. I took it to our IT department and I am
having them transfer everything over onto a new Surface. They say it
will be done today and I can pick it up sometime this weekend." A
Surface? My laptop was this cheap piece of junk that I scrapped
together the money for and bought through the school with a discount.
"I can't afford a Surface Marty!" I whined but the smile that was
flashed at me and the wave told me I didn't have to worry about it. My
mother had come over to the bed and was somewhat stunned by the
exchange. It was then she piped up.
"Aren't you going to thank Marty for that?" She said. Mom was back to
being herself and I felt like a little kid who had just gotten a cookie
from one of their neighbors. "Thanks Marty. You did not have to do
that. I am going to pay for that computer." Once again, he tried to
deflect it. "We'll figure out something just like the car." He told me
before going on. "Speaking of which. the car is totaled. I have
already called your insurance agent and they sent an inspector out to
look at it. I also have done two other things. I have put Stan on the
hunt to find you a replacement and I called Bart Hamilton to get
rolling on the trucking company that hit you." I was in shock over all
the Marty had accomplished. I couldn't believe he would go this far
for me and I began crying. Jenny tried to comfort me, but Marty came
over and pulled me in. I was babbling on, thanking him for all he had
done and that he didn't need to do all that. Marty tried to comfort me
in a fatherly way. "Alexa, this is what I do for my family. Like I
told you, you are part of this family and I will protect you with
everything I have." Marty let go of me and tried to look me in the
eye. He raised my chin with his forefinger and I could see tears
forming in his eyes. "Alexa like I keep trying to tell you, you have
brought so much to this family. You have not only brought joy and love
to Jenny but you have helped me see there is more to life than the
Company. Buying you some trinkets and helping you with the legal stuff
is nothing." And he kissed me on the forehead once again. I couldn't
help myself and hugged him again.
It was at about this time Doctor Curtis came walking into the room. He
stood back and watched the exchange between Marty and me. As Marty
stood up he caught the doctor out of the corner of his eye. "Who are
you? Marty asked the young physician. Doctor Curtis introduced
himself and as Marty if he was Mr. Quinn. Marty got
uncharacteristically bashful at that point. He looked at me with a
smile on his face and then up at Jenny. The two of us cuddled in
closer together as Marty turned back towards the doctor. "No, I am
Marty Thompson, Jennifer's father. Kind of Alexa's surrogate father."
Jenny and I both stared at Marty, our mouths agape before looking at
each other and sharing a quick hug. I whispered in her ear not to say
it which earned me a giggle. After Marty quizzed Doctor Curtis for a
moment, the doctor made his way to my left side.
"OK Alexa, I want to take a look at those ribs. Can you move your gown
over a bit?" Marty took that as a cue to step out into the hallway and
my mother and Jenny's grandmother followed him out. Jenny reluctantly
got out of the bed and pulled up the chair that had been the recent
perch of my mother. I rolled a bit and lifted my gown to the side so
the doctor could examine my side. This was the first time I had looked
at it. Mostly because I didn't want to see it. The size of the bruise
on my side scared me. I looked over at Jenny and the compassion that
was always there was even stronger. I winced as the doctor poked
around a bit and I could see Jenny wince too. That she was feeling
that much empathy for me was the most wonderful feeling in the world.
As the doctor continued to poke around I could see Jenny's expression
change a bit. She seemed almost upset that the young doctor was even
touching me. I tried to get her attention but she was focused on the
doctor. Soon he was finished with his examination and he told me I
could cover back up. He then took out the penlight and checked my
pupils. I seemed to be doing much better as last time because it did
not hurt as much. "Well things look great Alexa. I do want to see you
spend another night here but I see no reason you won't be going home
tomorrow."
Smiles spread across both Jenny's face and mine. We only had to suffer
one more night of this. "Thank you doctor for everything. For saving
my life last night, for keeping an eye on me. I don't know how to
repay you for everything." I started to blubber a bit, but the doctor
waved me off.
"No need to thank me, this is what I went to 7 years of school for. To
see you walk out of here in one piece is all the thanks I need. By the
way, how do you know Dr. Fisher?" I pointed over at Jenny who
explained he was a friend of the family's. "Well that's pretty
impressive to get him to come up. And I am sorry for Dr. Rosen. I
heard a bit about that run in from the nurses. He is a closed minded
old doctor and this wasn't the first time he had some, issues shall we
say with patients. I think what happened today might have been the
last straw for him. But to replace him with Dr. Fisher is like
replacing my old Civic with a Ferrari." He paused for effect before
going on with my schedule for tomorrow. "We'll wheel you down for
another CT and set of chest pictures. That is mostly just to confirm
that you are ready. We'll probably do that about 9 o'clock and after
the piles of paperwork, we will get you on your way. So just relax and
remember if you need anything, hit the buzzer. I will be around all
night so if there is anything major I will be right up here. But
hopefully I won't see you until the morning." And with that he was out
the door but not before being stopped by Marty once again. I saw Marty
reach into his coat and hand the doctor a business card. They shook
hands and Marty joined Mary and my mother at the foot of the bed.
"I am going to be fine, why don't you three go home and come back in
the morning" I said to them and this time they agreed with me. "We are
going to go get something to eat and then head back to the house. If
you two need anything, call." Marty informed us before he came over and
hugged each of us good bye to be followed by Mary in the hugs. My
mother was the last to repeat this task. After hugging Jenny a little
longer than she had in the past, mom turned her attention to me. She
kissed me on the cheek as she tried to hug the life out of me. "I am
so glad you are going to be alright. Rest up and listen to Jenny." She
told me before turning to Jenny. "Take care of our girl, Jenny. We
will see you two in the morning." And with that the three of them were
out the door. I laid back into my pillow are breathed a sigh of
relief. I had felt like I had been on stage all day but now it was
just Jenny and me. After we ate the meal that was surprisingly pretty
good, Jenny and I kicked back and watched a movie on Netflix. I
drifted away with Jenny holding me. Her love was the best medicine I
could ever receive.
The next morning, I was up with the sun, but Jenny was still sleeping.
Holding onto me like a teddy bear. I really am not sure who this whole
stay has been harder on, me or Jenny. Sure, I was the one with the
broken ribs and concussion, but Jenny seemed to feel everything I was.
Like last night, when Dr. Curtis was checking my side, I saw her wince
as I did. The few times I got worried over my headaches she was right
there rubbing my temples trying to make it go away. I have caught her
several times just leaning over me, watching when I had woken up from
dozing off. While I know she is concerned, it is a little unnerving to
have someone hovering over you when you wake up. I tried to slowly
slip out from under Jenny's grip and make my way over to the bathroom,
but the arm clamped down on me, "Where are you going?" my beautiful
lover said to me groggily. I tried to explain I was going to the
bathroom. Instantly she jumped out of bed "Let me help you up" she
said almost in a panic.
"Jenny, I am fine. I can make the short walk to the bathroom on my
own." That did not stop her though. She took me by the waist and
slowly helped me to the bathroom while I drug my IV along. When we got
to the door I looked at her "I think I can handle it from here" I told
her but she was still reluctant to let me go in by myself. After
taking care of my morning needs and brushing me teeth. I looked into
the mirror. I looked like hell. I had not showered since Thursday
morning; my hair was all over the place and my face look drawn. I
cleaned myself up a bit, but this did little to put me in a good mood
and when I went back out Jenny noticed my expression and instantly
began panicking. "Are you alright Lex? Did something happen? Did
something not happen?" She was all over the place. I tried to be a
smart ass and say something like it was still working so your safe but
that got her wound up. "We are not going through that discussion
again" Jenny said through gritted teeth. I tried to tell her I was
just joking around, trying to get her to lighten up. "Well it's not
funny! I have been sick about the talk of it and now you are acting
this way! UGH!" As I got back in the bed with Jenny's assistance, I
tried to pull her back in with me. At first, she pouted and tried to
fight me, but soon she relented and I tried to make it up to her by
showering her with kisses and begging for forgiveness. "You are
forgiven" she told me "but you need to listen to me. I will be in
charge for the next few weeks so don't get any wild thoughts in that
pretty little head of yours." The lecture was half stern and half
joking. The salute I gave Jenny was all joking and earned a round of
slaps and kisses. This was how my nurse for the morning found us.
"Well, good morning. I didn't expect to see a brawl to start my
shift." The middle-aged woman said with a smile. "My name is Wendy
and I will be your nurse for this part of the day. So Alexa, I was
going to ask how your feeling today but it seems you are doing OK." I
had to get back at Jenny so I said something about having more bruises
than when I got up this morning and tuned and looked at Jenny who stuck
her tongue out at me and I returned the gesture. Wendy took my vitals
and told me it was going to be awhile for my x-rays and that breakfast
would be up shortly. I tried to talk Jenny into going down and getting
us some coffee. "I'm not going down there looking like this! You can
wait for your breakfast.: She told me. Grabbing her purse, she
marched into the bathroom to try and freshen up a bit. She soon
returned and a smile came to my face once again as the beautiful visage
came walking through the door. I begged for a kiss which after an eye
roll I finally got Jenny to. It wasn't long before our breakfast
arrived and I was eating like crazy. I had fought my appetite last
night but this morning I was famished. Jenny and I even got into a
minor tiff as she tried to give me hers. "You have to eat too!" I told
her and she told me to be quiet, that my strength was more important.
I finally got her to eat the toast they sent up and some of the
sausage. She was not too keen on the eggs but I ate them more than
willingly.
The bad part of the breakfast was that now we were in a holding
pattern. My tests were not until nine o'clock and being trapped in
this room for the last few days was getting on my nerves. If I didn't
have Jenny practically sitting on me I would have been pacing like a
caged animal. She tried to get me to relax and read something but that
still proved too difficult to concentrate on. There was nothing on TV
except for the news, cartoons and old TV shows, none of which
interested me. I kind of told Jenny to leave me alone at one point but
then spent the next ten minutes apologizing to her. A little before
nine, Wendy finally came in with an orderly. The two helped me into
the wheelchair while my nervous partner looked on, fretting over
everything. Getting out of the room proved to be better than I
thought. To see strangers was wonderful, to hear babies crying was
exhilarating. Just to be moving was invigorating. The bad part was we
once again went into a bit of a holding pattern when we made it to
radiology but after about an hour or so we were back in my room waiting
for the results. While we were gone our two respective parents showed
up and had a tray with four cups of coffee on them. You would have
thought I was some addict the way I grabbed for my coffee. To have
something not produced in the hospital was wonderful.
My mother came over to me and began to ask a million questions, only I
was not able to answer half of them. Jenny always seemed to jump in
with the answer. At one point, I grumbled a bit and told her that I
could answer for myself. I think this may have been the first time I
had ever really talked crossly at Jenny, and it did not go over the
best. She was not mad at me, but it did take some coaxing to get her
to curl up to me. "I'm sorry babe, it's just I am getting a bit
anxious in this place." I tried to explain, only to have her rebuff
me. Soon I began kissing her cheeks and worked my way down, where I
began nuzzling her neck. If it weren't for Marty and Char, I probably
would have gone farther. A moan from Jenny signaled the beginning of
the forgiveness and after a few moments that forgiveness was confirmed
as Jenny and I shared a long, deep kiss. "I can never stay mad at you
for too long. You are forgiven, but don't let it happen again." As
Jenny and I moved in for one more kiss I noticed Marty and my mother
looking at each other and sharing a smile, like some sort of deal had
been made.
As Jenny and I cuddled together following our little tiff, a surprise
visitor came in. "Dr. Fisher? What are you doing here? Jenny asked
her father's friend.
"Well since my normal Saturday golf pa