Cherishing You (21 page)

I hug her to me even tighter and let myself go. She’s right; I do need to let all the anger and fear out now, because Mom will probably need me when she’s awake from surgery. I feel better letting go of it all. After a couple minutes, I wipe my eyes again and look up at her.

“Thank you, Andi. I love you, baby.” I place my hand on her cheek and pull her face to mine, giving her a gentle kiss.

“No need to thank me, Ethan; that’s what I’m here for. And I love you more,” she says, then gives me a deeper kiss. She opens her luscious lips for me and I can’t help but dive in, our tongues lost in their own beat. For a few minutes, everything else in the world fades; it’s just me and her, and I’d love nothing else but to lay her down and make love with her.

Just then, we hear someone clear their throat. We immediately break apart, and I can see she’s just as embarrassed as I am at being caught. She’s so cute with her cheeks all flushed, those delicious lips swollen from our kisses. I look up and see Ron and Bev standing at the door, huge smiles on their faces.

“You guys can come back in, we’ll behave,” I say, giving Andi a big squeeze. I don’t care if the whole world sees us kissing; I have nothing to hide. But I guess since it’s her parents we should probably be a little respectful and not continue our make-out session.

They come in, Ron taking a chair while Bev hands us both a bottle of water. We thank her and I immediately open mine, drinking about half of it in one gulp. I guess I was thirstier than I thought.

Everyone is quiet for a few moments, and I need to know what’s happening. That nurse never did come back, so I’ll do it myself.

“I think I’m going to go find out something. At least what kind of surgery and how long it’s expected to take.”

“I can come with you, Ethan.” Andi stands and grabs my hand. “Mom, Dad, we’ll be right back.”

“Okay, we’ll be here,” Ron says.

“All right, let’s go.” We find the nurse’s desk and ask about my mom again. It’s not the same nurse as before but she seems nice enough, giving us both a gentle smile and says she’ll call and see what she can find out. She gets on the phone and speaks quietly into the mouthpiece. When she finally hangs up the receiver, she states, “I’m sorry, sir, but I don’t have any information at this time. However, the nurse who was with you before is in the surgical area now and will be with you shortly.”

“Does that mean she’s still in surgery? That she’s still alive?”

“Yes, sir, it appears that way.”

“Come on, Ethan. Let’s go back to the consult room and wait. There’s nothing else we can do right now.”

“You’re probably right. I just want to know what’s going on is all.” With that, I put my arm around Andi and give her a tight hug. Then we walk hand in hand back to the room, telling Ron and Bev when we get there that we still don’t know anything.

“Well, it may take a while. Just try to relax,” Bev says.

We sit down on the chair, Andi in my lap. I don’t mind; I’d hold her for the rest of my life if I could. She lies back on my chest and I welcome the weight of her little body. It feels good to hold her.

We sit here like this for a while, making occasional conversation; mostly everyone is quiet as another hour passes. I feel like it’s been an eternity, but I know it’s probably just impatience. I’m trying to keep all the ‘what ifs’ at bay when there’s a knock on the door, and then the nurse pokes her head in.

“I’m so sorry it’s as taken me this long to get back here. I just wanted to tell you she’s still in surgery, but they’re wrapping up now. She’s in critical condition, but I don’t know anything more other than the surgeon will come talk to you as soon as possible.”

“Thank you so much. I really appreciate you letting me know.”

“No problem, good luck to you all.” She closes the door, and Andi turns back around and gives me a big hug.

“See, I told you she’d come out okay. She’s too strong to be held down long.” She gives me a quick kiss on my cheek.

“You were right, sweetie. I’m so grateful for her stubborn personality.”

We sit for another half hour before the doctor finally comes in. Now that he’s here, I’m so nervous my heart is about to beat out of my chest.

“Hi, I’m Dr. Stevens. I was the lead surgeon for Mrs. Paul. She came into the emergency room with significant injuries to the right side of her body, including her right lung. She has multiple broken bones, including her ribs, pelvis, femur, and arm, and her liver also sustained some damage, which we had to repair. Most of her injuries will heal okay on their own, but we’ll watch her very closely for the next twenty-four hours. Right now, it’s a wait-and-see game. Once she wakes up, we’ll see how much of her neurological function is intact. Until then, we won’t know. I know I’ve given you a lot to think about all at once, but do you have any questions for me?”

“Uh, to be honest, I don’t know. I’m sure I will soon, but for now, can I see her?”

“Yes, you can, but minimal stimulation is best until she wakes up. She’s in the recovery room now, but it could be quite a while before she’ll wake. Her body has taken a beating, and sometimes our brain protects our psyche by closing itself off, more commonly known as a coma-like state.”

“How long do you think it’ll be before she wakes up?”

“Well, that’s a good question, but we really don’t know. It could be as soon as the medications from surgery wear off, or it could take quite some time. Like I said, the next twenty-four hours are going to be crucial to her recovery, so unfortunately we’re in the wait-and-see stage.”

“Okay, thank you, Doctor. I appreciate everything you’ve done for her.”

“You’re welcome, sir. Also, be aware that she has multiple tubes and machines hooked up to her, which will be removed as she resumes function. I just want you to be as prepared as possible for what you’ll see when you get in there.”

He shakes all of our hands then leaves the room, stating a nurse will take us to see Mom in a few minutes. I don’t even know what to think about everything he just said, but it doesn’t matter what her injuries are as long as she’s alive. She’s stubborn enough to fight for the rest; of this, I have no doubt.

The nurse comes in and says Mom’s in the ICU, and we can see her two at a time. Ron and Bev say they’ll let us go back with her while they go to the cafeteria to get fresh coffees.

I want to be there for Ethan, but I don’t want to intrude on the moment either, so I’m a little torn wondering if I should go with him or not. He must feel my hesitation, because he glances back at me with a questioning look on his face.

“Aren’t you coming with me?”

“Well, I didn’t want to impose, so I can stay if you want.”

“Oh, Andi, you could never be in the way. Come on, silly.” He puts his arm around my shoulders and we follow the nurse to the ICU, where we’re instructed on all different types of cords and tubes she’ll have attached to her body and why. I must say, until we walk into her room, I can’t picture everything she was saying, and as much as I try to control my reaction, I’m not able to stop the small gasp that escapes.

I feel Ethan take a slow, deep breath, squeezing my shoulders a little tighter as we enter, stopping beside her. Ethan doesn’t say anything for several minutes as we stare down at Carrie. She has tubes coming out of her everywhere, including her right side, which is draining blood. The nurse called it a chest tube, I think; now I can see why.

She brings a second chair into the room and pulls them both up to us.

“I know this can be overwhelming. Here, have a seat and conserve your energy. She’s going to need you to be strong for her.”

“Thank you, ma’am. May I hold her hand?” Ethan asks.

“Yes, of course you can, just make sure you don’t pull on any of the wires or tubes. Also, you can talk to her. She may respond to your voice.”

“Okay. Thank you again,” he says. We both sit in the chairs she brought and he gently picks up Carrie’s left hand, being careful not to pull it away from her body.

“Hey, Mom, I’m here. You’re sporting a new look today, I don’t think it’s your style, so you need to hurry up and get better, okay? Andi’s here with me, and we haven’t been able to tell you yet, but she’s my girlfriend now. I know you aren’t surprised, but we finally have it figured out. I couldn’t ask for anything more than her.”

Ethan looks back to me, reaching for my hand. I don’t hesitate to take it and I look back up at him, not bothering to hide the tears streaming down my face.

“I love you so much, Ethan,” I mouth to him.

“I love you too, baby. Go ahead and talk to her too. She’s always loved you like a daughter.”

I squeeze Ethan’s hand then talk to Carrie. “Hi, Carrie. I’m sorry we didn’t get to tell you sooner, but Ethan’s right. And I’m keeping him. You raised one hell of a guy here, but I think he’ll need both of us to keep him on the straight and narrow, so you have to hurry up and get well soon.”

There’s no response except the swishing sound from the machine that’s breathing for her—the ventilator, the nurse called it. I’m actually glad we can hear the noise; it helps knowing she’s still breathing. It all seems so surreal. We sit here together for quite a while, until I decide I’m going to go back and let Mom and Dad rotate in with Ethan. I’m sure they’re probably tired and want to go home to get some sleep. I let Ethan know what I’m doing and he says he doesn’t need anything. Giving him a kiss, I tell Carrie bye, even though I know she won’t respond. I guess I’m hoping she really can hear me and is glad I acknowledged her.

I quietly go out the door and am careful to shut it gently so I won’t disturb them. I head to the nurses’ station and ask if my parents have been by. The nurse shows me to the waiting room for the Intensive Care Unit or otherwise known as the ICU. I see them both there, sitting on a couch; Mom is lying on Dad’s chest, and both of them have their eyes closed. I stand there for a few minutes looking at them. I have to be one of the luckiest people in the world. I have such wonderful parents, who are just as much in love now as they were when I was a little girl. There are so many people whose parents are either divorced or miserable; I can barely remember mine ever fighting.

Then there are Ethan’s parents. First, his dad died when we were young, and now his mom is fighting for her life because of some idiot making a bonehead decision. I so wish she would’ve called us to come get her instead of getting in that car tonight. Then again, “could have, should have” doesn’t change anything. I learned that firsthand when I agonized over Ethan and me getting in that big fight. Instead of making it right, I left, regretting leaving him behind for four years.

Thinking about all this makes me even happier with my decision to stay instead of taking that job. I’ll have to go get my stuff, of course, but that’s no big deal; I’m sure Ethan and Dad will be more than happy to help me bring it all home. At least that’s one good thing that will make Ethan happy, some small piece of good news anyway. I want to tell him about my decision to stay, but I’ve decided to wait until the time is right. Right now, all he needs to be thinking about is his mom and her getting better.

I go up to Mom and Dad and softly call out to them. They wake easily, and Mom sits up.

“Hey, Andi. What’s going on? Is she awake yet?”

“No, not yet. I don’t know how long it’s going to take. I figured you were probably wondering what was going on, so I decided to come out and let you guys rotate in. I’m sure Ethan could use the support.”

“Of course, honey; after all, that’s why we are here. You go ahead, Ron. I’m sure he’ll be glad to see you,” Bev says.

“Okay, honey. I’ll take him in a bottle of water too. I’m sure he could use it.”

Dad stands and stretches. I feel bad that I left them out here so long, but I’m grateful they’re here; they have to be the best parents in the world. Dad reaches out to me and gives me a hard hug, which melts my heart even more.

“Thanks, Dad. I love you both so much.”

“We love you too, honey. Okay, let me get back there.” Dad gives Mom a soft kiss on the cheek and heads back to the ICU. I sit down beside Mom and take a deep breath.