Covering the Carolinas (21 page)

Running into the emergency room, I look at the
receptionist but don’t ask any questions when I see my mom waiting
for us.  She rushes me through the doors and toward the room.
 As soon as I see the door, I freeze.  Oh my god.
 What if Marleigh hates me for not coming with her?  What
if it was the wrong choice?  Dad places his hand on my
shoulder and gives it a squeeze of assurance.

Slowly, I turn the knob, walk in and see Gunner
lying in the bed with oxygen over his tiny face. Marleigh and her
parents are sitting beside Gunner’s bed.  Her sisters aren’t
here.  As soon as her parents see me, they casually leave the
room, and Marleigh and I are alone with our son.  As she turns
toward me, I brace myself for the consequences of my actions.
 Instead, Marleigh turns to face me and falls apart in my
arms.  Pulling her as close to me as possible, the tears begin
to fall from my eyes as well.

“
I was so scared, Gunnison, and then you
didn’t come.  I… I…” she says between her cries.

Brushing her hair from her face, I bring her eyes
toward mine.  “Mar, I didn’t know what to do.  I was so
scared. I’m so sorry I yelled at you.  It’s not your fault.
 You didn’t know.  I’m so sorry—sorry for not going with
you, sorry for yelling, and sorry for any pain I might have
caused either of you.  Please tell me you still love me?
 Please tell me I didn’t ruin our future?”  She begins to
shake her head no, and I’m unsure if it’s a no to us or that I
didn’t ruin our future.  Panic begins to set in and then
Marleigh takes me by the hand.

“
He’s been asking for you. As a matter of fact
the epinephrine had him bouncing off the walls and we just got him
settled,” she says as she pulls me to the side of the bed.  I
take a seat in the chair beside him and put his hand between
mine.  Placing my head on the bed, tears stream down my face.
  I feel Marleigh’s arms surround me, comforting me.
 She kisses me sweetly on my temple, and tells me that
everything is going to be okay.

Chapter 42

MARLEIGH

Watching Gunnison fall apart in front of me showed
me just how human he really is.  I knew when I walked away at
the game that this would either make or break us.  As much as
I wanted to have him walk in this hospital with me, I knew that he
needed to finish that game.

As his breaths begin to slow and a relaxation seems
to take over, he sits up from the bed.  When he turns toward
me, I wipe the tears from his face and then bring his lips toward
mine.  “I love you, Gunnison.  You and Gunner are my
world.” As he begins to speak, Gunner begins to move.  Slowly,
he opens his eyes.

“
Daddy?  You here,” he says with as much
excitement as his worn out body will allow.  Gunnison does a
one eighty toward him.

“
Daddy’s here.  I’m sorry I wasn’t here
when you asked for me.”

“
It okay.  You win?”  Just like
that, a three-year-old takes a piece of my heart.

“
Yes, we did, but I was worried about you.
 You scared me and Mommy.”

“
I sorry.  Bad chocolate.”

Taking a moment to explain what happened to both he
and Gunnison, I jump in the conversation.

“
Gunner, it wasn’t the chocolate.  It was
the almonds.  You can’t have those anymore.”

He looks confused.  “Bad alllmonds?” he
says, with evidence that the sedative is still in full effect.
 Gunnison and I try our best not to giggle.

“
Yes, bad almonds.”

“
Daddy, tell me about game.”  Gunnison
smiles and tells us what happened after we left.  He makes it
sound so glorious, but I have a feeling that he’s only telling
Gunner the good parts.  When Gunner drifts off to sleep, we
sit quietly and when my parents knock lightly on the door, they
demand that we get a little fresh air.

GUNNISON

Walking down the hall knowing your leaving your
child in a hospital bed is something I’ve never imagined, let alone
thought would become my reality.  Draping my arm over
Marleigh’s shoulder, she leans into me as we make our way to the
front of the hospital and outside for a little fresh air.
 Standing outside, she holds onto me even more as the crisp
evening air touches our skin.

“
Mar, are you okay?”

“
I have to be.”

“
No, you don’t.  You don’t have to be
strong through this.  You have me to lean on now.”

“
Thank you, but learning to work through
difficult times is something I’ve learned to do.  Having
Gunner made me grow up quickly.  I tried to do everything by
the book.”

“
What do you mean?”  Because I am
clueless as to what she’s referring to.

She half smiles as she takes me and leads me toward
the bench to our right.  “When a kid first begins to eat real
food, you introduce them to them slowly to eliminate
allergies.  I did that with him.  He’s fine with peanuts,
cashews, and he eats enough pecans from our own trees to
become one.  That’s why I didn’t think about the almonds.
 I mean, if he’s not allergic to peanuts or most tree nuts, I
assumed he would be fine.”

“
Wow.  That’s something I never knew
parents had to do.”

“
I’m sorry you missed that part of his
life.”

“
Mar, I hate it too, but then again, I think
about right now, and how our lives have crossed paths yet again.
 I know that you had your reasons, and yes, it hurts.  I
also know that you did it because you loved both of us.
 Just like tonight, I stayed at the game because of one
reason. To provide the best future for you and Gunner.”  She
looks into my eyes with wonder.  “I planned on leaving the
game, but Dad pointed out that it was my duty to the team, to
myself, and to my family to finish the game. Not to mention Michael
Jordan was in the stands.  Marleigh, since I could dribble a
ball I’ve dreamt of playing in the NBA.  I don’t know why he
was there, but I knew it was a shot for us.  I can promise
you, if the EMT hadn’t said he was going to be okay, I would have
left right then.  I swear I would have!”

Tears begin to spring from her eyes again, and I try
to wipe them away but she won’t let me.  Instead she takes my
hands in hers.  “Gunnison, I…I… don’t know what to say.
Michael Jordan? Really?”

“
Just tell me it’s okay.  That my
decision was okay.”

She quickly nods her head yes.  Guiding her
lips to mine, our kiss is tender.  Her lips are delicate to
the touch and have a salty sweetness from her tears.  They are
my new version of perfect.  Pulling our lips from each other,
she rests her forehead on mine.

“
Thank you for thinking about our future, and
thank you for being here. I want to know more about why Jordan was
there today, but we can wait on that.”

Making our way back into the hospital, we run into
her sisters who are exiting the cafeteria.  The look on
Tinleigh’s face says she’s going to kick my ass.  I try to
plead with my eyes as she makes her way into my space quickly.

“
How could you, GC?  How could you stay
and finish the damn game?”  When I don’t reply, her anger
builds.  “Seriously, you won’t even answer.  Mar, what
the hell?  You gonna let him get away with this?”

As I begin to speak, Marleigh interrupts me.
 “Tin, please don’t do this.  Gunnison had a very good
reason for not coming at the time.  I’d appreciate it if you’d
let us handle this situation.  Thank you for being concerned,
but everything is okay.” I look between the two of them afraid to
say a word.  Never have I heard Marleigh talk like that.
 She’s usually full of fire and runs on emotions.  She
sounded so grown up.  Glancing her way, she laces her fingers
in mine and asks if I want to grab something to eat before going
back to Gunner.

“
Car and Tin, we’ll be back in just a few
minutes.  Just let Mama and Dad know.  We hope they will
discharge him in a few hours.  Thank you for being here.
 I love you.”  She hugs them, and we grab a quick snack
and hurry back to our baby boy.

Chapter 43

MARLEIGH

After arriving back in Gunner’s room, we insist that
our parents get some rest.  Our parents and Gunner are
all leaving tomorrow.   I feel my heart hurt within my chest
as I think of Gunner going home without me.  Gunnison must
sense something is wrong because he holds me tighter.
 Reluctantly, our parents follow our wishes and leave.

When they are out of ear’s reach, Gunnison asks me
what’s wrong, and as much as I want to tell him, I don’t want
Gunner to hear me.  I assure him I’ll talk to him about it
after we get home… home?  Where is that?

“
Mar, where do you want to take him?” he asks
reading my mind.

“
I don’t know. I just want the three of us to
be together.”  He doesn’t say a word, he just pulls me
in closely and we drift off until the nurse enters to check
Gunner’s vitals.  She lets us know the doctor will be in
shortly.  As she clicks the door shut, Gunnison pulls me in
closer and I fall back asleep on his shoulder.  When the edge
of his jersey rubs my cheek, it dawns on me exactly how quickly he
came to our side after the game.

“
What you grinning for, Mar?”
he whispers.

“
I just realized you’re still in your
uniform.”

“
And…” Shrugging my shoulders, I don’t give
him an answer.  “Mar…?”

“
I just realized that even though you were
playing a game, we were really the ones on your mind.”

“
You better believe it.  You guys
are what kept me pushing harder in the game.  It was like I
put my emotions in the game, and prayed they would make the clock
tick faster.”

I don’t say a word; instead I let the words just
spoken from his kissable lips soak into my soul.

GUNNISON

Marleigh and I jump from our seats as the doctor
enters the room. “Miss Anderson, your son was very lucky tonight.
 If he had been at home, the outcome could have been
different.  His situation is unique.  Not many kids are
only allergic to one type of tree nut.  Just be aware of that
in the future.  Do you have any questions for me?”

“
Thank you.  This is Gunner’s father,
Gunnison,” she says as she gestures toward me.  "I guess I
want to know what’s next and how do I handle this in the real
world?”  She says looking toward Gunner, and as I look at him,
my heart feels complete.

“
I’m going to give you an EpiPen.  It’s
very simple to use, and Gunner needs to keep it with him at all
times. I’ll have the nurse show you how to administer it before you
leave. It will be the best defense if another allergic
reaction occurs.  Other than that, just pay attention to food
labels and ask questions when you go out to eat.  I’m going to
refer him to an allergist to rule out any other allergies that you
need to avoid.  Would you like that to be here?”

Marleigh takes a minute to process. “I believe
since all of his doctors are in Gaffney, I’d like to keep it there
for now.”  Something about the way she says ‘for
now’ makes me think that we might have Gunner with us sooner
rather than later.  Marleigh asks if I have any questions, but
I’m good as long as she is.  The doctor gives us the discharge
papers and the nurse comes in to remove Gunner’s IV and show us how
to use an EpiPen.  I’m in awe at the fact she removed t the IV
and he didn’t stir.  She tells us we can take him home with
the hospital gown, and gives us a blanket.

After she leaves, Marleigh begins to move toward
Gunner.  Quickly, I move to her and stop her from getting him.
 Sliding one arm under his neck and the other under his knees,
I pull him into my arms.  She wraps the blanket around him and
checks to make sure we haven’t left anything.  Walking toward
the parking lot, I realize I don’t have a car seat.
 Shit!  When I get to my truck, I notice that Gunner’s
seat has been placed in the truck bed.  A sigh of relief
washes over me. Marleigh takes the keys and once she puts the seat
in place, I gently place him in it.  He moves slightly, but
then places his head on the side of the seat and drifts back to
sleep.  Closing the door, Marleigh laughs as she realizes she
has to ride in the middle.

Opening the door for her, she kisses me on the cheek
then winks.  “You know, the last time I rode bitch was the
first time I met you.”

“
Well, you’re the only girl to ever ride in
that seat.”  Starting the truck, I look at Marleigh.  “My
place or yours?”

“
Mine.  I think it would be better for
him to wake up in his normal room.  Today was
pretty traumatizing, but why don’t we stop by your place
first?  I want you to stay, too.”

“
Mar, your parents.”  I don’t want her
dad to get upset.

“
Gunnison, seriously.  Our baby about
died today.  There is no way in hell I’m letting you go home
even if your parents are there.”  I don’t argue, I just
drive.

Pulling up to my apartment, I realize there aren’t
any lights on.  I wonder if my parents have gone to bed
already.  Marleigh waits with Gunner in the truck as I
run inside to get my things. Quietly, I look around for any sign of
them but everything is the way we left it earlier today. Making my
way to my room, I hurry to grab everything I’ll need for tonight
and tomorrow.

Closing the door, I hurry to the truck and drive to
Marleigh’s. The ride is peacefully quiet as Marleigh has fallen
asleep on my shoulder and Gunner remains asleep beside her. Letting
my mind drift, I replay today’s events and pray that tomorrow is
less eventful.