Here's the next chapter!
Twelve hours passed and Adam stood in the same place, pacing up and down, where he's been for the past four hours. He called all of his friends, but nobody picked up except for Rocky, Aisha, and Trini, all of whom said they would be try to get to them as soon as they could. He figured that Rocky would probably be the first one to reach them since he was in Atlanta and only had to drive a few hours to reach them in Florida. Aisha and Trini, on the other hand, both had to catch international flights; Trini from Europe and Aisha from Africa. He felt bad for not being able to reach Kim's parents, but he didn't have their number and relied on Trini to get in touch with Kim's parents.
He looked out the dark window of the hospital waiting room and glanced up at the screen that showed an id number for Kimberly. No change from when he looked up at the screen five minutes ago.
"Thought you might need this," a voice said, interrupting Adam's thoughts. He handed him a styrofoam cup of coffee. "Who are you here for?"
"Thanks," replied Adam. "My friend's in surgery. She was in a car accident."
The man nodded. "Sorry to hear that." He cocked his head toward the doors. "My brother has an aneurysm in his brain." He and Adam sat down next to each other.
"Oh my god, I'm sorry to hear that."
The man nodded again. "We just got to hold tight and know that they'll pull through, you know?"
Adam nodded, looking down in his cup. "I've known my friend for the past four years, but today was the first time I've seen in her about a year and a half. I used to see her every single day for two years and we got close. All of us, there were six of us. And we were all close. Closest group of friends that you ever could've met."
"What happened?"
Adam shrugged. "We all just kind of drifted apart, I guess."
"Which happens."
"It shouldn't have happened to us. We were all so close. They were like my family."
The man gave him a sad smile and patted his shoulder. The two of them sat next to each other, each lost in their own thoughts.
Adam thought back to the last time he saw Kim. It was when they first upgraded to their Turbo powers and she and Jason were captured by Divatox. They had all gone to dinner afterwards, everyone together, but now, thinking back on it, Adam realized that Kim was clinging closely to Jason, not really talking to the other rangers very much. He remembered her mostly keeping to herself after she was introduced to Tanya and Justin, the newest ranger at the time. He figured she was hurt after seeing Kat and Tommy together, but Adam didn't really understand why considering Kim was the one who broke up with him. He regretted not talking to her like they used to when she visited that time.
Adam exhaled loudly and put his head between his hands. He thought about when he first met Kim and the others in the park, trying to save his old teacher's baby.
"It all seems like a lifetime ago," he thought. "What happened?"
He looked up, hearing heavy footsteps run into the waiting room, and jumped up, recognizing Rocky as he stopped in front of Adam, breathing heavily, with sweat beads running down his forehead.
"What happened?" Rocky asked, echoing Adam's thought from just a few moments ago.
Adam shrugged before hugging Rocky. "Kim...it was an accident on the road. It was raining and I saw it, and..."
"It'll be okay," reassured Rocky. "Have you gotten in touch with Jason or Tommy or any of the others yet?"
Adam shook his head. "I only tried them that one time."
"I'll give them a call. I'll go right now."
Adam nodded. "They said they'll let me know." He pointed to the screen. "She's still in surgery."
"What happened?"
"I found her car up a tree."
Rocky's mouth dropped open. "I'll call them and everyone else now."
Adam resumed his seat next to the man who gave him the coffee earlier. "Another friend?" he asked.
"Yeah, I've known him since we were kids. He's pretty much the only one that I really talk to still." Adam looked down again and continued to think of them in high school before Kim moved to Florida. They had been through so much as teenagers that it kind of messed them up trying to grow into adults. They were kids when they started to save the world and now they had to face life without it. Adam knew he was lucky enough to hang on to the power as long as he did. He saw how Rocky was after he gave up the power and chose Justin to be the new blue ranger. He knew it was hard and wondered how Kim was after giving up the power. Zack, Trini, and Jason had each other to lean on when they went to Switzerland. Rocky was still in Angel Grove, so he still had his friends, especially Adam to help him out. He thought of seeing Kim and Jason when they came back to visit and hoped that Jason was at least there for her even if he and the other rangers weren't.
"Hey," Rocky said, walking into the house and settling into the chair next to Adam. "How you holding up?"
"Okay, I guess. Any word?"
"Called Jason, Tommy, Zack, Billy, and Kat. Jason already talked to Trini, he's trying to head down here as soon as he could. He said they got in touch with Kim's mom and her step-dad and they're trying to get the first flight out of Paris. Zack, Billy, Tommy, and Kat, no answer."
Adam nodded.
"So you found her?"
Adam nodded again. "The weirdest thing. She was up in a tree."
Rocky nodded. He clapped a hand on Adam's back. "She's Kimberly. She'll pull through it. She always does."
"When was the last time you talked to her, Rock?"
"I don't know," he answered. "I guess not since she was in Angel Grove that last time."
"Yeah, that's the last time I talked to her too. Why was it so hard to keep in touch with her? We've kept in touch with Aisha and Jason and them."
"I don't know," Rocky said again. "I feel bad, though. Lucky you were there, right?"
"I guess."
The two of them sat together in silence, listening to the raindrops fall on the windows.
Another two hours later and Adam jumped up seeing the change next to Kim's id number on the screen. Rocky saw him and followed suit. A doctor emerged from behind the closed doors and Adam looked at him expectantly.
"Kimberly Hart?"
"Yeah, we're here for her," Adam said, walking up to the doctor with Rocky right behind him.
The doctor furrowed his brow. "Are you two family?"
"No, not blood-related, but her family isn't here right now. Her mom and step-dad are trying to find a flight out of Paris. And we don't know how to get in touch with her dad or her brother."
"I see."
"I was the one that found her, okay. Is she all right?"
The doctor took a deep breath and exhaled. "Kimberly was in pretty bad shape. She sustained injuries to her head and her chest and suffered from internal bleeding from her liver. She also shattered her left ankle and dislocated her left knee and her left shoulder."
Rocky and Adam shot each other worried looks before looking back at the doctor. "How is she now?"
"We've relocated her knee and shoulder and both will be in a brace for approximately 12 weeks. We performed surgery on her ankle and that is also set up in a brace, which will Kimberly will have to wear for about 18-20 weeks. We opened her up and relieved the pressure on her lungs and fixed the bleeding from her liver."
"And head injury?"
"We performed surgery to relieve the pressure on her brain and stitched her. We did about 36 stitches."
"So how is she?"
"She's stable. She's asleep right now and is currently being moved into an ICU room."
"ICU?"
The doctor nodded. "Yes, she will be put in an ICU room until I feel she is more stable to be in a regular hospital room. I would like her to be watched around the clock since she is still fairly weak. Stable, but weak."
"Can we see her?"
The doctor pursed his lips. "Just one at a time."
Rocky tapped Adam on his arm. "Go ahead," he said. "You go. I'll keep trying to get in touch with Trini and everyone else."
Adam nodded. "Thanks."
The doctor nodded. "Right this way."
Adam followed the doctor down a long hallway and into another set of double doors. He pointed to room number 3119. "That's Kimberly's room." He motioned to the cart sitting between room 3119 and 3120. "Please put on a gown and gloves first."
Adam walked up to the cart and looked through the drawers on the cart. He pulled out a gown and opened it, tying himself. He also pulled out a set of gloves and pulled it over his hands before cautiously walking into Kim's room. He gasped when he saw her.
The light in the room was low and Adam settled into a chair on her right side, opposite the side of her body that seemed to be injured worse. He looked at her leg in a sling, with a brace around her ankle and knee. He also noted that her arm was in a sling and that she looked pale in the low light. He heard all the machines that were connected to her and kept a steady beat going. He recognized her heart beat on one of the machines and was glad to see it beating at a steady rate. He took her right hand and held it. He took his other hand and brushed the hair from her eyes. His breath got caught in his throat when he saw the stitches on her hands and quickly withdrew his hand, not wanting to injure or hurt her.
Adam didn't say anything as he continued to hold her hand and he watched over her in the low light.
"So you can't get out of Cameroon?" Rocky asked Aisha into the phone.
"No, the first flight out is in three weeks. How is Kim, anyway?"
"The doctor said stable, but weak."
"I'll keep looking for the first flight."
"Okay. I need to call Trini and see where she's at."
"All right, if you get to see Kim, tell her I'm thinking of her."
"Will do. See you, Aisha."
Rocky hung up the phone. He exhaled and took another deep breath before picking up the phone and dialing the long distance number.
"Hello?" Trini's hysterical voice answered the phone.
"Do you know when you're going to be able to get here?"
"I'm trying, Rocky!" He could tell that she's been crying over the phone. "But I can't seem to get anything from the airport. I'm not understanding them and I don't think they understand me and I really need to get out of here because who's with her? I don't want her to be by herself and I've been thinking for a long time that I should get back to the States and I hope she's okay and I can't seem to get a flight out. They told me the first flight out was in two days and I can't wait that long. I have to get out now. I have to go there now."
"Trini, calm down," Rocky tried reassuring her. "It'll be okay, all right? The doctor just came out and told us that Kim was still weak, but stable. And she's not alone, Adam's sitting with her right now."
"Okay, I guess." Rocky could tell that her breathing has gotten back to normal.
"And just try to find a flight out to Florida or Georgia. I'll drive to pick you up."
"I will. Thanks Rocky."
"No, thank you, Trini. Have you gotten in touch with Kim's parents?"
"Yeah, her mom and step-dad can't get out of Paris cuz they've been hit with a big storm. All flights have been cancelled until further notice. She said that she hopes she could get out within the next day, but isn't sure. They've even closed the roads over there."
"What about her brother and her dad?"
"I don't know...I don't have numbers for either of them. But her mom said she'll try and get in touch with them. Let me give you her number. I already gave her Adam's."
"Okay. Could you let her know how Kim's doing? Give her my number too. Tell her to call me if she has any questions."
"All right. I'll talk to you later, Rocky. Keep me updated."
"Will do."
The two of them hung up and Rocky immediately dialed Jason's number.
"Jason," he said right as he heard Jason answer.
"How is she?"
"Stable, but weak. Where are you?"
"Driving through Texas right now. I think I'm passing by.......the sign said Forth Worth, so I must be near that. I'll try to be there as soon as I can."
"Okay, but just be safe, all right? Have you gotten a chance to get in touch with Tommy or Zack or anybody?"
"No, nobody's answering. I"ll be there as soon as I can, though."
"All right. See you soon, Jason."
"See you, Rocky."
Rocky hung up for the third time. He looked around and decided to get some coffee for him and Adam.
When Rocky got back, he saw Adam waiting for him in the waiting room.
"How is she?"
Adam shrugged. "Just like the doctor said. If you want to see her, you have to put on a gown, though."
Rocky nodded. "I'll go in for a quick visit."
Adam pointed through the doors and showed where he was supposed to go.
About 15 minutes later, Rocky reemerged from the ICU hallway.
"Hey Rocky," Adam said, pulling out keys from his pocket. "Why don't you go to my apartment and take a nap. I'll stay here with Kim."
"Are you sure?" he asked, taking the keys. "You kind of look like hell. Maybe you should go. Get some sleep or something. I'll be here."
Adam shook his head. "I'm sure. I want to stay here."
"They won't let you stay in the room, though."
"I know...I'll wait out here."
"Are you sure? I'll wait with you."
"No, I'm sure. I...it kinda feels like it's my fault a bit, you know."
"It's not your fault," Rocky said automatically. "It really isn't, you know. If anything you helped."
Adam shrugged. "Just go on ahead and go. You know how to get there, right?"
Rocky nodded. "I'll come back in the morning and we'll switch off, okay? Give me a call if anything changes. I'll be down here in a flash."
Adam nodded. "I'll see you later." He took a seat as Rocky walked down the hallway to the exit.
There goes that chapter. Hope you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think!