A/N...So sorry it took so long to update but the computer was freaking out. I finally calmed it down enough to get back here!
I hope you all enjoy this. If any of the medical stuff is wrong, I apologize...but don't think negatively of me! I have no medical background, although I did check several sites for info. Its just a story!
Lastly, thanks to everyone on Twitter and everyone here! I promise Fi will be ok. I killed her once & that was just miserable!
Six in the morning Sam groaned and looked at his phone. He saw that Michael called and left a message. Quietly, not wanting to wake Elsa, he climbed out of bed and went into the living room to listen to his message. As he listened, Elsa came out into the living room and placed a hand on his shoulder. He ended listening to his message and put down the phone.
"Sam, what's wrong?" she asked.
"Fi's in the hospital. Mike's with her. He doesn't know what's wrong." Sam said. He continued to speak as he climbed into the shower. "Fi had a cold and she kept telling us she was getting better. She would have a coughing fit or two, but it would subside pretty quick."
When he got out of the shower and put on clean clothes, Sam picked up an envelope. "Babe, I am supposed to meet someone here in the lobby at eight this morning. Would you mind giving this to our client? I'm going to go sit with Mikey. He'll need someone there with him."
Elsa took the envelope and read the name out loud. "Sarah Jessup. Sam, what does she look like?"
"She's twenty five, blonde and huge..." Sam stopped when he saw Elsa cross her arms and begin to tap her foot.
"What is huge on her Sam? Care to share?"
Slowly, he tried to think of something to say that wouldn't get him in trouble. "She has huge...eyes! Big ones, bigger than the coffee saucers here at the hotel."
Elsa let out a laugh and moved closer to give Sam a kiss. "Give Mike my love and keep me updated on Fiona's condition. If Mike needs anything, tell him not to worry and to either tell you or have him call me to tell me what he needs and I'll make sure he gets it."
Sam pulled Elsa into a kiss and dipped her while his tongue roamed her mouth. As he finished kissing her, he stood her back up and walked to the door. "Thanks Elsa. I don't know what I'd do without you."
When Sam arrived at the hospital, he went to the admitting station and got the attention of the nurse behind the desk.
"I am here to see a patient, Fiona Glenanne. She was brought in early this morning." Sam said.
Without even looking up from her files, the nurse said "No one can see Miss Glenanne unless they are a relative. Her boyfriend is already back there with her, so she isn't alone. He's the only non-family member I will allow."
"Well, I'm her brother." Sam said, hoping to convince the nurse to let him past.
The nurse looked up from her files and said dryly, "She's Irish and you sound far from Irish."
The nurse would have questioned Sam more about his relation to Fiona, but Michael came out and greeted Sam. "I'm glad you are here. Fi is sleeping, so i thought I would get a drink."
"Tell the nurse I'm Fi's brother."
Michael smiled at the nurse and said "This is Fiona's step-brother. They are really close."
The nurse smiled back and said "Ok, but there better not be anymore 'family' going back there."
Giving the nurse a fake smile, Sam walked down the hall with Michael, who was very quiet. He could tell Michael was deep in thought. Sam waited until they got to the cafeteria before he asked. "So, what's wrong with Fi?"
Michael talked as he paid for his bottle of water. "She's got a bad case of pneumonia. They are going to admit her because she's dehydrated, her oxygen levels are too low, she has a fever and her lungs are inflamed which makes her hurt and not cough the right way."
"How are they going to treat her?"
"Antibiotics, she's wearing an oxygen mask and an IV so she doesn't get more dehydrated. There are methods they use to help clear her lungs." Michael said. Sam could hear the exhaustion in Michael's voice.
Not knowing what to say, Sam patted Michael on the back and gently pushed him out of the cafeteria. The men walked back to Fiona's bed, where she was still asleep. They stood at the foot of her bed watching her sleep. Sam noticed Michael's face frowning as they stood there. "Why isn't she in a room yet?" asked Sam.
Michael inhaled and said as he exhaled "They are waiting for a bed upstairs. She should be in a room soon they keep saying."
"Well, Sammy is going to take charge here. Fi is sleeping soundly, you need to go sleep because when she wakes up, you need to be rested to take care of her." Sam said, handing Michael the keys to his car. "I parked by the Charger. My car is better to sleep in because the seats recline. You go and take a nap. I will call you the minute she wakes up."
Michael tried to protest, but Sam cut him off. "There is no arguing. You go rest. Like I told you before I'm not taking care of the two of you."
The nurse who gave Sam a difficult time before, stood behind them. "I've been telling him the same thing all morning. He needs to rest."
Michael relented and took the keys from Sam and said "You call me the minute she starts moving. I'm only going to sleep for a few minutes."
"That's all I want. I swear I will call you when she's awake." Sam sad.
Michael took the keys and walked over to Fiona. He kissed the top of her head and whispered "I'll be back soon. Sam's here if you need anything." Turning to Sam, he said "She's so exhausted."
Michael walked away slowly from the room and out the door. Sam, finally alone with Fiona, looked at her laying in the bed. She was pale and tired looking. Her lips were dry and not their usual pink color. She looked thinner than usual. He sat down next to her and took her hand in his.
Fiona opened her eyes and asked "Where's Michael?"
"I made him go out to my car for a nap. He'll be back in a few. How do you feel?"
Adjusting the oxygen mask on her face, Fiona said "Like a truck hit me. Everything hurts and I'm cold."
Fiona's complaints made Sam worry. "Fi, where you hurting?"
"Wrists, ankles, knees...all my joints are sore."
Sam reached over and felt her face. Feeling how hot she was, Sam called for a nurse. She came in and took Fiona's temperature and found it had risen since she had arrived. Calling a doctor, she began to ask questions of Fiona.
"Miss Glenanne, are you hot or cold?"
Fiona shook a little. "Cold. The air conditioning makes it feel like a bloody ice box in here."
Sam noticed the doctor had arrived and was looking at her arms, legs and back. "Miss Glenanne, do you hurt anywhere?"
When Fiona didn't answer, Sam spoke up and said "She told me her joints hurt. Her wrists, elbows, knees hurt."
"Miss Glenanne, who is in the room with us?" asked the doctor.
Fi rolled her eyes and pointed when she spoke. "The nurse, you are Doctor Cooper, Sam and Michael's mother."
The doctor looked at Sam and asked "Where is her boyfriend?"
"I sent him out to the car to sleep. He was tired." Sam said.
The doctor stood near Sam and said "Get him back in here. I need to talk to him."
Sam called Michael. "Mikey, Fi is awake and ok, but the doctor wants to talk to you." Sam waited for a response but didn't receive one. He looked at his phone and realized Michael had ended the call without saying a word. "He's on his way."
Just as Michael walked into the emergency room, he saw Fiona sit straight up and have another coughing fit. Michael rushed over to her side and rubbed her back until her breathing calmed. "I am so tired" Fiona whispered to Michael. The doctor and Sam left the room so the couple could have a moment alone.
"I know. Let me talk to the doctor and we will see what we can do." Michael said, wrapping his arms around Fiona and giving her a kiss on the head.
After Michael got Fiona to lay back down in the bed and covered her with a blanket, he walked out into the hallway where the doctor was already talking to Sam.
"Can anything be done to help her rest? She's exhausted." Michael said as he approached the doctor.
"I know she's exhausted and we'll help her get some rest. Right now I need you to listen to me because we need to change how we are caring for her. Sometimes with pneumonia cases, the virus will enter the bloodstream. I think that is what happening with your girlfriend. Its called blood poisoning. She all the symptoms-a rash, fever, achy joints, delusions..."
Sam interrupted and turned to Michael "She named everyone in the room and said your mom was there too."
Michael's eyes widened. "At home, she said she saw Sam in the kitchen. That's when I figured I should have her looked at. She had the rash for a day but I thought it was from the juice I gave her. She's allergic to raspberries and I forgot." He covered his eyes with his hand. "So what do we do now?"
"The nurses are getting her a room in ICU. I have to do some blood work but i want to be more aggressive, combine medicines and push more fluids. Her breathing is bad and I want to test her oxygen levels again to see if there is any improvement. If there is no improvement or the levels are worse, I want to intubate her and put her on a ventilator. She might be under sedation for a few days if i do that, but lets see how the blood looks. I know this sounds scary, and it is, but she's young and was healthy before this happened. You got her here at the right time so she can get treated before it gets worse. It's going to be a long road, but she can handle it." The doctor said as he headed back to Fiona's room.
Sam thanked the doctor and put his hand on Michael's shoulder. "She's going to be ok."
"What do I tell her Sam?" Michael asked.
"Odds are with the fever and the exhaustion, she won't understand a lot." Sam explained. Seeing Michael frown and fight back tears, Sam placed both hands on Michael's shoulders and said in a firm voice "You go in there and tell her she will be staying in the hospital so she can get better and you'll be with her the whole way. Just make her rest until they move her."
Michael nodded. Before he went to rejoin Fiona he said softly "Call my mom and tell her we are at the hospital."
"You got it Brother."
Sam pulled out his phone and dialed Maddie's number. "Sam! I was just thinking about you. Have you heard from Michael or Fiona? Last I heard she was still in bed with a cold. I hope he didn't get it. He is such a pain when he is sick."
"Maddie...I'm in the hospital. Mike brought Fi in early this morning and now they are admitting her to ICU. Its bad, so you might want to come down here." Sam said ending the call. He moved closer to the room, but hung back far enough to give Michael and Fiona privacy. Sam found a chair, closed his eyes and rested for a moment. He knew he'd need all the rest he could get to help Michael get through this and he vowed to himself that they would all get through this ok.