These characters do not belong to me; they were created out of JE's genius. The mess they are in right now is entirely my fault.
Chapter 2 – Back to Reality
I don't want to wake up. I feel like I've been hit by a Mack truck. I just need to move my arm enough to shut off the alarm clock and then I'll roll over for a few more minutes of sleep. Oh who am I kidding, with the way I feel right now I'll sleep for hours. Okay arm – move.
Nothing is happening. Why isn't my arm moving? And why is the alarm clock going faster? What's in my mouth?
"Beautiful, you need to calm down. We're here and you are going to be alright. But you need to calm down." I can hear Les talking to me, but I have no ability to open my eyes. Why is he telling me to calm down and where exactly is here?
It would be easier if the damn beeping would quiet down. Now it's getting faster still. You would think Les would be kind enough to turn off my alarm. Surely it is bothering him too.
"Hey Ram!" Les shouted over me.
I could hear the door open and then footsteps. "What is it man?" Ram asked.
"Get Bobby in here. The monitors are doing their thing again." Les sounded tense – and tired.
More footsteps on a hard sounding floor. What happened to the carpet in my apartment?
Someone was touching my hair but it was from the side opposite where Les' voice came from. This would be so much easier if I could open my eyes and swallow. What is this in my mouth?
"It's okay Bomber. I got the nurse and she's going to give you a little something in your IV. It will help with the pain if you have any and it will help you to sleep. You don't need to worry about a thing. We aren't leaving you and we will get you through this." Bobby explained.
Well, shit! Now I know the beeping isn't going to stop anytime soon. Damn heart monitors. Why can't I open my eyes though? And why am I in the hospital in the first place? It would be easier to think and piece this together if I didn't feel like I was floating. I always wanted to fly but this wasn't what I meant.
Bobby's voice cut through my fog, "Why does she continue to have these episodes?"
A deep voice I didn't recognize answered him, "I think she is trying to wake up and because we have her chemically paralyzed she panics in that twilight area where she isn't able to fully comprehend what is happening around her. She must be quite a fighter."
"You have no idea," Bobby said. "How much longer will we have to keep her still?"
"It is hard to say for sure. The swelling was down dramatically on the scan this morning but I would like to see it improve more before I risk her moving. If her rate of improvement continues steadily I would estimate one or two more days of medication."
"Once you stop the meds how long before she could regain muscle control?" Thank you Bobby for asking these questions.
"Again, it varies by individual but probably less than 24 hours." The deep voice answered.
"At that point will you be able to access the full extent of her injury?" What injury is Bobby talking about, I wondered.
Deep voice drew a long breath before answering. "Based on where the spine received most of its trauma my guess is her upper body will respond well to immediate testing. Her arm is healing well and the cast can come off in a month. The swelling in her brain from the concussion has all but disappeared. My concern is for her legs. They are both broken which is simple enough to fix but the area affected by the blade could have long term damage that may take a month or two to fully diagnose. During that time keeping her still and comfortable is all we can do as we wait for her spine to heal and the bones in her legs to knit back together."
"Thanks, Doc." Bobby must have run out of questions.
"What does all that mean?" Les asked Bobby when the door closed behind the deep voiced man I'm assuming is my doctor.
"It means our girl here has a long road ahead of her and there is no way to know when the casts come off if we will ever get to take her dancing again." Bobby answered.
I knew I shouldn't be trying to listen in on their conversation. I had to fight at the darkness that was trying to overtake me but I needed to know what was going on. I wasn't sure I understood but it sounded as though Bobby meant I may never use my legs again. I felt the wetness on my cheeks as some tears escaped through my closed lashes. Apparently my attempt to listen undetected was foiled.
"Shit," Les exclaimed.
"What's wrong now," Bobby asked, "Her numbers all look good."
"It's not her numbers I'm worried about it, it's the tears on her face." He said brushing them off my cheeks. "I thought she was asleep, can she hear us?" Les asked.
"Probably not," Bobby answered. They've got her so heavily sedated I doubt she could fight it long enough to pick up on a full conversation.
Ha! I guess the Merry Men aren't as smart as they think they are, I gloated as I lost my battle against the darkness again.
I could remember drifting in and out of sleep and with each conscious period I was serenaded by the lovely cadence of my monitors. Sometimes there would be a different voice talking to me and often I could feel someone touching me. I found it very comforting and always resented it if a nurse or doctor came in and interrupted the attention I was receiving. I found I could identify most of the guys by their voice or smell and the ones I couldn't get right away usually gave themselves away by something they said. It was a fun game the first thirty times I played guess the Merry Man but now I was getting tired of having to guess and not being able to open my eyes and see.
The last time I heard anyone discussing my condition the doctor said they had stopped the medication and once it was out of my system I should begin to gain some muscle control. Unfortunately I had no way to judge how long ago that was.
I still felt a little fuzzy, no doubt from the steady stream of pain medication but I was beginning to remember what happened. I knew there was a skip at a club and my spidey sense told me to run away, but I didn't listen. I remembered being held with a knife at my chest and then being thrown over a railing. But that was all I could piece together. I hoped the guys would fill me in when I finally woke up. My first demand would be for them to get what ever is in my mouth out, and the second would be to tell me exactly what happened.
Maybe after one more nap I would open my eyes, sit up and demand just that.
"Oh man, you've got to be kidding me!" Yelled out one of my guys.
"Come on Cal, you didn't actually expect Navy to come out on top this year did you?"
"Shut up Vince, I thought they could do better than this – that's the second interception he's thrown and it's still the first half," Cal responded.
Ah, so I had Vince and Cal with me now and they were watching the Army Navy football game. My detective skills were top notch today. That meant their attention was diverted elsewhere and I could use this time to try my luck at getting my eyes open. I tried pulling them open and for a brief moment I think I succeeded because I was blinded by a bright light.
I gave the dancing flashes of lights behind my eyelids the chance to die away before trying it again, this time a little slower. I blinked repeatedly as I began to adjust to the light in the room. The television was at the foot of my bed and I was right about the game. I began to smile in smug satisfaction but felt the lump in my mouth again. I tried lifting my right hand but it was in a cast and weighed a ton. My left hand cooperated and I felt a tube that had no doubt been put down my throat to assist with my breathing.
Knowing that's what it was made me want it out all the more. I was tired of having people and machines do things for me. Enough of this laying around, I wanted some independence. Unfortunately as I was giving myself this little attitude adjustment it got my heart pumping with excitement and the guys turned around to check on the sound just in time to see my hand pulling at the tube.
"Grab her hand," Call instructed as he dashed out into the hallway.
He came back in sporting a huge smile on his face. "Angel, you gave us quite a scare. It is so good to see your beautiful blue eyes open again." Cal was stroking my hair and face. It's like he was convincing himself that I was really awake. I began to scowl when I remembered the tube I so desperately wanted to get out of my mouth.
Cal noticed the difference in my expression. "The nurse was going to get the doctor to get that tube out of there. But you have to leave it alone until he does, okay?"
I continued blinking still adjusting to the light.
When my door opened again a man I did not recognize came in. "Well Ms. Plum it is good to have you back with us. These gentlemen were getting impatient to have you wake up." I recognized the deep voice and knew this was my doctor.
He shined a light in my eyes and looked at the series of machines above my head and then turned his attention back to me." I understand you would like to get rid of this tube."
I nodded. His whole face broke into a smile at my movement. When I glanced around him Vince and Cal had grins to match. What was with all the happy guys today?
Dr. Deep Voice then instructed me to blow out on his command and he would pull the tube out. Why he didn't see fit to warn me that he would also be pulling my throat out is beyond me but at least I could lick my lips.
I tried to say thank you, but only managed an unattractive croaking sound. Great, now I'm a bullfrog.
A nurse bustled in holding a cup with a straw and she offered it to me instructing me to take small sips.
The water was ice cold and numbed my throat on the way down. It felt like a little taste of heaven. I can't believe I used to prefer Coke to this.
"How's that?" The nurse asked.
"Better," I managed to get out. "Thank you."
"I'll just leave the cup here with a pitcher beside it and you can have one of these big guys that refuse to leave you alone give it to you anytime you need some more, okay?" She asked kindly.
I nodded that I understood and she quickly disappeared.
"Okay, who is going to tell me what is going on?" I whispered not able to use my full voice yet.
Call laughed out loud. "We told you she was something," He said to the doctor.
"I can see that for myself," Dr. Deep Voice answered.
"Well Ms. Plum," he began only to be interrupted by the sound of running feet in the hall and then the door to my room slamming open to reveal four very large men dressed in black.
I smiled at Bobby, Les, Tank and Hal as they stood in my doorway anxious to see for themselves that I was awake and functioning.
"Ah, yes, well if we are all here now," he began again, "I was about to answer Ms. Plum's question regarding her condition."
Bobby winced as the doctor said the word condition but he did not attempt to interrupt he just walked in and looked at the same machines identical to how the doctor had moments before their arrival.
"You suffered a deep stab wound to the back, right along the edge of your spinal chord. It did not sever the chord itself but areas of it were damaged. Additionally you took a hard fall causing the complex fracture in your right arm and two less severe breaks in your legs with some additional damage to your right ankle, some vertebrates and a few ribs. You suffered a concussion which compounded with your history of head injuries caused some swelling in your brain on top of the swelling in your spinal column." He paused to see if I understood him so far.
I nodded hoping that would encourage him to tell me whatever else he would.
"We had to immobilize you for a period of ten days to prevent you from moving while dreaming or periods of consciousness to give the brain and spine a chance to recover. Three days ago our tests indicated all the swelling in your brain was gone and your spine only showed minimal inflammation so we stopped the paralytic medication in order to give you the chance to slowly regain the use of your muscles." Again he stopped, but this time he did not begin again.
"So where does that leave me now?" I asked. "Once the legs, ankle, back ribs and arm heal, will I be as good as new?" I thought I knew the answer to that from my eavesdropping over the last few days but I needed to hear it for myself.
"Ms. Plum, the truth is we don't know. We would like to keep you here for a few more days to monitor how your muscles react to movement after a prolonged period of not being used. I would not be honest if I did not tell you there is a chance the damage to your spine was severe enough that you may never regain the full use of your legs. Time and some intensive therapy will tell us the answer to that question. I'm sorry I can't offer you more." And with that solemn pronouncement he was gone.
You could have heard a pin drop, my room was so quiet. Despite the crowd of six Merry Men and me, it was perfectly still.
"Well, I did ask for the truth didn't I?" I managed to squeak out.
"Little girl, we are going to be with you every minute and we will get you better." Tank promised.
I wanted to believe him, really I did, but I couldn't get my mind around what all of this meant. I decided instead to go with denial for a bit longer. "I thought there was a game on. Don't you guys want to argue over Army versus Navy?" I tried teasing to lighten the mood.
The television was turned back on and the guys watched with half hearted attention. Finally I couldn't take the pall that seemed to be hanging over the room and I just wanted to be alone.
"Okay guys, I know you want to keep me company, but I've had enough excitement for one day and I think I just want to take a little nap. How about you go home and I promise not to try and break out of my room so you will know just where to find me tomorrow."
One by one they filed past my bed to kiss my head or my cheek and then walk out of room leaving Tank and Bobby with me.
Tank surprised me by sitting on the edge of my bed and framing my face in his large calloused hands. He looked straight in my eyes and said, "I will never forgive myself for letting you walk in that club after you told me something felt off. Your gut is always right and I made you go despite your warning."
I wanted to protest but he moved a finger to cover my lips.
"We'll leave you here by yourself because you asked and I'm sure you want to be alone for a little while, but I'm keeping someone at the door 24 hours a day. You're never alone. You need to just accept that. I'll be back in the morning." Then he placed a tender soft kiss on my forehead and whispered, "Sleep tight, Little Girl," before walking out.
Bobby sat down in the chair next to my bed. He looked exhausted. He put his hand on mine and then put his head down on top of his hand. In that submissive position he looked so young and vulnerable. I reached over with my left hand and rubbed it through his scraggly hair. "You need a hair cut," I said before my internal editor could stop me.
The music of Bobby's laughter was his response. He sat up and beamed at me. "I've been worried about a little brunette I know that was being a pain in the ass and not waking up when the doctor said she should so I forgot to get it cut. I'll see if Ella can fit me in sometime soon."
"Can you do something for me?" I asked.
"Anything at all. Name it," He sat up on the edge of his chair.
"Can you be sure Tank understands I don't blame him? I didn't fight him about the distraction that night. I thought I was feeling off because of my car blowing up that morning. He isn't to blame – you will be sure he knows that won't you?" I pleaded.
"I'll tell him Steph, but I doubt he'll listen to me. Hell if I'm honest almost every one of us has been trying to shoulder part of the blame." He confessed.
"That's ridiculous. None of you could have prevented this." I exclaimed. "Who is crazy enough to think they could have changed the outcome."
"Erik thinks he missed the knife when the skip entered the club, Tank thinks he should have called it off, Junior believes you were looking at him for help and he smiled at you instead, Binkie thought he should have been watching closer to see him grab at you before you ever got outside, Woody thinks he should have tried shooting even it meant hitting you, Ram is mad that he didn't grab a rifle and tag him from further out sooner, Hell Steph even I wonder if I had rolled you over quicker and gotten the pressure off the knife before you started coughing it might have prevented some of the damage to your spine. There is plenty of blame to go around." He tried explaining.
"Just stop it!" I nearly screamed at him. The emotion of the day was quickly overwhelming me and I knew I needed to calm down. "You can't think that way, and you can't let them either. Tell them I'll do everything I can to get better, but they can't take the actions of a sick skip make them second guess what happened. They saved my life - I'm sure of it. You have to make them understand, Bobby, you have to." I began to sob at this point and Bobby quickly pulled me in his arms as gently as possible.
He made soothing noises and brushed his fingers through my mess of hair. I remembered him saying he would tell the guys and he would make them understand how I felt but it all became too much for me again and I could not stop the sleep that overtook me.