"Alright, sir. Come this way!" The nurse said urging him to follow her to a private room just off of the triage. Other patients watched in worry and confusion as they made their way past them. As Seeley entered the room with Temperance laying imply in his arms, he very gently placed her on the bed. The moment he did a doctor and three more nurses came into the room swarming Temperance all at once. The nurse who led Seeley into the room pulled him aside to ask questions.
"Sir, what can you tell me about her? Does she have any allergies? What's her name? Address?" The nurse pulled out a clip board ready to write anything down. Seeley's eyes were fixed on Temperance. He could barely hear the questions the woman was asking him.
"SIR!" Her voice rose to a higher more authoritative tone, trying in any effort to get any information out of him.
"Umm… Her name is Temperance Frost. We go to school together at Hillcrest High. I just met her four months ago, I barely know her. She was attacked at school today by two boys. I was able to get them away from her but I don't know how long they were beating her up before I got there. Is she going to be alright? Is she okay?" Seeley focused for a few minutes before turning his attention back to Temperance. While he was talking to the nurse he overheard the doctor say,
"She has a punctured lung, possibly from some previously broken ribs, multiple bruises, minor cuts." The doctor spoke quickly as he diagnosed her, calling out order to his staff as he assessed her.
"Previously broken ribs!" Seeley hollered, cutting through the noise of the doctor and the nurses, hustling and bustling around her. His heart flared with a nervous energy. How could she have a broken rib? How did that happen? As his mind spun with thoughts of terror, he didn't even notice he was seated in the waiting room until the nurse came up to him.
"Sir? Are you waiting for Temperance Frost?" She crouched down to meet Seeley's eyes. There was a softness to her eyes, something that seemed so comforting. Being in this profession for as long as she had been, you learned to talk to any patients in a calm and caring tone no matter what or how they treated you.
"Yes!" Seeley shook his head to focus on the nurse's words.
"Is she alright? Is she okay? Can I see her?" The questions poured out his mouth one after another.
"Yes, she is alright. She is out of surgery. Walk with me, sir and I can explain further." She spoke as she rose from her crouched position, then slowly started to make her way down the hall.
"Why did she need surgery?" Seeley questioned as he trailed behind her.
"She punctured her lung, with previously two broken ribs. These ribs showed signs of being broken eight weeks ago, it normally takes six weeks for the ribs to heal fully. But being so close to the heal time and when they were rebroken today, it is no wonder why they punctured her left lung. Now she did have to have surgery in order to fix the two punctures in her lung, so she will be in recovery for the next week or so. I have called her parents and they said they should be in within the next day or so." A frown crossed her face as she mentioned the last part. She visibly didn't seem impressed by this response, "what kind of parent doesn't drop everything and come see their child immediately." The nurse thought before gesturing to the room Temperance was in.
They entered Temperance's private room to see her laying quietly in the hospital bed. An oxygen tube going up her nose then neatly hooked around her delicate ears. Her hair gently splayed out across the crisp white pillow, that propped up her head. Her hands and arms laid at her sides, as a soft thin plush green blanket wrapped her slim form.
Without any more questions, Seeley simply sat down in the closest chair. Keeping an eye on her as he did.
"When she wakes, call one of us in here to check on her vitals and inform her of her injuries." The nurse spoke touching his shoulder. Seeley nodded in response, not able to form any words. He didn't fully understand what was going on, all he knew was that he felt responsible for her, and he wasn't about to leave her side at any time soon. There was something that was deep inside him that screamed to protect her, to be there for her. He pulled his chair as close as he could to the left side of her bed. Then without thinking he reached out and held her hand delicately in his, as if it would break into a million pieces. She seemed smaller in the hospital bed then she did when he first met her. It was slightly understandable though, considering her injuries. He sat there for what seemed like hours. A faint hustle down the hall, quiet voices chittering about anything from a bad sore throat to an allergic reaction to some sort of food group. As the hours ticked by his eye lids began to fall and again without thinking he dropped his head on the bed next to the left leg. In a faint hope that he could acquire some rest before she woke again.
