Thank you all for the wonderful response to my story. So many of you have reviewed and/or added it to your alerts. I appreciate that very much. - I'm not in the medical profession, so I'm not sure how things would work, so please keep that in mind while you read this next chapter. Some things that I have happen may not really take place, but for the sake of the story, they do ;) I know you all have a lot of questions... please be patient... they will be answered soon... PROMISE!
The nurse rushed into Stephanie's room to see what was needed. When she walked in, she gasped and turned back around to find the doctor.
Zero sat down next to Stephanie on the bed, he wanted to be near her, but also give her some space. He saw her looking at him trying to figure some things out. "You're safe. No one here is going to hurt you. Tell ya what, Belle, I'll ask you a question and if the answer is yes, blink once. If the answer is no, blink twice. Okay?" Blink. Zero laughed, "Okay, here goes. Are you in any pain?"
Blink, blink. "Do you know where you are?" Blink. "Do you know how you got here?" Blink, blink. "Do you remember…"
Zero was about to ask another question when the nurse and doctor walked in. "I see the patient is awake. That is good." The doctor stepped up to the bed and looked at Stephanie. "I don't want you to worry, you are in good hands. We've been worried about you, so I'm glad to see you finally wake up. Would you like to get that tube out of your mouth?" Blink.
Looking at Zero, the doctor smiled, "I see you two have already worked out a communication technique. Good." The doctor looked at Stephanie and told her, "I'm going to count to three. When I do, I want you to take a deep breath and blow it out slowly while I pull the tube. Think you can do that?" Blink, blink. "Okay, here we go. One. Two. Three."
Stephanie took a deep breath and blew it out while the doctor did his thing. Once the tube was removed, she coughed. The nurse held a cup of water with a straw. "Here, take a few sips, but not too much."
After a couple of sips, Stephanie whispered, "Thank you," and laid her head back. The nurse left the room while the doctor made a few notes. Stephanie sat there looking at Zero like she wanted to say something, but couldn't figure how to phrase it.
The doctor looked up and saw the expression on Stephanie's face. "I'll leave you two alone for a minute while I finish my notes. If you need anything before I return, just press the button. When I get back, I'm going to need to run a few tests."
The doctor left and Zero looked at Stephanie. "Can I sit on the bed next to you?"
"Yes," she whispered.
Zero carefully lowered himself to the bed and reached for her hand. Just as he was about to grab it, he thought it might be better to ask her his previous question first. "I know this might sound strange, but we don't know how much damage was done, so please, just humor me with a couple more answers." He watched her nod. "Do you know who I am?"
Stephanie sat there staring at Zero; he knew the answer from her eyes before she ever responded. "I'm sorry," she whispered.
"Do you know your name?"
Taking a shallow breath, he barely heard her answer, "Belle."
Zero's heart wasn't sure what to do; part of it sank because she didn't remember him or who she was. Part of his heart soared because she remembered the nickname he'd given her. As much as he wanted to her believe that was her name, he knew he couldn't.
Reaching for her hand and taking it this time, he told her the truth. "Belle is not your name. Your name is Stephanie. Stephanie Michelle Plum. Does any of that ring a bell?"
Confused, Stephanie asked, "If my name is not Belle, then why did I hear someone calling me that?"
"When?"
"I've heard it off and on for a while now. It would feel like I was sleeping, but I'd hear someone say Belle. Then, before the tube was taken out, you called me Belle."
Zero looked at her and smiled. "Belle is a nickname I gave you. I've been sitting here waiting on you to wake up and I guess when I'd talk to you, I called you Belle. I don't mean to confuse you."
Before she could say anymore, the door opened and in walked five of the biggest guys she'd ever remembered seeing. Not sure if they were friend or foe, she jumped a little and pulled Zero's hand to her chest.
"Relax, Belle, they won't hurt you. They are all your friends," he whispered. Looking at the guys, Zero said, "Don't overwhelm her, she's not remembering anything right now."
"Stephanie," said Zero as he turned back to her, "This big guy right here is Tank. Matter of fact, you sometimes call him Big Guy and he calls you Little Girl." Tank smiled at her and moved a little closer to the bed.
"Nice to see you awake, Little Girl," Tank said softly.
"Next up, we have Lester, Bobby, Ram, Manny, and Hector. We all work together and they are like your big brothers."
"I'm… I'm sorry. I don't remember you right guys now." Tears started to fall from her eyes and Zero reached up to wipe them away.
"It's okay, Steph. We all know you've been through a lot. It might take some time, but hopefully it will all come back soon," smiled Zero.
The guys gathered around her bed; each wanted to hug her and tell her how glad they were that they'd found her, and that she was alive and now awake, but no one wanted to startle or scare her.
Stephanie took in the sight of the guys in her room and found herself thinking she was glad that Zero was sitting next to her; even if she didn't remember him. Just something about having him near her made her feel safe.
The doctor came back in and everyone except Zero left. When the doctor stepped up to the bed, he looked at Stephanie and Zero. "I need to check a few things and then I have some questions for you. I can either ask them with him here or he can step out for a few minutes if you want. Up to you."
Stephanie looked at Zero and asked, "Will you stay with me?"
Squeezing her hand, he smiled, "Of course."
The doctor checked her eyes and a few reflexes before he began his questions. "Do you know who you are?"
"I know my name, but only because he told me."
"Do you know where you are?"
"I can tell it's a hospital, but where at, I don't know."
"Do you know this guy?"
Stephanie looked at him and frowned, "No."
The doctor looked at their joined hands and asked, "If you don't know who he is, then why are you comfortable holding his hand?"
Looking in Zero's eyes, she spoke honestly, "Because, somehow, I know he won't hurt me. He's not a threat to me. When I woke up, his eyes were the first I saw. His voice was the first I heard. Even before I was fully awake, I heard him."
The doctor made more notes and finally said, "I'm going to have the nurse come in and get you cleaned up, then I want to try getting a little food in you. If you can handle the food, then we'll see about removing the feeding tube. I know they are not comfortable, but we needed to keep you nourished."
The doctor left and Zero leaned down to kiss her forehead. When his lips touched her, she jumped. Sitting up, Zero looked at Stephanie, "I'm sorry, Stephanie. I shouldn't have done that."
"It's okay. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to flinch." Looking up, she decided that she didn't like something he had done. "I like it better when you call me Belle."
Zero smiled and squeezed her hand, "I like it better to."
"Will you tell me why you call me Belle instead of Stephanie? I'm sure there's a story there."
Zero watched her yawn and knew she needed some rest. "Tell you what, I'll tell you the story if you close your eyes and get some rest. How's that?"
Stephanie chewed on her bottom lip as she thought about his offer. He could tell that there was a question floating around in her head. "Belle, what's wrong?"
Fidgeting with her hands, she thought about how to ask and decided that just asking was the way to go. "I have this feeling that I can trust you and I don't need to be scared of you." Zero nodded. "I'm just wondering… would it be wrong of me to ask you to lie next to me and hold my hand while you tell your story?"
Zero smiled and stood up. "All ye have to do is ask M' Lady." After Stephanie scooted over some, Zero slid in next to her on his side, holding her right hand in his. Stephanie curled up next to him some and closed her eyes.
"See, when we met, you told everyone to call you Stephanie or Steph. You hated when someone called you Ms. Plum, Ma'am, or Miss. Said it made you feel old. Well, we all called you Steph for the longest time. After working with you for a few months, the names Bombshell and Bomber became your nicknames."
"Why's that?" asked Stephanie.
"Another story for another time," replied Zero. After squeezing her hand and brushing the hair off her forehead, he continued. "Anyway, I didn't like calling you Bombshell or Bomber; just didn't feel right. Then one day, you and I were on duty together. We were making a run for lunch and started talking about favorite movies and which one of the guys matched which character."
"For some reason, one movie in particular came to my mind for you. I'd only seen it twice with my nieces. The movie isn't what did it for me; it was just the name of the characters. I guess I had been comparing certain characters to you, trying to find out what one you were more like. When I remembered this particular movie, I knew that I'd found your match."
"You have the kindest heart of anyone I know. You're compassion, acceptance, and love of everyone is what makes you special. Kind of like the character."
Stephanie opened her eyes and looked up to Zero's face. "What movie?"
"Beauty and the Beast. I named you Belle after the princess." Zero looked down at Stephanie, waiting to hear her laugh for his reason, but instead he saw her smiling at him and again, he was reminded of why he had found himself having feelings for her.
"That's so sweet… " Stephanie looked frustrated again and was having a difficult time.
"What's the matter?"
Looking away so he couldn't see her tears, she shrugged. Zero placed a finger under chin and brought her face back towards him. "Don't hide from me, Belle. I'm here to help you. Please, talk to me."
Tears rolling down her face, she whispered, "I feel so lost. I don't even know your name and yet here you are, in my hospital bed with me telling me how you came up with my nickname."
Zero wiped her tears away again and smiled. "Jacob. My name is Jacob, but everyone calls me Zero."
"Zero? Why?" she asked as she tried to fight off a yawn.
Pulling her closer to him, Zero wrapped his left arm around her and held her tight. "I'll explain that one later. Right now, you need some rest. I told you one story, so now it's time to close those beautiful eyes and get some sleep."
Kissing her forehead, he whispered, "I'll be right here while you sleep. You're safe and no one will hurt you. I'll still be here when you wake up."
He listed to her breathing even out and knew she was asleep a few minutes later. Zero allowed his eyes to close along with her. He knew as long as she was in his arms, no one would harm her.
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