" So, do you wanna call the kids and give them the good news ? " Andy asked.
" Absolutely " replied Sharon.
" Your phone M'lady " said Andy, handing her cell to her.
Sharon dialed the number and after 2 rings Emily picked up.
" Emily " said Sharon.
" Mom hey, how are you feeling ? " Emily asked.
" Tired, but better. Listen I just called to let you and your brothers know that the therapist is going to reccomend to Doctor Mason that I be released tommorrow " Sharon explained.
" Wow, mom that's great news. I'll be sure to let the boys know " said Emily, gleefully.
" What's great news ? " asked Rusty and Ricky in unison.
" Oh mom, they just walked through the door. Do you wanna tell them ? " asked Emily. She put the phone on speaker so that the boys could hear.
" Hi boys. so I was just telling Emily that my physical therapist is making a reccomendation to Doctor Mason that I be released tommorrow " said Sharon.
" Mom that's amazing " said Rusty. " Yeah, that's really great " said Ricky.
" Yes it is. I can't wait to be back at home in my own bed. You know how I've always hated hospitals " said Sharon.
Emily chuckled and said " Yes mom, we're all aware. "
Sharon started to yawn.
" Well mom, I'm sure that you're pretty tired, so we will see you tommorrow " said Emily.
" Alright, I love you guys " Sharon said.
" Love you too mom " they all replied in unison.
Sharon ended the call and sat the phone down on the bedside table.
Doctor Mason came into the room.
" Andy, Sharon " she greeted them.
" Doctor Mason " Andy and Sharon greeted her back.
" So I've spoken to Jolie about your theraphy session today and she seemed rather optimistic about your recovery. She recommended that you be released tommorrow " said Doctor Mason.
" And do you concur ? " Sharon inquired.
" I'd like to check a few things before I can sign off on it, but if everything checks out, you'll be free to go home " replied Doctor Mason.
Doctor Mason started off by checking all of Sharons' vitals. " Well your vitals are all looking good. Your blood pressure is a little on the high side but I don't think that'll keep you from going home. You just need to make sure that you relax and keep an eye on it " Doctor Mason explained.
" I'll make sure she does " said Andy, smiling at Sharon.
" Alright, now let me just check the wound "said the doctor.
Sharon undid the buttons on her pajama top.
Doctor Mason looked over the wound. " Ok Sharon, I'm going to apply a little pressure so just bear with me and take a deep breath " she said. She pushed down as gently as possible and felt around.
Sharon winced and took a deep breath.
" Well on the surface everything appears to be healing nicely but I would like to run an MRI to make sure that everything is healing as it should on the inside " explained Doctor Mason. " Ill have someone take you down for the MRI as soon as possibe " she finished.
" Thank you Doctor " replied Sharon.
" No problem Sharon, I'll see you in a bit " the doctor said, before exiting into the hallway.
Sharon sighed.
" Something wrong ? " asked Andy.
" No, actually quite the opposite. I'm relieved that I'm finally gonna get to go home tommorrow. It'll be really nice to finally sleep in my own bed again " Sharon explained.
" Oh, tired of sharing with me already ? " asked Andy, teasing her.
" No, not at all, but a bigger bed means more room for the both of us, and more room means a much more comfortable sleeping experience " replied Sharon, smiling.
" True " said Andy, smiling. He brought his lips to hers and kissed her.
They talked for awhile and then Jolie entered the room pushing a wheelchair.
" Andy " she greeted him. " Sharon, are you ready to go ? " Jolie inquired.
" Oh, yes please, the sooner I can go home the better " Sharon replied.
" That's the spirit " Jolie laughed. " Don't tell me you've gotten tired of us already Sharon " Jolie jested.
She locked the chair in place and Andy helped Sharon down into it.
" Tired of being in the hospital, absolutely; Tired of the hospital staff, no. You've all been wonderful " Sharon replied, smiling.
" Whew, well that's a load off. I'd hate to think that I ran you off " said Jolie, grinning.
Sharon smiled and lightly chuckled.
" Alright, we're all set; Andy I'll have her back here as soon as possible " said Jolie.
" I'll be patiently waiting " said Andy. He grabbed Sharons' hand and kissed it. He held onto it briefly and let go as she was wheeled out of the room.
" That's a good man you've got there Sharon, if you don't mind me saying " Jolie spoke up.
" Oh, no of course not, thank you " replied Sharon.
" Listen, I don't really know you all that well Sharon, but may I speak freely " asked Jolie.
" Sure, shoot " replied Sharon.
Jolie made a face.
" Poor choice of words " said Sharon.
" Yes it was " Jolie, agreed chuckling. " Anyways what I wanted to say was that a man like Andy only comes around once in a blue moon. I would hold on to him if I were you " she finished.
" Well, I appreciate you saying so, and I intend to hold onto him for as long as possible " Sharon replied.
"Good " said Jolie, smiling. " Alright and here we are " she said as the entered the MRI room.
" Dr Mason " Jolie greeted her.
" Jolie, Sharon " Dr. Mason greeted them back.
" Hello Dr. Mason " Sharon greeted.
" So I'm assuming your ready to get this over with " said the Doctor, smiling.
" Yes please " Sharon replied.
" Jolie if You'll please help Sharon get comfortable we'll get started " said Dr. Mason.
Jolie locked the chair in place and assisted Sharon with getting into the MRI machine.
Once Sharon was in place, Dr. Mason spoke again. " Alright Sharon, you're not claustrophobic are you ? " she asked.
" No, not really " Sharon replied.
" Ok, good. Now just lay back and relax. Try and lay as still as possible and the machine will do it's thing; I promise it won't hurt a bit " she said, smiling.
"Okay " said Sharon.
" Alright here we go " said Dr. Mason starting up the MRI Machine.
Sharon took a deep breath as the machine started up and started to take her through. Now, it wasn't that she was scared, because after all an MRI was basically just an x-ray. The fact of the matter was she was concerned that the MRI would uncover some problem or problems that would prolong her stay in the hospital and all she wanted to do was to go home and get back into her normal routine. She tried to tune out everything else plaguing her mind and just listened to the hum of the machine. After about 25 minutes, the Doctor announced that the test was complete.
" Okay Sharon, you can move now " said Doctor Mason.
Sharon let out a sigh as the machine slid her back through and commenced to shut down.
" Alrigh Sharon, I'm gonna have Jolie take you back to your room and I should have the results of the MRI in just a little while. I'll share my findings as soon as I have them " Dr. Mason explained.
" Thank you Doctor " replied Sharon.
Jolie helped Sharon back into the chair, and wheeled her back to her room, where Andy was waiting for her.
" Well, how's the patient ? " asked Andy, smiling.
" Anxious " replied Sharon.
Jolie locked the chair in place and proceeded to help Sharon back into the bed.
" If you don't mind, Jolie, I'd like to sit for a while " said Sharon.
" Sure, no problem. Just let me know if you need anything else " said Jolie.
Sharon smiled and replied " Thank you I will. "
Sharon turned her attention back to Andy. She sighed and then smiled.
Andy bent down in front of her, took Sharons' hand in his, and rubbed circles on the back of her hand.
" So how are you doing, really ? " asked Andy.
" Honestly, the waiting is killing me " Sharon replied.
" Sharon sweetheart, it's only been like 5 minutes. Just breathe okay, I'm sure everything is going to be ok " Andy said, trying to calm her.
" I just keep thinking about the many things the MRI could show that are wrong " said Sharon.
" Sharon, sometimes you just need to stay out of your own head " Andy replied and kissed her on the forehead.
" I know I'm probably worrying for nothing, but I really just want to go home and sleep in my own bed and eat my own food, and what I wouldn't give for a good glass of Cabernet right now " said Sharon. Then she immediately felt bad for mentioning the wine in front of Andy. " Andy, I'm so sorry, I didn't think about... " she started before he cut her off.
" Sharon, it's ok, you don't have to walk on eggshells about the subject. I'm the one who let the alcohol consume me, not you. and after everything that's happened this week and the fact that you survived a near fatal gunshot wound, I'd say you've more than earned a glass of wine " said Andy, putting her mind at ease.
" Have I told you how wonderful you are Lieutenant ? " asked Sharon, smiling.
" Why no, not in the past couple of hours Captain " Andy replied, grinning widely.
" Is that so. Well, we will just have to rectify that won't we " said Sharon as she brought her lips to his.
Just then, Dr. mason walked in. " I'm sorry if I interrupted anything, but I have the results of your MRI " she said.
" Oh, Umm " Sharon cleared her throat. " That's perfectly alright. Go ahead Doctor " said Sharon.
" Well the test showed that everything is healing as it should and there are no signs of possible hemmorrhaging, so that's very good news " said Dr. Mason. " The only thing that I have concerns about is the high blood pressure; And also the test showed the possibility of some resulting scar tissue which could ultimately cause some problems later down the line " Dr. Mason explained. "With all that being said, I'm going to give the ok for you to go home today, but I want you to make sure that you take it easy and call me if there are any questions or concerns. I also wanna see you next week for a follow up " she finished.
" That's great news " said Sharon.
" I'll bring you the necessary paperwork and we'll have you on your way " said the Doctor.
" Thank you so much Doctor Mason " said Sharon.
" No problem, I'll be right back " replied Dr. Mason.
When the Doctor left the room Sharon let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
" See, I told you that you were just being a worry wart " said Andy, rubbing her forearm.
" Yes you did " said Sharon, smiling at him.
Doctor Mason was back rather quickly with the release forms in hand. " Now Andy if you'll just sign these release forms allowing Sharon to be released into your care, we'll have you both on your way " said Dr. Mason.
Andy signed the proper forms.
" Alright, now then, Sharon if you'll just sign here and here " said the Doctor pointing to the correct lines for her signature.
Sharon signed the Documents,
Dr. Mason looked over the documents. " Alright, everything seems to be in order. I'll walk you out " she said.
Sharon started to get up when Dr. Mason stopped her.
Then Andy started to wheel Sharon out, accompanied by Doctor Mason.
" Is a wheel chair absolutely necessary ? " asked Sharon.
" Sorry Sharon, hospital policy, I'm afraid " said Dr. Mason.
" I'm perfectly capable of walking out on my own two legs " said Sharon.
" Oh, I'm sure you are, but it's pretty much a rule for everybody and as you well know, rules must be enforced " replied the Dr. Mason, smiling.
" Yeah, I thought that you were a big fan of the rules, Captain " said Andy grinning and picking at her.
Sharon threw him an irritated look.
At first he couldn't tell if he had stepped over the line just a little bit, but then Sharon spoke up.
" I am, when I'm the one whose enforcing them Lieutenant " she replied, grinning back at him.
" I won't argue with you there " he said, jesting.
" Watch yourself Lieutenant " said Sharon, arching an eyebrow at Andy.
" Yes Ma'am " said Andy, smiling.
Then they exited the hospital.
" Sharon, I'm going to pull the car around " he said and kissed her on the forehead.
He came back shortly with the car and helped Sharon into the passengers seat.
Doctor Mason briefly pulled him aside. " I wonder if I can speak to you a moment before you go " she said.
" Sure, what's on your mind Doctor " said Andy.
" Well, I didn't want to say anything in front of Sharon, but in my experience in most shooting cases; not all, but most, the victims tend to experience some form of PTSD at some point " said the Doctor. " Now, I'm not telling you this to alarm you. I just want you to be aware of the possibility. I want you to keep a close eye on Sharon and let me know if you notice any changes in her mood or behavior. She may seem fine now, but that can change very fast. " I've seen completely stable people become completely mentally and emotionally unstable in the blink of an eye " said Dr. Mason.
" I will do that. And Doctor, thank you for everything " said Andy, shaking her hand.
" You're very welcome " she said.
They said their goodbyes and Andy proceeded to drive Sharon home.