Epicmaddie: *Dodges flying monkeys*
woodland59: Who said coma? I didn't say anything about a coma.
Elphieispopular: I've done meaner cliffies. I didn't make any promises, did I?
LegallyTeapot: Aww! Thank you. So glad you're still enjoying this story.
FaerieTales4ever: It's okay. So glad you reviewed!
Doglover645: Okay, I love how you're the only reviewer that didn't freak out because you know me so well. LOL!
"SHE WON'T WAKE UP!? WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE WON'T WAKE UP?!" Fiyero shouted, jumping out of his seat.
"Fiyero, calm down," Amalie whispered, rising to her feet along with her husband.
"We're trying everything we can, but she doesn't seem to be responding to anything," Dr. Howe explained gently.
"What if she doesn't wake up?" Nessa asked softly.
Dr. Howe frowned and took off his glasses. "Usually, if someone doesn't wake up, they are pronounced… dead."
"She's not dead," Fiyero whispered.
"Fiyero…" Raal whispered.
"No, she has to wake up! She has to!"
"Maybe the anesthesia hasn't fully worn off yet," Nessa suggested hopefully.
"Even if that were the case, Miss Elphaba would be slowly beginning to respond, if not fully waking up. Usually, the amount of time it takes to become responsive varies from person to person. Judging by the amount of anesthesia we gave her, Miss Elphaba should have woken up a while ago," Dr. Howe said.
"There's nothing we can do?" Galinda whispered.
"At the moment, no. We will keep watching her and report any changes." With a heavy sigh, Dr. Howe marched back through the double doors and vanished from sight.
"Don't worry, Fiyero. Elphie's a fighter. She'll be fine," Galinda whispered.
"I… I know," the prince whispered, taking a deep breath and trying to calm himself down.
Everyone waited in silence. Fiyero remained confined to his seat, suddenly losing the energy to pace. Nessa sat rigid in her chair, nervously twiddling her thumbs in her lap. Galinda had put aside her coloring project and sat in silence, something she was not accustomed to doing. Amalie and Raal's eyes never left the young adults. They all sat in silence for the next hour.
They were all were pulled from their thoughts were Dr. Howe came through the doors again.
Fiyero bit his tongue, waiting for the doctor to give the news about Elphaba. Was she alright? Was she alive? Could they see her?
"Miss Elphaba… is fine," Dr. Howe said, smiling softly. "She's beginning to wake up."
A look of pure relief crossed everyone's faces. Fiyero felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off his chest and he could breathe again.
"She just took longer than expected to wake up from the anesthesia. But she's fine," Dr. Howe said.
"Can we see her?" Nessa asked, hope filling her eyes.
"Of course. She's in Recovery Room Six."
Fiyero jumped up and ran through the double doors. Galinda and Nessa quickly followed him. The prince came to a halt in front of the door and quickly composed himself. Sighing, he reached for the knob, but stopped.
"Fiyero, go in," Nessa gently urged.
"You should go in first. You're her sister," the prince said, stepping aside.
Nessa looked from the door to Fiyero and smiled softly. "Thanks, but you're her boyfriend. She'll want to see you first."
"You're her sister."
"We've had a… rocky relationship in the past and I don't think I worked my way up to being the first person she sees when waking up from a surgery yet."
Fiyero deflated a little. "Nevertheless, you're still related to her."
"You're her boyfriend."
"You're her sister."
"I'm her best friend and roommate, so I'll go first," Galinda said, walking up to the door and slowly turning the knob. Slowly pushing the door open, she peaked her head inside and motioned for Nessa and Fiyero to follow her.
Elphaba was peacefully asleep on the bed, a machine beeping steadily behind her and an IV sticking out of the back of her hand. Fiyero slowly approached his girlfriend and took her hand. He smiled when he felt Elphaba's fingers slowly wiggle in his hand. A soft moan escaped from Elphaba's lips and her eyes slowly fluttered open and gazed up at Fiyero.
"Hi," Fiyero whispered softly, stroking the back of her IV-less hand.
"Hi," the green girl whispered back, her lips curling into a smile.
"How are you feeling, Elphie?" the blonde asked, slowly approaching the green girl.
"Tired," Elphaba whispered, her eyes half-closed.
The prince chuckled lightly and made to move. "We'll let you get some sleep, then."
"No… stay… please," Elphaba whispered, lightly tugging on her boyfriend's hand.
"Alright," Fiyero smiled, pulling up a chair and sitting down.
Elphaba smiled as her breathing evened out. "Yero," she whispered softly before she fell asleep.
"I'm really proud of you, Fae," the prince whispered, tenderly kissing the green girl's forehead.
"Hi, Elphie," Galinda smiled, slipping into the room with one of the nurses close behind her and closing the door.
Elphaba looked up from her book and smiled. "Hi, Glin."
"Are you ready?"
Elphaba took a deep breath and sighed. She had been recovering for a week and it was finally time to start walking. Her legs were wrapped in firm, get soft cotton full leg casts to help aid in the healing process. She looked down at her lap and bookmarked her page, not giving the blonde an answer.
Galinda looked at her friend and slowly relaxed, sensing her fear. "It's okay, Elphie. I know you're scared, but we have to try."
"We?" Elphaba asked, looking up and raising a skeptical eyebrow.
Galinda smiled softly and gently took the green girl's hand. "Yes, we. You, me, Fiyero and Nessa. We're going through this with you, Elphie, and we'll stay right by your side."
A knock and Nessa peaked her head into the room. "Hi, Fabala. Are you ready? Fiyero is waiting in the rehabilitation room."
Elphaba took a deep breath and nodded confidently. "Yes. I'm ready."
The brunette smiled as she stepped into the room and the three women helped Elphaba into her chair.
"Are you ready, Miss Elphaba?" the nurse asked, stepping behind Elphaba's chair.
Elphaba nodded. "Yes."
"Let's go," Galinda smiled, gently patting Elphaba on the shoulder and walking beside her.
The four women made their way to the rehabilitation room, where Fiyero was waiting with Dr. Howe.
"Hello, Miss Elphaba. Are you ready to work today?" Dr. Howe asked, smiling.
"I guess so," the green girl whispered.
The doctor laughed. "I know it may seem intimidating, but once you get used to it, everything will be fine. Plus, you have the best friends in all of Oz here with you."
Galinda tossed her hair over her shoulder and Elphaba couldn't help but giggle slightly. "I'm ready," she said, looking up Dr. Howe and smiling.
"Very good."
The nurse pushed Elphaba up to the parallel bars and helped, along with Nessa, Elphaba to her feet. The green girl winced, but quickly tried to play it off as her hands gripped onto the bars for dear life.
"Pain is okay. It's how you face it that matters," Dr. Howe instructed, standing a few feet to the side. "Now, Miss Elphaba, I want you to try and walk over to Master Fiyero." He gestured to the prince, who waved happily to his girlfriend from the other side of the bars. "Can you try that?"
Elphaba bit her bottom lip and nodded. Exhaling, she slowly tried to slide her left foot in front of her. Pain seized her body and she whimpered silently.
"It's okay, Elphie," Galinda said, standing next to Elphaba on the other side of the bars. "Just walk over to Fiyero."
"I… can't…" Elphaba whispered as tears streamed down her face.
"Yes you can, Fabala," Nessa said, standing on Elphaba's other side.
"We believe in you, Fae," Fiyero smiled, wanting to add to the positive encouragement.
"Keep trying," Dr. Howe instructed, nodding at the green girl.
Elphaba took a deep breath and tried to slid her foot in front of her. Shaking, her foot slowly started to move forward. Galinda, Nessa and Fiyero beamed. Elphaba was actually starting to walk. However, their happy moment was short lived when the green girl slipped and face-planted onto the floor.
"Fae!" Fiyero asked, rushing to Elphaba as Nessa and Galinda knelt down next to her. "Are you alright?" The prince gently pulled Elphaba into his arms and kissed her forehead. Elphaba winced at the pain, but didn't protest the kiss.
"I'm alright," Elphaba sighed, trying to push herself up. "I… I want to try again."
"Are you sure, Fabala?" Nessa asked, helping her sister to her feet.
"I am." Elphaba grabbed a hold of the bars and took a deep breath. As she exhaled, she slowly pushed her right foot in front of her left.
"You can do it, Fae," the prince whispered, sending his girlfriend all of his positive energy.
Elphaba's face contorted in pain as she tried to move her legs. "It's… not… working…"
"The replacement muscles are still fusing with your real muscles, so pain is to be expected," Dr. Howe said. "But it's not permanent. Keep trying."
Tears streamed down the green girl's cheek as she shook her head. "It's… not… working…" she repeated in desperation.
Galinda and Nessa noticed Elphaba starting to hyperventilate and tried their best to calm her down.
"It will work, Elphie. Just keep trying. You can do it," Galinda said, gently encouraging Elphaba forward.
"Galinda's right, Fabala. You can do it," Nessa smiled.
Elphaba tried to slid her right foot forward, but slipped again and fell. This happened a few more time before Dr. Howe told her to stop.
"We don't want you to tire yourself out," Dr. Howe said as Elphaba was helped back into her chair. "Don't lose hope, Miss Elphaba. It's only your first day trying. Before you know it, you'll be walking so fast, we'll have trouble keeping up with you."
Elphaba green girl blushed and chuckled softly. "Thank you."
The nurse pushed Elphaba back to her room, closely followed by the three young adults. Once Elphaba was back in bed and making sure she didn't need or want anything else, the nurse left, leaving Elphaba alone in the room with her friends and sister.
"You did really well today, Fae," Fiyero smiled, sitting down on the bed next to her. "I'm proud of you."
Elphaba scoffed. "I couldn't even take one step without falling."
"It's still a major improvement," Galinda quipped. "And you heard what Dr. Howe said. It's not going to be a miracle, but you'll get there."
"And we'll be right by your side the entire time," Nessa added, smiling at her sister.
"Thank you. Thank all of you," Elphaba smiled, looking at her friends. A yawn caught her by surprise and she quickly covered her mouth. "Sorry."
"Don't be. We expected that you would be exhausted," Fiyero said, helping Elphaba lay down.
"Yero?"
"Yes?"
"What if… what if I can't do it? What if none of this works? What if…"
"Hey." Fiyero cut off his girlfriend's rant with a kiss. "I'll make you a promise. I promise that you, Elphaba Melena Thropp soon-to-be-Tigulaar, will walk onto the stage to receive your diploma, down the aisle at our wedding and everywhere else in between and after."
Elphaba looked up at her boyfriend and smiled softly. "Yero…"
"And I never break my promises," Fiyero smiled, kissing her again. "But I need you to promise me something."
"What is it?"
"I need you to promise me that you won't stop trying. It's not going to be easy, but we're right here for you. Plus, I won't be able to keep my promise if you don't try, and I don't want to have to rip up my tight pants."
The girls laughed. "I promise, Yero," Elphaba said, looking into her boyfriend's eyes.
"That's all I wanted," the prince whispered, locking his girlfriend in a gentle, yet passionate, kiss.