Chapter 53
Shelby had a ball staying over at Lorelai and Rory's house. She even ended up putting on a little concert for them, which Lorelai gloated about to Luke. That is until Luke pointed out Shelby had already done a show for both him and Jess a couple times.
Lorelai turned on the kid. "You said we were special."
"You are," she replied, innocently.
"I meant about only giving us a show."
"I didn' know ta' was wha' you mean'," Shelby said, shaking her head repeatedly and gave her a look as if Lorelai was disappointed in her or something. It was Rory who caught on first and assured Shelby, her mom was just teasing her, and Lorelai backed her daughter up, touching Shelby's hand that was lying on the table, giving it a gentle squeeze.
Eventually, over time, though a little slow and was probably one of the last to know, Jess found out Shelby was now adventuring out on her own, including to Ethan and Alan's house. He seemed indifferent to his "baby sister" going off on her own, but never expressed his opinion on the matter. The self-defense lessons started up again, though. At one point, one lesson ended with Shelby kicking her cousin in a very sensitive area that literally brought him to his knees. Luke had to help Jess over to the chair and grab him an ice pack. Shelby also apologized profusely and promised any favor he wanted to make up for the amount of pain she inflicted.
"No problem," he struggled to reassure her before letting slip, "Didn't want kids, anyway."
It ended up producing a puzzled look in which Shelby questioned, "wha' does kids have to do wi' i'?" Exchanging a panicked stare with Luke, they then tried distracting the kid to something else so they wouldn't have to explain what Jess meant.
Summer finally ended and fall was now gracing the town with its presence, which also meant another season to play basketball. As soon as Luke asked what sport she wanted to play, Shelby blurted out she wanted to continue basketball. Actually, Luke couldn't even finish his sentence. She was that excited. As soon as possible, Luke registered Shelby for a team, getting on the green team, now called the Ninja Turtles.
To their surprise, Shelby's teacher was also volunteering as a coach and ended up also being her coach.
Upon entering the gymnasium, Shelby made a fast dash for her teacher, stopping in front of him. She was smiling, happy to have Mr. Harris as her basketball coach. Luke caught up while he was greeting the kid.
Turning to Luke, Mr. Harris said, "Shelby has written a ton of stories and drawn a lot of pictures about basketball."
Luke smiled down at his daughter. "Yeah, she just got into it at the end of the last school year. Since then, it's been mostly basketball this, basketball that. At least she'll still watch baseball with me."
Shelby smiled up at her dad. She was wearing her uniform from last season, along with her baseball cap.
Mr. Harris chuckled. "Yeah, I've heard about that, too. Shelby, why don't you go warm up with the other kids before we get started?" he suggested.
Shelby turned her head to look over at a few boys shooting basketballs. She turned back to give a nod, but Luke could tell she was a little nervous going over there. Mr. Harris passed her the basketball he was holding before Shelby slowly made her way over. They watched as she walked over, waiting shyly for a turn.
"By the way, there's something I've been meaning to ask."
"What's that?" asked Luke, peeling his eyes away to look over at his daughter's teacher.
"I've noticed quite a few topics Shelby writes about aside from basketball. You, her cousin, Ethan, Alan. And I've also noticed she'll write a lot about someone named Lorelai and Rory, though I'm not sure who they are. I assumed they were friends from another class, then she mentioned they love to drink a lot of coffee."
Luke chuckled and explained, "Those are friends of ours. They stop by the diner almost every day. Shelby loves them."
Mr. Harris asked about the other usual topics the kid writes about, including her mentor. Luke vaguely filled him on everything until more of the kids started to arrive, thten Mr. Harris had to cut the conversation short.
The air turning chilly didn't keep Shelby from spending time outside, practicing with her basketball. Almost every day after school, she was out there, including the weekends she was home. When Shelby wasn't home, she was at her friends' house, at the Crap Shack, or inn, or hanging out with Jess at their spot or at the bookstore. At the moment, they were making their way through the Harry Potter book series, now on the third book.
During the week, Shelby traded between basketball practice and music lessons with Ms. Patty, who started teaching her how to play the piano. Shelby tried some dance lessons, but didn't enjoy it as she wasn't really a dancing type. Every once in a while, Luke still gave her guitar lessons so Shelby had knowledge for two instruments, so far.
But through all of both Luke and Shelby's busy lives, Luke still made sure to find time to bond, even if it was teaching a life skill. Whenever he worked on his truck, Shelby would be right there beside him on an upside down milk crate, learning the trade, herself so when one day she had her own car, she'd know how to fix any problem that would occur without having to spend a lot of money for a mechanic. At one point, Gypsy walked by, overhearing the two and questioned about him not trusting her as a mechanic, which Luke quickly reassured he did.
Aside from the life skills, Luke found time to play catch with his little buddy, and now they played one-on-one with Shelby mostly winning. Though, sometimes, Luke scored a victory now and then. It was all in good fun and the memories they were making were what counted in his book.
Of course, Luke was there at every game, cheering his little buddy on. To Shelby's dismay, Jess missed the first couple of games due to some other important thing he had to do, but managed to make it to the third and fourth game. After the fourth game, it really didn't matter if he was there or not since Shelby ended up benched for the rest of the season due to an accident during the fourth game.
Lorelai and Rory had made it to the game, as well. They came to the first two games, but missed the third. The rest of Shelby's cheering section was there cheering as Shelby shuffled around the court. This time, it only took two games before she was moving her feet and making a grab for the ball. The kids were still young enough they were still grasping the passing concept and trying to make baskets on their own, even if it would have been wise to pass to a teammate. It was something Mr. Harris worked on with them.
On a particular play, most of the team made to grab at the ball, including Shelby. Shelby ended up getting knocked backwards, landing right on her left arm. From Luke's view, he could barely make out her elbow collide with the floor. His little buddy quickly cradled her elbow in her other hand and wasn't getting up.
Lorelai must have noticed it, too as she stated, "Something's wrong," as she maneuvered her head around the kids walking in front of her view which Babette added, "Yeah, she fell pretty hard there," also trying to see around some of the constantly moving children.
Luke was about to yell over for Mr. Harris to call a time-out but he beat him to it.
Kirk blew on his whistle once, motioning a time-out sign with his hands as he called it out. "Time-out, Ninja Turtles!"
With time-out in session, Luke sprang to his feet, along with Jess, and hurried to Shelby's side. Mr. Harris and Kirk had also gone over to check on her, who was still cradling her elbow. Tears were in her eyes, but neither of them could get a word out of her. Not until her dad and cousin were there, on either side of her.
"My el-bo really hur's," she whimpered softly when the guys lowered their ears to her.
"Can you move it, kiddo?" Luke asked.
Shelby shook her head, squeezing her eyes tight as she sat hunched over. He looked down at her arm. Around her elbow, Luke could see some swelling. It was Mr. Harris who told Luke her arm might have been broken. In fact, he was positive it was.
Being extremely careful, both Luke and Jess helped Shelby to her feet and led her off the court, heading for the nearest exit where Mr. Harris rushed over, bringing back an ice pack from the team's first aid kit. As they were making their way over, Lorelai and Rory hurried over to catch them.
"Is everything alright?" Rory was the one to ask.
Luke answered her, "She broke her elbow." He didn't even stop as Luke ushered Shelby out of the gymnasium. A part of him wanted to scoop her up and rush the kid out to his truck, but was afraid any sudden movement could do even more damage.
The tears were constantly pouring by this point as Shelby clutched her arm.
"You're gonna be okay, Scout," Jess was reassuring her, walking alongside, opposite from where Luke was walking. It was amazing the amount of concern the young man had for his little cousin. Then again, he did say he made sure Rory was okay, back during the accident.
Once they reached the truck, Luke carefully lifted Shelby inside, having her scoot over to the middle. The kid could have been one of those ancient porcelain dolls from fifty years ago by how carefully he was handling her.
While Luke started the truck and fastened his seatbelt, Jess was helping Shelby fastened hers, then made sure to keep her calm as Luke pulled out of the parking space and headed toward the nearest hospital. He drove a little over the speed limit, knowing a broken bone could be severe if it damaged an artery or nerve.
"Can you feel your fingers, kiddo?" he asked when Luke remembered.
Shelby was still cradling her arm, squeezing her eyes tight again.
Jess pointed out she was digging her fingernails into the arm that was cradling her injured arm. If she could do that, then Shelby still had feeling in her arm, so thankfully, there wasn't any nerve damage. Luke's heart was still pounding against his chest as his worries skyrocketed. He had broken his own arm before and knowing the complications that came with a broken bone, made his anxiety to reach record height.
It was a twenty-minute drive to the hospital. Luke parked as close to the main doors as possible before sliding out to lift Shelby out as well, still treating her as if she was a fifty-year-old porcelain doll. He ended up having to carry her inside, lifting her on his left side so Shelby could wrap her good arm around him. Luke was careful of her injured arm, though.
There was a line at the check-in desk so they had to wait. Luke tried his best to be patient and wait their turn, but knowing his little buddy was injured and in her own distress, wasn't helping any. While they waited, Jess tried to offer to go get Shelby a candy bar from out of a vending machine he had spotted nearby, but Luke told him not to, in case Shelby had to have surgery done.
It was fifteen minutes before they had their turn. Jess had wandered over after a while to sit in one of the waiting room chairs, checking out some of the magazines, tossing them back on the chair or small table where he found them shortly after skimming through each one.
Shelby settled down after a while, holding her head on her dad's shoulder. Her right arm hung, limply behind him as her left gripped both of Luke's shirts, lightly. Luke brushed a hand along her side in a soothing motion. Maybe it was a good thing there was a wait, because once it was their turn, Luke relaxed enough to explain to the receptionist about what had happened.
The receptionist had Luke fill out his daughter's information and tried to ask Shelby some questions about how she was feeling. Since it was someone new, Shelby wasn't speaking up, so the receptionist resorted to yes or no answers where Shelby could nod or shake her head. Once she had all the information the receptionist needed, she printed a wristband before standing to her feet, asking for Shelby's wrist.
Shelby lifted her right arm and held it out towards the receptionist to attach the wristband around her wrist. Since there didn't seem to be any concerning damage, there was more waiting. Luke made his way over to sit next to where Jess slouched in his own seat. His head was resting on the back of his chair.
Luke shifted Shelby carefully on his lap.
"How many holes you suppose are up there?" Jess suddenly asked as the young man stared up at the ceiling.
"What?" He stared over at his nephew in confusion and looked up to where Jess was staring. On the ceiling above them were a million tiny holes in each ceiling panel around the lights. Even Shelby couldn't help look up in curiosity and puzzlement. Apparently, he was so bored, Jess had begun counting the holes.
It was another hour before Shelby's name was called, who had just beginning to fall asleep, along with her cousin. He, Luke, smacked to alert him while Luke told Shelby gently to wake up, standing to his feet. Shifting her back to his side, they followed the nurse through some double push doors and down a long hall. As they ventured further into the place, the smells and sights suddenly reminded him of his disgust for hospitals. Luke had been so focused on his daughter, the thought hadn't occurred until now. He tried to keep his mind on Shelby, ignoring any patients that might go by.
They were taken to a curtained off area where the nurse took down Shelby's vitals, just as their doctor had done at her regular check-up. Afterwards, the nurse assured them the doctor will be in, in a minute, leaving them alone to wait some more. It was another fifteen minutes before a doctor walked in with Shelby's chart.
"Hi," he greeted them, cheerfully. "Shelby?"
"Yes," Luke replied for her and shook the doctor's hand as he introduced himself and Jess, who just gave a slight nod.
The doctor was a tall man, older than Luke was. He was completely bald, with thin framed glasses and dark blue scrubs underneath a white doctor's coat, and introduced himself as Dr. Lancaster. "So, we got a possible broken arm?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Well, let's see." Dr. Lancaster said. He set his chart on the examination table beside where Shelby was sitting and gently took hold of her injured arm. Even being gentle, it still caused her a good deal of pain, making Shelby squeeze her eyes shut again. He apologized as Dr. Lancaster looked her arm over, though he had to touch each area to see what part of her arm hurt, especially around her elbow, moving up to just above the joint, asking Luke about her medical history and symptoms. Afterwards, it was clear Shelby's arm was broken. To see where the fracture was and to make sure nothing was out of alignment, Dr. Lancaster suggested they take some x-rays. He left for a couple minutes to go get things prepared before leading them to a dark room.
While he was gone, Luke had to explain to Shelby what an x-ray exactly was, explaining they were going to take a picture of her bones to see where the bone fractured. But once they got to the room, Luke and Jess had to wait outside. He assured her they'd be right outside, able to look in through a wide glass window.
Because her bones were still forming, Dr. Lancaster had to take an x-ray of both arms to use as a comparison. Once the x-rays were taken, they had to wait once more before Dr. Lancaster returned with the results, hanging the x-rays up and pointed the fracture out. Shelby falling on her elbow fractured the joint enough where it would require surgery to insert pins to hold in place while the bones healed properly.
Luke's heart basically stopped at the sound of his little buddy needing surgery. Sure, he had broken bones as a kid, they never required surgery. The thought of Shelby having to go under while a bunch of doctors cut her arm open to insert some pins, scared him to death. In fact, he was finding it hard to breathe, and Shelby wasn't doing any better. He knew there was a possibility, but hoped it wasn't that serious.
"It's a simple operation," Dr. Lancaster reassured him. "It will only require an overnight stay and she won't feel a thing."
Luke took a deep breath, letting it out as he rubbed a hand along Shelby's back, who held a terrified look on her face.
"Well, I'm out," Jess stated, heading for the end of the curtain. If it had to take more than one day he didn't want to stick around, considering the amount of time it had already taken. However, the moment Jess took a step towards the exit, Shelby reached out and grabbed his arm, holding him back. When he looked back at her, Shelby stared up at her cousin, shaking her head as if she didn't want Jess to go.
"Come on, Scout. I'm bored, and those smells are getting to me." But those puppy dog eyes of hers continued to peer up into his, quickly making the guy squirm. Finally, Jess breathed out, "Fine. I'll stay," but quickly added, "but you're gonna owe me," pointing a finger in her direction. It got her to smile, at least.
Dr. Lancaster couldn't help, "Aw," at the sight, causing the young the man to turn bright red as he rolled his eyes away. With that settled, he got back to business. "When was the last time she had eaten?"
"It was breakfast this morning," Luke answered. He thought of the exact time when Shelby patted his arm. Lowering his head, she reminded him in a whisper, she had eaten while watching Pokemon that morning, so around nine o'clock.
Dr. Lancaster looked at his watch. "So, about four, five hours ago." He lifted his head. "We need at least eight hours to do the surgery since her stomach has to be empty. In the meantime, we can get things prepared. That will also give you time to prepare our little patient." Dr. Lancaster smiled down at Shelby, who was still holding onto Jess.
They moved Shelby to another room to be prepped for surgery. A nurse gave her another medical bracelet with more information, along with a gown to change into, but was able to keep her shorts on. Luke helped her change while also talking her through the process. He was also trying to remain calm so Shelby could.
"Hey, remember when Harry Potter broke his arm?" Jess reminded Shelby.
"Y-yeah," she said with a whimper. "Bu' tey used magic to fix i'."
He shrugged. "Still wasn't pleasant, especially when the nurse had to regrow his bones after that dimwitted Lockhart tried to fix it himself."
Even Shelby couldn't help a giggle. "Yeah, he was dimwi'ed, and Harry had to drink nasty 'tuff because of i'."
It actually made Jess smirk a little. "Just be glad you'll be put under and not have to deal with a guy like that or have your bones regrown."
The giggling abruptly stopped, and her smile vanished. "Pur under?" Her eyes enlarged.
Luke stepped in at that moment, resting a hand against her shoulder. "It just means they'll give ya some medicine to help you relax so you won't feel a thing. Okay?" he reassured her.
Jess was silent for a moment before he backed him up. "Yeah, everything will be just fine, Scout."
"Did you have to have sur-ger-wee?" Shelby repeatedly switched between her dad and cousin.
Luke stole a look with his nephew. Looking back at his daughter, he had to tell her, no. "None of my broken bones were serious enough to need surgery, kiddo. I'm sorry." Luke moved his hand to brush some hair behind her ear.
For a last hope, she switched over to Jess. He glanced at the floor before lifting it and admitted, "I had my tonsils removed when I was around your age. It's not the same thing, but I still had to take medicine to relax, so I wouldn't feel anything."
Luke looked up at his nephew in surprise. "How come I never heard about this?"
He shrugged. "What's to tell? Liz dropped me off, told the doctors she had to go to work, and left me there until I was ready to go home." Jess brushed it off like it wasn't a big deal to him, but Luke looked away, closing his eyes at nothing in particular. He silently cursed his sister to himself. What Luke heard next suddenly re-grabbed his attention. "You know what? I'm glad I didn't leave though. I'm sticking here with ya, Scout."
Luke looked over at Shelby to see her smile again. He had to confess they couldn't go in with her during the surgery, but reassured Shelby, they'll be there when she wakes up in the recovery room. "How about I rush home and grab one of your stuffed animals, though? They'll be able to go in with ya."
"You'll come back, right, Daddy?" Her voice cracked when Shelby made sure he was returning.
Luke smiled for her. "Of course, kiddo. Jess can stay with ya until I get back since he's eighteen."
Shelby hesitated for a split second before she said, "Okay, Daddy." She held her good arm out, wanting a hug first before he left. The doctor had given her a sling to hold her other arm, to keep it in place.
Leaning in, Luke wrapped his own arms around his little buddy, kissing the side of her head, under where she still had her hat on. Reassuring her one more time he would be right back, Luke stood to his feet and headed for the door. On his way out, he offered to grab a few of Jess' things, but Jess shrugged the offer off.
"But, hey. Grab Harry Potter off the nightstand," he said. "Should either be on top or underneath another book."
Luke nodded. "Will do." He looked back to reassure Shelby one last time. When he looked at his nephew, he couldn't help give him a guilty look. If only Luke had known, he would have been there for his nephew, no doubt about it. Luke couldn't help think how terrified Jess must have been back then, to be in a hospital all alone, having surgery.
He left the room with that heavy on his mind that Luke barely remembered Jess must have been starving until his own stomach rumbled. Quickly going back in the room, Luke asked, "hey, Jess, you want me to..."
After Luke had left, Jess sat beside his cousin to comfort her, himself. He seized his arm away from around Shelby's shoulders, shooting to his feet. It caught both of them off guard.
"I thought you were leaving?!" Jess tried to return to his normal, cool self, but it was difficult considering he was now turning red in the face from embarrassment.
"I was, but I figured you might be hungry."
"Nah, I'm good. I saw a burger joint on the way here." The young man was now looking elsewhere around the room except at his uncle. "I'll probably grab something while Scout's having surgery so I won't have to eat in front of her."
Nodding in agreement at that point, Luke said, "Okay," before turning to leave again. He couldn't help linger for a moment to smirk at his nephew.
"What?" Jess questioned of the smirk, trying to look at him, but found it hard to hold eye contact.
"Nothing," he shook his head and assured he was leaving. Finally leaving this time, Luke headed out to his truck, smirking. But it didn't last long before the smirk vanished and anxiety set in once more at the thought of Shelby going through her first surgery.
