As often as Shane works double shifts, he ought to handle shift changes better, but for some reason, they always rattle his sleep cycle a little more than they ought. Being back on days is perfect for him right now, letting him align with normal people's schedules while he builds a relationship with Carol and Sophia. But that doesn't make being awake at a time his body has spent sleeping for the last six months any better.
Rick's better off, since he went to days earlier, but they're both lucky that it's a Sunday morning. For some reason, even the heathens of King County don't get up to much during church service hours. It's probably because most of those are still sleeping off their Saturday nights.
"How about we slip up to the diner for lunch?" Rick suggests. "One of those big pimento cheese burgers sounds good to me."
Shane side eyes his partner. "It's my own grandma's restaurant, and even I don't understand putting pimento cheese on a burger, Rick."
"It's got onions and bacon, too."
"Not helping your case, man." Shane chuckles, smothering a yawn. He figures about half the reason Rick wants to eat there is that Lori's working the morning shift. While he still doesn't think they'll pull off a marriage miracle, at least they're both trying, with counseling and all. "Sure, why not. But I'm sticking to the bacon barbeque burger."
The diner isn't technically in their patrol area, but then again, nothing really is. They could probably even slip by Grandma Jean's house for lunch, but then the temptation is to spoil the babies, not actually eat. Shane figures it would make a long shift feel even longer, too.
They're halfway through their food when Shane's radio crackles to life. "Walsh! You and Grimes still at the diner?" Sheila sounds alarmed, and that's a reaction Shane would have thought impossible for the unflappable dispatcher.
"Yeah, we're about half done. Where do you need us?"
"Get your ass to the emergency room, Shane. Grandma Jean had a heart attack. Paramedics are just now arriving to transport her, and Sasha will bring Carol and the kids into town. I'll call in Jim to finish you and Rick's shift."
An emotion far closer to terror than fear blazes through Shane, and he can see that Rick is having a similar reaction. Lori is standing near the table, frozen with a pair of to-go containers in her hands. There's a thud of silverware somewhere, and as he gets to his feet, he notices several concerned looks from the early morning diners. Everyone here knows Jean.
The weekend cook, Sherry, comes around the counter, tugging the to-go containers out of Lori's hands. "You ride with them, Lori. We'll be okay here. I'll wait the tables myself."
The ride to the hospital is one where Shane's glad that Rick typically drives, not him, because he's not entirely sure he could safely navigate. He's sure Rick and Lori both try to talk to him, but he doesn't register any of it. His mind keeps running through all the time he's spent with Jean lately, trying to see if he's missed any signs of her health failing. He can't find any, and that makes him unsure if he should curse himself for being non-observant or grateful that she's generally so healthy.
They beat the ambulance there, and rather than potentially get in the way, they all three check in with the charge nurse and hover in the waiting area. Lilly watches them with kind eyes when the ambulance zooms by the ambulatory patient entrance to reach the bays meant for them. Shane isn't surprised when she gets up and disappears out of sight. He wishes he could see into the working area of the emergency room.
Rick's hand squeezes his shoulder. "She'll be okay, Shane. Jean's strong and healthy."
Blinking at his best friend, Shane nods mutely. He knows how old his grandmother is, and it's older than many of the grandparents his friends had growing up. The fact that none of Rick's grandparents are still living despite being younger than Jean isn't a statistic he should be remembering right now.
Before he can really get caught in a cycle of despair, the doors open to admit Sasha, carrying Carl's portable car seat. She looks relieved when she spots the waiting trio, passing Carl and his diaper bag off quickly to his anxious mother.
"Carol's still in the car. She had Henry, too, when I got there. Daryl's on his way, but he had to wait on Oscar to take over the wreck he was working. Got a car off in the river."
Shane remembers the call, up in another patrol area, and he should have known that Daryl would get called in for something that complex. He tosses a distracted thanks to Sasha, jogging past her to the parking lot. Carol's still in the car, leaning into the backseat. He hears a sobbing child, but the sound isn't right for Sophia, so he's not surprised to see that Henry is clinging to Carol.
As much as his nephew normally loves him, the toddler refuses to turn loose of Carol now that she's let him out of the carseat, so he unbuckles Sophia's carrier seat instead. "I've got Sophia and their bags, Carol. You just focus on Henry."
She nods, looking numb and shaky, waiting for him at the front of the car. He reaches out to draw her into a hug, made awkward by baby gear and small children, but she melts into him like she always does.
"She was just fine one minute, Shane, and then she just sort of fell down," Carol mumbles against his shoulder. Henry calms, sniffling heavily between them, but no longer actively crying. "I did CPR, and Henry was such a big boy, getting me the phone…"
"It's Grandma Jean. She'll beat this and be back to bossing the rest of us around before the week's out," Shane assures her, praying he's not making shit up because he can't conceive of the idea of his indomitable grandmother dying. It's another mark for Carol's courage, that she kept her cool to administer first aid while getting help for Jean. "Let's get inside."
Henry persists in his clinging to Carol once they're inside, but Lilly's return just as Shane's getting Sophia out of her seat makes them all freeze like deer caught in headlights.
The nurse smiles reassuringly. "It's good news so far. Jean got help so quickly, and she actually woke up and was lucid in the ambulance on the way here. They're running an ECG right now, along with some other tests, and Dr. Siddiq will probably order an echocardiogram since Jean's never had a history of heart issues or high blood pressure."
Shane bounces Sophia a bit, keeping her curious fingers away from detaching his badge off his uniform. "So it was definitely a heart attack?"
"All the signs indicate it, yes," Lilly tells him with a calm he envies. "But we've got the cardiologist on his way now, and our hospital is rated for the sort of surgery she might need."
"How could there be no signs beforehand?" Carol asks, sounding so plaintive that Shane reaches out to draw her close. He knows her being pressed against his side where his gun is holstered can't be comfortable, but she doesn't protest at all.
"It's not uncommon for women not to have any classic symptoms of a heart attack like men have. She told the paramedic that she had been feeling nauseated all morning, but chalked it up to skipping breakfast before church. Other than that, she doesn't recall any of the major symptoms at all until she felt dizzy in her living room and fainted."
"She's been tired a lot lately," Lori mentions, sounding near tears. "Going to bed earlier than normal. She just kept saying that's what happens when you get older. I think she's been having headaches off and on, too." Carol nods in response to Lori's words.
"We'll know something soon," Lilly assures them before returning to the desk when someone else enters the emergency room.
By the time they get more news, they aren't the only ones waiting, and due to the children, Lilly's escorted them to a more private area to wait. Henry finally releases Carol when Daryl arrives, clinging to his father and refusing to eat the snack Carol fetches for him after saying they'd all missed lunch. Shane relays what little he knows to Aaron and then Paul, glad to hear that Aaron and Eric are going to pick up the youngest of Jean's boys so that Paul isn't driving down alone from Kennesaw.
Others trickle in, word obviously spreading through the grapevine that is King County. The Greene family arrives en masse, with Hershel disappearing into the medical areas, while the others join them. Merle and Jody arrive at the same time that the cardiologist appears with Hershel at his side. Emmett Carson's a skilled specialist who could probably make a lot more money working in Atlanta, but he married a King County native and seems content with small town life instead.
"It's better news than most would expect," Dr. Carson tells them. "What took so long is that Jean showed no indicators for coronary heart disease, and her arteries are as clear as a teenager's."
"So what caused the heart attack?" Shane asks, feeling lost. He thought heart attacks were pretty straight forward. An artery clogged up until eventually lack of blood flow overwhelmed the heart's ability to function.
"I'll need to continue to run tests, but all the signs so far indicate a condition called coronary spasm, which we also call variant angina. Untreated, it can lead to a heart attack like Jean had today. The good news is that she doesn't need surgery for this condition, just medication and some caution in daily life. We'll keep her overnight and finish running tests, but in all likelihood, she'll be released to go home tomorrow."
"Thank God," Shane mutters, and it's a sentiment echoed around the room. "What do we need to do to help her?"
Dr. Carson smiles warmly at them. "Since Jean's in good shape already, she'll primarily need to be careful around extreme cold, which can cause vascular restriction, and like anyone with a heart related condition, she'll need to keep her stress to a minimum. She'll be prescribed some medication, primarily nitroglycerin and a calcium blocker, which should eliminate the worst of the spasms. Now that she knows what to look for, she won't be caught by surprise by writing off her chest discomfort when she's resting as just part of getting older."
Relief floods his system, and he's glad that Sophia dozed off after nursing and is sleeping in her carseat, because it means he can hold Carol close. She's held it together quite well until now, but the good news is so hopeful that he doesn't blame her one bit when she bursts into tears. Dr. Carson excuses himself, leaving Hershel to handle any more questions, and Shane allows himself a minute to just hold Carol before he reaches for his phone to call Paul and relay the good news to the trio still on their way to the hospital.
Jean's going to be just fine, and trust her heart attack to be something rare and unique, not the run of the mill cholesterol clogged artery story. He can live with that, so long as it means his grandmother is with them for a long, long time.
Once Jean is settled in a room, they're allowed to visit, two at a time, and Shane isn't surprised that everyone wants Carol to go first, considering the day's events. The kids are all too small to be allowed, and for once, Shane's glad of the rule. His grandmother looks so damned fragile and tiny in the hospital bed, hooked up to monitors and an IV. She's never been a large woman, so petite that he was taller than her by the time he was eleven, but now? It's like someone put a doll into that bed.
Carol squeezes his hand as Jean's eyes flutter open.
The elderly woman attempts a smile, but it's nothing on her normal expression. "I'm sorry, sweetie, that I gave you such a scare," she says, gaze settling on Carol.
Shane propels his girlfriend forward when she seems like she can't make her feet move on her own accord. Once they reach the bed, Jean beckons Carol close, pressing a kiss on the younger woman's cheek. "Are the children okay?"
"Henry was amazing, Jean," Carol tells her softly. "He ran off and got the phone, just like I asked. And the babies are all fine, although they won't let us smuggle them in here to see you."
Jean laughs, a sort of breathy, scratchy sound. It makes Carol reach for a cup of water and its straw on the overbed tray, assisting Jean to take a drink. The ease in which she does it reminds Shane that Carol cared for her mother during her final days, and it adds another layer of respect and sorrow to his regard for the woman in how she handled things today. It has to be a special kind of hell for her to see Jean so stricken.
"Well, since they don't intend on letting the sawbones at me, at least I won't have to miss them for long," Jean tells them once her throat is eased by the moisture. "You two will look after them for me, I know."
She's exhausted, and Shane knows the others will need a glimpse of Jean to settle it in their mind that she's okay, so he leans in to kiss his grandmother's cheek himself, lingering as one of her hands presses to the nape of his neck. He follows the request, leaning his forehead against her shoulder as gently as possible for the hug she needs to give him. "I love you," he whispers. "More than most of all."
It's an old game of theirs, trying to top the other on who loves the other more, so he's not surprised when Jean quietly replies, "Infinity, baby boy. I love you to infinity." Before he can move away, she continues. "Look in my bedside drawer when you get home."
She doesn't elaborate, just lets him go, smiling wanly at them both. "You go find my sweetpea and give her kisses for me."
As reluctant as he is to leave Jean, Shane leads Carol away, sending Daryl and Merle in next. He's glad to see that Aaron, Eric, and Paul have arrived, because making sure his brothers and brother-in-law are up to date is a good distraction. It doesn't take long to cycle through the immediate family visitors, and then sorting out the various transports commences.
The Greenes had all left once Jean was in a room and they'd been assured she was stable and doing well, and Shane figures out why when he parks Carol's little Cobalt in Jean's driveway. The house is lit up, with Hershel, Beth, and Shawn's cars all parked where they can find space. Inside, he finds that Annette, Amy, and Beth have cleared away the uneaten lunch Carol mentioned, replacing it with a big meal like they would normally have for Sunday supper.
Shane feels his chest constrict at the kindness, juxtaposed with a childish part of him chanting it's not the same without Jean lording it over her cozy kitchen. He suppresses that part of him, thanking the Greene ladies and making sure Carol is settled to nurse Sophia before retreating to Jean's room. Whatever's in her bedside table is important enough that she mentioned it directly, so he's got to see what it is.
When he opens the drawer, he feels his breath catch, and he thinks back to the hospital, where contrary to ninety percent of her waking hours, his grandmother's left hand was bare. He hadn't thought anything of it then, because jewelry is often removed and secured in a hospital setting. But there hadn't been a need to remove Jean's wedding band and engagement ring, because they're in a jeweler's box in the drawer, along with his grandfather's wedding band.
The receipt in the drawer shows she'd taken all three rings to the local jewelry store for cleaning and resizing this past week, picking them up on Saturday. The engagement ring doesn't have a single prominent diamond. Instead, it has a row of baguette cut diamonds stacked along the platinum band.
Shane knows the story behind the ring, which technically is more of an anniversary ring than an engagement one. His grandfather bought it for their third anniversary, scrimping and saving for years to purchase the pretty little ring in the style that predated the later emphasis on diamond solitaires. He's always thought the style suited Jean far more than a chunk of diamond would have.
The fact that it's in the drawer, along with the wedding bands, tells him everything that Jean didn't have the energy to do back at the hospital. He's still in his uniform, so he tucks the jewelry box in a pocket. Making excuses about changing out of the uniform, he slips away to his apartment.
All this time, he's been cautioning himself that it's much too soon to ask Carol to marry him, and that Jean would sooner wallop him than let him rush one of her girls into anything, and now this. Holding his grandmother's ring is the blessing he hasn't yet dared ask her for, so he tucks the box into the gun safe next to his service weapon, knowing it's the one place Carol will never discover it.
As soon as Jean's home safe and sound, Shane will retrieve that ring, and if the luck that blessed him that rainy night he brought Carol and Sophia here to Jean instead of sending them to the shelter at Albany holds, the next hand his grandmother's ring will grace will be Carol's.
A/N: I got up at 6am this morning to get this written, so I hope it's coherent enough. :)
For any technical information about Jean's health condition, the Cleveland Clinic has a nice article about Coronary Spasm you can google.