Chapter 2: Super Brother is Not Invincible
The only light that illuminated the dark room was the moonbeams that penetrated the glass of the window. She stood by the bed watching him sleep for the past half hour not making a sound. She thought it amazing how everyone always seemed to look years younger when they slept. Nina didn't want to wake him but she knew she had to. 'He looked so peaceful and comfortable.' She thought letting out a sighed. He stirred lightly and woke from his sleep. He squinted to make out the dark figure standing by his bed.
"Nina! You scared me! What are you doing here at the hospital?" Andy said recognizing her form with the help of the moonlight from the window.
"I didn't mean to wake you." Nina began. She stepped closer to Andy and it was apparent she was troubled with the serious in her tone.
"Is something wrong?"
"Ephram's been admitted into the hospital tonight."
"What?! What happened? Is he alright?" Andy grew concerned.
"I don't know. We were having dinner at your place. Then he went to get a Tylenol and he just collapsed like the rug was pulled right out from under him. Called an ambulance. By the time we got to the hospital, he was running a high fever. The doctor is still trying to get his fever to go down."
"Where is he? I have to see him." Andy kicked his blanket back to get out of bed.
"Andy, you can't just get up and leave. You're supposed to be in bed." Nina tried to stop him.
"Please understand. I HAVE to see if he's ok." Nina saw the desperate plea in his eyes and she knew she had to help him.
"Fine. At least let me talk to the nurse and get you a wheelchair." Her eyes questioned. He nodded and settled back into bed.
Nina always had a way with words. It was her specialty. She can talk a person into anything and she can talk the nurses into this little favor. Before long, she was back with a wheelchair and ready to take Andy to his son.
*** In Exam Room 1 ***
Ephram watched feverishly as his nurse injected medication into his intravenous line. His nurse was a rosy-cheeked heavy-set woman in her 50's. She smiled a lot. Her curly medium length silver hair was pinned neatly under her nurse's cap. She wore a white nurse's pant uniform with white Keds.
"Please." Ephram whispered weakly to the nurse. He breathed and swallowed the lump in his throat.
"There, there. You'll be ok sweetie. Relax." She assured. Ephram felt his head resting against something wet. Then he realized his own sweat had soaked his pillow. "We just got to get that fever down."
He closed his eyes for what felt like a minute and when he opened them, he saw his father, Nina, the nurse, and the doctor materialized before him. His father was in a wheelchair wearing blue cotton pajamas. The voices and sounds were muffled. He wasn't sure if they were talking to him or about him.
"What's his condition?" Andy asked the doctor.
"He's got all the symptoms of pneumonia. I took X-rays and ran some blood tests to be on the safe side. We should know something by tomorrow. He's got a fever of 103.2 and we're trying to get the temperature down." The doctor explained. Andy watched the nurse change Ephram's pillow for the third time. Ephram had been sweating profusely.
"I know you're worried but until we get the test results, all we can do is make him as comfortable as possible. You should go back to bed. You need your rest too Andy." The doctor continued. Apparently, they knew each other.
"Just let me stay a few minutes longer." Andy begged.
"Ten minutes." The doctor said signaling the nurse. Having doctoral connections had its advantages. Rules could be bent slightly.
"Thanks, Bill. I appreciate it."
"See you in the morning." Bill said giving Andy a pat on the back as he exited the room.
Ephram groaned softly. He wanted to tell his father how sorry he was for getting sick. And how he could have handled everything on his own. Oblivious to Andy, it was something Ephram wanted to prove - not only to his father, but to himself as well. After a while, he couldn't think about it anymore. There was an uneasy feeling developing in the pit of his stomach.
His stomach gave a brutal jolt. With all his might, Ephram quickly lifted his upper body to the side of the bed and violently hurled all the contents of his stomach. The slimy reddish brown soupy chunks of half-digested lasagna mixed with bile splattered onto the clean white tiled floor. As the nurse dashed over, Ephram's hacking cough shook his frail body as he choked on vomit. He caused alarm in everyone. The nurse tried to comfort him and rubbed his back in a soothing manner. With almost no energy left after throwing up his dinner, he lay down on his back with the help of the nurse.
His eyelids got heavier. He couldn't tell if it was from drowsiness or if he was passing out again. Maybe it was the antibiotics working. But he saw the concerned look on his father's tired face.
"Sleepy." Ephram managed to say trying not to worry his father.
"OK." Andy acknowledged.
After wheeling Andy back to his room, Andy persuaded Nina to go home. He tried to get some sleep but it wasn't easy. His sleep came in short naps. How was he able to sleep soundly again knowing his son was so helplessly sick? He kept thinking about Ephram - wondering if he was going to be alright. The medical profession exposed him to every kind of illness known possible to mankind but he'd never seen his son this sick before. The last time he saw Ephram, he was still walking and talking. And the next minute, he was so weak. It was almost scary. There was something terribly wrong but he couldn't put his finger on it. It was going to be a long night.
*** In the Lounge ***
Dr. Bill Sommers was a tall slender man about the same age as Andy with a thick mustache and wore silver rimmed glasses. He had a stoic facial expression as he walked down the hall with a bunch of folders in tow. His white lab coat flew with him when he took big strides. He stopped to talk to a nurse along the way. Nina had picked up Delia from the slumber party and brought her to the hospital lounge where Andy was nervously awaited for news from Bill on Ephram's blood tests.
"When can I see Ephram?" Delia asked impatiently.
"A little later, sweetheart. He's still sleeping right now." Andy answered. Andy had been checking up on Ephram, whose fever had gone down slightly but was still warm to the touch. It was a bit too warm for Andy's liking.
Dr. Sommers approached Andy, Nina, and Delia. They exchanged friendly pleasantries and chatted lightly on how Andy was doing.
"How's Ephram?" Andy questioned anxiously.
"Well, he's definitely got pneumonia. But don't worry, it's nothing he won't recover from." Dr. Sommers stated adjusting his glasses as his stern expression returned.
"Is there something else I need to know?" Andy sensed the doctor was not quite done with his prognosis yet.
"That's what I need to talk to you about." Dr. Sommers replied solemnly. Andy didn't like the sound of his tone. "I think you guys better sit down. I'm afraid I have some rather bad news. Aft-"
"What bad news??" Andy cut him off. Nina held Andy's arm giving him moral support for whatever came next.
"After reviewing Ephram's X-rays, I noticed some irregularities. In order to be more thorough, I'm going to highly suggest Ephram get a CAT scan when he regains some of his strength. I know a great radiologist."
* end of chapter 2 *
The only light that illuminated the dark room was the moonbeams that penetrated the glass of the window. She stood by the bed watching him sleep for the past half hour not making a sound. She thought it amazing how everyone always seemed to look years younger when they slept. Nina didn't want to wake him but she knew she had to. 'He looked so peaceful and comfortable.' She thought letting out a sighed. He stirred lightly and woke from his sleep. He squinted to make out the dark figure standing by his bed.
"Nina! You scared me! What are you doing here at the hospital?" Andy said recognizing her form with the help of the moonlight from the window.
"I didn't mean to wake you." Nina began. She stepped closer to Andy and it was apparent she was troubled with the serious in her tone.
"Is something wrong?"
"Ephram's been admitted into the hospital tonight."
"What?! What happened? Is he alright?" Andy grew concerned.
"I don't know. We were having dinner at your place. Then he went to get a Tylenol and he just collapsed like the rug was pulled right out from under him. Called an ambulance. By the time we got to the hospital, he was running a high fever. The doctor is still trying to get his fever to go down."
"Where is he? I have to see him." Andy kicked his blanket back to get out of bed.
"Andy, you can't just get up and leave. You're supposed to be in bed." Nina tried to stop him.
"Please understand. I HAVE to see if he's ok." Nina saw the desperate plea in his eyes and she knew she had to help him.
"Fine. At least let me talk to the nurse and get you a wheelchair." Her eyes questioned. He nodded and settled back into bed.
Nina always had a way with words. It was her specialty. She can talk a person into anything and she can talk the nurses into this little favor. Before long, she was back with a wheelchair and ready to take Andy to his son.
*** In Exam Room 1 ***
Ephram watched feverishly as his nurse injected medication into his intravenous line. His nurse was a rosy-cheeked heavy-set woman in her 50's. She smiled a lot. Her curly medium length silver hair was pinned neatly under her nurse's cap. She wore a white nurse's pant uniform with white Keds.
"Please." Ephram whispered weakly to the nurse. He breathed and swallowed the lump in his throat.
"There, there. You'll be ok sweetie. Relax." She assured. Ephram felt his head resting against something wet. Then he realized his own sweat had soaked his pillow. "We just got to get that fever down."
He closed his eyes for what felt like a minute and when he opened them, he saw his father, Nina, the nurse, and the doctor materialized before him. His father was in a wheelchair wearing blue cotton pajamas. The voices and sounds were muffled. He wasn't sure if they were talking to him or about him.
"What's his condition?" Andy asked the doctor.
"He's got all the symptoms of pneumonia. I took X-rays and ran some blood tests to be on the safe side. We should know something by tomorrow. He's got a fever of 103.2 and we're trying to get the temperature down." The doctor explained. Andy watched the nurse change Ephram's pillow for the third time. Ephram had been sweating profusely.
"I know you're worried but until we get the test results, all we can do is make him as comfortable as possible. You should go back to bed. You need your rest too Andy." The doctor continued. Apparently, they knew each other.
"Just let me stay a few minutes longer." Andy begged.
"Ten minutes." The doctor said signaling the nurse. Having doctoral connections had its advantages. Rules could be bent slightly.
"Thanks, Bill. I appreciate it."
"See you in the morning." Bill said giving Andy a pat on the back as he exited the room.
Ephram groaned softly. He wanted to tell his father how sorry he was for getting sick. And how he could have handled everything on his own. Oblivious to Andy, it was something Ephram wanted to prove - not only to his father, but to himself as well. After a while, he couldn't think about it anymore. There was an uneasy feeling developing in the pit of his stomach.
His stomach gave a brutal jolt. With all his might, Ephram quickly lifted his upper body to the side of the bed and violently hurled all the contents of his stomach. The slimy reddish brown soupy chunks of half-digested lasagna mixed with bile splattered onto the clean white tiled floor. As the nurse dashed over, Ephram's hacking cough shook his frail body as he choked on vomit. He caused alarm in everyone. The nurse tried to comfort him and rubbed his back in a soothing manner. With almost no energy left after throwing up his dinner, he lay down on his back with the help of the nurse.
His eyelids got heavier. He couldn't tell if it was from drowsiness or if he was passing out again. Maybe it was the antibiotics working. But he saw the concerned look on his father's tired face.
"Sleepy." Ephram managed to say trying not to worry his father.
"OK." Andy acknowledged.
After wheeling Andy back to his room, Andy persuaded Nina to go home. He tried to get some sleep but it wasn't easy. His sleep came in short naps. How was he able to sleep soundly again knowing his son was so helplessly sick? He kept thinking about Ephram - wondering if he was going to be alright. The medical profession exposed him to every kind of illness known possible to mankind but he'd never seen his son this sick before. The last time he saw Ephram, he was still walking and talking. And the next minute, he was so weak. It was almost scary. There was something terribly wrong but he couldn't put his finger on it. It was going to be a long night.
*** In the Lounge ***
Dr. Bill Sommers was a tall slender man about the same age as Andy with a thick mustache and wore silver rimmed glasses. He had a stoic facial expression as he walked down the hall with a bunch of folders in tow. His white lab coat flew with him when he took big strides. He stopped to talk to a nurse along the way. Nina had picked up Delia from the slumber party and brought her to the hospital lounge where Andy was nervously awaited for news from Bill on Ephram's blood tests.
"When can I see Ephram?" Delia asked impatiently.
"A little later, sweetheart. He's still sleeping right now." Andy answered. Andy had been checking up on Ephram, whose fever had gone down slightly but was still warm to the touch. It was a bit too warm for Andy's liking.
Dr. Sommers approached Andy, Nina, and Delia. They exchanged friendly pleasantries and chatted lightly on how Andy was doing.
"How's Ephram?" Andy questioned anxiously.
"Well, he's definitely got pneumonia. But don't worry, it's nothing he won't recover from." Dr. Sommers stated adjusting his glasses as his stern expression returned.
"Is there something else I need to know?" Andy sensed the doctor was not quite done with his prognosis yet.
"That's what I need to talk to you about." Dr. Sommers replied solemnly. Andy didn't like the sound of his tone. "I think you guys better sit down. I'm afraid I have some rather bad news. Aft-"
"What bad news??" Andy cut him off. Nina held Andy's arm giving him moral support for whatever came next.
"After reviewing Ephram's X-rays, I noticed some irregularities. In order to be more thorough, I'm going to highly suggest Ephram get a CAT scan when he regains some of his strength. I know a great radiologist."
* end of chapter 2 *