Hey everyone! Sorry for taking so long to post this chapter. I rewrote a zillion times and still am not happy with the way it turned out. Just another reminder that I have zero medical background so sorry for any inaccuracies. Hope you enjoy!
Kim and Makayla ended up staying with Adam until visiting hours were over. Adam was extremely nervous about the surgery the next day and Makayla was a great distraction for him.
"Hey." Kim grabbed his hand as they were getting ready to leave. "Everything's gonna be fine." She kept reassuring him, while also trying to convince herself. She still wasn't happy about the surgery and she could tell Adam was having his doubts, but she was doing her best to be supportive. "I'll be back first thing in the morning before surgery, okay?"
"Thank you." Adam responded quietly. He had been lost in his head all day, the only thing distracting him was having Kim and Makayla. Now that they had to leave he was afraid of the head games that were gonna take place.
Kim and Makayla both headed out the door, leaving Adam alone. It broke Kim's heart to do so but she knew she didn't have much of a choice. On their way out they stopped by Maggie's desk and found out she picked up an extra shift overnight. "Will you keep an eye on him?" Kim asked worriedly.
"Of course." Maggie replied with a smile. "I already let the night nurse know to give him a little something extra to help him sleep tonight."
"You're the best, Maggie. Thank you." Kim hugged her. One of her biggest concerns about leaving Adam for the night was him not getting any sleep.
Almost immediately after Kim and Makayla left, Adam's head started and he was really wondering if he was making the right decision. He kept going back and forth with the surgery to the point he was starting to feel sick to his stomach.
Thankfully the night nurse came a little earlier than she usually did. Maggie had already informed her Adam would most likely need something stronger to help him sleep so she decided to check on him first. She not only gave him something to sleep, but also added something to help with the nausea. Thankfully it did the trick and Adam was passed out within the hour.
Kim wasn't so fortunate. She was up all night tossing and turning while worrying about Adam. She hoped whatever meds they gave him would be enough. She also hoped Adam was making the right decision. She still didn't like the idea of it and tried to imagine what life was going to be like for them moving forward.
When morning finally rolled around, Kim had to drag herself out of bed and get Makayla ready for school. After dropping her daughter off, she stopped for a large coffee and then made her way to the hospital.
As she walked into Adam's room, she was somewhat surprised to see him still sleeping. She knew it was still pretty early but Adam was usually awake by now. She worried that he had been up all night until the nurse walked in to do her last check before the end of her shift.
"Good morning." The nurse smiled.
"Morning. Did he sleep okay last night?" Kim asked.
"He did. Slept through the whole night."
Kim's relief was instant. She thanked the nurse and then sat down in the chair next to Adam's bed. It didn't take long for Adam to wake up after she arrived. "Good morning." Kim smiled, grabbing Adam's hand.
"Morning." Adam replied quietly as he squeezed Kim's hand.
"You ready for today?"
"I guess." Adam's response was quiet and emotionless.
"it'll be alright Adam… "But you know, it's not too late to change your mind." Kim wanted to remind him that it was still possible to change his mind.
"I can't Kim. I have to do this."
Right as Kim was about to respond, Will and Dr. Janic walked in. Adam's heart dropped at the sight. He really wasn't looking forward to this. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that he couldn't shake and he hoped he was worrying for nothing. He blanked out when Will and Dr. Janic started going over the procedure, not really wanting to re-hear all the details and risks associated with the surgery, rather just wanting to get it over with.
They started prepping Adam for surgery while explaining to Kim that it should take about 3-4 from start to finish as long as everything goes well. She just nodded her head and thanked them as she headed to the surgical waiting room.
The first half hour moved extremely slow. She did whatever she could to try to keep herself distracted but nothing seemed to be working. It wasn't until Kevin showed up that she felt herself slightly relax. It felt good having someone else there to talk to. By the end of the first hour, the entire unit, including Trudy had shown up. It made Kim feel so much better knowing her and Adam had such a strong support group.
As hour three came along, Kim started to get antsy. She almost wished she didn't know how long the surgery would last. Trudy, once again became her saving grace, telling all these crazy stories about her time out on patrol to keep Kim distracted.
It worked until hour four hit. That's when she started to get a bad feeling. "Somethings not right." She stated.
"I'm sure everything's fine. It's only been a few hours." Hank reminded her.
Kim shook her head. "No. They said three hours, four hours tops. It's been a little over four hours and we haven't heard a thing."
"Why don't I go try to get an update?" Hailey suggested.
Kim nodded as she continued to pace.
Hailey returned a half hour later with no update. "All they said was he was still in there."
Kim finally sat down, trying to hold back tears. "I knew he shouldn't have gone through with it." She mumbled as her mind began thinking the worst.
Finally, just after the six-hour mark, Will came through the door. Kim shot up at the sight of the doctor. "What happened?"
Will decided to cut straight to the chase. "There's good news and bad news. I'll start with the good. We believe we were able to successfully remove the bullet without hitting any of the surrounding nerves so with a lot of rest and physical therapy, he should regain feeling in his legs."
"Oh, thank god!" Kim thought she was gonna cry all over again as she was flooded with relief.
"Now for the bad news… During the surgery he did suffer a dural tear which unfortunately is a fairly common complication of spinal surgeries. While we were removing the bullet, the thin layer of tissue that covers the spinal cord was nicked which is what prolonged the surgery."
"But he's still going to be okay right? No permanent damage from that?" Kevin asked.
"It's a minor setback, but nothing that will prevent him from getting back on his feet." Will added.
"Can we see him?" Kim knew she heard mostly good news but she wasn't going to fully be able to relax until she laid eyes on Adam.
"Absolutely. They're getting him settled back in his room now."
Kim practically ran back to Adams room, with the rest of the team following closely behind. When she arrived back in Adam's room, he was still sleeping. The nurse informed her that he should be waking up soon, but he would be very tired and out of it for the next few hours.
As expected, Adam woke up a few times over the next couple hours, tired, groggy, and in pain. Nothing he said made much sense and Kim knew he was still out of it enough not to remember a thing she was saying. As a result, each time he asked, she kept her answers short and vague. "You just had surgery, everything's gonna be okay."
The next morning was the first time he woke up and actually seemed with it. He was still on some heavy-duty pain killers keeping him tired, but he was able to hold a follow a decent conversation.
"How'd the surgery go?" Adam asked quietly. He was half afraid to ask the question but he needed to know.
"It went good. There was a slight complication while removing the bullet, but Will and Dr. Janic believe the surgery was a success, that you'll make a full recovery." Kim smiled.
Adam was so flooded with relief that he didn't even care about complications. Never in his wildest dreams did he expect to wake up and hear that a full recovery was expected. "So I'm… I'm really gonna be able to walk again?"
"Yeah." Kim nodded while crying happy tears. "You still have a long road and a lot of physical therapy to go through, but if you're willing to put in the work, you should make a full recovery." Kim wanted to make sure he was aware that he wouldn't just be able to jump out of bed in a few days feeling good as new.
Adam relaxed more into his pillow, so relieved. He didn't care what it was going to take, knowing he could make a full recovery was life changing for him. "Whatever it takes."