Chapter 10: Not The Way It Was Supposed To Be
It wasn't supposed to be like this. The night had started out so well. Amy hadn't had a chance to spend much time with Ephram recently, so when he had shown up at her door, she had been ecstatic, realizing how much she missed her wry, sarcastic friend.
The blonde girl and the brown-haired boy had never really expressed the level of their friendship to each other. They each thought that their casual acquaintance had grown and matured over the months of talking, laughing, Ferris wheels, and waiting rooms but neither knew if the other felt the same. They were afraid to call one another their best friend, rejection looming like red-hot flames in a smoky wooden building. So they just continued on, ignoring and taking for granted what was probably the most important relationship either one would ever have.
Amy was no loner taking her best friend for granted. After the terrible night she had seen she now vowed to always appreciate the pale, skinny, handsome, green-eyed boy who had saved her life. She just hoped she would get the chance to show him how much she cared about him and their friendship.
With a sight, Amy shifted in her hard, plastic chair. The comfy couch she had resided in during both of Colin's surgeries was currently occupied by Sam and Delia, the young girl finally giving in to exhaustion and falling asleep alongside the blonde five-year old who had slept through all of the drama. While Amy was glad to see Delia's tears finally stop and her eyelids slide closed, her stiff body selfishly longed for the comfort of the soft, squashy, familiar sofa.
After arriving at Denver General Medical Center, Amy had begged to see Ephram. The other doctors as well as her father had to literally drag her to an examination room; one doctor explaining that they had to check her out and besides, Ephram was in surgery. After being assured that the injured boy would be in the O.R. for much longer than it would take to check her out, Amy had allowed the medical staff to bandage her blistered hand. She was told that the slight burn from opening the hot metal doorknob would heal quickly; she wouldn't even have a scar to show for her troubles. After that she was checked for smoke inhalation and told that as long as she didn't take off sprinting down the hospital corridors, she would be fine. Her throat would be a little scratchy for a few days and she might have some minor coughing spells but other than that she was perfect. Too bad she didn't feel too perfect.
Ephram had been in surgery for two hours. After getting cleared by the doctors and forcing her parents to go home and sleep, Amy had found Dr. Brown and Nina, standing outside the door of O.R. 3, Nina had quietly explained that Ephram had gone into cardiac arrest again on the way to the hospital. After resuscitating him, the paramedics had doubled their speed to get to the medical center, afraid that they wouldn't be able to bring him back if he arrested again. Arriving at the hospital, he had been taken straight to the O.R. The doctors had been planning only to repair his pierced lung, but had discovered severe internal injuries and heavy hemorrhaging. Apparently one of the pieces of roof debris that fell on Ephram had done damage to his pancreas, liver, and spleen. His pancreas and liver had been easily fixed but his spleen had to be removed and he lost a lot of blood. Now, they were all waiting for the doctors to finish some tests they took Ephram to when his surgery ended. The doctors were supposed to come and update them on his condition.
Amy shifted again, finding it impossible to get comfortable. Giving in to defeat she stood up and walked over to Nina, who stood with her hand on Dr. Brown's shoulder, whispering reassurances at the man's turned back. As she stopped beside the couple, Amy saw a white-jacketed doctor, Ephram's doctor, walk towards them down the hall. She held her breath as the doctor asked to speak to Dr. Brown alone and Ephram's father choked out that he would rather Nina and Amy hear now so that he wouldn't have to repeat whatever he was told.
"We can handle anything you have to say. Don't hold back." Nina said, seeing the doctor's doubt. Amy nodded in agreement.
"Alright but this is going to take a while. We should probably sit down."
Amy moved them a little way down the hall to four chairs that sat outside O.R. 1, wanting to spare Delia if she woke up and heard something bad. They settled into the chairs and leaned forward, waiting for the doctor to begin.
"Well, let's see, you already know the complications we came across in surgery. It was unfortunate that we had to remove Ephram's spleen but it was better the spleen than the liver or pancreas. He lost a large amount of blood; it's going to be quite a long while before he will regain his strength. After the surgery we took him to x-ray and MRI. The x-rays showed that Ephram broke more of his ribs than we originally thought, five in all. His arm also broke in two places; he'll be in a cast for about eight weeks. We don't have the CAT scan results yet and we haven't spoken to the burn specialist, either. The x-ray was going to be put off also but we needed to see the placement of the broken ribs in order to clarify the MRI picture of Ephram's lungs. You see, we put a rush on the MRI results because we spotted something rather alarming during surgery." The doctor suddenly stopped, putting his head in his hand and pinching his brow.
"What is it? What's wrong with my son?" Dr. Brown pleaded, desperate.
"This is hard to say," the doctor drew in a large breath, slowly releasing it in short bursts, "Ephram's lungs were more damaged than we thought. He wasn't able to breathe on his own and....he won't be able to, ever."
"What?" Dr. Brown whispered, tears filling his pained eyes. Amy knew how he felt; she herself was feeling her heart break and die.
"The MRI showed extensive damage. Ephram's lungs are essentially destroyed. They won't heal; they can't heal enough for him to ever be off a ventilator. Eventually, he may even worsen and be unable to operate on even a ventilator but Dr. Brown, Andy, Ephram will never get better. He will be on a ventilator, on life support for the rest of his life, which will be significantly shortened. He will also probably never awaken. The ventilator provides only enough only to keep the body alive, not to stimulate the brain. Ephram is fifteen now. He could spend the next fifty years unconscious and surviving only by the use of machines. Unless..."
"Unless? Unless what?" Andy interrupted, breaking through the haze he had fallen into at the small sign of hope.
"Unless you decide to let him go, to pull the plug."
A/N: Yeah, I know. I'm evil and terrible and the devil incarnate and Lucifer himself or whatever else you want to call me, but you know you still love me. Thank you so much for all the reviews from Chapter 9, I think that's the most reviews I've ever gotten on one chapter. Let's try to set another new record. So hit that review button and stay tuned. Will Andy pull the plug? Will Ephram live or die? Will Delia be devastated by the news? Will Colin ever get the girl? (Probably not, tehe) Find out in future chapters of Just Another Saturday Night.
It wasn't supposed to be like this. The night had started out so well. Amy hadn't had a chance to spend much time with Ephram recently, so when he had shown up at her door, she had been ecstatic, realizing how much she missed her wry, sarcastic friend.
The blonde girl and the brown-haired boy had never really expressed the level of their friendship to each other. They each thought that their casual acquaintance had grown and matured over the months of talking, laughing, Ferris wheels, and waiting rooms but neither knew if the other felt the same. They were afraid to call one another their best friend, rejection looming like red-hot flames in a smoky wooden building. So they just continued on, ignoring and taking for granted what was probably the most important relationship either one would ever have.
Amy was no loner taking her best friend for granted. After the terrible night she had seen she now vowed to always appreciate the pale, skinny, handsome, green-eyed boy who had saved her life. She just hoped she would get the chance to show him how much she cared about him and their friendship.
With a sight, Amy shifted in her hard, plastic chair. The comfy couch she had resided in during both of Colin's surgeries was currently occupied by Sam and Delia, the young girl finally giving in to exhaustion and falling asleep alongside the blonde five-year old who had slept through all of the drama. While Amy was glad to see Delia's tears finally stop and her eyelids slide closed, her stiff body selfishly longed for the comfort of the soft, squashy, familiar sofa.
After arriving at Denver General Medical Center, Amy had begged to see Ephram. The other doctors as well as her father had to literally drag her to an examination room; one doctor explaining that they had to check her out and besides, Ephram was in surgery. After being assured that the injured boy would be in the O.R. for much longer than it would take to check her out, Amy had allowed the medical staff to bandage her blistered hand. She was told that the slight burn from opening the hot metal doorknob would heal quickly; she wouldn't even have a scar to show for her troubles. After that she was checked for smoke inhalation and told that as long as she didn't take off sprinting down the hospital corridors, she would be fine. Her throat would be a little scratchy for a few days and she might have some minor coughing spells but other than that she was perfect. Too bad she didn't feel too perfect.
Ephram had been in surgery for two hours. After getting cleared by the doctors and forcing her parents to go home and sleep, Amy had found Dr. Brown and Nina, standing outside the door of O.R. 3, Nina had quietly explained that Ephram had gone into cardiac arrest again on the way to the hospital. After resuscitating him, the paramedics had doubled their speed to get to the medical center, afraid that they wouldn't be able to bring him back if he arrested again. Arriving at the hospital, he had been taken straight to the O.R. The doctors had been planning only to repair his pierced lung, but had discovered severe internal injuries and heavy hemorrhaging. Apparently one of the pieces of roof debris that fell on Ephram had done damage to his pancreas, liver, and spleen. His pancreas and liver had been easily fixed but his spleen had to be removed and he lost a lot of blood. Now, they were all waiting for the doctors to finish some tests they took Ephram to when his surgery ended. The doctors were supposed to come and update them on his condition.
Amy shifted again, finding it impossible to get comfortable. Giving in to defeat she stood up and walked over to Nina, who stood with her hand on Dr. Brown's shoulder, whispering reassurances at the man's turned back. As she stopped beside the couple, Amy saw a white-jacketed doctor, Ephram's doctor, walk towards them down the hall. She held her breath as the doctor asked to speak to Dr. Brown alone and Ephram's father choked out that he would rather Nina and Amy hear now so that he wouldn't have to repeat whatever he was told.
"We can handle anything you have to say. Don't hold back." Nina said, seeing the doctor's doubt. Amy nodded in agreement.
"Alright but this is going to take a while. We should probably sit down."
Amy moved them a little way down the hall to four chairs that sat outside O.R. 1, wanting to spare Delia if she woke up and heard something bad. They settled into the chairs and leaned forward, waiting for the doctor to begin.
"Well, let's see, you already know the complications we came across in surgery. It was unfortunate that we had to remove Ephram's spleen but it was better the spleen than the liver or pancreas. He lost a large amount of blood; it's going to be quite a long while before he will regain his strength. After the surgery we took him to x-ray and MRI. The x-rays showed that Ephram broke more of his ribs than we originally thought, five in all. His arm also broke in two places; he'll be in a cast for about eight weeks. We don't have the CAT scan results yet and we haven't spoken to the burn specialist, either. The x-ray was going to be put off also but we needed to see the placement of the broken ribs in order to clarify the MRI picture of Ephram's lungs. You see, we put a rush on the MRI results because we spotted something rather alarming during surgery." The doctor suddenly stopped, putting his head in his hand and pinching his brow.
"What is it? What's wrong with my son?" Dr. Brown pleaded, desperate.
"This is hard to say," the doctor drew in a large breath, slowly releasing it in short bursts, "Ephram's lungs were more damaged than we thought. He wasn't able to breathe on his own and....he won't be able to, ever."
"What?" Dr. Brown whispered, tears filling his pained eyes. Amy knew how he felt; she herself was feeling her heart break and die.
"The MRI showed extensive damage. Ephram's lungs are essentially destroyed. They won't heal; they can't heal enough for him to ever be off a ventilator. Eventually, he may even worsen and be unable to operate on even a ventilator but Dr. Brown, Andy, Ephram will never get better. He will be on a ventilator, on life support for the rest of his life, which will be significantly shortened. He will also probably never awaken. The ventilator provides only enough only to keep the body alive, not to stimulate the brain. Ephram is fifteen now. He could spend the next fifty years unconscious and surviving only by the use of machines. Unless..."
"Unless? Unless what?" Andy interrupted, breaking through the haze he had fallen into at the small sign of hope.
"Unless you decide to let him go, to pull the plug."
A/N: Yeah, I know. I'm evil and terrible and the devil incarnate and Lucifer himself or whatever else you want to call me, but you know you still love me. Thank you so much for all the reviews from Chapter 9, I think that's the most reviews I've ever gotten on one chapter. Let's try to set another new record. So hit that review button and stay tuned. Will Andy pull the plug? Will Ephram live or die? Will Delia be devastated by the news? Will Colin ever get the girl? (Probably not, tehe) Find out in future chapters of Just Another Saturday Night.
