Deep inside my head
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters except for Kerric. I don't own Summerland either. I don't claim to own anything other than Kerric and I would never pretend too because I really don't want to get sued. Everything else belongs to their creator.
Ava sat very still in a hard backed hospital chair. She never thought that she could love anybody as much as she loved those kids and now she might lose one of them and It was all her fault. If she had just paid more attention, not cut him as much slack the first time he had done drugs then maybe he wouldn't be in the next room fighting for his life. She was a horrible parent.
"Aunt Ava!" Derrick ran up the hall his tennis shoes making lewd noises on the polished linoleum floor. He slid to a stop in front of her and threw his arms around her neck and started to cry. "Is Bradin okay?"
Ava looked up into his questioning eyes and for a moment forgot how to speak. She quickly glanced up at Susannah and Jay. Jay had his arm wrapped around Nikki's shoulder. It seemed a curious thing to Ava those two are not all that close. "I don't know anything yet; they are still trying to get him stabilized." Ava stood and held out her arms and the five of them clung to each other desperately.
Nikki began to cry hysterically. "How can he do this? How can he do something so stupid, doesn't he know that we need him."
Susannah wrapped her arms around the distraught teen. "Honey, your brother made a mistake. He may even have a problem and drug addiction is an illness that people can't help, that's why they need the people they love around them so they can lean on them when they need it."
"I don't care! Bradin is a horrible big brother and I might never get the chance to tell him that he sucks." She fell to her knees with hiccupping sobs. "He can't die! I can't lose my brother too!" Jay reached down and picked her up off the floor and placed her in a chair.
The somber fivesome waited with fearfull hearts to hear word on Bradin's condition.
"Miss. Gregory?" A tall man with olive skin came around the corner he was dressed in scrubs and wore a sour expression.
Ava stood and reached out her hand to shake the doctor's hand.
"I'm Dr. Lewiston. I'm the physician in charge of your nephew's case. Can we have a seat?"
"What did he take?" Ava blurted out, she don't know why she asked that before she knew if Bradin was alright. She must sound like a callused bitch.
"Miss. Gregory, Bradin's tox-screen came back negative, he has no drugs in his system what so ever.
"I don't understand—if it wasn't an overdose then what is wrong with Bradin?"
"Bradin was recently admitted to the ER due to a drug overdose and subsequently falling down a flight of stairs, correct?" He waited for them to nod. "Bradin suffered a minor concussion in his fall. The scans that were taken at the time showed no major concerns and Bradin was released… Sometimes the full effects of a head injury can take time to manifest themselves, Bradin had a microscopic amount of bleeding in his brain after the initial injury. Usually a small amount of bleeding causes no problem and the bleeding stops by itself and no treatment is needed. However Bradin has not been so lucky in fact the bleeding has gotten worse and it is putting pressure on his brain. We need to operate to relieve the pressure and to stop the bleeding, if we don't Bradin could die."
He stopped for a moment to allow everything he said to sink in. They all seemed to be stunned by the information they have just been given.
"This surgery is very risky, but it is more of a risk not to perform it. With surgical intervention Bradin has an 80 of recovery and without it his odds drop to about 15. Even with the operation there is a high risk of brain damage, blindness, even partial paralysis."
Ava swallowed hard and wiped the tears away that had rolled down her cheeks. "Where do I sign?" Dr. Lewiston handed her the consent forms. "Can I see him before you take him to surgery?"
"You can stay with him while he is prepped for the surgery. If you will follow me I'll take you to him."
Ava turned around to face her family. Jay lovingly squeezed her shoulder.
"Tell B that we love him okay." Susannah smiled through her tears and held Nikki and Derrick close to her.
Ava followed behind the doctor like a child that had just been scolded. He let her through a curtain and she gasped and winced at the sight of her nephew. Somewhere in the course of being examined Bradin must have started convulsing again, there was dried blood in the corner of his mouth a sign he had bitten his tongue.
"You can hold his hand, we will be taking him in about five minutes."
Ava inched her way closer to the gurney, where a nurse was working on shaving Bradin's head. He was just laying there with his eyes partially open, but there was no doubt that he was unconscious. Ava carefully picked up her nephew's and and began to speak to him.
"Bradin I'm here. Everyone else is right outside. We love you so much, You have to come back to us B. I'm so sorry I thought the worse about you Bradin, I love you and just want you to be happy and healthy, and home. So you need to work on getting better, you hear me kiddo."
The nurse touched Ava on the back. "We need to take him now."
Ava kissed Bradin's hand and left to join the family down the hall. Johnny and Mona were now sitting in chairs, along with Erika. Ava quietly walked to a chair and slowly lowered herself into it. She laid her head in her hands and started to cry. She felt little hands start to rub her back.
The intense wait had begun.
Hey sorry it took me so long to update, but My brain isn't in a good place right now. Well you know how it is. Once again I am not a doctor or a nurse and I probably will never be one. Let me know what you guys think and remember I am allergic to flames so unless you want me to die don't do it. Love you guys much.
Lectavist