Hey, sorry for taking so long to update. I had a busy summer and now I'm back at school. I know its not much, but I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 5
Dr. Brown slowly made his way down the long, white, taunting halls of Denver hospital. He had his first appointment with his new doctor. The appointment was scheduled so that Dr. Jones and Andy could discuss the medications Andy would be taking. As a member of the medical world, Andy knew too well that for the rest of his life he would be forced to swallow an unrealistic amount of pills each day. He knew that this cocktail would keep him alive, but the idea was anything but delightful.
But he was determined to get through this. He had to be strong. Crying would get him absolutely no where in the end. He had to be strong. He had to be strong for his children. He still hadn't found a way to explain the situation to Delia. The blow up with Ephram had been enough.
Andy came to the end of the hall he had been following and made a quick right. He approached an admittance desk and scribbled down his information. He then strolled over to a seat in the waiting room and sat down. He lifted a copy of Newsweek from a table and began flipping pages. But he could not focus his mind on any particular article. His eyes wandered around the waiting room. His eyes landed on a woman in the far corner. Her cheeks looked pale and she seemed to be in poor health. Andy's mind began to race. Was she there for the same reason Andy was? Did she have the HIV virus? Was he going to look like her in a few years? Of course not. They had caught the disease very quickly and if he did as told the disease may never progress. He new how the virus worked. He had seen many patients with the same thing in his lifetime. But somehow his medical knowledge could not comfort him. It wasn't enough. He needed someone. He needed another human being to comfort him and let him know that he was going to be okay. But who would that person be? Ephram would never forgive him. Nina wouldn't talk to him. He didn't know how to explain this situation to Delia. Linda was on the other side of the globe. He had no one to talk to. He had no one to confide in.
"Andrew Brown." A nurse had emerged from behind a shut door. "Dr. Jones is ready to see you. Please follow me."
Dr. Brown followed the woman in the doorway and then down a short hallway and into a small room.
"He'll be in in just a moment."
The woman left the room, closing the door behind her. Andy sat nervously waiting for Dr. Jones to arrive. Andy had worked with Jones on many occasions. He always sent his patients to him when they were diagnosed. He was the best in Colorado. But now that he was the patient, it was different.
Dr. Brown sat up in his chair as he heard the doorknob twist. Dr. Jones walked in the small room, extending his hand. "How have you been, Andy? How are the kids?"
"The kids are great, thank you. Ephram is at Julliard."
"How about yourself? Care to tell me what happened?"
"I was in a relationship. We loved each other. We used protection. We both knew the risks."
There was a pause. The two men looked at each other. "Well, you know the drill. You'll have to take a large amount of medications. There is a new drug. Would you be interested in participating in our study? You would be a perfect candidate considering you are in the first stages of the disease. And we could use a member of the medical field to tell us exactly what it's doing."
"Let's go for it." Andy managed to put on a fake voice. Inside he was screaming. He had never imagined he would be part of an experimental drug trial. Those were his patients, not him. Dr. Jones went on to explain the technical medical aspects of his new meds. Usually, a conversation of this kind would have fascinated Andy, but he found it particularly difficult to concentrate. After twenty minutes, Dr. Jones came to the conclusion of his explanation and the two men rose to their feet. "You'll have to come to the hospital pharmacy to pick up your prescription. These meds are not available in your home pharmacy. I want to see you in three weeks to see how you react to the drugs. You can pick them up tomorrow."
"Thanks," Andy shook hands with his friend and made his way out of the hospital. He quickly found his car and sat down in the driver seat. He slowly closed the door and began to cry. He leaned on the steering wheel and let the tears fall.
