Chapter 145
Tegan woke up a few hours later and rubbed her eyes. She looked at her watch lying on the nightstand, 10.38. She yawned and looked up at the IV bag hanging next to the bed. It was virtually empty and Tegan finally had the urge to wee. She groggily walked into the kitchen clutching her IV stand after the bathroom break. "You're awake! Morning sweetie pie" said Sonia and kissed Tegan on the cheek. "Something smells good" said Tegan. "Got some homemade pancakes just for you and I'm busy making your favourite lunch" smiled Sonia. "I tried to help but she forced me to sit down" said Lindsey. "Good... you keep your feet up" said Tegan and kissed her wife. She yawned again and scratched her belly, hair standing in all directions. Lindsey giggled. "What?" mumbled Tegan. "You look hilarious sweetie" said Lindsey. "I didn't even wash my face before bed last night... that's disgusting... and I think I stink" said Tegan smelling her armpit. "Smelling your armpit at the breakfast table Tegan?" joked Sonia. "Sorry mom" said Tegan yawning again. "You feeling okay?" asked Sonia looking at Tegan, shoulders slumped. "Sure... just still a bit tired" said Tegan. "Here you go... some coffee, maybe that will pep you up a bit" said Sonia. "Thanks... I think a shower and some fresh air will pep me up. Not to mention your pancakes" said Tegan smiling eating her breakfast.
Tegan poured herself some orange juice. She stared out in front or her chewing her breakfast slowly. Lindsey unceremoniously put the usual heap of pills in front of her. Tegan smiled a half-hearted smile. "What time do the dads have to be at the airport?" asked Tegan. "Only around 6 tonight" said Sonia. "They really wanted to stay for the interview on Wednesday but they also really want time off when the babies come to come see their grandkids" said Sonia. "That's okay, I understand" said Tegan. "Thanks for a great breakfast mom. I'm going to take a shower now... I'm filthy" said Tegan. "You need anything boo?" asked Lindsey. "No... Where's Kate? She's late. I guess I'll just shower with this little fucker in" said Tegan pointing at the IV line. "Okay honey... call me if you need anything" said Lindsey.
A few minutes later Kate and Sara arrived at Tegan's house. "She's in the shower" said Lindsey when Kate headed towards the room. "She still mad at me?" asked Kate. "No, she feels bad for fighting with you" said Lindsey. "What happened to your hands Kate?" asked Lindsey looking at the plasters on Kate's hands. "And your elbow" said Sonia. "And her knees" said Sara. "It's nothing guys. I just took a bit of a spill jogging. It's just a few scrapes" said Kate. "Take care of those precious hands Doc... they have to deliver these babies" said Lindsey. "Don't you worry, they'll be ready" winked Kate. "Have a seat I'll get us some coffee" said Sara kissing Kate's fingers.
Tegan was drying her hair after a long shower. It felt good to be squeaky clean again. She felt her legs go a bit wobbly from the warm water and walked into the bedroom. She sat down on the bed to put her shoes on. She bent over for a few seconds but became out of breath pretty fast and sat back up. She felt the familiar tightening of her airways and took a few deep breaths. She lay back down on the pillows trying to regain her composure. The tightening of her chest got worse by the second and she sat up wheezing slightly. She sat up and looked for her inhaler on the night stand. It wasn't there. She opened the drawer and scratched around, it wasn't there either. She felt fear rise up in her as she desperately scratched around wheezing. "Fuck, where are you?" she mumbled.
"Think Tegan" she whispered. "Washing" she mumbled and got up to check the washing basket in the bathroom. The wheezing continued. Tegan felt her muscles respond to the lack of oxygen. She stumbled to the bathroom. "Linds" she tried to shout but hardly anything came out. "Mom" she tried again. She knew she needed help urgently and gave up the idea of searching last night's pants pocket. She turned around and headed for the bedroom door. "Help" she wheezed. She was desperate for air but now letting very minimal oxygen into her lungs. Her body slammed against the wall and she opened the door. "Help" she wheezed. She felt her legs start to give way and she sunk to the floor against the wall. She slammed her palm against the wall repeatedly, trying to make a noise, it wasn't working. She lay on her side wheezing, unable to get up. "That's it... I'm dying" she thought to herself. She heard the laughs of her loved ones, so close, yet so far. The picture in front of her started to blur. "No... fuck this" she mouthed. She started kicking the wooden door with her sneaker, she kept kicking until her oxygen deprived muscles burned and she started seeing spots.
"What's taking Tegan so long?" said Sara. "You know how long Tegan can be in the bathroom" said Sonia. Doof, doof, doof... "What's that noise" said Sara. "What noise?" asked Sonia, the noise now gone. "Banging" said Sara and walked down the hallway and turned into Tegan's room. Tegan was lying by the door wheezing, her body shaking. "Oh my God, Tegan... Help! Kate help!" screamed Sara at the top of her voice. Kate came running into the room followed by Sonia and Lindsey. "She's wheezing she can't breathe... she can't breathe" said Sara, tears were spilling from her eyes. Kate went down on her knees next to Tegan. "Okay Tegan we've got you... where's her inhaler? Somebody grab my bag" said Kate. Tegan seemed petrified. Her knuckles white as her hands clenched her shirt as if ripping it off would allow her to breathe easier. Her lips had a bluish tint. Her eyes were wide and darted around. Lindsey watched her neck and shoulders spasm as they desperately tried to get more air into her body. The veins in her neck bulging. Tegan saw blurred images of Kate's face moving in and out of view. "Dammit, call 911" said Kate.
Kate turned Tegan onto her back. "We're going to open those airways in a sec buddy... hang in there" said Kate. She put the spare inhaler she got out of her bag between Tegan's lips. "Inhale Tee" she said. Tegan tried but struggled. She felt the medicine in her mouth but had trouble pulling it into her lungs. "Come on breathe Tegan" said Lindsey. "Where's the nebuliser guys" asked Kate. "It's in Jeremy's car" said Sara panicked. "Shit" mumbled Kate. Kate put her stethoscope on Tegan's chest and looked extremely worried. "Okay baby... you're okay" said Lindsey, tears in her eyes. Tegan's wheezing got worse. Kate took the ambu bag out of her bag. "Sara... I need you to help her breathe. Hold the mask tight over her mouth and nose and press the bag every three seconds" said Kate. "Good thing we still have a line in" she said and searched for some meds in her bag. "Give her another shot from the puffer" said Sara. "It's not getting to the lungs, airways are closed up. I'll give her something intravenously" said Kate calmly. "Katy I don't think it's going in" said Sara still crying, pushing the ambubag. "Tilt her head back and try again... just keep going Sara you're doing great. Squeeze nice and hard" said Kate. Kate put her finger in Tegan's neck searching for a pulse.
Tegan felt things go blurry. She saw blurry mouths moving but hardly heard anything. She saw Lindsey's face in front of her and tried to focus. "Stay with me Tegan... breathe baby" said Lindsey. The images kept blurring as Tegan continued fighting for air. Kate opened her shirt and listened to her lungs again. "Okay Tee... I've got you" she said. "Sounds as if we've got some air entry now" said Kate looking at Sara. Sara heard sirens outside. "Go get the door mom" she yelled. Kate put the pulse ox on Tegan's finger and shook her head. "Dammit" she mumbled.
The paramedics burst into the room carrying equipment. "Dr Morgan, nice surprise" said Tyler. "Hey guys... I need a nebuliser with albuterol stat" said Kate. "Coming up" said Boone. "Breathe Tee, come on take in the meds" said Kate as she put the mask on Tegan's face. "Hold this" she said to Sara and put the stethoscope on Tegan's chest. "Boone there's minimal air entry" said Kate. "Attach the nebuliser to the bag, push it in Boone. Tyler... get me a pressure I'll attach the monitor" said Kate. "Pulse ox down to 81" said Boone. "Do you want to intubate Doc?" asked Tyler. "No, just give it minute. Get the intubation kit ready just in case" said Kate. "Oh fuck" cried Sara. Kate flicked the heart monitor on. "She's slightly tachycardic. Pulse 115" said Kate. "Pressure taking a nose dive 80 over 50" said Tyler. "Start a dopamine drip, Let's give her point five of epi, IV push" said Kate. "What's going on is she okay?" asked Lindsey desperate. "We're going to give her some meds through the IV, the nebuliser isn't working that well" said Kate. She injected something into Tegan's IV line and listened to her lungs again. "Okay... there we go... opening up" said Kate after a few seconds. "Tee... Tegan stay awake" said Sara. The picture started getting clearer again and Tegan's ears started ringing and her hearing went back to normal slowly. Tegan squeezed Lindsey's hand. "I'm right here baby" said Lindsey. "Just relax Tee... breathe with Tyler okay" said Kate.
Tegan was still wheezing but she felt her airways open up slowly. She was still clinging desperately to Lindsey's hand. "I'm here... I'm here" cooed Lindsey stroking Tegan's hair. "You okay there Linds?" asked Kate. "Yup... don't know how I got down on the ground like this but I'm okay" she said. Tegan smiled under the mask and closed her tired eyes for a second. "Open your eyes Tee" said Kate and shone a light into her pupils. "Okay... there we go... just breathe" said Kate and leaned back. "Sats are up to 95" said Boone. "Good... good" said Kate. "You're okay Tee" said Sara. "Okay Tyler, let's see how she does unassisted now" said Kate and put the stethoscope back on Tegan's chest. "Nice work... good breath sounds. Still a bit of wheezing though, let's continue with the nebuliser for a few minutes" said Kate.
"You want us to lock and load?" asked Boone. "Um... no... let's just stabilise her and see how she does on the meds. Get me a blood glucose" said Kate. Tegan smiled at Kate under the mask. Kate winked at her. Tegan's hands were still shaking but it was clear that she was breathing easier. "Okay, you're shaking from the epinephrine. You're going to be fine" said Kate. Tegan nodded and tears started rolling down her cheeks. "Oh sweetie... shhh... I know, I know it's horrible but you're okay, I'm right here" said Lindsey stroking Tegan's cheek. "Pressure's coming up nicely... 105 over 75" said Boone. Tegan lay in silence on the hardwood floor for another ten minutes as the medicine started opening her airways. "Good job guys, she's stable" said Kate to the medics. "Ready for transport?" said Boone. "No, I don't want to send her to the ER if we don't have to. She's okay. I've got everything I need to keep her that way. Help me get her onto the bed and onto my monitor and you're good to go" smiled Kate. "Are you sure Doc?" asked Tyler. "Yes... I'm sure" said Kate. "I don't know..." said Boone. "I'll take full responsibility... she's okay. There's nothing they can do for her in the ER that we haven't already done. It's under control guys" said Kate. "Okay... let's get Lindsey up first and then we'll get Tegan onto the bed"
"Thank you" said Tegan still sounding a bit out of breath after Boone put her down on her bed. "I'm sorry... I... I couldn't find my inhaler, I'm sorry" said Tegan desperately. "Shit... it's my fault Tegan" said Sonia looking upset. "I didn't think to take it out of your pants pocket last night" she said. "It's okay mom... that's not your responsibility" said Tegan softly, still out of breath. "Kate can we please get more inhalers and put them all around the house" said Lindsey. "Sure... Okay, lungs sound good. Let's continue with 15 litres of 02 until her sats are back to normal" said Kate. "Sorry about the new drip Tee" said Kate smiling. Tegan shook her head. "Thanks Kate..." she whispered. Tegan felt exhausted after that horrendous attack. "Don't scare me like that Tegan!" said Sara. "Sorry" whispered Tegan.
"Linds... are you okay" asked Tegan under the oxygen mask. "I'm okay" said Lindsey. "Katy..." said Tegan. "We'll check her out two before these two go" smiled Kate. "What... the fuck happened... to your hands?" asked Tegan moving the oxygen mask away. Kate sat down next to Tegan and sighed. "I had a bit of a fall... okay more like a spectacular, fly through the air fall... on the sidewalk... in front of a lot of people" said Kate rolling her eyes. "Wow... and I thought... I was having a bad day" Tegan laughed weakly and coughed a few times. "You didn't... break anything did you?" asked Tegan. "Well I hope not" smiled Kate. "Put the mask back on Tegan" said Kate. "Tyler how's mommy Lindsey's BP?" she asked. "A bit high but okay... 145 over 100" said Tyler. "Well no wonder, you had a bit of a scare" said Kate and walked to Lindsey to examine her.
"Your wife's fine Tegan" said Kate after her examination and smiled. "Great... thank you" said Tegan weakly. "You must be pretty tired after that... you worked really hard there for a while to keep breathing" said Kate. "Hmmm... thanks for not sending me to hospital" said Tegan. "You're okay now... you just needed some meds to open those airways" said Kate. Tegan nodded. "I thought I was dying" said Tegan weakly. "You gave us quite a scare there... and if Sara didn't find you when she did things could have been a lot more serious right now" said Kate. "I'm okay" said Tegan. "I'm not going to force you to stay in bed for the day but please, just take it easy. You're bound to feel like shit for the rest of the day... sorry. But right now... you're staying in bed for a while" said Kate. "Sure" mumbled Tegan. Kate inspected the heart monitor. "Her pulse is still way up. Let's try a beta blocker" she said softly to Boone.
Kate injected something else into Tegan's IV and looked at the monitor as it slowly returned to almost normal. "There we go... just relax, nice deep breaths" said Kate. "What the fuck was that?" said Sara to Kate. "An asthma attack of some sort... Sar her lungs are not what they used to be yet. She didn't get to her inhaler fast enough... it's as simple as that. If she did she would have taken a couple of puffs and she would have been fine... well... probably" said Kate. "Fuck, that scared the shit out of me" said Sara becoming emotional. "It's okay... she's okay. And the fact that she's okay right now shows me just how far she's come. She came back from that pretty fast... considering her airways were pretty much closed up completely" said Kate. "I'm just so glad I heard that banging noise" said Sara. "Yeah... that pretty much saved her life" said Kate holding Sara in her arms.
After a bit of rest and oxygen the paramedics left. Tegan was taken off the IV and allowed to go to the living room a while later. "Here's the guys" said Sara. "Can we not scare them with this story please?" said Tegan lying on the couch. "Sure" smiled Sara. "Hey guys... Morning Tegan! Our rock star! We're so proud of you" smiled Stephen and kissed Tegan on the cheek. Tegan still looked tired. "Thanks guys!" she said softly without trying to get up. "Are you okay sweetheart?" asked Bruce. "Sure... just tired... Kate gave instructions for me to take it easy today" Tegan lied. "Oh... good idea" said Stephen sitting down next to Tegan. He put her feet on his lap and patted them. "How was golf?" asked Sara. "Well Bruce sucks but it was great" laughed Stephen. "I'm sure you both suck equally" smiled Tegan.
"Lunch time... sorry it's late" said Sonia after Erin and Sara set the table. "Smells so good" said Alex. "Hope it's as good as it smells" said Sonia. Kate helped Tegan up and the gang sat down at the large dining room table. "Everyone have something to drink?" asked Alex, Tegan's stand in husband as she called him. "Guys... thank you... for being here" said Tegan, tears building again. "Our first Sunday lunch around this table" said Lindsey. "Yeah... it's awesome. One of many to come" said Tegan. "To Tegan and Lindsey's new home and budding family" smiled Sara, sensing that Tegan was struggling to find words. The group repeated the toast. Tegan smiled and nodded at Sara. "I love you guys" said Tegan. Lindsey squeezed Tegan's hand. Tegan turned her head towards Lindsey. "I'm so happy" she whispered into her ear.
A/N: Phew... stop scaring us Tegan! Lots of updates today, hope you enjoyed it. Review please if you did!