Chapter 272

"What's going on here?" asked Sax and looked at Sara with a disbelieving smile.

"She's awake?" she said surprised.

"Sure is" said Stephen looking relieved.

"Hey… how are you feeling?" asked Sax.

"Where am I?" said Sara groggily.

"You're in a hospital, you were in an accident. You're okay… just relax" said Sax.

Sara still didn't have any idea what the fuck happened to her. Her head was fuzzy.

"Can you tell me your name?" Sax asked.

"Sara" she slurred.

"Do you know what year it is Sara?"

"Uhm…. 19… 99" said Sara weakly before closing her eyes.

Sax looked up at the neurologist, her face fell. Stephen and Bruce look a mixture of scared and confused.

"Sara… stay awake for me. Can you remember what happened?" Sax asked.

"Uh… no…" said Sara.

-0-

"Sara" Tegan whispered again after forcing her eyes open. She opened and closed her mouth as if it was dry.

"Here you go Tegan, some ice chips" said a nurse and spoon fed some to Tegan. Tegan sucked them for a few seconds and enjoyed the cool liquid in her mouth and down her raw throat.

"Sara" she whispered again.

"Sara's right next to you behind that curtain over there sweetie. So is Kate. You'll see them soon okay. They're fine, you just relax for now" said Sonia.

"Plane… crashed" Tegan mumbled.

"Yes sweetie, we know…. You were such a hero. I'm so proud of you. You saved Sara and Kate's lives you know" said Lindsey.

Tegan nodded weakly. She lifted her good arm slowly and touched the NG tube going into her nose. The action just about floored her sending her heart rate into the stratosphere.

"Don't touch that Boo. I know it's uncomfortable but it's sending food into your belly" said Lindsey.

"So cold" Tegan said softly.

Sonia gently pulled the covers higher. "Can we get her another blanket please" she asked a nurse.

"I don't think so, her temp is slightly elevated" said the nurse.

"No… outside… cold" Tegan mumbled.

"I know sweetie…. I know you were really cold... You're okay now… nice and warm baby" said Lindsey.

"Kids" said Tegan softly and opened her eyes.

"They're doing great. They're with Erin in LA. She's taking good care of them. They all send their love"

"Arm… numb" said Tegan softly.

"They say that it's probably temporary Tee… they're going to fix you okay" said Lindsey.

"Okaaay" said Tegan and closed her eyes.

"Wheeee am I?" Tegan mumbled again a minute or two later and tried to lift her head.

"You're in a hospital Tegan… remember? Just lie back" said Sonia gently pushing Tegan's head back to the pillow.

"You're in Denver honey" said Lindsey.

"Denver…. No skiing… okay… cold" said Tegan and laughed weakly.

"Deal… no skiing" smiled Lindsey.

"That's really good. She's alert and oriented. She knows who you are, that she has kids. She even knows that Denver is famous for skiing" said a resident with a smile.

"Tired… where am I?" Tegan mumbled.

Lindsey gave the resident a confused look.

"It's normal… for now" he said.

"Just rest sweetheart" said Sonia.

"Hurts" Tegan whispered out of breath.

The resident eyed the pulse ox read out and put the mask back over Tegan's mouth and nose.

"Hang in there. We'll adjust your meds the minute Dr Sinclair is back so you can get some rest" said the resident.

-0-

"Get mom over here" said Sax after examining Sara.

A few seconds later Sonia came around the curtain.

"Sonia, hang on… I need to talk to you first" said Sax.

"She's awake? I need to see her… now" said Sonia.

"Sonia! Sara seems to have some memory loss. She thinks… its 1999"

"She what?" said Sonia, blood draining from her face.

"I want you to just talk to her. Keep her calm and… "

"So do I pretend it's 1999 or what?" Sonia interrupted.

"No… tell her the truth but stick to the basics. Not too much info right now. She seems to be in some pain so I'm going to give her some pain meds that will knock her out soon. Just try and keep her calm. I know you can do that" said Sax. Sonia nodded and walked over to Sara.

"Hey honey! You're awake" said Sonia.

"Sara, do you know who this is?" asked the neurologist.

"Uh... yeah… Mom" said Sara frowning.

"Thank god" Sonia murmured under her breath.

"Mom? What's going on? Where am I? Hurts" said Sara weakly.

"You're okay Sara… you're in a hospital. You were in an accident, do you remember that?" asked Sonia holding Sara's hand.

"No… where's Tegan?" Sara whispered. She looked tired and pale.

"Tegan is fine, she's can't come in here right now"

"Oh" said Sara sounding surprised.

Sonia continued to tell Sara what year it was before showing her a photo of Kate.

"Hang on… it's when? I'm old?" said Sara sounding drowsy, she didn't pay much attention to the photo.

"No you're not old Sara. But yes…. You're not 19" said Sonia.

"Don't lie" Sara whispered.

"Sweetie… I'm not lying"

"Where's Tegan… I want Tegan. Is she… around? Is she… even talking… to me? Does she hate me?"

"She's around Sara. Tegan is talking to you, yes… she loves you so much. Did you know that the two of you are very successful musicians? Hugely successful Sar"

Sara looked at her suspiciously and frowned.

"Your… shitting me?" Sara mumbled.

"No, I'm not" Sonia smiled.

"Uh huh" Sara grunted not believing a single word.

"Do you know who this is Sara" said Sax pointing at the photo of Kate.

"No… but I'd like to… she's hot. I'm gay mom" Sara slurred like a drunk person and gave a weak laugh.

"Oh I know sweetie" said Sonia and smiled looking rattled.

Sax stifled a laugh although all this was very serious.

"I am… I'm tired… head hurts… sleep" Sara mumbled and closed her eyes.

The neurologist nodded at Sonia and adjusted Sara's IV medication.

"Okay sweetie… rest now. I'm right here alright. I love you" said Sonia and kissed Sara's cheek.

Sara was out pretty soon.

"What the hell is going on? She was fine when she woke up last time? I don't understand" said Sonia in tears.

"We're going to do a CT of her brain again. See if we can get to the bottom of this. Patients that were in a coma often have memory problems, this is of concern though because it seems quite severe. Let's see what the tests show us and we'll take it from there" said the neurologist.

-0-

"Okay Teegs, we're going to give you something for the pain now. It's going to make you very drowsy. Get some rest" said Sax.

"Sara… Kate" Tegan slurred again.

"They're fine Tegan. Sleepy time" said Sax and opened up an IV with pain meds.

"Ohhh yeah" Tegan sighed and visibly relaxed as the mediation washed over her. Seconds later she was out.

"Dr Sinclair. I need to tell you something. Tegan had… well she had… she was addicted to pain meds. How is all of this going to affect her?" said Lindsey.

"Oh okay… noted" said Sax looking a bit surprised. Lindsey gave her all the facts and answered all her questions.

"Well, it's a tricky situation Lindsey. She obviously needs pain relief now. I will adjust her medication to minimise the risk of addiction but I'm relatively sure that if manage this correctly it won't be a problem. We'll also look into alternative pain relief options. For now, we'll be continuing with the morphine infusion. She needs rest and she won't get it if she's in pain. We need to keep her as comfortable as possible" said Sax.

"Okay… I trust you. Just thought you should have all the facts"

"Of course, thank you for that. Don't worry Lindsey, I won't let her fall"

A/N: I've pretty much run out of pre-written content now so I'm back to writing and posting chapter by chapter. So, I'm going to need a bit of patience and encouragement. Bear with me please. Meanwhile – please let me know what you think about this new development. Sara thinking it's 1999?