Lee moved quickly through the hospital, anxious to see Amanda. He stopped in the gift shop to purchase a flower arrangement to help brighten up her room. He waited impatiently as the elevator delivered what seemed like, every single person in the hospital to each of the floors leading up to the one he needed. The muscle in his jaw twitched in frustration and he rolled his eyes when an older woman entered the small confines of the elevator and pressed the button for the next floor. She glanced up at him and he swallowed down his sarcastic comment about the exercise one gets by walking up a flight of stairs, choosing to smile politely instead. Finally, he'd had enough and decided to take the stairs for the remaining three floors, grumbling about being stuck in Grand Central Station and slow-moving people all the way up.
Lee caught the nurse standing near the stairwell door by surprise and apologized but didn't stay focused too long on her, and moved toward Amanda's room.
"Ah, Mr. Stetson. Why am I not surprised to find you here trying to get in before visiting hours begin," the bubbly nurse teased.
"I'm only," he looked at his watch before continuing, "fifteen minutes early. Can't you give me a break," he gave the younger woman his most dazzling smile.
"You have a few minutes but then I need about 30 minutes to check her vitals, change her I.V., sheets, get her breakfast," at his look of disappointment, she continued, "But you can stay as long as you like after all that." She smiled broadly at him.
"Thanks, Nurse . . . Mindi." 'Of course, it's with an 'I',' he thought.
Lee knocked and then peeked his head in, "Are you up for a visitor?" He smiled when he saw her sit up and straighten her hospital gown. While the dark black and blue around her eyes was deeper than the night before, her overall color was returning and the bright light that he had grown to not want to live without, was back.
"Hi," she called to him, her voice gravelly from sleep.
"Hi, yourself." He leaned down and gently kissed her on the cheek. "You look like you're feeling better today," he gestured to the vase of wildflowers in his hand, "These are for you. I'll just," he turned around and found a spot on the window sill, "I'll put these over here."
"They're beautiful. Thank you, Lee."
He reached for her hand and continued holding it as he sat down. "How'd you sleep?"
"Oh, you know okay, I guess," she fiddled with the blanket, pulling it up under her rib cage.
"They don't let you sleep around here, do they?" He watched her shy behavior and wondered if this was going to be their new norm.
She merely shook her head no.
He studied her hand he still held in his, "Amanda, I'm sorry for how I reacted when you told me . . . about your past," he continued but kept his focus on her hand, finding it easier than staring into her pained eyes. "You were doing exactly what we've been trained to do and I made you feel guilty for protecting the very thing we pledged to uphold." He glanced up and was caught in her sights.
"Oh, Lee. I understand. You don't need to apologize. I'm the one who's sorry. I hated lying to you," she squeezed his hand and he reached over to place a chaste kiss to her dry lips before leaning his forehead against hers and inhaling deeply.
There was a loud thud near the door and they both sighed at the poorly-timed interruption. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to check Mrs. King's vitals and change her I.V. before breakfast," Nurse Mindi called out to them. "I warned you before you came in here, so don't give me that look, Mr. Stetson."
Lee returned his gaze to his partner, "Time flies," he waggled his eyebrows to lighten the mood and stood to leave.
"Thanks for stopping by, Lee –"
"I'm not leaving, Amanda," he interrupted.
"You're not?" she seemed genuinely surprised.
"No, we've hardly had a chance to talk. I'll go grab a coffee and a newspaper out in the waiting room and come back when you're settled. That is, if that's okay with you?" He waited for her to respond.
She smiled and nodded.
"Okay, then. I'll see you shortly," he gave her a quick peck before stepping out of the room.
SMKSMKSMKSMKSMKSMKSMKSMKSMK
"Boys, we're in a hospital. Behave," Dotty West called to her young grandsons.
"Sorry, Grandma," they called in unison as they slowed their pace toward their mother's room.
"Are you here to see Mrs. King?" a petite nurse asked the group.
"Hello. Yes, we are. Is there a problem? I'm her mother and these are her sons," Dotty explained.
"Oh, no. She's just having her I.V. and dressings changed," the woman continued sorting supplies in the cabinet near Amanda's room and looked back up at the expectant faces. "She should be ready for a visit in twenty minutes or so. You can go grab a snack down in the cafeteria and by the time you come back, your mom should be ready for a visit, Guys," she smiled at the boys as she closed a drawer.
"Can we, Grandma?" Jamie begged. "I'm starved," he added as he rubbed his stomach.
Dotty guided them down the hall toward the waiting room, smiling to the workers they passed along the way.
"You wouldn't be if you would have gotten up earlier, Dufus," his older brother jabbed.
"Shut up, Phillip," the younger boy cried. "I couldn't sleep last night; I was worried about Mom." He looked up to his grandmother for sympathy. "Can we get a snack, Grandma?"
They stopped in front of the waiting room and Dotty looked into the sweet faces of her grandchildren and acquiesced, "Yes, but just for a quick snack and then we'll come up and visit with your mother." She glanced around the room that was nearly empty except for a younger man reading a paper. He looked awfully familiar to Dotty and she tried to remember where she knew him from.
"Grandma, can we go?" Jamie pulled her hand toward the elevator.
"Yeah, let's go," Phillip added excitedly. "Maybe they'll have cookies!"
She watched as the man seemed to be hiding himself behind the paper as they got closer to him. Her brows furrowed and she concentrated her focus. Just then, she heard him cough and rumple the newspaper. Just like the night Amanda was brought in here. Did this man know her daughter? He clearly recognized the three of them enough to hide behind the paper.
"Boys," she called and reached into her purse and pulled out a few bills. "Here, take this down to the cafeteria and buy yourselves a snack." When they went to take the money, she pulled it back and stared them both in the eyes to get their attention. "One snack each," she warned them before adding, "and come right back here."
"Thanks, Grandma," they called as they both reached for the cash. Phillip got ahold of it first and smiled triumphantly at his little brother.
"Do you want anything, Grandma?" Jamie asked.
"No, thank you, Darling," she smiled at his thoughtfulness.
"Suck up," Phillip whispered under his breath.
The two young men took off toward the elevator, both clearly wanting to be the one to press the call button. "No running," she yelled.
Turning her focus back on the mystery man, she moved toward the empty chairs surrounding him before calling over her shoulder to the rambunctious boys, "No cookies, Phillip! It's not even 9 a.m. yet." He skulked his way into the elevator and she saw Jamie laughing and pointing at the older boy as the doors shut. Rolling her eyes, she continued on her mission.
Dotty sat a few chairs away from the familiar man and picked up an old copy of Better Homes and Gardens. After a few moments, she sighed and complained, "Oh, I just hate hospital waiting rooms, don't you?"
Startled, the younger man pulled the corner of the newspaper down and smiled politely.
Undeterred, she continued probing, "Are you visiting family or friend?"
She wasn't prepared for the rich baritone voice that answered back, "Uh, a friend."
While it was definitely a familiar voice, hearing it in person versus over the phone was more impactful. This man had most definitely called her daughter at home. 'Now, what was his name?' she thought.
"We're here visiting my daughter," she blurted out. "Well, my grandsons and I," she clarified in an attempt to break the ice. "We were so scared when Amanda, that's my daughter," she added to keep up pretenses, "was brought in the other night." When he only nodded, she groaned inwardly, determined to find out something about her daughter's mystery man. If this man was only her boss or co-worker, what was he doing here visiting her first thing in the morning? He'd already been here the night of the accident. No, there was undeniably something going on between these two and it wasn't work related.
After a several minutes of silence, Dotty tried again. "Is your . . . um friend going to be okay?"
As if on cue, the man dropped the corner of the newspaper again and eyed her suspiciously before answering, "Yes, thank you." He returned back to his stoic reading, much to her chagrin.
Dotty heard her grandsons arguing as they stepped off the elevator, and glared at the back of the man's newspaper.
"Grandma, we each got a pastry," Phillip explained and handed her the change.
"Can we go see Mom now?" Jamie asked excitedly.
"Yes, of course. Let's go, but remember, no running!" She stood and glanced one last time to the would-be stranger as the boys took off down the hall. She moved toward the hallway but then stopped and smiled to herself when it finally came to her. "I do hope your friend is feeling better soon, Mr. Steadman," she called over her shoulder and chuckled to herself when she saw the dumbfounded look on his face as he dropped the newspaper.