I did so much research for this. This one is about Alice preparing to have surgery. It focuses on Delalieu and Alice being cute, and the responsibility Delalieu feels towards Alice.
It was supposed to be followed up by Alice waking after the surgery, and Delalieu fussing over her a bit because she's in pain. After that I had planned for Warner and Alice to have a bonding moment about scars, since Lobectomys tend to leave three scars in your side (Correct me if I'm wrong though!). Not that Warner would show his scars, but he would reassure Alice that people tend to mind their own business and not ask about scars.
Enjoy~
"Are you ready?", the nurse asked.
She had a syringe in her hand. Alice eyed it. She looked at Delalieu, and he squeezed her hand in reassurance.
"I'll be right here", he told her. "And I'll be there when you wake up."
He had orders to oversee the whole procedure, as a witness in case anything didn't go as plan; and would stay as close by as he could. But he had a feeling that he would still have been there even if it wasn't a part of his duty.
It had been a smooth two weeks of Alice getting stronger and stronger with each passing day. Delalieu had paid her daily visits and watched her start to laugh again, to move about the room, to ask for Delalieu to bring her a book or two. He had watched her proudly do her exercises, and how her stamina had increased little by little.
All leading up to today. He and Alice had both been thoroughly instructed on what was going to take place.
Today was for the lobectomy in her left lung.
Three small holes were to be made in her side, and the dead tissue was to be taken out; with a small margin.
A lung surgeon had been flown in from South America a few days earlier. Delalieu had spoken to him during the formal introduction, then again when he explained to the two of them what he was going to do.
Warner had approved of it; and even if her opinion wouldn't actually matter in a juridical sense, Alice was okay with it as well. Warner would not be present for the surgery. He had more important things to do.
Alice looked back at the nurse.
She nodded.
"Okay Alice, I want you to count for me", the nurse said as she cleaned the skin on Alice's arm with a little napkin.
"I want you to count to ten. Can you do that for me?", she asked.
Delalieu saw how Alice looked away from the needle and instead stared at the ceiling.
"One", she started.
"Two."
"Three." He felt a push in his hand and knew that the nurse had pushed in the needle. But he didn't pay any notice but stroked the top of the small hand with his thumb.
"Four…"
There was a longer pause now as the nurse pulled away. They were holding a cleaning swab against her skin.
"Five…"
An even longer now. She blinked drowsily.
"...Sex…"
At first he wondered if he had heard right. It took him until the next number to understand that she had switched to Swedish, her mother tongue.
"...Sju..."
"...Åtta..."
He felt her hand loosen a little. Her chin bobbed up and down in a nod.
"...Nio...", this one more slurred than the others.
Another nod.
She never got to ten.
The nurse quickly made sure the IV needle was secured in Alice's arm. Meanwhile the lieutenant just sat there holding the girl's hand.
He couldn't deny that he was a little scared. He would have to stand outside and watch, but not able to actually do something if anything went wrong.
Actually, the more he thought about it, the more terrified he became.
Alice wasn't even his child, and if anything went wrong the parents, who probably loved her very deeply, wouldn't even know!
"It's time", the nurse told him after a few minutes.
He sighed, but did let go of her hand. He gave her one last reassuring pat on her cheek, much like in the evenings when he bid her goodnight; then left the room so that the nurses could do their job. Well out in the hallway he forced himself to calm his pulse (that would probably send him into a hospital bed of his own). Alice had another surgery coming, how was he supposed to endure that one if he couldn't handle this one before it had even started?
How was Alice supposed to be calm about them if he reacted like this?
Being anxious never helped anyone. Especially when there was a surgery going under way.
He shook his head to lighten up some.
He could do this!
But first:
He had to get a cup of coffee.