She was awakened in the middle of the night. She stretched to find his side of the bed still empty. That's strange. I knew he was working late, but he should have been home by now. Just then, she realized what had caused her to wake…the phone ringing. Still a half asleep, she grabbed the receiver.
"Hello?"
"Mrs. Mariano?"
"Yes?"
"Mrs. Mariano…I regret to inform you that your husband has been in a motor vehicle accident. We strongly recommend you come to the hospital immediately."
A wave of nausea mixed with pure fear passed through Rory head to toe.
"Is he…okay?"
"I'm sorry. I cannot tell you any more over the phone. We just strongly recommend coming to the hospital. We can tell you more once you get here."
She slowly hung back up the receiver. No! This can't be real. He can't leave me now! She began to shake a little. Tremors passed over her, and she began to feel a little faint. She found the nearest chair. Taking deep breathes, she tried to regain compose. What am I going to do? I can't drive in my condition! She called the only person she could think of at the moment.
"Mom?"
"Rory…are you okay? You sound upset! What's wrong?"
"Mom…Jesse's been in an accident…and…I…don't…know…if…he's….okay."
"Oh, honey, I'm so sorry. What do you need me to do?"
Within a half hour, with some speeding involved, Rory and Lorelai were on the way to the hospital in complete silence. There was nothing to say at the moment. The tears streaming down Rory's cheeks did enough talking for the both of them.
………………………………………
The hospital appears so cold…so unwelcoming…as they entered into the emergency room. Tremors again racked Rory's expanding body. She had to grip onto the nurse's station for support. A voice rang out…sounding so distant.
"Ma'am…are you okay? Ma'am?"
Rory could not answer. Her body was growing steadily weaker. She could feel her knees starting to buckle. What is happening to me? She felt a wheelchair slip behind her right before she collapsed…the wheelchair barely catching her. A concerned nurse must have seen the look in her eyes and responded accordingly. She could hear her now concerned mother trying to talk to the staff.
"She's six months pregnant. Her husband is here. I think the stress…the stress is just getting to her."
That's when Rory passed out. She regained consciousness in an emergency room bed. Feeling weak, she tried to speak.
"Jesse…where's Jesse?"
But before Lorelai could answer, the doctor entered the room.
"The babies are all fine, but Rory is pre-eclampsic. Her blood pressure has sky-rocketed. We need to do an emergency c-section. If we don't, both Rory's life and the life of her children will be in severe danger. Delivering is the only way to bring the blood pressure down.
Rory glanced at her mother and then glanced back at the doctor. She gave a simply nod approving the surgery, and the nurses began to prep. Where's Jesse? I need him.