Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed. I appreciate everyone being patient with me as I have struggled through working a lot of over time and then coming down with a case of writers block. I would also like to thank a really great person Vivalab for pushing me through my writers block and also for betaing this for me... How you manage to do everything you get done in a days time, beta-ing this and still knock out all those chapters and words is beyond amazing!!!
As before, I own nothing. But God if I did could you imagine????
"Good Morning Ladies, I have some exciting news for you..." cheered the nurse as she walked into Olivia's room. She was still in the ICU ward, but making great progress.
"Dr. Foster has instructed us to remove your breathing tube," said the nurse, "although you are capable of breathing on your own now, your oxygen levels are still quite low, so the doctor has also ordered you to be put on oxygen."
Alex quirked an eyebrow at the nurse, before she had a chance to ask her question, the nurse continued.
"Don't worry about another tube being put into her," the nurse said, looking at her, "This one will run just under her nose, she'll breath the oxygen in that way," she reassured Alex, giving a gentle smile as she finished speaking.
Alex grinned at Olivia as she watched the nurse move about the room.
A few minutes had passed before the respiratory therapist came in and Alex was asked to step outside so they could ex-tubate Olivia. Reluctantly, she let go of Olivia's hand and slowly walked out the door into the hallway.
In next to no time, the tube had been removed and the therapist was leaving strict instructions for Olivia to follow for her breathing exercises, including a multi-chamber cylinder with balls in it called a Volumetric Incentive Spirometer. Olivia looked to the device and felt apprehension envelope her. Alex was walking back into the room when she noticed the look on her beloved's face.
Alex walked back into the room, immediately noticing the worried look on her beloved's face.
She reassured Olivia, "Don't worry Liv, we'll work on it together," she reassured.
Olivia complained of a sore throat for the first couple of days after having the tube removed, but in time the discomfort faded. She still had no movement or feelings in her lower extremities.
Olivia was worried beyond belief, but refused to let Alex know how upset she really was over it. Alex, for her part, was worried just as much if not more. She wanted her detective back full force, she knew Olivia wouldn't be happy unless she could go back to her job and give it one hundred percent.
With that in mind, Alex was determined that Olivia's neurologist was the best in the country. Dr. Foster had suggested him, Alex had him researched and made sure he knew what he was doing.
Next came the range of tests the doctors wanted to run on Olivia. As frustrating and nerve racking as they were, the women both knew they were an essentia part of her healing process.
Each day began as the day before. Olivia woke to pain and discomfort in her back and her chest, but still her legs refused to wake up, despite her willing them to move. Every day, Alex watched Olivia, offering her assistance, reassuring her she was making progress. Olivia struggled to make her legs move, wishing she could feel something, a twitch, the blankets laying on top of her, anything... but nothing happened.
With each passing day, Olivia became more and more discouraged.
The physical therapist began showing Olivia exercises that would build her strength up in her torso and back. Some were aimed at strengthening her arms so that lifting and maneuvering, would become easier. Especially without the use of her legs. Olivia could see that the doctors and therapist were preparing her for the worst, but she wasn't going to give up hope. The doctor had said that the feeling and movement could return when all the swelling finally went down, so she wasn't about to quit trying.
Olivia began to refuse help from Alex, deciding she needed to learn how to dress and bathe herself, she knew she wouldn't always have someone there to help her. Learning sooner, rather than later was her best bet. She was beginning to feel more like an invalid when Alex babied he and she didn't want to be seen as helpless or weak. Each time Alex offered her a hand, Olivia would push her away, becoming more irritable along the way. Olivia began to get easily irritated when someone offered helped, or treated her like she was an egg, ready to break at any given second. She slowly began to resent people as they offered to assist her, including Alex.
Oivia's attitude began to show more and more.
As the days rolled by, Olivia's hope to regain feeling and movement in her legs began to fade. She slowly came to the realization that her days as a cop were over, she would have to adjust to life in a wheel chair. She would also have to find a home that was accessible, a new apartment that was designed with wheel chair use in mind.
There was also the possibility of a nurse to assist with things she still had issues doing on her own, bathing was one, lifting herself in and out of the bed, being able to transfer herself from the wheel chair without falling. It would be a while before she had that down, her therapist said it could take a year or longer before she was able to live on her own assistance free. That prospect alone brought her down even more.
With these thoughts running through her head, she knew Alex wouldn't want such a burden put on her. Olivia decided it was time to cut the ties, she needed to learn to live without Alex. She knew she wouldn't be able to handle seeing her and not being near her, with this in mind, she saw herself being coddled. Alex would offer to help Olivia, and Olivia would push her away, getting mad when Alex insisted. If Olivia did need help, she asked for a nurse to assist her, breaking Alex's heart along the way. Alex couldn't figure out what was going on, everything seemed to have been going okay and then it stopped. She had planned on taking Olivia home with her, but Olivia didn't seem to be on the same page.
Olivia woke with a start; the feeling of panic stirring her. Disoriented, she looked around, finding her self alone, she struggled to sit up as frustration creased her brow.
"Shit, Fucking legs..." she cursed under her breath, "move dammit, move!"
Olivia struggled to sit up, hating her legs for not listening to her. Looking around the room, she noticed her wheel chair wasn't too far from the bed, deciding now was the time to test how well she could cope without support. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and leaned forward, grabbing the chair by an armrest and jerkily pulled it closer. Grabbing the bedrail that was already lowered with her left hand and leaning over and grasping the right armrest of the chair, she wobbly lifted herself up and attempted to seat herself in the chair.
A failed attempt at that, the chair flew back into the wall as Olivia flopped to the floor cracking her head on the footrest of the chair, knocking herself unconscious.
Hope you liked, again sorry for such a long awaited update... Thanks again to Vivalab.