CHAPTER 3

"Hello." The nurse offered casually as she returned, bringing with her a silver tray on wheels. She moved it to the right side of the bed, pulled up a stool and sat down.

Balki nodded and returned the greeting. "Are they going to help Cousin Larry yet?" He was beginning to get impatient. The whole process seemed to be taking forever and he was terrified that things would take too long and he would lose his best friend.

"We can't do anything until we know what's wrong with him." She explained calmly, tying a thick rubber band around Larry's upper arm. "We have an idea, but we need to do a couple tests to be sure." She poked around the inside of his elbow for a moment before pulling a syringe from the tray.

The chair squeaked against the floor as Balki leapt to his feet. "What that?" He stabbed a finger at the evil looking object.

"A needle." She answered coolly, holding it up for him to see.

"You going to poke him with that?!"

The woman sighed heavily. It was really too late for this. "Remember those tests I told you about?"

Balki nodded warily.

"Well, to do them we're going to need some blood samples."

His eyes widened in horrified disbelief. "You going to take his blood away from him? I'm not going let you do that."

"Look," The strain of irritation was becoming apparent in her voice. "I am just going to fill these two vials." She held up a small glass container for Balki to inspect. "We need a white blood cell count to see if he has any infection in his system."

"You going to count his blood cells?" The Mypiot exclaimed, a little louder than he had intended. "That will take forever. Cousin Larry needs help now."

The nurse let out a groan that plainly said 'why me'. "Sir, we are not going to physically count his blood cells. It is a chemical test that will not take long. And, like I said before, until these tests come through there is nothing we can do for your cousin. So the sooner you let me get back to work the sooner he will get the help he needs."

"I'm sorry." Balki sank back into his chair feeling thoroughly chastised and not a little confused. He still didn't quite understand why this must be done. He took Larry's hand in both of his. "Will it hurt him?"

"He's unconscious." She said flatly, picking up the syringe. "He won't feel a thing."

Balki squeezed Larry's hand, his face pinched as he watched the sharp point pierce his cousin's skin.

Larry took in a short breath and his eyes flickered for a second but he didn't wake up.

"It's okay, Cousin." Balki soothed even as he tried to suppress the horrible tight feeling in his chest as he watched the precious red liquid flow into the glass vial. He couldn't help wondering who had first come up with such a barbaric procedure.

The nurse finally pulled the needle out and Balki heaved a relieved sigh. She taped a piece of cotton to the spot in what he guessed was a makeshift bandaid.

"See, that wasn't so bad, was it?" She patted Larry on the hand and rose from her seat, placing the syringe and vials back onto the metal tray.

"Yes." Balki answered truthfully.

The nurse sighed condescendingly. "Well, it's over now." She said by way of goodbye as she quickly disappeared through the curtains, obviously eager to escape this particular duty.

"You alright, Cousin?" Balki asked softly, petting Larry's hand while searching his slack face for some kind of response. "That look like it hurt."

It seemed like no sooner had the nurse left then Jerry and Zach returned. "How's it going?" Jerry asked as he flipped something on the bed with his foot.

"That would depend upon what 'it' is." Balki said seriously, cocking his head slightly at the question.

Jerry chuckled and Zach just rolled his eyes. "Well, we're gonna take him down to x-rays and maybe then they'll find out what's wrong with your cousin."

"Where 'x-rays' is?" Balki was becoming increasingly frustrated. It seemed like every other thing that people spoke of here was new and confusing. Normally it didn't bother him when he was corrected or had to ask questions. But now his cousin's life was involved and he felt his own ignorance becoming a hindrance.

"It's where they take x-rays." Zach answered curtly, obviously impatient to get the task done.

Jerry turned to his coworker with a chastising glare. "You know if you were one of my kids you'd never get away with that smart mouth attitude of yours. Give the guy a break already." He turned back to Balki before Zach could reply. "An x-ray is a picture they take of a person's insides."

The horrified look on Balki's face plainly revealed the misinterpretation and the graphic image in his head.

"No, no." Jerry assured, reading the immigrant's features like a book. "Nothing like that. They've got a camera back there that can see through things."

Balki visibly relaxed. "You mean like Superman?"

"Yeah, just like that." Jerry smiled and began to push the bed out of the room.

Balki leapt to his feet at the unexpected movement. "Well, I'll be snookered!" He exclaimed, bending over to look under the bed. "It's got wheels. What will they think of next?"

He followed the two orderlies as they pushed his cousin down several sterile, unadorned hallways, turning corners he could not remember until they came finally reached their destination.

After playing with a knob on some large machine Balki was quickly ejected from the x-ray room and forced to sit in the hall while the pictures were being taken. Having to leave his cousin's side when he was so ill even for a short time frightened him.

But the x-rays did not take long and soon they were back in the curtain-enclosed room, waiting again.

Balki wasn't sure how long he sat there but it felt like an eternity before Dr. Sullivan finally returned.

With no preamble the large man got right down to business. "Just as I suspected Mr. Appleton has tested positive to appendicitis." Before Balki could so much as raise a hand in question he continued. "We will need to perform an appendectomy as soon as possible."

Balki stared blankly at the doctor for a long moment before admitting: "I have absolutely no idea what you just said."

"He needs surgery." Dr. Sullivan clarified, obviously irritated at the necessity.

Balki's face fell and hand moved to his heart. "Surgery?" His mind went instantly back to his homeland. The small, Mediterranean island of Mypos was quaint and peaceful, but it was also underdeveloped in many ways, including medical knowledge. Telling someone they needed surgery was only a fraction short of a death sentence. "Surgery?" He repeated, his voice a wavering whisper.

"It's not a big deal." The doctor insisted, Balki's panicked look moving him to explain. "We do it all the time. They'll make a small incision in the abdominal cavity and remove the appendix. It really is a minor procedure."

Then Balki was given several forms to sign, none of which he truly understood. He wished someone would sit down and explain everything to him the way Cousin Larry often did. But everyone here seemed to be in such a hurry, and yet when it came to actually getting things done whole process seemed to be painstakingly slow.

After he had signed the last piece of paper and given it to the doctor the nurse came in with another shiny, metallic tray.

"What you doing?" Balki asked cautiously.

"Putting in an IV." The woman's voice was terse as if he was already irritating her. She reached over to the tray and removed a large syringe.

"You're going poke him again?" Balki was instantly on his feet. "He's not a porcupine you know!"

The woman gave him an icy glare. "Sir, if you don't calm down, I'll have to ask you to wait outside."

Balki meekly lowered himself back into the chair. "I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I don't mean to shout." He said quietly. "I'm just a simple Mypiot boy. I…I don't understand everything here.. I…" He squinted and let out a small hiss through his clenched teeth as he watched his cousin get his second injection that night. He looked on in silent horror as she inserted an odd looking tube into the back of his hand, that then connected to a longer tube that attached to a bag of clear liquid hanging from a metal pole. He was dying to ask about it but he forced himself to keep quiet. She had threatened, quite clearly, to kick him out if he caused any more trouble and he had no intention of leaving his cousin's side.

When the task was finished she placed all her instruments back on the tray and stood. "The orderlies will be in shortly to take him to the operating room." She informed him before pushing her cart out of the room.

Once she was gone he stood and moved to the other side of the bed to examine the IV. It looked like a painful, extremely gruesome setup. But if it would somehow aid his cousin's recovery, he approved.

Moments later two orderlies entered the room. Balki was mildly disappointed that they weren't Zach and Jerry. An older man with streaks of gray hair and a beard moved around behind the bed and flipped off the break, while a young woman took hold of the IV stand.

"Are you taking him to the operational room?" Balki followed close behind as they wheeled the bed through the curtains and down a hallway.

"That's right." The man said, efficiently ignoring the Mypiot's mispronunciation. "You might as well go to the waiting room. He'll be awhile."

"No thank you. I want to stay with Cousin Larry."

"They won't let you in." The man stated simply as they passed a large desk. They were heading for two doors.

"Stop!" A short, husky woman rose from the desk and hurried over to them. The orderlies paused for a moment as she approached. "You." She pointed to Balki. "You can't go into the Operations Ward."

His eyes widened slightly at her demanding tone. "B…but my cousin is sick and he needs me with him."

The orderlies, realizing they were not being detained continued through the doors. Balki made a move to follow them but the woman moved in front of him, effectively blocking his path. He tried to sidestep around her but she refused to let him by. "I need to get in there." He implored, trying again to dodge her. "Please! That's my cousin in there."

"I told you, you can't go in there!" She shook an angry finger at him. "Go wait in the waiting room like everyone else."

"But I can't leave him!" Balki cried, his eyes beginning to well up with tears. "What if…what if something happens and I'm not there? I have to be with him."

"I'm sorry." She said, sounding anything but. "It's hospital policy."

"I can't let him do this by himself!" He tried once again to move around her but the stubborn little woman held up a halting hand.

"Sir, if you don't calm down I will be forced to call security."

"B…but…" Balki knew that getting himself arrested or forcibly removed form the premises would do nothing to help his cousin. His shoulders slumped and he stepped back. "Okay." He said quietly as he turned back down the hall.

Back in the ER waiting room he dropped into the nearest chair and hung his head. Fear and guilt gnawed at him, leaving his chest tight and aching. He had never been so frightened in his entire life.