Part 5 of 11.
Good morning, huge thanks to everyone who has been reviewing.. It's lovely to know that you are enjoying it!
We've sort of reached the half way point now, so everything is beginning to get revealed and is tip-toeing towards getting resolved.
"They bustled back into the ED, a bag each, and Tess turned to look at them curiously: "Moving in?" Zoe dropped her eyes to the bag she was carrying, as Dylan pushed by her and walked straight back to into Resus, probably to see how much had changed.
"Don't ask." She smiled at Tess, who remained staring between her and the pink suitcase she had been trailing behind her, "There's a daughter." She watched as some sort of realisation crossed Tess' features.
"Millie?" Zoe nodded though he face obviously expressed her confusion because Tess quickly expanded: "She woke up briefly and asked for Millie, got herself a bit upset because no-one knew who she was talking about, but Charlie managed to calm her down and get her back to sleep." Zoe nodded, before realising that she had no idea where the mysterious child was, she concluded that she must really ask Dylan about this before he got caught up in telling people how to treat Sam.
Before she even knew what was happening she'd found herself being tasked with standing outside waiting on Sam's sister dropping off little Millie, despite no idea what the child looked like, nor what Sam's sister looked like. But she couldn't bare to insist that Dylan do this himself and leave Sam to sit alone, in her terrified state.
Which was why she found herself stubbing a cigarette out against the hospital wall; wondering vaguely if telling Nick was the best thing to do in the circumstances because she had know idea if he had mentioned anything to Sam about her possible condition. She was immediately distracted by the sight of a woman, who looked similar to Sam, emerging from a taxi and gently scooping out a little girl from the seat next to her. She could see her disinterest in the child, the moment the little girl looked up at her and beginning to speak animatedly. They approached her quickly, the woman, who she had assumed to be older than Sam, sounded as disinterested as she looked when she began to speak: "Are you Zoe? Dylan said I'd to meet Zoe outside." She nodded quickly and suddenly found the little blonde girl being pushed towards her, her hand already outstretched as though fully aware of what was going to happen.
She looked from the girl, who she now knew to be Millie Keogh, to her aunt trying to think of something to say: "Aren't you going to see Sam?" She blinked in confusion as the blonde woman, shook her head before getting back into the taxi and departed without saying a word to her or the child, now entrusted into her care.
She tried to push her feelings on the meeting with Sam's relative to the back of her mind, as she decided that she should probably focus her attention on the small girl who shared none of Zoe's confusion "Can I see Mummy?" Zoe glanced down at the child, who had been very quick to accept her hand and showed no distrust in her as she was left standing outside the hospital. She nodded her head, and began walking inside, the small child at her side, head turning quickly to examine all of her new surroundings.
She watched as the little blonde girl rushed to Dylan's side upon her arrival in Resus and immediately took that as her cue to leave them to it - she noted as she reached the door, that Dylan had placed Millie up on the trolley where Sam lay before sitting down by their side on the stool Nick had been last seen on. Briefly she wondered where the Clinical Lead was, but she decided to dwell on that later and instead she let the door to Resus swing closed behind her.
She had been standing talking to Noel for a little under ten minutes when she heard some sort of commotion coming from Resus, as she stuck her head around the door her attention was immediately captured the curled up shaking figure of a vulnerable Sam indicating the girl had been somehow reduced to tears. She noted the fleeting look of relief on Dylan's face, when he looked up and immediately realised she would be the ideal solution to how he'd manage to consol both Sam and the now terrified looking Millie, whose little eyes didn't seem to leave her sobbing mother. "Zoe, could you…" She nodded instantly, and soon found herself lifting the crying blonde child from Dylan's arms into her own.
He waited until Millie was safe in Zoe's arms, again, before he returned to Sam - he had to convince her to consent to the scan, they had to get to the bottom of what was going on, quite literally in Sam's head. He sat half way up the bed where Sam had curled up, adamantly refusing to seek any form of medical assistance with a clear medical problem. "Sam, please?" He watched as his wife, shook her head without rising from the bed and tugged the covers further around herself. "For Millie's sake, can you agree to the scan." She watched as his wife turned onto her side, to look at him intently.
He wasn't aware of what he had said wrong, but from the look on her face he was sure something with what he said he angered her: "To find out I'm not going to see her grow up." The moment the words were out her mouth, she had turned back around and resumed sobbing into the pillow.
He moved around the bed to sit on the other side, so he could see her face again, he took her hand forcing her to look at him: "No." He was unsure how he was going to try and lessen her fears, but he could see the blank look in her eyes and he wasn't sure if that was anything to do with how afraid she was or because she could see properly. "I want you to have the scan… I need you to have the scan, Sam." He stopped unable to work out how to tell her what he was thinking. "I need to know that you are okay." Sam looked up at him, struggling into sitting position to take his other hand. They sat in silence, as it seemed his words were circling her head.
She dropped his hands after a few moments and sunk down to the bed again, pulling the blankets tightly around herself as she did so, provoking concern from Dylan, he watched her eyes close tightly, before hissing in pain and placing a hand to her forehead. He couldn't think of anything to say her, so he pulled the blankets higher up on her body, before crossing the room, and switching any unnecessary lights off, hoping to provide her with some comfort and lessen the pain she was going through. "Is it blurry?" He watched nervously, as Sam attempted to close her eyes more tightly, unsure how he was supposed to reassure the obviously distressed blonde, that a scan would be the best thing for her.
Eventually, she nodded weakly, her distress evidently in every syllable of her words: "My head really hurts."
He nodded sympathetically, racking his brain to find some form of suitable painkiller, in a vain hope that pain relief may help Sam's obviously distressed state. When he realised he wasn't certain about any pain relief Sam had already been given, he made a mental note to quiz Mr Jordan on it the next time he seen him, before returning to Sam's side and taking her hand in his - letting his thumb rub soothing circles into the palm of her hand. He was relieved when she seemed to relax, though he did note that she'd buried her head into the darkness of the pillow as she curled on to her side.
"Sam, please?" There was pleading in his voice, and even he wouldn't deny that, nor did he care at this particular moment.
"If I do and it's bad news, will you be there for Millie?" Her voice was muffled by the pillow, but he was almost certain that he had heard her correctly - in a way, he was furious that she felt she had to even ask the question however it suddenly put a whole new perspective on the way in which Sam was thinking.
"If I promise, will you go for the scan?" He hated himself for what he was doing, particularly to Sam, because there was no doubt in his mind that he'd be there for Millie - but to simply bargain with Sam like that over his own daughter's future seemed horrifically cruel but he was willing to do anything which got him the answer he needed. Slowly she nodded, he took this as all the indication that he needed and he turned to catch Zoe's eye and nod - to allow her to bring Millie back to Sam.
The moment she had agreed to the scan, Zoe was back in Resus, placing Millie back into her arms and beginning to make plans. She was talking with Dylan in hushed whispers a few paces away, and she supposed that if she hadn't had Millie to distract her she'd be much more interested in what they were discussing. From the moment the sensitivity to the light had begun half way through her shift the day before, she had known something wasn't just quite right.
She clung on to Millie desperately as Linda attempted to lift her daughter from her bed, so they could take her for the scan she had reluctantly agreed to, only because she knew she would've been overruled had she refused anymore. "Sam, let Linda take her." She blinked at Dylan's words, trying to establish when he had found it necessary to learn Linda's name and why he seemed to think it acceptable to let them take her daughter from her. She let go of Millie's hands, and dissolved into steady tears, as Linda lifted the toddler from the bed, and from her and into her own arms.
Linda closed her eyes as she left Resus, quickly letting Tom take the girl from her arms and immediately begin amusing her. She took a steady breaths, as she fought back tears at the sheer cruelty of what she had just been forced to do. She glanced around, opening her eyes to look into Resus and was forced to take in the sight of Zoe and Dylan still trying desperately to comfort am obviously terrified and distressed Sam. Charlie appeared at her side, looking up at once and then twice before he leant in close to her and quietly spoke: "You alright?" She nodded, and turned to face Charlie shooting him a small smile "The sooner that scan gets done the better. Don't upset yourself about it, I'm sure she'll be fine."
Charlie had placed a comforting hand on her shoulder before she said, equally as quietly: "It's not that." She turned to glanced at the child sitting on Tom's knee as she flicked through a colouring book, and noted that Charlie had turned his attention to the child as well, and was smiling softly at the sight. "I had to take her off Sam, that's why she's in such a state." Charlie nodded in understanding. "She's lovely, isn't she?"
"Yeah, yeah she is. They kept her quiet though..." It was Linda's turn to nod in understanding, because truthfully they had managed to keep their daughter quiet. She admired the ability to do that, in a way, just being able to juggle your life around so that you became the definition of coping.
So, part 6 will be up on Saturday morning..
Feel free to review and tell me what you thought..
Anny. x.