! Disclaimer: I own nothing...
A/N: Gonna try for two updates today ;) Happy Friday? Lol Thank you everyone for the reviews, alerts and favourites... To the guest who didn't like that Christian was in a relationship before Ana, I won't apologise for that route in this story. It's an AU, we're trying to get away from the books with it. She is another catalyst in the storyline...
Mini rant over, ENJOY!
Beauty and the Beast – Chapter Eight
It was then the last comment ended that Ana finally reached for the button. She didn't just stop at one hit, she pressed the button several times and even as Grace entered the room, she just lost herself into the grim truths bestowed upon her.
I was in the OR when they were working on her. She's never going to have a normal life after this. Ana had closed her eyes as the voices came into her hearing range. Dr Carlson has scheduled more surgery for helping with reducing the scarring but, I don't think she'll be that lucky. She'll have those for life. Ana had closed her eyes but, the words were already penetrating her head. Whoever wanted to do this wanted permanent damage and I guess they got that. She's disfigured beyond belief.
Feeling her heart began to race, Ana panicked but, between the weakness and the sheer inability to move from the bed because of all the medical equipment she just continued to attack the button in the hope Grace was still around.
"Hey," Grace's voice came across calm and with ease – like it always did. "Ana, what's wrong, honey?" She asked as she took to Ana's side, "C'mon, Sweetie, open those eyes and look at me." She waited for Ana to open her eyes and immediately she saw the broken look sitting right in the same place as it had originally. "You could have just pressed once."
"I needed you," Ana admitted and felt the overwhelming need to just have Grace here.
"Well I'm here," Grace replied and didn't find it an issue to be so needed right now by Ana. "What's wrong though? I can see you are bothered by something." It was as she said that Ana crumpled all over again. It seemed there wasn't even an hour's break between each meltdown and they came as fresh as ever. "Oh, sweetie, talk to me. Don't cry."
"The nurses out there," Ana tried to calm herself but, the tears were burning in her chest, boiling in her throat and churning to form a suffocating lump in her throat. She pointed to the two nurses that were now working and lost her control more. "They know I'm disfigured. I'm never going to be normal." She took in a jumpy breath and looked to Grace, "I'm never going to just be normal. People are always going to be talking about me."
Was that how this was always going to be? Was she always going to have people talking about her as she walked down the street? Were people always going to just stare at what she had become? Ana wanted to believe that she could just walk to work and be normal. She wanted to know she wouldn't be the point of stranger's ridicule.
And she hated that she had the same thoughts in her head. She felt like she was in school and watching the bullies get their claws into one of the geeks. The world didn't change the older you got. People were still going to be judgmental and issue you with abuse whenever they wanted to. So why would Christian be different? He attended galas and fundraisers. She had often looked at magazines and newspapers that had a snapshot of him and felt shots of pride and sadness wash through her. Now he would never want her by his side. As far as she was concerned that was final. No one would want her. She was broken physically and mentally right now so why would her family be any different?
"Grace," Ana grabbed Grace's hand in hers. "I thought before, with being a secret, was okay. Now I know that everyone will have a reason to hide me away. It won't just be Christian that wanted me out of plain sight. Now everyone is going to do it." Ana dropped her eyes at the thought of it and then looks back to Grace, "I don't want to be shut away, Grace."
With her own eyes watering, Grace was finding it harder and harder to be just Ana's doctor when she saw how in love both Ana and Christian were with one another and it was hard for her to just leave emotions at the door especially with Ana declining into a depressive state so quickly and hastily.
Flaring her nostrils, Ana rolled her eyes to stop more tears from falling. "I'm trying to accept this but, I can't, Grace. I want to try and be okay with this but, I can't do it." Ana hiccupped a few times before continuing, "I really can't accept this."
"Ana," Grace stopped her rambling, "You don't need to accept anything right now. At this moment in time, you are only supposed to rest and get better. I am not looking for you to accept what happened to you. No one will be looking for that. I am looking at you keeping calm and letting us here and your family support you through this. The rest will fall together when you least expect it."
Ana had to believe those words. She had to believe that Grace would never set her up for a greater fall. Christian had always praised his mother. After all, she had saved his life when he was little. She had taken him in, given him a life, and in the end, given Ana him. Ana had to believe that Grace only had her best intentions at heart.
"I want you to get more rest than you are," Grace told Ana as she stood beside her bed. "I'm going to check your vitals then I'm going to get you a light sedative to calm you," she saw the fear ignite in Ana's eyes and she took Ana's hand. "It won't be as strong as the one we had to give you earlier. This one will just calm you and help you sleep a little if you want to."
"Okay," Ana admitted as she realised that Grace really was the good guy. "I trust you."
Grace couldn't stop the smile that grew as a reaction to that, "I'm also going to get you a private room set up. If your vitals are balanced then I want you away from those nurses and with a group that I personally trust." She saw Ana offer a thankful glance. "I want this recovery to be as easy as I can possibly make it for you, Ana."
Giving a small smile, Ana felt calmer, "Thank you."
Leaving for a moment, Grace came back and checked Ana over before she administered the sedative. She then checked all of the equipment and noted that Ana's pulse was still a little irregular. Until that corrected itself, then Ana needed to remain here. She remembered the wound to Ana's jugular and reminded herself of how much blood pulsated from it the moment she took the pressure bandage away in the emergency department. It was going to take time to heal.
"You need me call for me," Grace said as Ana settled back down and allowed her to leave the room. She saw Ana's surgeon in the ward and she knew she wouldn't stand for nurses to behave how they should. This was supposed to be the best of the best and the workers – however small or large – should reflect the high ranking of the hospital.
"George," Grace said as she approached her colleague, "I need a word."
He looked up and gave her a welcoming grin, "Sure thing, Grace, what's up?"
"The nurses in this department need to be a bit more careful with what they're saying and where they are saying it," she began to say, crossing her arms over her chest and not ready to back down. "Our patient in room 4 is dealing with massive facial trauma as it is and two of the nurses were discussing her whilst she was in earshot. We already know Miss Steele is not coping well with the truth but, she doesn't need people talking about her. Especially when they are supposed to be the professionals here."
"Let me guess Nurse Burton and Sunderland?" George asked and looked over at the pair as they stood together at the nurses' station, gossiping away. He looked to Grace who nodded and he was as unimpressed as she was. "We've had issues with those two before and usually their shifts don't clash but we were understaffed so we couldn't avoid it."
"I just don't think it's wise that nurses like them should be working in the ICU of a hospital when the people are either extremely ill or severely damaged. They need nurturing and care. Not small minded gossiping," Grace exclaimed with a heartfelt tone. She was more than a little passionate about her patient care.
"I completely agree with you and I will be taking them in for a word," George agreed and ran a hand over his brow. "How is Miss Steele?"
"Fragile," she admitted and sighed. "Her pulse is still not regulating and she is too easily worked up."
"Has she not asked for family?" George asked and saw Grace shake her head. "It's going to be a hard recovery if she doesn't let anyone in."
"I understand that," Grace nodded with her agreement. "I was going to try and get moved from here to a private room but, she's not ready for that."
"I'll assign to Nurse Smith to room 4 for the meantime. I'll be needing to do a post-op check and then we'll review Miss Steele and we'll look at moving her to a private room," George optimised and saw the two nurses he needed to talk to giggling away. "Excuse me, but those two need talking to."
Allowing him to leave, Grace watched both become rigid and serious as George called them out. As he took them to a side room, Grace decided she needed to see her family. Everyone deserved an update after all. Walking out, Grace found her husband now in the waiting room and she stopped midst step, "Carrie?" She called out and felt her morale drop and her facade slipped. In the presence of her husband she felt she could be weaker than she portrayed. With him here she was fully supported and she was safe to weaken.
"Elliot rang me," Carrick told her and offered her a smile before trying to break the tension in the room, "Seems we've got some family drama going on."
"I'd say," she remarked and took his open arms with pleasure. Drawing strength from him, she pressed back and released the heaviest sigh she had since this dilemma started. "There isn't much change I'm afraid. She is still weak and her pulse isn't improving right now. Until she gets a regular heart rate and pulse going she will be stuck in the ICU. We don't know if she's at the risk of relapsing so it's constant monitoring until we reach such a point."
"When can we see her?" Ray asked, all he wanted to do was see his daughter and see what they were dealing with. It wasn't a big ask, just a paternal one. He had to see what someone had done to his baby girl.
"Soon," Grace smiled to keep the peace. "I've given her a light sedative to keep her calm for now but, I think it would be best if we go against her wishes. It's not usual for me to do this. I respect all of my patient wishes but, I'm worried that if we leave Ana any longer without any familiar faces she might never want to see them."
"So how are we going to do this?" Ray asked and tried to see from Grace's face if he could guess. His worry for his daughter was too much to look past and he couldn't make sense of what Grace was up to.
"I have a plan, if you're willing to abide by it for the moment?" Grace asked and she knew it was a huge favour because she would never want to be in Ray or Carla's position with this. However, with Ana's best wishes in the forefront of her mind, Grace knew this plan of action would break Ana before allowing her to build herself back up.
"Whatever," Carla started to say, "I just wanted to see her. Do whatever you need to. I just want to see my baby."
Going against her better judgement, Grace approached her son.
"She needs you," he said and turned to her parents. "Ana is being a little hostile to people. I have a plan but, can you give me a few minutes and I promise you can come down and see Ana."
Carla, even though she didn't like not seeing her daughter first, put complete faith in Grace, "Do whatever to help our baby." She took Ray's hand and held it tight. "We know she's in safe hands. I just want her to get better."
"She will do, I promise," Grace issued another vow and looked to Christian. "She needs love," Grace told her son and it panicked her to see Christian so fit to burst with nervousness. "She just needs you and your love right now."
Christian knew she was right but, the impending feeling of doom didn't bare thinking of.
Love conquered all didn't it? That was the old age saying after all.