Two long months passed by. Ellie kept making improvements; but every time there was a big leap forward, she took another step back.
Most of the ED staff had visited her, or had glanced through the window on their way passed; and it had become clear that she was very well known in the hospital.
I rarely left the hospital now, splitting my time between work in the ED and sitting with Ellie.
I knew that people had begun to say things about me, wondering why I cared so much about a girl that I barely knew. But that didn't bother me at all.
Honestly, I hadn't got much of an idea of what the answers to those questions were myself; all that mattered to me was that there was hope, and no one was giving up on her. She'd made it this far, and I was not going to let it all just slip away so quickly.
She would get through this; I would make sure of it.
I was barely awake when it happened...
It had been a busy shift in the ED and sleep was beginning to overcome me; my eyelids fluttering every few minutes, threatening to close.
Although, I was glad that I had saved the last of my energy for her.
No one had expected what happened; not this soon anyway...
Her body had been completely still for the past few months, so it all came as quite a surprise when it occurred.
I was sat next to her, watching her closely, as I fought to stay awake.
Sam was updating patient notes and monitoring Ellie; her face serious and concentrated.
There was a sudden movement of Ellie's eyelids, and a wave of silence fell across the room.
I noticed this and sat upright, suddenly more awake than I had previously been.
"Did you see that?" I asked Sam, staring at Ellie in the hope that she would move again.
"See what?" Sam replied, confused.
Her eyelids twitched again.
"That!" I exclaimed, motioning towards Ellie. "Her eyes moved; I'm sure of it!"
Sam walked over and placed a hand on my shoulder. "You're tired, Tom. You should go home!"
I sighed, "Yes, I am tired, but she moved! I know what I saw!"
Sam sighed again; she really didn't believe me...
"Just watch. Then I'll tell you if I'm hallucinating!" I exclaimed; I was not going to let this drop.
Sam was also staring at Ellie now, eyes fixed, in the hope that she might finally be awaking from the unconscious state that had taken over her body.
There was no movement for a moment, and in those few seconds, I had never been more hopeful in my life. There was another twitch and the silence was broken by Sam's intrigued voice.
She walked around to the other side of the bed and stared at the monitors for a moment, before taking Ellie's hand in her own. "Ellie, can you squeeze my hand?" She asked.
Was this really happening?
Slowly, but surely, Ellie began to grip Sam's hand. She looked at me and smiled; half astounded, half excited.
"Okay," Sam continued, "can you open your eyes for me?"
Nothing.
There was a loud beeping sound from the monitor and Sam looked over. "Tom, take her hand." She whispered, not making eye-contact with me; a sense of worry in her voice.
I took it, unsure of whether this was a good idea; I was almost a stranger to Ellie, so surely she wouldn't want me around...
The beeping continued, as that same look of worry covered Sam's face.
Once again, she turned to Ellie. "It's okay, take your time." She soothed, "you've been through a lot, so just rest for now..."
The beeping quietened down, and both Ellie and Sam appeared to relax slightly; though clearly neither were relaxed on the inside.
Sam turned and walked away, sitting, once again, on the far side of the room. She was clearly amazed at what had just happened; and so was I.
After a long 2 months, Ellie was finally waking up; and for a moment I seemed to forget everything. Yet there was one thing still playing on my mind; Sam.
The way she acted around Ellie was different; I had never seen her like this before. She seemed to have some sort of connection with her; but I just couldn't figure out what it was.
Maybe they were sisters? Or family?
No, if they were then Sam would have said when she had told me about Ellie's family. Though, she had found it a hard topic to talk about, so it was a possibility...
What about friends? Maybe they were in the army together?
No, Ellie wasn't that sort of girl... Plus, she would have said something about it, surely?
I really had no idea about what it was; and it didn't look like I would be finding out any time soon.
But Ellie was finally waking up, and that meant that was even more hope of her making a full recovery. But would she make a full recovery? Would she even wake up fully?
Only time would tell...