Krystal gazed at her daughter's still form and prayed.
She had been sat on the hospital chair by her daughter's bedside for so long it was almost moulded to her body.
Marissa was as still and pale as she had been when they brought her back from surgery, her head almost completely obscured by a turban of bandages. The doctors had told Krystal over and over just how lucky her daughter was, if the bullet had hit her just a fraction of an inch to the left she would be dead. So Krystal prayed, thanking God that her daughter was alive, and begging God to let her dear girl wake up soon.
Krystal didn't look up when someone entered the room. Doctors and nurses drifted in and out all the time. The only thing she was able to concentrate on was her daughter's face, waiting for the flicker of movement that showed she was coming back to the world.
"You need to get some rest." said David. Krystal turned at the sound of his voice. He was looking through Marissa's chart as he addressed her. Checking for himself how his daughter was progressing.
"I can't leave her." said Krystal.
"You need to eat, and forgive me Krystal, you need to freshen up – how long have you been in those same clothes."
Krystal looked down, she was still in her party dress, only the party had been days ago.
"How long are you going to sit here? Our daughter is in a coma, you being by her side will not change that. It could be days, weeks, months, even years before she awakens, how long are you going to cling to her bedside like a limpet ignoring everything else?"
"I'll stay as long as it takes!"
"And if it does take years then what? Waking up from a coma is one thing, but we've no idea what sort of recovery she will need, what kind of damage has been done."
"What are you saying?" Krystal asked, suddenly scared of the implications.
"I'm saying this…" he gestured to Marissa's unmoving body, "This is the easy part. You can't wear yourself out now, just sitting by her bedside. There are many friends and family out there who would be happy to share the load. When she wakes up that is when she will need all your strength and love and prayers. That is when the hard work really begins."
Krystal looked David in the eyes and for the first time she saw the sorrow and she saw the fear.
"It's not that easy." sobbed Krystal. "I can't just abandon her."
"I know." said David, putting a hand on Krystal's shoulder. "And we won't. Not ever!"
...