Dr. Scott stood up straight, her face stoic yet confident as she prepared to deliver the heart wrenching news to the shaken Ghostbusters. The kind doctor had chosen to respect Peter's request and tell them the truth without trying to bury the lead or dismiss the more serious injuries as if they were only a mild abrasion or inconvenience.
"Dr. Spengler has suffering significant internal trauma," Dr. Scott kept her voice even as she spoke. "he had hemorrhaging in his chest from a bruised and collapsed lung, his heart is also bruised from blunt force trauma to the chest. Hemorrhaging in the liver and the spleen was critical, requiring several blood transfusions. We repaired his liver but had to remove the spleen. As you well know he had gone into cardiac arrest and required resuscitation. It took some effort but we managed to restart his heart and stabilize him before taking him into surgery."
As Dr. Scott detailed the gruesome nature of the assault Peter felt himself fighting back nausea. Ray and Winston fidgeted where they stood, Dana clung tightly onto Peter's hand; squeezing tighter with every detail. Janine could only stare at the wall as she pictured Egon a broken mess in her mind.
"Three ribs were broken, four fractured," Dr. Scott continued reluctantly. "his left wrist was broken, his left shoulder was dislocated, the right orbit of his eye was fractured, had has multiple lacerations and contusions across his entire body which required numerous stitches and are secured under heavy bandages. Dr. Spengler has also suffered a concussion due to a strong blow to the head. We won't know if there is any permanent impairment until he wakes up."
"Can we..." Peter cleared his cracking voice. "Can we see him?"
"He's still unconscious. Even after the sedation wears off I don't imagine he will gain consciousness for a few days."
"We just need to see him." Peter pressed on, sounding more like a frightened child than an adult.
"I understand." Dr. Scott agreed. "He's in critical care and will be for the next forty-eight hours for observation. I can allow you to visit him but it'll have to be one at a time."
"That's fine." Peter agreed to the terms and stepped forward as he gave Dana's hand one final tight squeeze before letting go. "I want to see him, now."
"Okay." Dr. Scott motioned with her arm for the worried psychologist to follow. "Right this way."
"Dr. Venkman." Peter finally introduced himself as Dr. Scott escorted him down the corridor to where Egon was resting. "Thank you for everything."
Ray's legs were shaking with fear, anxious sweat beaded on his face. Sitting back down slowly he placed a trembling hand against his face and breathed deeply as the horrific details sank into his heart like a lead weight. "Oh God..."
Dana put her hand on Ray's arm sympathetically.
Winston couldn't bring himself to sit back down, he was too wound up. Pacing up and down the aisles of chairs in the waiting room he contemplated the brutal aftermath of everything they'd just endured, the brutality that Egon had just barely survived.
Dr. Scott showed Peter to Egon's room. Putting her hand on the closed door she addressed Peter one last time. "Remember, he's still in critical condition and it won't be easy to look at. Are you ready?"
Peter didn't say anything. Giving Dr. Scott a mere glance he waited for her to open the door.
"I'll leave you two alone." She pushed open the door and stepped back. "I'll be back later."
Setting foot inside the room Peter stopped short after passing through the doorway. "Egon..."
Egon was laying in the bed looking pale, bruised and helpless. His arms, his legs, his abdomen and chest were wrapped in white bandages. A massive white bandage over his swollen eye concealed the horrific bruise beneath. IV's ran into his arm to replenish his lost blood and stabilize his fluids. A cardiac monitor was attached to the leads on his chest, the display showing his heart was still beating in a painfully slow rhythm. A tube hooked to a ventilator ran down his throat and helped Egon to breathe while his damaged lungs healed from the debilitating injuries.
Daring to step forward Peter stood beside the bed and looked down at his friend with stunned grief. Never before had he seen his best friend so weak, so vulnerable and defenseless.
Resting his hand on Egon's uninjured shoulder Peter flinched at how cold and lifeless the flesh beneath his palm felt.
"Egon? I don't know if you can hear me, but, I'm here for you pal." Peter used his other to brush back the messy locks of hair that hung down in Egon's face. "We're all here. And we're not going anywhere without you."
Hours ticked by with the Ghostbusters taking turns sitting in with Egon. Peter was urged to leave when Winston was shown to the room and it took some persuasion but Peter finally left the room and joined the others in the small cafeteria. No one had eaten in hours and everyone was feeling very tired and a little sick from it.
When Winston sat with Egon he couldn't help but check every piece of equipment in the room and measure Egon's pulse for himself. It wasn't that Winston was skeptical about the accuracy of the equipment itself or wary of the skills of the doctors, he just needed to feel the beating Egon's pulse under his fingertips to ease the dread that still lingered when he couldn't find a pulse the night before.
"Glad you're still among the living, man." Winston pulled a chair over to the bed and spoke softly as to not draw attention or disturb the nurses. "You gave us quite a scare. If you think confronting Gozer or Vigo was the scariest moment of my life, you'd be wrong. I never want to see you in this kind of condition ever again, alright?"
There was no response from Egon, not that Winston had expected to receive one.
The beeping of the heart monitor and the whirring of the ventilator was the only sound aside from Winston's warm voice.
"As soon as you're medically cleared we're going to have a serious talk about what to do in the event of abductions. I don't think 911 services are as open minded about vengeful ghosts as we are. And I don't enjoy lying to the cops simply because truth is stranger than fiction."
Dr. Scott and a nurse walked into the room to check on Egon's condition. "Mr. Zeddemore I'll need you to step outside for a few moments."
"I understand." Winston reluctantly took his leave of the room. "I'll be back in a couple of hours Egon. The others will be by to see you, too."
Ray hesitantly sat in with Egon after Winston had left. Seeing the physicist so beaten down was frightening to the sensitive engineer. Being no stranger to bullies and neglect himself the entire event had brought up many painful memories for Ray that he thought he'd long forgotten.
"Hey Egon." Ray's voice was shaking like a leaf. "They've got you all patched up and you'll be out of here, back at the firehouse and busting ghosts before you know it."
Standing beside the bed Ray struggled to look down at his unconscious friend.
"My hand is doing okay," Ray wanted to keep talking but didn't know what to talk about. "the doctor said you did a great job at cleaning it out and wrapping it up. So thanks."
Sitting on the edge of the bed by Egon's legs Ray continued to ramble on nervously.
"Janine is okay too. Slight concussion and a linger headache but the doctors say she can go home today. But I don't think she'll be going anywhere until you do. Never thought I'd see the day where Janine and Peter could be sitting so close to each other without picking on each other trying to get the other riled up. That's weirder than any ghost or 'gooper' I've ever seen!"
Unable to restrain the relentless guilt he felt any longer Ray poured out his heart.
"Egon, I am so, so sorry! It's my fault this happened! I was clumsy and stupid! If I had been more alert and paid closer attention to what I was doing then none of this would have ever happened! I'm the one who should've been beaten and tortured, no you... Not anyone else." Too distraught to move or even look at Egon he continued to apologize. "If you don't pull through I'll never forgive myself... Such a stupid mistake. I'm still that pathetic child left alone, why can't I grow up and be more responsible?"
"Oh Ray," Dana had arrived to sit with Egon and had overheard his self deprecating confessions. "you're not pathetic! It was all an accident, no one blames you." Joining Ray and Egon's beside she wrapped the unsettled engineer in her arms and held him. "Egon wouldn't blame you either. Please... Please don't tear yourself apart over this! We need you!"
"I'm sorry." Ray wrapped one arm around Dana and fully immersed himself her hug. "I don't like feeling alone..."
"You're not alone." Dana soothed with utmost sincerity and kindness. "We're all here for each other, don't forget it."
Ray released his arm from around Dana and used his sleeve to wipe away his face. Aside from sweat he had a fine layer of stubble growing on his chin from being unable to shave since the previous morning.
"Go downstairs and try to relax." Dana coaxed him delicately. "You're exhausted."
"What about you? You've been here since yesterday with Janine. Shouldn't you get home to Oscar?"
"I already called the babysitter, she'll stay until my sister shows up. I don't need to be home for some time."
"But you want to, huh?"
"I don't enjoy being away from my son or spending time in hospitals, but I'm not going to bail on everyone."
"You're not bailing, you're being a good mother. Go home, hug your son and take it easy."
"After you get some rest, then I'll go home for a while."
"Okay then, deal." Standing up from the bed Ray finally looked over at Egon. "See you soon, take it easy."
It didn't take long for Janine to find her way into Egon's room. With the help of Peter she was wheeled into the room and given a moment of privacy so she could speak with the man she had admired for so long. Like Ray she too felt guilty for what had happened to Egon despite everyone reassuring her that there was no blame to be shared.
Taking Egon's cold right hand between both of her own hands she gently rubbed at his knuckles to try and warm his icy touch.
"Dr. Spengler I know that it was an accident and that there was no way to know what was going to happen, but I still feel just awful about everything. If you come back to us I'll give up my chamomile tea and I'll stop getting into shouting matches with Dr. V, I swear it."
Glancing about the room to ensure that she and Egon were truly alone together she decided it was time to confess her feelings for him.
"I don't think it's much of a secret that I... well, I have feelings for you. And not just the usual feelings between two friends, I... I really enjoy being around you. You're smart, you're reliable, you're honest... I've never known a man like you before. And you don't treat women like disposable pleasures, you treat us like we're equals and with respect. I know you don't feel the same way about me as I feel about you, but you never once made me feel like I was being silly or a nuisance for having these feelings. We've never dated but I can honestly say that you're the nicest guy I've ever spent time with. Don't me wrong, Louis is a nice guy too and I don't regret dating him, but there's just something... I just don't... I don't know."
Loosening her grip on his hand she let out a deep sigh. "Maybe I just can't get over this schoolgirl crush. Regardless of my feelings toward you and your feelings toward me I know for sure that the Ghostbusters still need you. I don't think the guys could continue on without you. The loss would tear them apart." Gingerly she ran her hand down the side of his face. "You know Dr. V once said that Ray is the heart of the Ghostbusters, which I guess makes you the brain, Dr. V the backbone and Winston the conscience. And we all know that once the brain is gone... So you have to pull through, you hear me?"
Sitting in silence Janine just watched as Egon remained unconscious in the bed, the ventilator causing his chest to rise and fall with each artificial breath he took.
Peter walked into the room quietly and saw Janine sitting beside the bed with her heavy eyes struggling to stay open.
"Janine?" He whispered as he kneeled down beside the chair. "Come on, you still need to rest. I'll stay with Egon."
"Dr. V?" She opened her eyes fully and was surprised to see him giving her such a thoughtful glance. "I'm okay, I'm not-"
"Yeah, and neither is Ray or Winston or Dana..." He knew what she was going to try and say. Pushing her chair out of the room he politely waved over one of the nurses who was walking the exterior hallway. "We're all tired, but out of the group you're the only one who suffered a concussion. Go back to your room, Ray and Winston are down in the waiting room."
The nurse gladly took the wheelchair and escorted Janine back to her room. "Do you need anything for the pain Miss Melntiz?" The nurse instinctively asked.
"I just need this whole miserable day to end."
"Tell me about it..." The nurse knew the feeling all too well. She wheeled Janine down the corridor and toward the elevator.
Peter backed into the room and stood beside Egon's bedside once more. His training as a psychologist had proven more self serving than he could've ever anticipated as it helped him to push beyond his lingering grievances and anger toward his father and hurt from his mother's passing. In time he had even learned to let people into his life and trust them. Egon was the first friend he could ever fully trust.
"I told you we'd all be by for a visit." He joked playfully. "Now it's my turn to watch over you again."
Pulling up the chair that had been occupied so frequently by Egon's visitors Peter sat down heavily as fatigue took a toll on his body.
"So Spengz, as I'm sure you've been told all day long, we need you buddy." Pausing to keep his voice steady Peter quickly regained his composure. "I need you. You keep me from making a fool of myself, you keep me from shutting down, you keep me from turning tail and running for the hill as soon as things look sketchy."
Watching the steady beat on the heart monitor Peter couldn't help but remember the final days he spent with his mother as she laid dying her hospital bed all those years ago.
"Ray had asked me about... regrets. I told him I didn't have any. That was a lie." Peter bowed his head sadly. "I do have one. You're the one who knows. That night after we took down Gozer, you and I went up to the roof of the firehouse to survey the damage to the city. We counted all the buildings covered in marshmallow residue and you estimated that it was almost seven hundred gallons of goo that would need to be cleaned up, remember?"
Of course Egon would remember. He had a nearly eidetic memory, a trait that Peter often found irritating whenever he made a mistake because he knew Egon wouldn't forget it.
"You, me, Ray and Winston... We all risked our lives to save the entire world and you didn't even blink when you told us to cross the streams. I couldn't understand how you could be so fearless in face of death, and being so close to death made me think of my late mother. It made me realize how much I missed her and I how I had wished I had been brave enough to hold her hand, tell her I loved her and said goodbye when she passed away."
Standing up Peter put his hand on Egon's hair and leaned down, pressing his forehead against Egon's forehead.
"I won't say goodbye, but I won't leave without you knowing how much I care about you. You're my brother. Don't give up on me and I won't give up on you."
A sorrowful tear fell freely from Peter's eye. The tear fell onto Egon's forehead and rolled off into his messy hair.
"Please wake up."
...to be continued...