"Calleigh has some bleeding in her brain…" She started.
The words felt like knives to the chest. Horatio took a step back and gripped the edge of the counter he was standing next to. Eric didn't move a single muscle. He just kept staring at Alexx, waiting for her to say more, waiting for her to say it was okay, that it was over, that this was all actually a dream.
"So what happens now? Ryan finally spoke up.
"She's going into surgery now, there's no way to tell how long it'll take. They have to find the bleed and try to stop it first, then assess what type of damage has been done" Alexx began explaining. Eric stepped back and left the building. Natalia was about to go after her before Horatio grabbed her arm to stop her.
"Let him go, he needs to breathe" Ryan said gently. Natalia went to head back to her seat. "What do you think is going to happen" Ryan asked while pinching the bridge of his nose.
"I think she is a strong girl, and that they have the best doctors in the state here" Alexx said with a tight smile. She placed a hand over Horatio's. "I better get back" Alexx said softly. Horatio nodded. Alexx turned back around and re-entered the door she had previously came from. None of them knew how to respond.
Eric paced outside the hospital trying to get his thoughts together. Brain Surgery. He knew he needed to calm down and that right now there was nothing that he could really do to help. He felt like a fish out of water. The one thing he needed was to take a deep breath and air was all around him but he couldn't get it. His mind was spinning and he couldn't get his head on straight. He turned around and punched his fist into the brick wall. The pain shot up his arm like a bolt of lightning and finally he was back. He gripped his hand and squinted his face at the pain. He looked up and saw Horatio standing there watching him with his arms folded across his chest.
"We need to get Bryan processed and we need to build this case" Horatio started. Eric watched as Natalia and Ryan exited the hospital and got in their Hummers. "You're staying here, we will handle this" Horatio finished. Eric looked down at his hand and realized that he would be of no help to them around Bryan. He nodded and walked back towards the entrance. Horatio put a hand on Eric's shoulder and stopped him for a quick moment, "She is going to be alright" He said confidently. With that Horatio walked away and back towards his own vehicle. Eric took a deep breath and headed back into the waiting room. He needed to get it together. He needed to be strong for her. He needed to believe she would be okay.
He read through every magazine in the entire waiting room area. He watched multiple families enter and exit the doors, always leaving with smiled on their faces. He watched the arms on the clock move as slow as ever. He must of dozed off at some point because he woke up to Alexx sitting next to him nudging his arm. Eric saw it was her and shot up in his seat.
"How is she?!" He spurt out without thinking. Alexx looked at him with a smile that seemed to be hiding something.
"Surgery went well, they stopped the bleeding. She is still asleep right now and we won't really know what damage has been done until she wakes" Alexx explained. Eric searched for the words that he could string together into a sentence. "She will still have basic abilities as far as we can tell, walking and breathing on her own" Alexx began again. "As far as things like vision, hearing, and memory, we are not so sure". She finished. Eric nodded. He couldn't believe any of the things that she was suggesting, he wouldn't. Her sight, her hearing, her memory? Those were the things that made up who she was as a person. The person he loved. "You can see her if you'd like?" Alexx suggested. Eric just nodded again. Alexx stood and offered her hand to him. She had always cared for them like a mother. Eric took her hand as the walked through hallways and eventually the walk got more quiet until it was silent. The ICU. Eric dropped Alexx's hand as he saw Calleigh through the glass window. He had a flashback to the fire incident when she ended up in the same position. When she collapsed in his arms and he again had to carry her.
"You can go in, some people say that talking helps? She will wake up on her own eventually" Alexx explained as she pat him on the arm. "I need to get back to my real job now, but I will keep in touch with the doctors here" She said as she walked back down the hall that they had initially come from.
Eric took a deep breath and entered the room slowly. He pulled a chair up to the side of her bed and took her hand. He remembered doing the same thing not so long ago when this happened. She was always so devoted to the job. She always put people before herself.
"Calleigh, why do you do this?" Eric said quietly as he rubbed a thumb over the top of her hand. "You always go so far, and I will always admire that about you querida, but you've done too much this time. I can't keep coming here and praying that you will come out of it alright, you've got to be selfish for once. You've got to put yourself first" Eric said. He looked up at her bruised face, her head wrapped in a bandage. "Come back to me Calleigh, come back to us" He nearly begged. He felt his eyes sting as he looked at her body, it seemed so small. He watched as her eyes squinted up and she blinked a few times. Eric shot up from his chair.
"Calleigh?! Hey Cal look at me!" Eric pleaded. Calleigh turned her head and locked eyes with him and immediately began to cry. "I NEED HELP IN HERE! SHE'S AWAKE" Eric yelled. He felt a small smile cross his face as he wiped the tears from her cheeks. A nurse quickly entered the room with a doctor in tow.
"Hey Ms. Duquense, glad you decided to join us today" The doctor said with a warm smile.
Okay guys short chapter because the next one is going to be long. So Calleigh is awake but what about the damage that Alexx was talking about? We know she can at least hear and see, but what about her memory? More to come so let me know what you guys thought!