Tony and Mona were both taken aback when they saw who Angela's doctor was.
"You're Angela's doctor?!" Mona asked in shock.
"Yeah, small world isn't it?"
"Mona, who is this?" Claire asked.
"This is Andy. He and Angela dated years ago."
"Hello. It's nice to meet you." Andy said, holding out his hand.
"You too. I'm Claire. Angela's housekeeper."
Andy nodded.
"So how is she? Is she okay?" Tony asked frantically.
"Well she has to have surgery. There are a lot of internal injuries and she has been unconscious since the accident."
"And how long will the operation take?" Mona asked as she grabbed on to Tony's hand.
"A couple of hours. I would tell you to go home or get something to eat but I know that would be futile so you can wait in the waiting room down the hall to the left."
"Can we see her?" Tony asked in a pleading tone.
"No, I'm sorry but you can't." Andy said gently. "But, I promise I'm going to do everything I can."
"I know you will." Tony said. The two men shook hands. It was a surreal moment. A woman they had both dated and both loved was fighting for her life. It obviously wasn't the way they would have chosen to see each other again but unfortunately there wasn't anything they could do to change it.
"We'll be prepping her for surgery in a few moments. Now if you'll excuse me." Andy nodded at them and began to walk away.
"Andy?"
He turned around.
"Yeah Mona?"
"Take care of my baby."
"I will." Andy smiled and went back to where he had come from.
"I can't believe that he is Angela's doctor." Mona shook her head.
"I know. But, I also know he is a good one."
"But, you're both still worried." Claire said in concern.
Tony sighed. "I'm not going to relax until someone comes out and tells us that she is okay."
"Come on, let's go to the waiting room." Mona said. They began walking away when they heard the elevator doors open and Sam walked out.
"Hey! How is she?"
"She has to have surgery." Claire informed her.
"Oh. Well, this is a good hospital. Who is her doctor?"
"You're not going to believe this but it's Andy."
"Andy! Angela's ex-boyfriend Andy?"
"Yeah, we were surprised too."
"We were just going down to the waiting room." Claire told her.
"Okay." Without another word they walked down to the waiting room and stepped inside.
Sam, Mona, and Claire sat down while Tony paced up and down in front of them.
"Dad, you're going to tire yourself out. Please sit down."
"I can't Sam. I just… I can't. I feel like I'm going crazy. I can't lose her.. If I lose her…" he trailed off.
"You're not going to lose her. We're not going to lose her." Mona said.
"This is all my fault." Tony lamented.
The three women looked at each other in confusion.
"Dad? How is any of this your fault?"
"Because if I had come back from Iowa a few years ago she wouldn't have had the accident."
"You don't know that Tony. She still could have had the accident no matter what." Claire told him.
"Look Tony playing the what ifs and I should have and could have come back isn't going to help or change anything." Mona told him firmly.
"I know. " He stopped pacing and looked at the three women in front of him. "I just. I love her. And we have wasted so much time and so many years. I just want to spend the rest of my life loving her and making her happy."
"And you'll get that chance Dad."
Tony nodded and sat down next to Sam.
"Oh my God! Jonathan! Does he know?" Tony asked and jumped up.
"Yeah, I called him after I called Fran. She sends her love by the way."
"Okay." Tony said and sat back down.
After about an hour Jonathan entered the waiting room.
"Hey guys." Jonathan said and gave the three ladies a hug. When he got to Tony the two men- the two most important men in Angela's life -embraced one another.
Jonathan sat down next to Tony.
"So how is she?"
"Well she's in surgery right now." Sam informed him.
"Yeah, and you will never guess in a million years who her doctor is." Mona shook her head.
"Who?"
"It's Andy." Tony informed him quietly.
"Andy? Her ex-boyfriend Andy?!"
'Yeah, we were shocked too." Mona informed her grandson.
"Wow! Small world." Jonathan shook his head.
They all sat in silence for a while until Sam asked if anyone wanted anything to eat or drink. Mona, Claire, and Jonathan said they did but Tony shook his head no.
"Are you sure Dad? It's my treat." Sam smiled at him.
"No thanks honey. I'm not going to be able to eat or drink anything until I know she'll be okay."
'Okay. Jonathan, would you like to help me?"
"Okay."
Mona looked at Claire and motioned to Tony with her head. Claire understood and nodded back.
"I'll come too." Claire said and stood up.
Sam and Jonathan stood up too and the three of them walked out.
"Okay bub. You and I are going to have a talk."
"Mona? How could I have been so stupid to just let her walk away? And how in the hell could I have chosen a job over her?! You and Jonathan were right, I am just like Michael."
'Yeah, you are. Or you were. Look Tony I want you to know that I didn't like hurting you like that. I didn't like telling you that you were just like that jerk. But, I had to say something to get you to listen to reason."
Tony rubbed his hands over his face. "When Sam told me that Angela had been in an accident I felt a cold shiver go through my body. The last time I felt like that was when Marie told me she had cancer."
Mona nodded, her eyes filled with tears.
"And it shook me to the core. I just couldn't believe that God would be that cruel and give a sweet and loving woman like Marie cancer. And when I lost her I didn't think I would be able to go on. But, I knew I had to for Sam. But, the one thing I never in a million years thought I would do or even wanted to do was fall in love again. But, I did. And yes I know it took me a while to admit it…'
"A while?" Mona winked at him in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"Okay, okay. Don't rub it in!"
"Tony, what happened to Marie was horrible. But Angela is going to be fine. She has to be. God isn't going to be that cruel to you again."
"I hope so Mona." Tony said quietly. After a few moments he stood up.
"I can't sit here anymore. I'm going to go take a walk."
"Okay, do you want some company?"
Tony shook his head. "No, if you don't mind I'd rather be alone."
"Okay."
Tony walked out and a few minutes later Sam, Claire, and Jonathan walked back in holding a couple of trays filled with coffee and sandwiches.
"Where's dad?" Sam asked, looking around the room.
"He said he couldn't sit here anymore. So he went to take a walk."
"Oh? Well maybe I should go be with him."
"He said he wanted to be alone. And I think in this case we should respect his wishes."
"Okay."
They all grabbed a cup of coffee and a sandwich and continued waiting for news.
Tony had been wandering around the hospital for about twenty minutes when he came upon the hospital chapel. He knew this was exactly where he was supposed to be. He opened the door and found the room empty. He went up front and lit a few candles and said a few prayers. He then sat down and looked up. There was only one person he could talk to right now.
"Hello Marie."