Two on a Train- chapter 7
Tony stayed up with Mona for another half an hour before he let the ICU staff know he would be back later. He had so many thoughts circulating through his mind.
'I love Angela! She just broke up with Andy! Did she do it for me? For us? Do I give her sometime before I… oh gosh Kathleen! What do I do about her? I can't break up with her over the phone. I owe her more than that but can I leave here right now? What if something happens to Mona and I'm not here?'
All these thoughts and more were running a mile a minute through his head as he approached Angela's room. He decided to knock this time just in case someone was visiting. He heard her voice and came in the room.
"Angela! You're up and sitting in a chair! That's wonderful! How are you feeling?" he said as he pulled up another chair next to hers.
"I'm a bit sore to be honest. Getting up for the first time in over twenty-four hours takes it out of you! They just gave me my dose of pain medication so hopefully that will kick in soon. They think as long as I don't get an infection I should be good to go home in a few days. How's Mother doing?" she asked as she was finishing her breakfast.
"That's great news Angela! Just keep resting and taking your medication for the pain. Don't be a superhero okay? You've had a major trauma and you need to rest, rest, rest! Mona's holding her own! She doesn't seem to be any worse which is good. I don't think there's much difference from last night so I take that as a win" he said.
"Angela… I'm sorry to hear about you and Andy. What… what happened?" he asked, trying to be supportive but a sense of hope and excitement in his voice couldn't be held back.
"Well… it was a lot of things. How can I possibly devote time to him when all of this is going on? I figure when I'm discharged I'm going to be spending my time between home and here until Mother is well enough to be transferred or go home. You and I are going to have our hands full with everything- the commute back and forth, finding Mother nursing help if she needs it, you've got college, my work. Oh my gosh my work! We are down two employees right now! I've got to call Jack and maybe he can bring me some of my important client files to look over until…" she started to say with increasingly panic in her voice until Tony cut her off.
"Angela! Calm down! Your number one priority right now is to focus on your recovery. Jack and the rest of your team is more than capable of handling the agency until you are up and at it again. As for any care Mona needs, we are family and family sticks together. Whatever medical care she needs we will figure out how to make it happen. I will help in every way possible to make sure she has the very best care possible" he said.
Angela had to wipe the tears from her eyes as Tony pulled his chair even closer to her own. He grabbed some tissues and started wiping her tears as well. She placed her hand on his as it grazed the side of her face.
"Tony, I think we need to talk…" she said as she let their hands fall to the side of the chair, still connected to one another.
"Yes we do Angela… the thing is…" he started to say when they were interrupted by Samantha and Jonathan walking into the room.
"Mom! How are you feeling? Did you sleep okay? How's Grandma?" he said, his questions coming in rapid succession. Both Samantha and Jonathan looked like they had barely slept. Both Tony and Angela gave each other worried looks at one another.
"I'm fine sweetheart. Tony stayed with me all night and Grandma's condition has remained stable since early this morning. Did the two of you eat breakfast? You both look like you've barely had any sleep" she said with worry in her voice.
"We slept Angela but probably not enough. We both stayed up late talking on the sofa and fell asleep down there- thankfully that sofa is pretty comfortable!" she chuckled.
"We stopped on the way here for some breakfast and a lot of coffee! Did you both eat? We were going to stop for you guys but we weren't sure what you wanted. We can always go out again and get you something to eat…" said Jonathan as Tony put his arm around Jonathan's shoulder, calming his pressured, rushed speech. Tony and Angela gave each other another worried look as both kids looked rattled.
"Listen everyone. I'm fine okay? They got me up and out of bed this morning and Tony has been taking wonderful care of me this whole time. I should be discharged in a few days if all continues to go as planned. We both will need your help the next few days and of course when I get home but neither of you are going to be able to help us if you aren't taking care of yourselves. Once you are done visiting, I want you both to go home and sleep a bit. Then get back to school tomorrow and then it's the weekend. I'll hopefully be home and then we can figure out the rest…" she said.
"Angela's right. She's doing okay and hopefully Mona… has stabilized for now. Speaking of, why don't Samantha and I go check back on Mona and you two hang out here? I'll come back in a bit with a wheelchair and take you down to see Mona. If everything is still okay, I might pop out for a bit and grab a quick shower…" he said.
"I think that's a great idea. If anything changes Tony, call me" she said as Jonathan took a seat next to Angela. Tony and Samantha headed out the door.
"You sure you're okay mom? I… we were all so worried. I'm still so worried about Grandma" he said as tears formed in his eyes. Despite being almost fifteen, he looked more like that little blonde headed, reptile-obsessed boy Angela still pictured in her mind almost on a daily basis. Her heart broke watching the pain and worry deepen on his face.
"Come here Jonathan…" she said as he leaned forward. She wrapped her good arm around him and pulled him into a tight embrace. The tears started to flow immediately down both their faces. He wrapped his arms tightly around her, momentarily forgetting her injuries, needing to be as close to his mother as possible. After what felt like a lifetime, they pulled away from one another, Angela wiping away the tears on his face before wiping at her own.
"Listen to me Jonathan. I don't know what's going to happen with Grandma. She's a fighter and has exceeded the doctors' expectations. She has the very best doctors overseeing her care- aside from being there for her, we are doing everything we can for her. I can't tell you not to worry, you're my son after all, but hopefully you will listen to me and take care of yourself until Tony and I come home, okay?" she asked as she gently moved some fallen hair from his eyes.
"Yes I will. Assuming everything is the way it is now, I'll go back to school tomorrow" he said.
"Good. Tony's going to need help around the house. I'm thinking Sam will be around often to help…" she said.
"Yes she will. We talked a lot last night. She's just as worried as I am, maybe even more. I think this is bringing up some stuff from when her mom died. She didn't come right out and say it, but I could tell. To think we came so close to… to losing you. I know I couldn't have handled it but neither could Sam. You are her mother just like Tony is my dad… I mean you guys aren't but you are… oh you understand right?" he said with frustration in his voice.
"Yes I do. Tony thinks of you as a son and I think of Samantha as a daughter. The five of us have really formed quite a unique little family over the past six years. We haven't talked about it, but these past few weeks since Tony and I have been seeing other people have been… awkward. We should have spoken to you both about it but… it never seemed the right time or place. If this situation has taught us anything, it's that we need to live our lives now, not wait. Tell those in our lives just how much we love and care about them" she said.
"You're right Mom… it has been weird around here. Grandma, Sam and I have always thought you and Tony would eventually end up together. I'm still hoping that happens, if I'm being honest, but if this guy Andy is who you end up with, if he makes you happy, I'll make more of an effort to get to know him. I promise…" he said.
"Actually… I broke it off with him this morning. He came to visit on his way to work this morning and I realized he wasn't the one for me. This situation has made a lot of things clearer in my mind too. I don't know when changes may happen, but I have a feeling sooner rather than later they will change… for the better" she said with a smile. Jonathan smiled back as they continued their mother-son chat.
Once Sam and Tony got off the elevator, Tony went to find a doctor or nurse for an update. Samantha headed in to see Mona. She pulled the chair up next to her bed and reached for her hand. The only noise in the room was the steady beeping of the machines.
"Hey Mona it's Samantha! I know I didn't get a chance to talk to you much yesterday… the dweeb took up most of our time…" she said with a slight laugh.
"I guess he earns it as your grandson. It's just… I know I'm not your granddaughter, but it sure feels like I'm worrying about my grandma, not just my dad's boss' mother! I've always thought our relationship was more of an older sister, best girlfriend type relationship, but since yesterday… I've realized it's way more than that with you and… with Angela. You two have been there for me for all of my ups and downs, the first bra and shopping spree, my first dance, my first hickey, my first hangover… you've stopped Dad from flying off the handle more times than I can count and I'm not sure I've ever really told either of you how much you both mean to me. I love you Mona and as soon as you wake up, I'm going to tell you that! Mostly so I can hear you make fun of me for doing it!" she laughed.
Just then, the nurse came in to check Mona's vitals and change her bandages. She wanted to give Mona some privacy. The sights, smells and sounds were also starting to get to her, so the break was welcomed. She saw her Dad talking to a nurse, so she decided to walk over.
"Any updates Dad?" she asked when they had finished their conversation.
"She's holding her own. No real improvements but things haven't gotten worse in about twelve hours. She still needs to make it the next twenty four to thirty six hours for them to feel confident she will recover. I… I don't know what will happen if she doesn't… Angela will be absolutely devastated" he said.
"She won't be the only one Dad. It's like my own grandmother is lying there. It… it breaks my heart to see her like this…" she said as she started to tear up. Tony came closer to her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into an embrace. Tears came for Samantha as she finally allowed herself the emotional release and fatherly comfort she so desperately needed. Tony couldn't help but tear up himself as he tried to comfort his daughter. The flashbacks to the hours and days after Marie's passing came in waves for both of them as they felt a weird sense of deja vu. They pulled back, Tony wiping away her tears from her face. He couldn't help but smile at how much she looked like Marie.
"I told Mona how much she means to me, how much Angela means to me. I know we aren't a family in the traditional sense, but they are the only family we have Dad… and we almost lost them. I don't know what I'd do if we lost them" she said.
"I know Sam… this whole situation has had me thinking about what is truly important in life. The four of you are the most important people in my life. These past few weeks have been… different with Angela dating Andy and me with Kathleen. We haven't handled it the way we should have with you and Jonathan and for that I am truly sorry. This whole experience has made me think a lot about my feelings and what I really want in life" he said.
"It's okay Dad. I won't lie and say we have all been rooting for you and Angela to get together. Mona, Jonathan and I have spent years talking about it, even planning to try and push you two together but we realized if it's going to happen, it will happen. If it doesn't, then we will still have each other in our lives. This has proven that to us all" she said.
"So what do you think of Kathleen? I know you haven't spent much time with her" he said.
"Look… she's not Angela but if she makes you happy, I will get to know her, I promise" she said.
"So would you be heartbroken if I broke up with her?" he asked as he ran his hands through his hair.
"What? I thought… does this mean what I think it means?" she said as she couldn't help the smile that was growing on her face.
"All I will tell you is that things have become clearer for me than they have in a long time. I don't know what's going to happen but some things are going to change. I don't know when but I think soon. If and when something changes, I promise to keep you in the loop alright? he said.
"Okay Dad. Why don't you go get Angela and Jonathan and I'll wait with Mona once the nurses are done" she said. Tony nodded and headed towards the elevators. He got to Angela's room and poked his head inside. He let them know he was getting a wheelchair and would be back soon. He was able to have an orderly bring him a wheelchair and brought it into her room. Between Jonathan and Tony, they were able to help Angela up and into the chair. Even with the pain medication taking effect, Angela was still in a good deal of pain. Tony tried to get her as comfortable as possible before wheeling her out of her room.
"I promise I'll do a better job than you did for me with this thing!" he laughed. Jonathan started laughing as he remembered Tony being wheelchair bound a few years ago. Angela gave him a glaring look before she too burst out laughing. They headed up the elevator, recalling the horror show the practical nurse Doreen put Tony through, wondering if she ever finished dental school.
As they got off the elevator, they were met with a flurry of activity in the hallway. Nurses and doctors were again running into and out of Mona's room. Samantha was standing outside of the room, her hands covering her mouth and nose as her body was practically shaking. Jonathan went running to her as Tony pushed the wheelchair as fast as he could without hurting Angela.
"What happened?" Tony yelled once he got close enough, trying to catch his breath from the quick exertion.
"I was just sitting there telling her about this new guy I liked in one of my classes when all the monitors started going off. Her… her heart stopped again. They… they are trying to get it started again…" she started but couldn't continue talking as the tears poured out. Jonathan held on to her so she wouldn't fall and helped her to the bench in the hallway. He wrapped his arms around her and began to cry as well.
Just then, a doctor came out of the room to talk to the family.
"Please! Is my Mother okay?" pleaded Angela as Tony came to her side, grabbing hold of her hand and leaning as close to her as possible.
"We are doing everything we can to bring her back. If we can't get her heart started in the next ten minutes, I'm afraid we will have to let her go" said the doctor as he went back inside.
"No!" shouted Angela as she broke down in uncontrollable sobs. Tony couldn't hold back his tears either as he held onto Angela. Jonathan and Samantha were able to join them, forming a tight family hug, doing the only thing they could do- hope and pray for a miracle.