I think this is probably the longest hiatus I've ever taken, but hopefully it's over and I can get back into writing! Please enjoy this chapter that took way too long.
I took a deep breath and locked eyes with myself through the mirror. The thin hospital gown was threatening to fall right off my shoulders. I ran my left hand nervously through my hair. I was more nervous for this surgery than I had been in a long time. I glanced down at the heavy black boot on my foot and shifted my weight over to my good foot. My right knee twinged and felt so stiff, it was aching from carrying around the weight of the boot for so many weeks. Someone knocked gently on the bathroom door.
"Rachel, are you okay?" Shelby asked gently. I took another deep breath before turning to open the door. Shelby was standing on the other side of the door, her forehead creased with worry.
"Sorry, I just needed a minute." I said and handed her my stack of clothing. Shelby smiled and tucked my clothes under her arm.
"I love the yellow sock." She teased, gesturing to the bright yellow, way too big, hospital sock on my left foot. I smiled and rolled my eyes. I took her free hand and she guided me over to the empty and waiting hospital bed. I eased myself into the bed and swung my feet carefully up. Once I was adjusted and comfortable Shelby pulled the blanket up over me. Mom smiled and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear and kissed me on the forehead before going and sitting down in the chair by my head. The nurse slid the curtain aside and entered my room.
"How are you feeling Miss Berry?" She asked me coming in to stand on the other side of the hospital bed.
"Ready to get this over with." I answered honestly. She smiled and nodded.
"Well you are in luck, I'm here to start your IV and then take you up to the OR. I'll let you pick which arm gets sacrificed." She said. I smiled at her joke and offered up the arm closest to her. She smiled and ripped open an alcohol wipe packet. Once she had cleaned the area she pulled out the needle to start the IV. I watched as she inserted the line into my elbow. Then she attached a bag of clear fluid to my IV. "This is just some fluids to keep you nice and hydrated since you weren't allowed to have anything after Midnight and now it's time for your free ride to the OR. Do you have any questions before I wheel you down?" She asked. I shook my head and turned to lock eyes with Shelby. She smiled encouragingly and squeezed my other hand.
"I'll be right here waiting for you when you wake up." She promised. I nodded and turned back to the nurse.
"I'm ready." I told her. She smiled warmly and nodded. She slapped the sides up on my hospital bed. Thankfully my room wasn't far from the OR and before I knew it I as transferring on to the OR table. I shouldn't have been nervous. This wasn't my first surgery on my foot. It was actually my third, but a small part of me felt like if it didn't work this time, I could kiss Broadway goodbye. I laid down on the OR table a took a deep breath to center myself. The anesthesiologist came into view. Her face was covered by a mask, but I could tell by the lines around her eyes that she was smiling warmly at me.
"Okay Rachel, I'm going to push some medication into your IV that's going to make you drowsy, and then we'll put the mask over your mouth and that will put you fully under. Are you ready?" She asked. I nodded.
"Ready." I confirmed.
"I'm going to take your boot off while Dr. Anderson is putting you under, so don't be alarmed." A nurse told me. I nodded. Dr. Anderson nodded and injected a syringe of yellowish fluid into my IV. I heard a release of Velcro as the nurse unstrapped my boot. Then the world around me seemed to slow down and all the noise in the room seemed to drag out. I blinked slowly and let out a long breath.
"How are you feeling Rachel?" Dr. Anderson asked.
"Fuzzy." I murmured. She nodded.
"You're doing great. We're going to hook up the heart monitor so don't be alarmed by the beeping okay? I'm going to put this monitor on your finger as well so you'll feel some pressure." Dr. Anderson said. I nodded, trying hard to focus on what she was saying. Dr. Waldorf's face appeared in my line of vision as I felt Dr. Anderson placing the heart monitor sensors on my chest.
"Hey Rachel. You're doing great. Ready to get this over with?" He asked. I nodded. It was getting so hard to focus, my body felt so heavy. I felt the monitor slide onto my pointer finger. "Alright Dr. Anderson, we're ready for you to put her under." He told the anesthesiologist. She nodded.
"Okay Rachel. Take a deep breath in for me." Dr. Anderson said as she placed the mask over my face. I nodded and took in a deep breath. "Now count back from ten out loud for me." She coached.
"Ten, Nine, Eight, Se-ve-n, Si-x…" I trailed off as my eyes slipped closed.
Next thing I knew I could feel a heaviness in my limbs, especially in my right foot. My body felt weird and I slowly worked my eyes open. The light was blinding as I came into my surroundings. Shelby was reading through a stack of papers. Probably writing evaluations on her choir students again. I groaned as more feeling started to come into my body. My right foot was throbbing uncomfortably. Shelby looked up from her papers and smiled at me.
"Hey baby, how do you feel?" She asked. I winced when I tried to shift my leg in bed, an unhappy twinge shot up the side of my ankle.
"It hurts." I moaned. Shelby frowned and sat her papers in the chair next to me. She stood up and came over to sit on the edge of my bed.
"Do you want me to page a nurse? They said they gave you some pain medicine in your IV but maybe we can get you some more?" She asked, pushing a strand of hair off my face. I shook my head.
"No, I'll be okay. How did it go?" I asked, I was almost afraid of the answer. Shelby smiled.
"Dr. Waldorf said it went great. I already texted Finn and let him know. He'll be by after school to come check on you. Hopefully we can go home tomorrow." She told me. I nodded.
"Will you lay with me and hold me for a little while?" I asked. Shelby smiled and nodded. Shelby climbed into the bed with me and rested her chin on the top of my head. I took a deep breath and buried my face in her shirt. She began running her hands through my hair and I immediately felt calmer. I felt safe and suddenly it didn't hurt so bad.
So glad to be back with this story. Please drop a review and let me know your thoughts!