Small but Fierce

After conferring with the doctors and therapy team, Dani stayed at her aunt’s bedside the rest of the day talking to her constantly and doing range of motion exercises on her arms and legs. Her uncle sat through it all in the uncomfortable hospital chair, silently holding and stroking his wife’s hand. After trying unsuccessfully to lovingly convince her uncle to go home and get some rest, she finally resorted to using her best Nurse Ratchet voice to convince her uncle to unglue his backside from the horrible chair next to his wife’s hospital bed. “You’re not going to do her any good if you fall over too,” She put both hands on her hips and tried to glare at him. “I’m not going anywhere, and you know I know what I’m doing. Nurse’s orders! Go home, eat, take a shower and close your eyes for a few hours. I will call you if there is any change at all.” As he looked up, her voice and demeanor softened. “Please, Uncle E. She’s going to need you to be strong. Take a break now while you can.”

He finally nodded and unfolded himself from the chair. He kissed Lu softly on the forehead. “OK, but you call me if she even twitches an eyelid.”

“You know I will. Any change at all.” She raised up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll see you in the morning if nothing changes.”

Dani managed to procure a hospital recliner from the dialysis unit and spent a quiet night curled up by her aunt’s bedside. As she watched the monitors and the slow, steady rhythm of her aunt’s chest rising and falling, she thought about what she was going to do next. She couldn’t see returning to Dallas until her aunt was solidly on the mend no matter what the consequences. Her heart wouldn’t let her abandon her aunt and uncle at a time like this. By the time the sun was rising, she knew what she had to do.

Her first call was to HR at her hospital to request an indeterminate leave of absence.

“I hate to hear your aunt is so sick,” said Kelsey, the HR manager, “but you know how tight we are on staff. I can’t guarantee your exact job will be available when you come back.”

Her stomach dropped just a little hearing that she might lose the job she had worked so hard to get but she knew that couldn’t be what she concentrated on right now. She had to focus on her family.

“I get that, Kelsey, I really do.” Dani tried to run a hand through her tangled red curls. “This has to be my focus right now. I’ll have to cross that bridge when I come to it.”

“Prayers for your family,” Kelsey said. “I really hope your aunt makes a full recovery. We’ll miss you.”

“Thanks Kelsey. I’ll let you know as soon as I’m ready to come back. We can hope it will be soon.”

Her next call was Zane.

“Dani! How’s your aunt?” he said with concern.

“Zane, I need your help.” She twisted the end of the ponytail she had managed to pull her hair into. “She’s still unconscious. I’m sure the doctors here are fine but I’d really appreciate you looking at her. I trust you.”

Zane’s tone got serious. “Just give me the particulars and I’ll be there this afternoon when I get out of clinic. It’s only about an hour and a half to get there and I’ve got a short day today.”

Dani breathed a sigh of relief and gave Zane the information. Zane had always been ready to help in the past but that was in the hospital in Dallas. She was more than relieved that he was willing to come out to Gladewater for her. If anyone could give her a true picture of her aunt’s condition and a plan of care, it was Zane.

Finally, she called Brandon, her boyfriend. She got his voicemail as usual.

“Brandon, I’m in Gladewater at the hospital with my aunt. She’s still unconscious. It looks like I might be here a while. Call me when you get this.” As the hours ticked by without a call back, she wondered exactly what that said about their relationship.

That afternoon she met Zane in the lobby of the hospital with her uncle.

“Uncle E, this is Zane, uh Dr. Savage. Like I told you, he’s a brilliant neurologist I work with in Dallas. Zane, my uncle, Eustace.”

“I don’t know about brilliant but I do my best,” Zane said, pumping Eustace’s hand.

“Well, I appreciate you taking the time to come all the way over here to look at Lu,” Eustace said. “If Dani says you’re the best, I believe it.”

Dani smiled at her uncle’s confidence in her. “Let’s go see Aunt Lu.”

Back in her room, Eustace said hello to his wife with a kiss on her forehead then moved to the side so Zane could start his exam. Zane reviewed her chart which was still kept at the end of the bed at the small hospital. Just as Zane started his physical exam, Lu opened her eyes. At first, Dani was afraid to hope that she might actually know what was going on around her but when she grabbed her aunt’s hand and smiled at her, she could see the recognition and love pouring out of those round, blue eyes.

Dani waved her uncle over and grabbed his hand too. “She’s back. She’s in there!” Her eyes welled with tears as she smiled.

“Welcome back, you! It’s about time.” She transferred her smile to Zane and her uncle. “She’s really back.”

Zane finished his exam and conferred with the local specialists. The local doctors remained skeptical that she would recover enough to be independent, however, Zane was more optimistic.

“I’ve seen people in this shape go either way,” he explained to Dani and her uncle. “So much of it seems to be determination and will. I’ve had patients I really thought would never speak or walk again and are back at work with only very minor deficits. Others, I thought should have recovered completely but are disabled.” He nodded to Dani and his lip quirked. “If she’s anything like you though, I doubt she’s going to be giving in!”

Dani rolled her eyes as he continued. “She’s a force to be reckoned with in the ICU,” Zane told her uncle. In a mock whisper, he added, “We’re all a little afraid of her.”

Eustace gave the first smile she had seen since arriving at the hospital. “Well, she’s like her aunt then. Lu is little but fierce!”

A whole battery of new tests were completed since her aunt regained consciousness and a rehab plan was created and started the next day. Over the next few weeks, she could tell her aunt was physically and emotionally tired but she continued to work hard to achieve and surpass all the goals set before her. Every evening, she and her uncle kept her aunt company for dinner before they left to go home. Uncle E always spoke glowingly about his wife’s continued progress but she could tell it was wearing on him as well.

“Did you see her pull herself up with the trapeze over the bed today?” Eustace smiled at Dani proudly.

“I did! She’s doing so much better than any of the doctors expected her to…Well, except for Zane, of course.”

“I only wish we could hear her voice again,” her uncle added. “I’d give anything to hear her giving all the doctors and therapists what for.”

Dani just took her uncle’s arm and squeezed. She would like to hear that too.

Several days later they got their wish. Lu had tipped over in the bed while trying to sit up by herself.

“Hhhells bbbbells!” she swore at the ceiling. Dani’s head snapped up and she broke into laughter. These were the first full words out of her aunt’s mouth since the stroke.

“Well, well, good to hear that voice even if you are cussing with it!” Dani laughed as she helped the therapist right her on the side of the bed. She fervently wished her uncle hadn’t gone for coffee a few minutes ago.

Her aunt looked nonplussed. “Nnnnot, cccussing. Ppplace.” She sniffed indignantly but a small smile played on her lips.

“Ok, I’ll give you that one.” Dani smiled broadly. “Let’s get you to the chair.”

After that, she blasted through their goals, one by one, continuing to overshoot their expectations. She was doing so well, it made Dani’s skeptical nurse’s heart a little nervous even as she was bursting with pride at her aunt’s progress. She decided she needed an objective opinion to calm her mind.

She had been playing phone tag with Brandon for a couple of weeks. She was hoping to convince him to come out to Gladewater to put her mind at ease and get some time with him. She had run back to her condo a couple of times to get more clothes and other essentials but she hadn’t felt she had the time to run into the hospital and track him down. She also didn’t feel like fielding all the questions from her well meaning colleagues yet.

She finally decided to call her friend, Kim, instead.

“Hey, girlfriend! I’ve been thinking about you!” Kim said, answering on the first ring. “How’s your aunt doing?”

“She’s doing really well…much better than expected actually,” Dani answered.

“So why don’t you sound very happy? What’s going on?” Kim pressed when she heard the indecision in Dani’s voice.

“No, she really is doing well,” Dani rebutted. She twirled a red curl around her finger then gave a sigh. “You know how it is. As an ICU nurse, if it’s going too well, I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Occupational hazard.”

Kim gave a knowing chuckle. “I get it. If I had to have surgery, I’d be a nervous wreck because I know what can go wrong – even though a problem is so rare. What does Brandon think? I know he’s a cardiac guy but…”

“Well, that’s the problem. I can’t seem to get in touch with him. We’ve been playing phone tag for weeks. I was hoping you could help me out with his schedule.”

“Hmmm…let me grab the book.” Dani heard computer keys clicking before Kim came back on the line. “Looks like he’s pretty backed up until Friday. Friday is golf day with his partners, though.”

Dani perked up. Maybe he could get away for the weekend. “Is he on call this weekend or is it Matthews?”

“Nope, he’s off,” Kim confirmed. “You might want to try him Thursday evening. Maybe he could get down there to see you this weekend.”

“Here’s hoping,” Dani agreed. “Thanks, Kim! You’re the best!”

“You let me know if I can do anything else. We all miss you and want your aunt to get better asap so you can get back in the trenches!”

“Me too, girl, me too. Talk soon!” But as Dani hung up, she realized that while she did miss her friends at the hospital she wasn’t really missing the job she would have said was her raison d’etre just a few weeks ago. The never ending stress of twelve hours days trying to literally keep people alive, dealing professionally with panicked and grieving relatives, while trying to show empathy as well, and managing surgeons’ egos had been weighing on her more than she’d realized.

Per her friend’s suggestion, she called Brandon on Thursday evening and actually got him on the phone after five rings.

“Hey, babe! I’m glad I finally caught you!” Dani said when Brandon answered. “Kim said you’re having a really busy week.”

“Yes, it’s been rather brutal,” Brandon agreed. “The heat is causing a lot of cardiac distress. Always happens this time of year, you know.”

“I remember.” Dani paused then plunged forward. “So, since I really can’t get away for too long yet, I was hoping maybe you could come down this weekend. You could stay with me at the house, of course. We could spend some time together and I could introduce you to my aunt and uncle. And maybe you could check out my aunt real quick.”

“By everything you’ve told me, she’s doing much better than anyone expected. I don’t know what you expect me to contribute to the situation.” Aaand he’d completely skipped over the spend time together part.

Dani rubbed her forehead where a headache had just started building. “I’d just like your unbiased opinion, Brandon. You are tops in your field. It would make me feel better just to have you check her out. And, of course, I miss you.”

“I’m sorry, Daniella, I simply can’t see where I can spare the time.” She could just see him checking his watch. “I’ve got a partner meeting tomorrow and I’m on call this weekend. My best advice is to stop borrowing trouble.”

He had just straight out lied to me. He knew I’d talked to Kim and he still lied. What the fuck?

“You’re right, of course,” Dani said, suddenly desperate to have him off the phone. “I know how hard it is for you to get time off. Miss you.”

“Uh, huh. Well keep me apprised if anything changes. Maybe I can make it next weekend…if you’re still there.” He hung up without so much as a ‘miss you’ back.

This was really taking his newly casual attitude toward their relationship too far. In the beginning, Brandon had been charming and attentive. He had wined and dined her and was so much more sophisticated than the ‘boys’ she had dated before. He was always asking her for her opinion, always giving her his full attention, making her feel like the only person in the room. No one had ever made her feel that special. Well, no one since Levi. No one had ever looked into her soul like that boy had.

She sat with the sting of his rejection for a few minutes before resolutely picking up the phone again. She punched Zane’s number into her cell.

“Dani! Good to hear from you! How’s Lu doing?” Zane said, picking up her call.

“She’s doing fabulously according to all measures but that’s why I’m calling.” She twirled another curl around her finger. “I know you’ll think I’m completely paranoid,” she began “but you know, ICU nurse here, I keep looking for the other shoe to drop even though all signs are she’s doing so well. Could you come check her out one more time? I’ll even buy you lunch! I’ve heard there’s a hidden gem here in town.”

Zane laughed. “Well, you know I can always be bribed with good food. How about tomorrow? I was just going to work on reports but I’d much rather check out your lovely aunt again and I didn’t get to check out much of Gladewater last time.”

“Great! I’ll meet you in the hospital lobby again. 11 ok?” Dani let out the breath she had been holding.

“Perfect. See you then!”

“Looking forward to it!” She smiled and went to tell her aunt and uncle that Zane was coming to town tomorrow.