THAT RING

by Dodd, Jillian

  Troy’s shift nurse steps into the space.

  “Sorry, I know I’m not really supposed to talk on the phone while in the ICU, but a friend of mine called because he sent a car to drive me home. Thought I could use some sleep. Do you think it’s okay if I’m gone for a little while?”

  “Of course. We have your number and will call and update you on any major changes in his condition.”

  I find the driver easily. He’s in the lobby, holding up a placard. It doesn’t have my name on it, rather just the shape of a diamond. Which makes me smile. He hands me his driver’s cap and a pair of reading glasses and suggests that I tuck my hair up underneath and put on the glasses, as there is quite a bit of press milling around outside.

  His simple trick works. No one pays any attention to us as we leave out the front of the building.

  The second I get in the car, I must fall asleep because when I’m nudged awake, the car is in my driveway.

  I let out a relieved sigh. The sight of my home instantly improving my mood.

  “Thank you so much,” I tell the driver, giving him back his belongings. “I don’t have any cash. I’m sorry. Let me go in the house—”

  “Oh, no, ma’am. Mr. Diamond has taken care of everything. You get some rest.”

  I thank him and let myself in through the garage. The first thing I notice is the smell.

  Probably the neighbors all cooking their Christmas Eve dinners, I think.

  But as I approach the door leading into the mudroom, I hear the yip of a puppy.

  What the heck?

  Devaney opens the door. “Angel heard you come in.”

  The dog runs toward me. I lean down and pick her up, allowing her to lick my face.

  “What are you doing here?” I ask her. “How did you get here?”

  “Why don’t you come into the kitchen, and I’ll explain?” Devaney says.

  “No, you won’t!” Damon yells out. “It was my idea.”

  When I step into the kitchen, I can’t believe my eyes.

  Danny is here. Phillip and Jadyn are here. All the kids are here. Both dogs are here.

  And my house is decorated.

  What looks like the tree from Kansas City is by the fireplace. The table is set for breakfast with all the dishes I bought. Even my chandelier has all the crazy ribbons and bits that I put up there.

  “Merry Christmas!” they all say.

  I get a group hug from all the kids. And kisses from both puppies.

  Tears threaten. I push them back, not wanting to lose it.

  “I can’t believe you did all this.” I’m astonished.

  “The pilot thought we were a little crazy when we brought our Christmas tree in the plane,” Damon jokes.

  “We waited for you to eat dinner,” Danny says. “It’s set up in the dining room.”

  “I must look like a mess.”

  “You look perfectly fine,” Jadyn says. “And you’ve got to be hungry.”

  “We thought we’d eat and each open one present, and then we have to get to bed,” Devaney says. She turns to me and whispers, “At least, the little kids need to think we’re in bed.”

  “Come on,” Phillip says. “Everyone, go take your seat.”

  Everyone files out, leaving me and Danny in the room. He’s a couple feet away from me, and I’m just staring at him, wondering how in the world I got so incredibly lucky.

  I shake my head at him, tears filling my eyes. “This is crazy. I can’t believe you all did this.”

  He nods and takes a step toward me. I’m pretty sure if he touches me right now, I will both simultaneously fall apart and be put back together. Back together in a different way than I was before. The pieces adjusted so I perfectly fit into his life now.

  He wraps his strong arms around me and pulls me close. “I’m sorry you’ve had to go through this alone. But know that you’re not alone. Even when we’re not together, me, the kids, the Mackenzies, our friends, we’re all”—he leans back a little and looks into my eyes, and then he grins—“your offensive line. Our job is to love and protect you. That’s why we brought Christmas to you. And I’ll be honest though. I can’t take credit for any of this. The kids came home from their mom’s and saw all that you had done. How much you care about all of us. They immediately went over and told Jadyn their plan. I was informed of it after the game. Told that, as soon as my team plane landed, I was to get off, run over to their plane, and get on board, so we could take off. They packed it all. Brought it all. I did help decorate here. I knew it was going to be our first Christmas together. I’m excited actually that it’s here. This house symbolizes your new beginning. Our new beginning as a family.”

  “Oh, Danny,” I say, pressing my lips to his.

  “We’re ready to eat!” Damon yells from the other room. “Stop making out and get in here.”

  “Damon,” Devaney admonishes.

  “Never a dull moment,” I say, putting my hand in his. “I just realized how hungry I am.”

  I perk up a little after the wonderful meal and enjoy watching the children each open a present. Phillip brings me a glass of wine and a piece of the chocolate peppermint pie I made.

  “Thank you. For all of this. How did you get this all here?”

  “You’re welcome. And some really big coolers. You look tired.”

  “I am more worn out than sleepy. The last however long I’ve been here have been very up and down for me emotionally and for Troy physically.”

  Jadyn plops down next to me. “This pie is freaking delicious!”

  “Which is why I’m taking Jennifer’s,” Danny says, snatching my plate.

  “What are you doing? I want that.”

  “You are coming with me. I ran you a hot bath, and you can eat it in there. Then, you are going to bed. Santa won’t come if you aren’t in bed.”

  I burst out laughing.

  “We wouldn’t want that, now would we?” I reply as he takes my hand and leads me to the master bedroom.

  December 25th

  Danny

  “What are you two doing up so early?” I ask Devaney.

  She and Chase are snuggled up on the couch in front of the fireplace.

  “You know I can never sleep on the night before Christmas.”

  “Which means, she keeps me awake.” Chase chuckles.

  “We were also hoping to talk to you before everyone else got up.”

  “What about?” I ask, taking a seat, trying not to freak out.

  Why does she sound so serious? Why is Chase really down here with her? Oh God, she couldn’t be pregnant, could she?

  “We brought the engagement ring with us but didn’t put it under the tree like you’d planned. Because, well …” She purses her lips and furrows her brow.

  “Because we don’t think you should propose,” Chase finally says for her.

  “We think you should propose. Just not today. It just doesn’t feel right, Dad,” Devaney explains. “Troy being in the hospital is obviously weighing heavy on her. She looked beat last night.”

  “She was. I appreciate you guys bringing the ring, but I agree. I am not planning to propose today.”

  “Oh, good,” Devaney says, looking relieved.

  “Normally, we would go wake everyone up now, so we could open presents, but we’re not going to do that this year,” Chase says. “We want to let her sleep in.”

  “Are you talking about me?” Jennifer says, scuffling into the room, a fluffy robe wrapped around her. “Because it’s Christmas morning, and I can’t wait to open presents!”

  “Awesome!” Devaney says, jumping up. “Come on, Chase. We get to go jump on some beds!”

  Jennifer sits next to me on the couch and gives me a kiss. “Merry Christmas, Danny.”

  “Merry Christmas, Jenn—” The sound of my voice is drowned out by six happy children and two dogs rushing down the stairs.

  “Santa was here!” Madden yells. “Santa was here!”

  “I was afraid he wo
uldn’t know we switched houses,” Ryder agrees.

  “We’re going to go let the puppies outside, and then we’ll open our stockings!” Devaney yells as she runs by.

  Jennifer

  Christmas morning is amazing. I’ve never celebrated quite like this before, and it’s fun to take part in their traditions. Opening stockings is a free-for-all. We see what’s in them at the same time and are allowed to eat our candy right away. Breakfast is put in the oven while presents are being passed out. Everyone sits in a circle and takes turns opening a gift. When you take off the wrapping paper, you wad it up and throw it across the room to either Phillip or Danny, who has a trash bag to keep things from getting too messy. Getting through all the gifts with this many people takes a lot of time, but I love being able to see everyone’s reactions. As soon as the food is ready, we take a break to eat and then start back at it.

  It’s a wonderful time, and I try really hard to be fully in the moment, but I find myself distracted. I’m constantly checking my phone to see if there are any updates. At one point, I feign a bathroom break so that I can call the nurse on duty because I haven’t heard anything. She basically tells me that Troy’s condition remains unchanged.

  Danny must notice because he pulls me aside after the gifts are all opened and the kids are playing with them. “You need to get back there, don’t you?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t need to. Nothing has changed, but—”

  “You feel like you should be there.”

  “Yes,” I say, looking at the floor. “And I feel guilty about that. Seriously, Danny, this has been the best Christmas of my life.”

  “Mixed with the worst,” he says, pushing my chin up and looking into my eyes. “Go get dressed, and we will head to the hospital.”

  “We?”

  “Yeah. You and me. We’re a team, remember?”

  “Oh, no. It’s not fair to your kids for you not to be here.”

  “I won’t be able to stay too long. The plan is to have Christmas dinner later this afternoon, and then we have to fly back. I have practice in the morning. But I do want to go with you, at least for a bit.”

  “That’s really nice of you,” I say, brushing away tears.

  When we arrive at the hospital, I realize it has undergone a transformation since I was last here. Paparazzi are out in full force. Troy’s fans have left a mass of signs, trinkets, and flowers outside the entrance. A few appear to be holding a candlelight vigil.

  “Should we try to disguise ourselves or find another place to get dropped off?” I ask Danny. “It’s a bit of a circus.”

  “Just take my hand. It will be okay,” he says sweetly.

  We’re recognized the second we get out of the car. Reporters and fans call out my name.

  “Jennifer, what can you tell us about Troy’s condition?”

  “Jennifer, is it true that you have medical power of attorney?”

  We keep walking.

  Danny’s head is held high.

  I try to do the same while keeping my emotions in check.

  “Danny, are you jealous about Jennifer being here?”

  Danny stops in his tracks and turns around. “Who asked that question?” he asks.

  “Um, I did. People want to know,” a female reporter says.

  “Sometimes, in life, we are called upon to do the right thing. Jennifer is doing the right thing, and I fully support her.”

  Some hospital visitors are trying to get past the reporters who have gathered around us.

  He moves to part the crowd for them and then says, “Please be respectful of the fact that Troy is not the only patient in this hospital. There’s really no need for any of you to be here. It’s Christmas. Go home and spend the day with your families. If there’s a change, Jennifer will post on her social media.”

  He wraps an arm around me and shuttles me inside.

  Troy looks about the same as he did when I left last night. An update from his doctors tells me that while there is no change in his condition, his body is struggling. They basically prep me for the worst while working toward the best.

  And tell me that all we can do is wait.

  February 4th

  Jennifer

  And wait we did.

  It’s been weeks since Troy was brought to the hospital. I’ve been here a lot. Probably more than I should have been. But Danny has been incredibly supportive and understanding through it all.

  I make my way into the ICU and back to Troy’s room, discovering there hasn’t been any change since yesterday. He’s still here. Still on dialysis due to his ruptured kidneys.

  But there has been some significant progress. He was taken out of the medically induced coma and off the ventilator. Breathing on his own for the first time since the overdose is a big milestone. The second was the brain function tests showed that there was in fact function. He will have some physical, emotional, and cognitive damage, but based on his age, with rehabilitation, they are hoping he can overcome most of it. The main takeaway is that he isn’t brain dead. And that, for me, is a huge relief.

  Kansas City made it through the playoffs, and they’ve been in LA all week to prep for the big game—a game I definitely won’t be missing. But very early this morning, I kissed Danny good-bye and then headed here.

  I’m sitting next to Troy’s bed, flipping through the pages of a women’s magazine and reading random things out loud when there is movement from the bed.

  Troy’s arms are flailing.

  At first, I think he’s having a seizure, but then I come to the realization that he’s awake and trying to pull his feeding tubes out.

  I grab his hand and loudly say his name, which causes his nurse to come racing into the room.

  “Troy, it’s okay! You’re in the hospital. It’s Eddie. I’m here with you.”

  His eyes are wild, but when I speak, they move in my direction.

  And he looks at me.

  He actually looks at me.

  “It’s okay,” I reassure him.

  He opens his mouth like he wants to say something, but no words come out.

  “We’ll talk after they take the tube out,” I tell him, running my hand down his arm. Relieved tears prickle my eyes. “You’re awake, Troy. You’re finally awake.”

  From that moment on, there are a litany of doctors and nurses coming to see him and one test after another. They take the tube out of his throat and offer him a little water, which he’s able to drink.

  And, at one point during it all, he turns to me. “Eh-dee.”

  I lose it.

  Start bawling.

  So many times, it was suggested that I take him off life support. But I didn’t. I don’t know if it was stubbornness or my own weakness that wouldn’t allow me to do so. And I worried all the time that I was making the wrong decision. But hearing him try to speak my name is the sweetest of sounds. It lets me know that I did the right thing.

  Hours later, a nurse suggests, “Jennifer, you should take a walk. Go get something to eat. The tests will continue throughout the course of the next few days as we assess his situation.”

  “Okay,” I say, taking a deep breath. “I’ll run down to the cafeteria. Grab some coffee.”

  I take the now-too-familiar walk to the café and notice patrons raptly watching the television. I look up at it.

  Oh shit! The Super Bowl game!

  I rush out of the cafeteria and sprint down the hall, back to Troy’s room where I grab my phone.

  I have numerous calls and texts from Danny, his kids, Jadyn and Phillip, probably wondering where the hell I am.

  I hit Jadyn’s number.

  “Jennifer!” she says, sounding relieved. “We’ve been worried about you!”

  “I’m so sorry! Troy woke up! And there were tests and procedures, and I lost track of time. I’ll drive back and meet you at the house.”

  “The house? Jennifer, the game starts in less than thirty minutes. We’re here. At the stadium. In the suite!”


  “Oh my God. I have to get there. I have to let Danny know I’m there. I just have to,” I say, starting to cry.

  “You’ll never make it in traffic. But that’s okay. I can get ahold of Carter, have him tell Danny you’re on your way and what happened.”

  “I’m an idiot,” I sob hysterically. “I have been spending all this time with Troy, trying to do the right thing, and I’m going to miss this. I can’t miss this. He needs to win. I need to be on his wall.”

  “Jennifer, calm down. You’ll be able to get here for some of the game. Wait, what? Hang on, Phillip is talking to me. Here,” she says, “you talk to her.”

  Phillip comes on the line. “Remember Melvin, the plumber who worked on Danny’s house?”

  “Uh, yeah?” I say, wondering what the heck that has to do with anything.

  “His brother, Denny, is one of LA’s finest, and we got him into a VIP party last night with the teams. He told me if I needed anything at all, to call him. I’m calling him now.”

  I hear Jadyn talking in the background. “With traffic, she won’t get here for two hours, based on this navigation app, which is usually spot-on.”

  I can’t believe that I spent the day with the man I don’t love anymore instead of the one I do. I’m a shit girlfriend.

  Hell, after this, I probably won’t even be that anymore.

  I hear pieces of Phillip’s conversation. “Phillip Mackenzie … favor. The missus … the cruise even if they don’t win. Uh-huh. Sure. Perfect.”

  Phillip comes back to Jadyn’s phone. “Jennifer?”

  “I’m here.”

  “In precisely fifteen minutes, an LAPD helicopter is landing at the hospital. Captain Denny Martin, Melvin’s brother, is going to pick you up. He’ll land close to the stadium and have a patrol car take you in.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes, but do you have your ticket and passes with you?” he asks. “If you left them at the house, then I don’t know that there’s much we can do.”