“She still isn’t awake.”
“I’m so sorry, Kell. Do you want us to come there? I can get someone to cover my classes. I don’t know about Greene, but she could probably move some things around.”
“No, there’s nothing you guys can do.”
“But you’re there alone.”
Kellan was alone in the room, but she hadn’t felt alone the entire time she’d been in Tahoe. Even prior to meeting Remy at the market and before she met Reese and got introduced to all their friends, she still felt better because she was in Tahoe. She’d always loved this place. She’d considered it a home away from home and had returned as often as she could. This trip was different, and it was different because of Reese but also because she loved these people, too.
“I have people here,” Kellan returned. “Reese’s sister and her boyfriend are here. Her best friend is here. Others come in and out but can’t stay the whole time.” She sighed.
“If you change your mind, I’ll be there, Kell. We all will be,” Hillary insisted. “I’m so sorry about this.”
“Me too. I’m so in love with her, Hill. I’ve never been more in love with anyone, and I’ve known her a month. It’s not enough time.” She let her tears fall and resisted trying to catch them. “It’s not enough time.”
“Kellan, it never is,” Hillary replied sympathetically. “I’ve felt that kind of connection once before, and I thought it was forever. I thought I’d found my soulmate. And when things were good between us, it didn’t matter how much time we had together. It was never enough.”
“And when things got bad between you two?”
“Even when we’d fight back then, there was no one else I wanted to fight with like that, because I knew it was us against the world. We’d always work it out.”
“And then you didn’t?”
“Life happened; we separated. It was terrible and lonely. I hated it, but it was for the best for both of us. I hope I’ll find the person I’m actually supposed to be with one day. But, Kellan, even when I do, there will never be enough time. That’s why it’s so important to make the time we do have count.”
Kellan knew Hillary was right. She also knew she needed to get out of this hospital waiting room for at least a few minutes. Reese would be getting more tests done for at least another hour, and she’d been at the hospital since seven in the morning. She’d wanted to stay the night last night, but Remy and the doctors had insisted she go home. She’d objected but had been overruled. She’d slept again in Reese’s bed without Reese beside her, and it had been cold.
She made her way to the automatic glass doors that opened to the outside and slid her hands into the pockets of her jacket. She moved to sit on the bench where she’d seen a couple of smokers congregate before, which she now had to herself, and breathed the fresh, cold air into her lungs. She held it there for a moment before releasing it and then repeated the same actions again and again.
“There you are!” Ryan rushed through the doors a few moments later.
“What’s wrong?” Kellan stood quickly.
“You need to come back inside,” he said but offered nothing else before rushing back into the hospital.
Kellan guessed he wanted to get back to Remy’s side as quickly as possible, which could only be bad in Kellan’s estimation. She rushed toward the waiting room. When she arrived, she saw Morgan with her head in her hands, but there was no sign of Remy or Ryan.
“What happened?” She moved toward Morgan.
“She crashed,” Morgan stated without looking up. Kellan could tell she either still was or had been crying. “I don’t know.”
“What?” Kellan more or less fell into a chair across from Morgan. “What do you mean you don’t know?”
“We came back up here, and the doctor walked in and told Remy something. She ran to Reese’s room. Ryan and I stayed here. Remy came back to tell us she’d crashed and they were trying to revive her. She sent Ryan to get you and then she ran back to the room.” She lifted her head enough to say and then lowered it again. “I thought she was getting better.”
“I’m going back there.” Kellan stood.
“You can’t. Ryan’s not even supposed to be back there, but he went for Remy.”
“I’m going back there,” Kellan asserted. “I can’t leave her alone, Morgan. I won’t.”
She made the hardest and longest walk of her entire life as she proceeded down the now familiar path to Reese’s hospital room. When she got there, she couldn’t hear anything coming from inside it. She pressed her palm to the wall to hold herself up because no noise could not be a good thing when someone’s heart was failing. Her own heart was racing as she pushed off and took a few steps into the room. When she arrived, the emptiness of the space was both a relief and a concern. Reese’s hospital bed wasn’t there, which could only mean that they’d moved her. Kellan left the room and walked down the hallway in the opposite direction of the waiting room. She found a nurse at the nurse’s station and approached her.
“Can you tell me where Reese is?”
“You shouldn’t be back here.”
“Please!” she yelled and could no longer contain her emotions. “Where’s Reese?”
“Honey, I don’t know.” The nurse placed a tentative hand on Kellan’s forearm. “Why don’t you have a seat over here? I’ll find out for you, okay?”
Kellan didn’t respond. She didn’t want to have a seat either, but she’d do it if it meant the nurse would help her find her girlfriend. The woman walked her behind the desk in the alcove to their right and sat her in one of the rolling chairs before she walked off. The beige and off-white walls closed in on Kellan as she waited and waited. The nurse returned an eternity later and knelt by Kellan’s chair. Kellan couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t speak. The nurse’s eyes showed fear. Kellan could only assume at the meaning behind that glance. Her chest heaved in and out as the woman muttered something to her. She couldn’t hear the words though. She could only see the woman’s mouth move, as if she were in a silent movie. Then, it went dark.
CHAPTER 28
“She’s awake.” Morgan’s voice was coming from Kellan’s side. “Kellan?”
“What happened?” she asked with a groggy voice she didn’t even recognize as her own.
“You passed out. You were dehydrated and exhausted,” Remy replied.
Kellan opened her eyes further and lifted her head to see Remy at the end of the bed and Morgan on the right side of it.
“What happened to Reese? You should be with her.” Kellan moved to sit up, but Morgan placed a hand over her own and stopped her.
“They are.”
The voice sounded even groggier than her own and came from her left. She turned to see Reese lying in a hospital bed identical to her own. Her gray eyes were open. Her face was turned toward Kellan.
“Reese?” Kellan sat straight up, throwing Morgan’s hand aside. “You’re okay?” She hung her legs over the bed and Remy came around to that side.
“Hey, hold on there. You have an IV in you.” She helped Kellan steady herself.
“Lie down, Kell,” Reese said in that still groggy voice.
Kellan moved with Remy’s help to Reese’s bed a few feet from her own. The IV pole moved on its wheels with her.
“How are you? What happened? I love you. I thought I’d lost you. God, I love you, Reese.” She let it all out along with a few tears as her hand cupped Reese’s cheek.
“I love you too,” Reese replied and turned her head into Kellan’s hand.
“She’s still a little out of it,” Remy told Kellan. “And you should be in bed. The two of you have reached your limit of hospital visits in this relationship. Understood?” Remy placed a hand on Kellan’s shoulder. “Unless it’s because one of you is popping out a kid or something.”
“Remy!” Morgan exclaimed. “Come on, let’s give them a minute. Kellan, do you want a chair?”
“Yes, please.”
&
nbsp; Morgan pushed the chair from the corner in between their beds. Kellan sat down, holding Reese’s hand now and intertwining their fingers while she stared into Reese’s eyes.
“She’s not out of the woods yet,” Remy told Kellan.
“How long was I out?” she asked Remy but didn’t look away from Reese.
“It’s Monday.” Remy lifted her phone from her pocket. “And it’s three in the afternoon.”
“What?” Kellan turned her head toward her, finally. “It was Sunday night.”
“It was. Now, it’s Monday afternoon. The doctors thought it would be best to let you sleep after they got you hydrated. You woke up around six this morning. Do you not remember?”
“No, I don’t.” Kellan tried to recall waking up but couldn’t remember anything after the nurse’s blurry face and soundless speech.
“You’re okay. But they wanted to make sure you rested. You haven’t exactly been taking care of yourself. You’ll just need to be discharged. They’ll probably want some blood work and maybe to feed you.”
“I’m not going anywhere.” She turned back to Reese.
“Obviously.” Remy chuckled. “But at least then you can stay in here as a girlfriend and not as a patient,” she informed. “My little sister here, on the other hand, will be a patient for at least another few days.”
“Great,” Reese grumbled with sarcasm, and Kellan smiled at her.
“How do you feel?” Kellan asked her. “Or is that a dumb question?”
“Why would that be a dumb question?” Morgan asked, and Kellan remembered Morgan was in the room.
“I think you were right,” Remy said. “Let’s give these two some time alone.” She moved to the other side of Reese’s bed and squeezed her hand. “I’m going to find Ryan. He’s calling everyone to update them. We’ll be in the cafeteria, getting a late lunch, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Have them find us if there’s any change?” Remy looked at Kellan, who nodded. “Be back soon. I love you, little sis.”
“I love you, big sis.”
Once they were alone, Kellan ran a hand over Reese’s other cheek. Her hair was still matted to the pillow. There was still a white bandage on her forehead. She had lines and cables coming from nearly every body part, it seemed. But, to Kellan, she was perfect. She was awake. She was talking. She was perfect.
“You’re awake,” she muttered in disbelief.
“I love you too, you know?” Reese said with a small smile.
“I know.” Kellan nodded, and a tear trickled down her cheek. “What happened? I came looking for you, and you were bad, Reese. I thought you’d–”
“Hey, I’m still here. And I’d love a kiss from my girlfriend,” Reese interrupted.
“Should we?”
“Of course, we should,” she said.
Kellan lifted herself up slightly and kissed Reese’s dry, chapped lips. She held her own lips in place for as long as she could stand before she separated them.
“I love you.”
“I’m sorry,” Reese started. “I should have gone to the doctor. I just didn’t think there was a problem, and not because of the no pain thing.” She reached for Kellan’s hand. “It just seemed like a regular old cut.”
“I think it was a combination of things,” Kellan said. “You had an infection. We weren’t exactly taking care of ourselves. We’d stayed up practically every night.”
“Oh, I remember.” Reese smiled a bigger smile this time. “I miss that.”
“Me too,” Kellan agreed. “You were exhausted. You fell.”
“And hit my head on the counter. That part, Remy told me about. I don’t remember it. She said you found me.”
“I did. I came here with you.”
“I’m sorry, Kellan. I should have just gone to a damn doctor.”
“I’m just glad you’re okay. You are okay, right?” Kellan questioned and suddenly felt that she needed to know every detail of what had happened while she was out.
“I’m okay. Not officially okay, technically, but I’m okay.”
“What’s that mean?” Kellan leaned in.
“Remy can probably give you all the details later, but what I know is that I had pressure in my brain. I was in a coma.”
“Yes, for days.” She remembered what Reese had looked like with that ventilator and breathing tube, and it made her angry and sad at the same time.
“And my throat is still raw from that damn tube. That’s the second time I’ve had to be on one of those things.”
“And the last,” Kellan stated.
“And the last,” Reese agreed. “I don’t remember anything. The doctor told me that they were treating me with antibiotics for the infection but that I reacted to something and my heart stopped. They were able to revive me.” She gulped. Kellan wondered how scared Reese must be, to know that her heart had stopped and that she had almost died again. “They fixed the combination of meds I was on and are running more tests to see what happened, but it’s likely I’m just allergic to one and never knew it. It happens with people like me sometimes.”
“God, Reese!” Kellan ran her hand through what she could of Reese’s hair. “I was so scared.”
“I’m sorry, babe.” Reese tried to move, but Kellan placed her hand on Reese’s stomach to stop her. “I just want to hold you.”
“You will. When you’re out of here and better.”
“The swelling went down enough for them to pull me out of it late last night. I woke up midday. Remy had you brought in here with me. Imagine how scared I was to wake up after all that and find you in a damn hospital bed next to me.”
“I’m sorry, too?” Kellan gave a sympathetic look.
“The doctor said I have at least a few more days in here. Maybe I can go home by Friday. They have to see how the antibiotics work, and they’re monitoring the swelling, too. It’s down, but not gone.”
“I’ll get myself checked out of here as a patient and just be here as your girlfriend then. I’m sure you’ll be bored of lying around soon. I can ask Morgan to pick up some stuff from the house. Your phone is there. I can get some magazines from the gift shop and–”
“Kellan?”
“Do you want your computer? It’s still on the coffee table. No, you don’t want your computer. You just came out of a coma.”
“I want you.”
“You have me. I’m here.” Kellan squeezed Reese’s hand.
“That’s all I want, okay? I don’t need anything to keep me occupied. I love you for being here the whole time. But Remy said that’s how you ended up in that less than sexy hospital gown. You overdid it. So, I want you to get discharged when the doctor says it’s okay, and then you’ll go home.”
“Reese.”
“You’ll go home, Kellan. You and Remy will take care of each other. Ryan and Morgan will help. Eat a real meal and get some sleep. Come back tomorrow morning. I’ll be asleep soon anyway. The nurse was in right before you woke up and said it’s almost time for my medicine.” She paused as she considered something. “How long can you stay before you have to go back to the city?”
“I called work and told them what happened. I can stay however long you need me.”
“Kell, how long can you afford to stay?”
“However long it takes, Reese.”
“Baby, I love you, but you have to go home eventually. You’ll be back in a few weeks anyway. Stay until I’m discharged, and maybe a night or two after, but then you have to go home.”
“You are my home.”
“How were you still single when I met you with lines like those?”
“I heard you were awake,” the doctor said. “How are you feeling?”
“Which one?” Kellan questioned.
“You first.”
“I feel fine,” Kellan replied.
“That’s because you got a good night’s sleep and fluids. Eat something, and if you’re still feeling okay, I’ll have you discharged.”
“Sounds fair,” Reese said. “Can I get the same deal?”
“Absolutely not,” he answered. “You’re improving though, which is good news. Your latest scans show the swelling is almost gone, and the new combo of meds we have you on seems to be knocking out the infection, according to your blood work.”
“That’s great.” Kellan turned back to Reese. “When will she be able to go home?”
“Not so fast. We’ve still got a way to go before I’m comfortable with her being anywhere other than here, but it is good news. I must also inform you that it’s time for your medication and a break from all this company.”
“Meaning me?”
“You’re still technically a patient. You just need to go back to your bed. I’ll have someone bring you an early dinner. Remy and the others, though, should wait outside.”
“Good luck telling her that,” Kellan remarked.
“Eat, like the doctor says, and then take my sister home.” Reese squeezed her hand. “I’ll be asleep anyway.”
“I’m agreeing only because I don’t want to stress you out,” Kellan said and stood.
“Hold on there.” The doctor approached and wrapped his arm around Kellan’s waist to help her stand.
“Watch those hands, doc. That’s my girl.”
CHAPTER 29
“Kellan, how are you? I heard about Reese and heard you were in the hospital as well,” Dr. Sanders said when she entered his office on Thursday afternoon.
“Reese is still in the hospital, but she’s improving. They’re hoping she’ll be released tomorrow.”
“That’s great news. Elizabeth and I sent flowers.”
“We got them. Thank you. That was very sweet of you.”
“I assume you’ll be staying here for a bit until Reese is settled?”
“I’m staying until Sunday. She’s already told me I have to go back then, or she won’t let me stay at the house.” She chuckled. “I have an apartment back in San Francisco that’s collecting dust. And I’ve been wearing the same clothes over and over for the past month because I didn’t plan on being here this long. I need to get back to work.”
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