by Amy Clipston
“Why are all of these people here?” I whispered to Zander.
“Because they’re worried about you and your dad,” he said with a smile. “You don’t realize how many people really care.”
A mixture of emotions surged through me at the sight of so many people. Zander pulled me toward the group, and Darlene and Whitney approached us.
“Emily!” Darlene pulled me into her arms. “Oh, honey. We’re so sorry about the accident. We got here as soon as we could.” She cupped my face with her hands. “Are you all right?”
I studied her brown eyes, wondering if she was still miffed at me. I didn’t see any sign of anger, but how would she feel about me when my father was better?
“Emily?” Dropping her hands from my face, she looked confused. “Are you all right? Do you need to sit?”
“I’m okay,” I said. “I’m a bit shaken up, but I think I’ll be okay.” I grasped Zander’s arm. “Zander’s dad is one of the surgeons, so I believe my dad’s in good hands.”
“Good.” Darlene gave a forced smile and patted my arm. “We’ve got to trust God now. He’ll take care of everything.”
Whitney pulled me into a hug, and I held onto her. “My mom’s right, Em. God will watch out for your dad. From what I’ve heard, the accident could’ve been much worse.”
Chelsea weaved through the crowd and hugged me next. “I’ll stay with you all night if you need me to,” she whispered in my ear.
“Thanks,” I said. I stood in the same place for what seemed like an hour, accepting hugs and good wishes from friends, acquaintances, and total strangers who introduced themselves as members of my “church family.”
Pastor Keith instructed us to form a circle. I stood between Chelsea and Zander and across from Darlene, Whitney, Logan, Chuck, and a host of friends and acquaintances. Once we were all holding hands, Pastor Keith said a prayer for my father and the doctors.
As the afternoon wore on, the nurse came out and gave an update, explaining that the doctors were sewing my dad up and it would take another hour or so before he was out of surgery. I sat between Zander and Chelsea on the sofa and stared at reruns of some old sitcom on the flat screen, wondering how long this day could possibly last.
After nearly two hours, the nurse appeared again. With a smile, she took my hand and pulled me to my feet. “Your father is in recovery. He made it through fine.”
A cheer went up throughout the waiting room, and I hugged the nurse.
Turning, I found myself in Zander’s warm embrace.
“I told you to trust God,” he whispered.
Before I could respond to him, Darlene pulled me into a hug, followed by Chelsea and then Whitney.
Once the hugs were complete, I turned back to the nurse. “When can I see him?”
“It will be a little while,” she said. “He just got to recovery and has to come out of the anesthesia.” She squeezed my hand. “I’ll come and get you as soon as it’s time.”
The crowd in the waiting room dissipated. Friends from school and youth group slowly left, promising to call or text later to see how he was doing. I thanked them all for coming and promised to keep them updated.
Zander, Chelsea, and I made a trip to the cafeteria around six and ate pizza. Chelsea kept my mind occupied by chatting about her current costume project and the cute boy on the stage crew, who now knew Chelsea’s name and frequently made small talk with her.
Later, we sat in the waiting room and watched the news. I leaned against Zander and closed my eyes, hoping to catch a nap before going into my dad’s room. Around seven, the nurse came back out and said family members could come back.
I hugged Chelsea. “You should go home,” I said.
She shook her head. “You need me. I’m staying.”
“Don’t be silly. I’ll be fine here.” I motioned toward the door. “Go home and get some rest. You can come back and keep me company tomorrow. He’ll probably be moved to a regular room, and you can sit with me and watch the news and old sitcoms for hours there.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You sure?”
“Positive.” I walked to the door with her. “Thank you. I couldn’t have made it without you.”
“I doubt that. You have Zander to keep you company,” she whispered. “There’s nothing like eye candy to keep up your spirits.”
I felt my cheeks heat, and I chose to ignore her comment. “Get on home. I’ll call you later. I have lots to tell you.”
“Really?” she asked with a grin.
“Yes,” I whispered. “He kissed me and asked me to be his girlfriend.”
She squealed, and I shushed her. “I promise I’ll call you later,” I said.
“Promise?” she asked.
“Absolutely,” I said.
She said good-bye and hurried through the doors to the parking lot.
I walked over to Zander. “I wish you could come back there with me.”
“I’ll wait here for you,” he said, locking his eyes on mine. “I’ll text my dad and see if he can get me permission to come back. He has some pull around here.”
“Good.” I took a deep breath.
“Go on,” Zander said. “It’s going to be okay. I promise you.”
A warm hand took mine. “I’ll come with you,” Darlene said.
I gave Darlene an unsure expression.
“Come on,” she said. “We need to let him know we’re here.”
Darlene and I followed the nurse through several doors and down two hallways to a small room. I found my dad in the bed, his left arm covered in a bandage. His skin was pale, almost gray, and his eyes were dull. My body began to tremble, and a lump swelled in my throat.
He gave us a forced smile. “Fancy meeting you here,” he said, his voice a mere whisper.
I felt a glimmer of hope —my dad still had his wacky sense of humor. He was going to be okay.
“He’s a little groggy from the anesthesia and the pain medicine,” the nurse said quietly. “I’ll be down the hall if you need me.” She disappeared out of the room, closing the door behind her.
“We’ve been worried about you,” Darlene said, standing over him. “How are you?”
“Oh, I’ve been better,” he croaked. His eyes fell on me. “Baby Doll.”
“Hey, Daddy.” I rasped, tears trickling down my cheeks. “You scared me to death.” I tried to smile, but my lips formed a thin line. “If you ever put me through anything like this again, I’ll beat your behind.”
He tried to laugh but coughed instead and then winced. “Wow,” he mumbled, his voice gravely. “This scratch hurts a bit.”
“You should take it easy,” Darlene said, touching his good hand. “Don’t work so hard to talk.”
I lowered myself into a chair next to his bed and cleared my throat. Memories of sitting next to my mother’s hospital bed a year ago flashed through my mind. Glancing down, I found my hands shaking and I hugged my arms to my chest, trying to force my body to calm down.
“I wonder how long I’ll be stuck in this place,” my dad said, his voice a little stronger. “I guess they don’t send you home the same day when you slice open your arm like I did, huh?”
“I would imagine it will be a few days,” Darlene said, sitting in a chair across from me. “You need to only worry about getting better.”
His brown eyes studied me, and I wondered if he was still angry about everything I’d said last night. Guilt rained down on me, and I gnawed my bottom lip.
“So, how was your day?” he asked, but the mirth seemed forced.
I knew he was trying to lighten the mood, but nothing could hold back my tears. Once I started crying, I couldn’t stop. The tears flooded my cheeks, trickling onto my coat. I cried for my dad, for losing my mom, and for myself. Everything I’d had pent up all day came out at once. I hugged my middle but couldn’t quell my body from shaking.
He reached for me and then winced.
Darlene stood. “I’ll give you two some time alone.” S
he patted my back. “I’ll be in the waiting room.” She disappeared through the door, closing it gingerly behind her.
“Don’t cry,” he said. “I’m going to be fine.”
I snatched a handful of tissues from the box by his bed and wiped my eyes and nose. Taking deep breaths, I willed myself to stop sobbing.
“You could’ve died today,” I whispered. “And I never would’ve had a chance to say I was sorry.”
“Shh,” he said. “You need to stop worrying.”
“I’m sorry for taking off without telling you where I was last night,” I said. “I’m not sorry for what I said to Darlene, but I’m sorry about our fight.”
“Let’s not talk about this now,” he said.
“I have to,” I said, swiping the tissue across my cheeks. “I have to go home to that house tonight and so much is not settled.”
He sighed. “Emily, we’ll get through this, one day at a time.”
I studied the metal bed railing, avoiding his stare. “I bet Darlene hates me.”
“She doesn’t hate you,” he said. His voice was a little stronger, but he still didn’t sound like himself. “Now you’re just being ridiculous. I know that you have some issues with her, but you went about it all wrong by yelling at her last night. We could’ve sat down with her at another time and discussed it. I was upset that you went off on her and were so disrespectful.”
“I shouldn’t have gone off on her like that, but you both pushed me, and I snapped,” I said. “Once I started unloading, I couldn’t stop.” My lip quivered. “I thought I was going to lose you today, like I lost Mom. I couldn’t bear it if I lost you too.” I leaned over and hugged him gently, the tears flowing again.
He ran his good hand through my hair. “It’s okay, Baby Doll.” His voice echoed in his chest with my ear resting next to it. “I’m going to be fine. We’ll figure everything out when I get home. Right now I need you to be strong.”
Sitting back down, I nodded.
“And you’re still grounded for taking off and scaring me last night.” He lifted his good finger and wagged it slightly. “Don’t think this gets you out of your punishment.”
I gave him a half smile. “You know, you’re not good at the whole strict parent thing. Mom played that role much better than you.”
“But I’ve been thinking about something you said,” he told me. “You wanted to know if you could work. What if you worked on Saturdays, like Zander does?”
My eyes widened with surprise and excitement. “That would be great, Dad.”
“I realized that I’ve accepted help from Darlene, but I’ve never let you contribute,” he said. “Let’s talk about the job when I get home, okay?”
“Absolutely.”
“And also,” he continued, “you were right about how I’ve suppressed my feelings about losing your mom. I need to open up to you more.”
“Dad, please don’t worry about that.” I held his hand in mine. “You don’t need to push yourself to open up to me. It was unfair of me to insist you talk to me.”
“No, you were right.” He gave me a weak smile. “We’re in this together, Baby Doll.”
A knock sounded at the door and Dr. Stewart stuck his head in the room.
I stood. “Hi, Dr. Stewart.”
“Hello, Emily.” He entered the room clutching a clipboard. “How are you feeling, Brad?”
“I’ve been better.” My dad forced a smile. “I guess I messed up my arm a bit.”
Dr. Stewart hugged the clipboard to his white coat. “That you did.”
I studied his features, wondering if that was how Zander would look in twenty or so years.
“I did my best to put your arm back together. You severed some vessels and muscles.” Dr. Stewart shook his head. “I’m not going to lie to you. You did some serious damage, but you should regain full function after some rehabilitation. It just might take some time.”
“When can he come home?” I asked.
“It might be a few days,” Dr. Stewart said, glanced through the pages on the clipboard. “We need to be sure he’s on the right path with his healing.”
I pushed my hair behind my ears and wondered what this would mean for our future. Would my dad be able to go back to work? Would we ever get to move into our own place? But at least he’d finally decided to let me work, so I could make a contribution. I had to trust it would be okay.
Dr. Stewart checked the bandage and listened to my dad’s heart and lungs. He then started for the door. “My son wants to come back and see you. Would that be okay with you?”
“Of course,” my dad said. “Your boy is family. Right, Emily?”
I nodded.
“I’ll direct him back.” Dr. Stewart gripped the doorknob. “I’m going to head out, but I’ll be back to check on you tomorrow. Do you need more pain medication?”
My dad cupped his good hand to his forehead. “I think it’s time. It’s starting to throb.”
“I’ll send the nurse in. Good night.” Dr. Stewart disappeared through the door and the nurse came in a few moments later with some pills, which my dad took with a small glass of water. After quickly eying his vitals, the nurse disappeared as well.
“Sorry to disappoint Zander, but these meds are potent. I think I’m going to close my eyes,” my dad said, his voice soft and weak. “You should go home and rest.”
“I want to stay for a while,” I said. “I need to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m going to be just fine,” he said, his voice fading. Within minutes, he was asleep.
I found the remote control and flipped channels until I came to the evening news. I was watching a story about a robbery at a grocery store when Zander and Darlene came into the room.
Darlene waved me over, and we stood in the hallway. “I spoke with Dr. Stewart. It sounds like your dad is going to be in here a few days.”
“Yeah, it does,” I said, hugging my arms to my chest.
“He may have a long road of recovery ahead of him,” she said, shaking her head. “He really did some damage.”
“But it could’ve been a lot worse,” Zander interjected.
I yawned and cupped my hand to my mouth.
“I think the stress is taking a toll on you, dear,” Darlene said with a knowing look. “We should head home.”
“No,” I said. “I’m not ready to leave him.”
“It’s been a long day,” she said. “You can come back tomorrow.”
“What if I sat with her for a few minutes?” Zander said, looping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me to him. “I’ll make sure she doesn’t stay too late.”
Darlene looked unconvinced.
“I promise I won’t let her stay longer than an hour,” he offered. “We’ll just make sure Mr. Curtis is resting okay and then we’ll head home. You have my word.”
She paused for a moment, considering it. “Fine,” she said, holding up her finger up as a warning. “But only an hour, understood?”
“Yes, ma’am.” He gave a deliberate nod. “I’ll make sure of it.”
“All right then.” She touched my arm. “I’ll see you at the house.”
She disappeared down the hallway and I turned to Zander. “Thank you.”
He shrugged. “No big deal. I knew you wanted more time.”
“I don’t know how I’m going to return to that house. I said some pretty awful things to her, and I can’t take them back.” I shook my head. “I know we have to talk it out, but it’s going to be tough. Things are so messed up with her now.”
He put his finger under my chin, forcing me to look into his eyes. “I think things are going to be just fine when you get home. She seems very supportive. Just talk things out with her.”
We stepped into the room together and found my dad still sleeping. Zander frowned, his eyes studying the bandage.
I sank into the chair and Zander carried the extra chair over and sat beside me. We watched the news in silence. After an hour, I turned of
f the television before standing over my dad. I leaned down and kissed his cheek, and he stirred but didn’t wake up.
Taking my hand, Zander led me from the room.
chapter twenty-one
I think he looked okay, considering the accident,” Zander said as we drove out of the hospital parking lot. The sky was dark, and the clock on the dashboard declared it was approaching ten. I was stunned by how quickly the day had flown by.
“I guess so. He looked really tired,” I said, clasping my hands together. “Your dad seemed convinced my dad should regain full use of his arm, but he’ll have to go through rehab for a while. It could be a long road back.”
Zander put the Jeep in neutral, took my hand in his, and slowed to a stop at a stoplight.
“Thank you for everything,” I said.
He shrugged. “It was nothing.”
“No, it was everything,” I said, shifting in my seat and facing him. “You saved his life, Zander. He could’ve bled to death.”
“Like I said before, I just followed Shawn’s orders.” He seemed as nonchalant as if he were ordering a mocha latte at the coffeehouse.
“Without you, I wouldn’t have made it through the day.”
“That’s not true,” he said. “You had a waiting room full of people there for you.”
“But you were the one who really saw me through it.”
A horn blasted behind us, and Zander snickered while putting the truck in first. “We have to get better about paying attention at stoplights.”
We drove in silence for a few minutes, and I sorted through my thoughts. There was so much I wanted to say, but I had to find a way to express them coherently and without crying again.
“It’s been a long day.” Zander steered into the neighborhood. “How are you handling it all?”
I stared out the windshield, watching the street signs fly by. “I can’t explain it, but I’m kind of at peace. I feel like I learned a lot today.”
“What do you mean?” He gave me a sideways glance.
“Last night when I left the party, I called Jenna and then walked up to the coffee shop and met her,” I said. “She said something that made sense to me today.”