Ah, finally the reaction I want. My question has her worked up. I need to turn on the heat, "Doc, time is what I don't have."
She is at her wit's end. "Mr. Hayes, you want a magician, not a doctor. I am sorry, I don't have a magic wand to wave at you."
The color on her face changes to a deeper red. Time to rile her up even more.
"Well, I was hoping you would use your magic. That's what everyone told us about you. Now you tell me you can't wave a wand and get me running."
She raises a finger in frustration. Her lips are sealed tight and nostrils flare, "Are you ever serious, Mr. Hayes?" Sharon is about to lose it.
Hell, hath no fury like a woman in scrubs. Give me this scowling woman at any time. Call me a pervert for hitting on my doctor, but you got to see her in this form to realize why I heat up when she gets hot. Flustered, red, flaming hot Sharon. My tigress. I like this one. All worked up and giving me her full attention. I push her a little more, "You are the one who first brought up the magic wand."
Wild-eyed, she throws up her hands, "Ugh, I give up Jon! I can't deal with this. We did our best, but nothing is enough for you. Perhaps you should consult some other doctor. You are free to take another opinion. We will provide all the medical records. If they wish, they can come and examine you here."
Oops. Did I overstep? Time to recover this fumble. "Hey Doc, I did not mean to hurt you." I try to hold her gaze. Her eyes burn me. Sharon's cheeks are red, reflecting the hurt and anger. Sharon shakes her head. My words have offended her, and I need to salvage this situation. "Sorry, Sharon. I did not mean to hurt your feelings. I will never go down that road. Forgive me. My insecurity increases by the day. I can bear the pain—do all the hard work and train, but I do not understand how to deal with the uncertainty. I feel helpless."
Her eyes soften, so I continue, "It is frustrating to be confined to this bed and be dependent on others for even my basic needs. The only refreshing part of my day is when you are here. God knows why but you bring me calm. In the last few days, when you avoided me, I was miserable. You are the sunshine in my dark world. You bring freshness to my day."
Her jaw drops, eyebrows scurry to hide behind the curls as she processes my words. No point in hiding now, I have put all my cards on the table. My heart thumps in my chest in anticipation and fear. Have I said too much and crossed a line?
Her nostrils flare, but she stays silent. I can perceive the gears clicking in her mind. Sharon clears her throat and puts on her professional face. "Jon, I don't have all the answers. At this stage, it is difficult to comment on how fast you can start playing football. I can only help you take small steps to recovery. The speed of your wound healing is encouraging, but we cannot outrun the natural process of your body. I am sure you will play again. If we work together as a team, you will be back on the field. But don't ask me how fast it will happen. Can you give us that space to work for you?"
I nod and smile. At least we are back on track. I need to keep a tab on my mouth.
Sharon turns to my sister, Emily, and asks her to make sure Mom is present tomorrow during her morning rounds. "You and Jason should also be present."
I take my cue to bring the temperature down further. "Are we celebrating something, Doc?"
Sharon glowers, squinting her eyes daring me to say more. Her mouth quivers. "No, I need to speak to the parents of a brat who refuses to grow up. I am hoping, his mom will get the kid in line."
At this precise moment, my savior walks into the room. He smiles and hugs Sharon. My relief is short-lived. I am in big trouble the moment the motormouth parts his lips.
"Hello, Daddy's angel!" the giggles do not distract me from admiring the changes his words bring on Sharon's face. She turns and faces me. Eyes about to swallow me whole. Oh boy, help me, lord.
"Traitor." I glare at Nate and slide down the bed pulling the bedsheet over my head.
"What have you been telling Nate?" Sharon tugs the bedsheet from my hands. I do not let go, hanging on as my life depends on it.
"He also thinks you are beautiful," Nate is on a roll.
Oh boy, diversion needed. "Heavens, what have I brought into this world—a boy or a parrot?"
When I steal a view from the side of the bedsheet, Sharon's hands are on her hips, and then, the smile I long to see all day appears on her face. I have to stop Nate before he gets me killed. "You are my mate. You should not reveal our secret talks." I place a finger on my lips, in the hope that Nate gets the message and shuts up.
When I turn away from him, Sharon is blushing and everyone in the room is giving me killer glares. Oh god, this woman will be the death of me.
Before she rushes out of the room, she wags a finger between me and Nate. "Single men like you with such a cute kid should never be allowed to roam on this planet."
Chapter 14: A Plan
Sharon
Oh my God, this can't be happening. How can I allow it to go on? What am I doing? I need to put a stop to this. A stoppety stop. My pacing back and forth in my room is doing nothing to calm me down. Neither is pressing my fingers and rubbing my forehead to ease the tension.
I should not keep leading him on like this. He doesn't stop flirting, and I can't keep my mouth shut. This entire situation is confusing me. He brings out the worst in me. Pushes all my wrong buttons—then flirts without a care in the world. He doesn't bother about the people in the room. What do you expect? my mind reminds me, isn't he a casanova? I should not place any value on his words.
The latest one is huge, the words he used. Gosh, I wanted to flee from the room. The stares Tom and everyone else in the room gave us! Right about now is the perfect time to go and punch Jon in the face. Oops, can't do that. His antics are ludicrous, daunting and disconcerting but I have a promise to keep. Argh, why did I agree not to repeat Harry? He is your patient silly, that's why. Heavens save me from billions of bile brewing bumbling boys.
Even if Nate had said nothing, Jon drops enough bombs to stir things up. Ms. Geeky-Meeky inside is elated that Jon considers me beautiful. She would, after all, she is the one suffering from the jock fetish. Wonder what else he thinks of me. I shake my head and chase the silly girl away. I cannot go down that road. He is my patient. I need to come up with a plan to stop this.
"Can't live with him, can't live without him?" Tom enters my room, where I am hiding from everyone in the hospital after the embarrassment today.
I slump on my chair. The last thing I need is Tom having a go at me, so I deflect his question. "Oh, how I wish! Can I pay someone to take him away? I need to live without him. He is so stubborn and obsessed with his game. How can we guarantee anything at this stage? We have not got him to put his foot on the floor."
"Calm down, Sharon. You know patients can be finicky. If I were him, I would pester you with all my worries too. You need to see past his frustration and anxiety. Jon is a professional athlete. Football is his job, his life. I am sure he is a decent guy. However, today someone was desperate to grab your attention. Daddy's angel indeed!" Tom doubles over on his joke. Trust Tom to rub it in. Payback for all the shots I took at him when he started dating Maddy.
"Goofball, stop laughing so hard. You will crack your face and if that doesn't do it, I will."
A soft punch to the face sets him off. "Hey 'Doc', I back off. Or should I say Kung fu master?" Tom rubs his cheeks and nods his head. "I am proud of you. My best friend like forever is being chased by an NFL star."
I raise a finger and tilt my head, warning him to back off. He is irritating me. My promise to restrain myself only extends to my patients. Tom is a fair game for the punch.
Tom raises his hands, "All right, my bad. Sharon cross your heart and tell me, aren't you excited about the fat panda chasing you? Honey, women would kill to be in your place. He is a nice guy. Give him a shot." Tom is another infuriating man in my life.
"Will you stop gloating at your jokes? You sound stupid." My protests do not affect Tom.
He points an accusato
ry finger at me, "Missy, you are the one who calls him Po. By the way, it is fun when the two of you go at each other. He is right for you." Tom follows up his words with a smirk and the all-knowing head nod.
"Oh, so now you are on his side. Thanks for deserting me. If you hadn't noticed, I am not the kind to chase men, money or fame, or for that matter, have them chase me." I stress upon my words using my hands to draw air quotes.
"Sharon, I am still on your side. What I am asking is, for you to give him some space. You can deal with all your patients. Why are you always on the edge with him?" Tom goes silent.
I sigh and stare at Tom for a while. He is right, I should professionally handle this instead of driving myself crazy. An idea comes up in my mind. "Tom, I want to take you up on your offer. Jon needs to undergo physiotherapy now. He needs an expert in sports medicine. Which is your area of expertise? Why don't you take over his care?"
"Ha, the tigress is running away."
Restraint, Sharon. I make sure he hears my deep sigh. "No, I am not. Only moving to the background. I will support you, but I believe now would be a good time for you to take over his care and medical decisions."
Tom keeps looking at me. After a few seconds, he smiles and reaches out to take my hand, "I will do anything for you, Sharon. If it makes you feel better, then let's go ahead. You realize though, I cannot do anything for his heart."
I swat his hand away and narrow my eyes, trying to warn him. The grin is back on his face. I brought this on myself, so no point in arguing with Tom. Best to ignore his last statement. "Great, let's get Mr. Hayes back on his feet and running. I will call Betsy, so we can chart out the strategy."
Betsy is our most experienced physiotherapist. She specializes in sports injuries. Once she comes, all three of us sit down to discuss Jon's case. We review all his records and form a week-wise program for the next eight weeks. For the first four weeks, the focus will be on helping Jon manage his daily activities. Once things settle, we will move on to more active exercises.
"Perfect. We have a plan which we can discuss with Jon tomorrow. Betsy, please be in his room at 9 a.m. sharp. Once we get him moving about, we can hand over the rest to his team physiotherapist. We should get the physio in on the program a few weeks before we move away from his care." I sigh in relief, now that we have put together this plan.
The outcome of our huddle pleases me. I hope Jon will agree and go along with it. I am not sure if he will cooperate with Betsy though. Maybe I should warn her, "He is a stubborn and difficult patient, Betsy. Be careful, he can get on your nerves."
"I'm not worried at all. I have dealt with much worse. The stories from the staff are doing their rounds, I will be on alert." Betsy is always positive. She is a close friend. The third wheel of our new technique. Without her, we would be lost post-surgery. Apart from the hospital, we work with a youth program and often go out together.
I thank Tom once again for taking over. "It is such a relief for me, Tom."
"Don't be too happy, Doc. I am only taking over his orthopedic care. He will need you for his heart to flutter." There he is again. Tom is not making this easy. My attraction to Jon is turning into a migraine. The drama in his room notwithstanding.
Tom's words pique Betsy's interest, "Am I missing something?"
Oh, god. My intuition nerves are firing. Putting these two together on Jon's case may not be my finest decision. As friends, we are too much into each other's business. Girl this is going to bite you at the rear end someday.
"You haven't heard?" Tom rolls his eyes and covers his face in mock surprise. Why did I end up with such characters in my life?
"Gossipy old hags. You two better behave." My warning is not going to have any effect on these two but I need to try.
"Who two?" Betsy fakes surprise. "We two." She waves a finger between herself and Tom. I swear, sometimes they behave more immature than me.
Tom is like a child, eager to rat it all out. "I will fill you in, Betsy. Welcome to the latest BNC show, starring our very own Dr. Sharon Wells. It is better than any other show you will see on Netflix."
I shake my head. Tom is going to have a field day with this. "Now Tom, don't you go gossiping behind my back." I point my finger at him, warning him to stay in line.
Instead of shutting up, he takes it as a cue to blab. "No way, I am a man with a scientific temperament, dealing in facts and nothing but the facts. Like the fact how the two of you met, or about the sparks that fly in the room when you're together, or that your patient considers you beautiful." Tom piques Betsy's interest. I am in for a prolonged bout of ribbing in the next few days.
"Shoo. You both have a lot of work on your plates." I wave both of them away, but cannot help myself from smiling.
"Ah! The spark the mere mention of him brings in her eyes. Betsy, did I not tell you?" Tom circles my face with his hand from across the desk.
"Out, both of you." I threaten to throw my pen at them. "Don't test my aim!"
Once they are out of my room, I am in two minds. The plan to hand over Jon's care will work but so will those two to stir up trouble. Karma is about to ride on a boomerang and hit Ms. Geeky-Meeky smack in the head. A result of my meddling in Tom and Betsy's affairs. Yeah, I was the one who pushed Betsy to date, Dr. Charles. Then we both worked on Tom together. He was lonely and so was Maddy who lives a floor above Betsy. Some retribution is on its way. I don't know what these two are capable of or I do know and should be worried.
Chapter 15: Baby Steps
Jon
Mom looks at Sharon once she finishes examining my foot. The room is full of people today. Jason and Emily join Dr. Thomas, Betsy, and Jennifer.
"Is there something to worry about?" Mom is anxious. She echos the concerns in my mind.
Sharon takes her hand and brings Mom near my bed. "Do you remember when Jon first learned to stand? Or when he took his first steps?"
Mom is hesitant, but nods. The whole family gathering confuses me, but I stay silent. Sharon's face tells me she has something up her sleeve. Dr. Thomas and Betsy help me get up and move me to the edge of the bed. They place my legs on the side over the bedside footstep. Sharon takes both of Mom's hands and places them on mine. She then asks Dr. Thomas to stand on one side and requests Jason to be on my other side.
The tension in the room is too much to take. I shrug and call her out. "Dr. Wells, you should have done better. This is a small crowd for me to show my skills." Jason smacks me on the head.
Sharon glares at me and then turns to Mom. "Now Mrs. Hayes, I want you to help Jon take his first step after surgery."
Mom is not confident, so Sharon reassures her. "Don't be afraid, Betsy and I are beside you. Jason and Tom will support Jon as he gets up, till he is comfortable enough to put weight on his good leg. Then we will let him straighten out his bandaged leg."
Sharon puts her hands around Mom, supporting her as I try to get up. God, this is difficult. I use Jason and Tom's shoulders to support myself. The trembling begins as soon as my right leg touches the ground, and I almost fall back on the bed. Pain shoots through the left leg.
Sharon and Betsy, together with mom, keep me up, pulling me towards them. Once I am steady, I put weight on my right leg. After staying on it for a while, I shift myself to balance my weight. On instructions from Sharon, I straighten my left leg and touch the floor. Everyone is concentrating on my legs. I lift my right leg and take a step forward.
"No, stop. No walking, Jon. Not today." Sharon stops me, and then with the others, helps me sit on the bed again. "Jon, don't get your hopes up. There is a long way to go. No weight-bearing for the next six to eight weeks." Sharon's face is stern as she warns me.
This is a small victory. A ray of hope of progress to come. Mom turns and hugs Sharon in a tight embrace, tears rolling down her eyes. Sharon rubs her back comforting her. Emily is also in tears as she joins them in the group hug. A sight I will never forget in my life.
Jason squeezes my shoulder. "We made it to t
he first yard, mate. Be patient and we will reach the end zone."
Mom thanks Sharon. She wants to say more as she holds Sharon's hands, but the words don't come out.
Sharon smiles and wipes the tears from Mom's eyes. "There is a lot we need to work on, but today is an important first step. I want you to meet Betsy, our lead physiotherapist here. She will work with Jon to help him recover and become mobile. Betsy is an expert and a veteran with such injuries." She then turns towards me, "You, Mr. Hayes, will listen to every instruction she gives and follow it to the last letter. If I even get a whiff of disobedience, you will deal with me."
"Yes, ma'am. As you say, Betsy is in command now." My salute brings smiles on everyone's faces.
Sharon and Dr. Thomas turn to leave. I want one last look for the morning. "Thank you, Doc. Thank you for being there for me."
She smiles and walks out. My wait for the evening round begins.
SHARON
I wipe my eyes when we come out.
"Tearing up, Dr. Wells?" Tom pats my shoulder.
"Shut up Tom, we have to finish our rounds." I shrug him off.
"I can finish the rest of the consults if you need time to tidy up," there is a concern in Tom's eyes. He is aware of the emotional puddle I become when patients recover from difficult surgeries.
"Nope, I can handle this." I straighten my white coat and pat my name tag to reassure myself. I am in control. There is no greater delight than seeing a patient recover. There is no greater sight than watching a family gather around their loved ones. I always make it a point to make that first step out of recovery memorable for my patient and their family. Memories they can carry with them for the rest of their life.
I always pray for my patients. However, for Jon, my prayers have become personal for a reason I cannot explain to myself. With the plan to hand over his care to Tom and Betsy, I hope my head will clear up. I will not see Jon. Out of sight, out of mind.
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