Love, Autumn

by Bloom, Nikki

So, it continued to scream for fifteen minutes or so, the sound testing my very sanity.

  Finally, I mustered the energy needed to get on my feet and unplug the blasted thing from the wall. Yes, pressing the ‘off’ button would have sufficed, but sometimes I hated that thing so much that there really was no other solution to my problem.

  I dragged my feet into the kitchen and brewed a pot of coffee. It felt horrible empty without Sara around but I tried to keep an optimistic attitude. Leo said she was fine and I believed him. Sara would be home before I knew it and things would go right back to the way they were.

  The coffee machine buzzed, breaking me from my trance. I filled a to-go cup, popped on a lid, and ran out the door.

  Right now, Sara needed me. She had helped me so much in the past so it was finally time for me to return the favor.

  As I placed my hand on the doorknob, I paused. “She probably wants something to do…” I said to myself so I retraced my steps and headed for her room. There, I swiped the books off her nightstand and grabbed her tablet from her desk drawer and stuffed them all into her favorite backpack.

  I surveyed the room looking for anything else she might want. Clean clothes, maybe? So, I added that to the mix.

  Once I was finally satisfied, I caught the bus and rode all the way to the hospital.

  The waiting room was just as busy as it was the night before. The nurse at the circular desk was still on the phone although it wasn’t the same woman. Was that some sort of requirement or something?

  I walked up to the desk and waited.

  The nurse held up her hand.

  After what felt like an eternity, she placed the receiver on her shoulder and looked at me. “Yes?” She pulled the word into a long syllable like I was putting her at an inconvenience for just doing her job.

  “I’m looking for a Miss Sara Coldwell. She was admitted yesterday. I was wondering whether it was possible for me to see her today.” As I spoke, I adjusted my grip on the bouquet of flowers in my hand. I had succumbed to the high gift-shop prices and brought her a beautiful arrangement. I just couldn’t help myself. I knew how much she liked flowers. Hopefully, it would bring a smile to her face.

  “Hmm…” The nurse pursed her lips together into a thin, hard line. “A Miss Coldwell, you said?”

  “Yes, Sara Coldwell.” I enunciated my words to make it easy to understand.

  “Ah, here she is. She’s out of the ICU so there shouldn’t be any visitor restrictions.” She took a pencil from behind her ear and scribbled something onto a piece of paper. “Room 6B. Take elevator H and then turn left down the hall. I wrote it all down.” She slid the paper across the counter and waited for me to take it before returning to her phone call.

  With the piece of paper in hand, I headed for the elevators. A few people got in alongside me. They bumped into my shoulders and didn’t even bother to offer an apology. You’d think that people would be a little nicer at a hospital but by the looks of it, manners are left at the door.

  I was the last one to get out.

  The sixth floor was filled with intimidating-looking machines. They beeped in an array of different volumes. Some high-pitched and ear-piercing. Others low and deep. I didn’t like the sound of any of them. They seemed like an ill omen – like they were doing more harm than good for the patients hobbling around, skin taut against their skeletons, the life draining right through their bones and evaporating into the air.

  Please, I thought. Don’t let the same happen to my best friend. It was only a passing moment of doubt. Sara would be fine, I told myself. Absolutely fine. Leo had treated her cancer and I was confident in his abilities.

  But what about that nurse of his? the little voice in the back of my head nagged. She could have done something to sabotage the surgery. I pushed away the thought because it was downright ridiculous. Terry may be manipulative and the kind of girl willing to ruin relationships, but I doubted her ability to jeopardize a medical procedure for her own sick gains. Even she wouldn’t succumb to something so vile. She had to be better than that.

  I shoved Terry aside. I didn’t have the time to be worrying about her. So, I refocused and shuffled down the hall.

  By some miracle, I found her room in the maze of corridors

  It was meant for two but the second bed was empty. All that remained was the rubberized mattress and a tissue box.

  “Look who decided to show up.” Sara’s voice caught my attention. She was half hidden by the privacy curtain, but I could still see that iconic smile of hers. Even in the wake of the most horrible of situations, she still managed to smile. She really was a remarkable sort of woman.

  I pulled back the curtains and presented her with the flowers.

  “Don’t tell me you bought those at the gift shop.”

  “I did,” I admitted. “But I thought you might like them.”

  She shook her head. “How many times do I have to tell you to be wise with your money? It’s amazing that you find enough to pay rent every month.”

  “I’m not that bad.”

  “You’re pretty bad.” Despite her teasing, she took the flowers and gave them a good sniff. “These are beautiful. Thank you.”

  “So, you like them?”

  “I love them.” Since she couldn’t do so herself, I helped her place them on the nightstand. I fiddled with them a bit, wanting them to look as perfect as possible. “Quit it,” Sara warned. “They are fine.”

  I dropped my hand and settled into the chair provided for by the hospital. “Sorry.” I looked down at my hands, trying to form the words. There was so much I wanted to say and yet, I was rendered mute.

  “You aren’t going to ask how I’m feeling?” she asked with a cock of her eyebrow.

  “Sorry,” I mumbled. “How are you feeling?”

  “Well, since you asked – pretty shitty. The nurses are surprised I’m sitting but honestly, I’m in a lot of pain.”

  I frowned. “Have you told them that?”

  “Not really. I don’t like the way pain medications make you feel. You become all drowsy and incompetent. I’d rather just deal with it.” She winced as she attempted to shift her current position.

  “You’re crazy. Why wouldn’t you want to be comfortable? I mean, you just went through major surgery. Cut yourself some slack.” I took her hand and squeezed it ever so gently. It was already bruised with a series of needle stabs. I didn’t want to add to her pain. “Please, just take them. I bet it’ll make you feel better. And, on the upside, if you do something stupid, I can always put it on the internet and you can become a viral sensation.”

  She laughed. “Hmm, you may be onto something, there.”

  I laughed. “If it makes you millions, you’ll share the money with me, right?”

  “I’ll think about it.”

  “Rude,” I returned. “I should at least get half for filming you.”

  “But I would be the star of the show. That’s at least 80% of the profits.”

  “80%? And I thought I could call you a friend.”

  Sara laughed but it only brought her pain. I got up, hands hovering above her body, wanting to help but having no idea how to do so. I felt useless as a friend.

  “Please, let me call a nurse.”

  “No,” Sara insisted. “I’m fine. What you can do is give me that cup of water.”

  I immediately grabbed it and eased it up to her lips.

  “Thanks.” She smiled. “I’m glad you’re here. I was sick and tired of staring at the walls.”

  “Speaking of which, I brought you some books to read and your tablet.”

  “Oh, you’re the best.” Sara grinned. “And here I thought I was going to lose my mind.”

  I placed the backpack on the edge of her bed and laid out the contents on her lap. She sorted through it and picked out the book she wanted to read. I stacked the rest on the night stand beside her flowers.

  “So, what happened last night?” she asked. “You know, while I was knocked out?
Any funny waiting room stories you can tell me?”

  “Funny, no,” I answered. “But I did meet this wonderful woman. I swear she was a saint. Her daughter has leukemia and she’s in here all the time. She made me some tea when she saw how stressed out I was about your surgery.”

  “Didn’t I tell you not to worry about me?”

  “That’s like telling me not to breathe.”

  Sara smiled. “I’m truly very lucky to have a friend like you.”

  “I’m the lucky one.”

  “Alright, alright, there’s no need to get all gushy. I’m not going to propose to you–”

  “Oh! Speaking of proposals! You won’t believe what happened last night.”

  “Leo popped the question!” Sara squealed.

  “No.” I blushed at the thought.

  “Oh.” Sara’s face fell with disappointment. “Damnit. I thought I was going to have an excuse to buy a bridesmaid’s dress. I’m thinking a nice peach color. It would really match my complexion, but then again don’t let me dictate the colors of your wedding–”

  “Calm down,” I interrupted before she could go off on some wild tangent. “I’m not getting married.”

  “So… spit it out.”

  “You remember Terry?”

  “Of course. She’s my nurse.”

  “Right,” I answered feeling a little dumb for overlooking that detail. “And you know how she flirts with Leo all the time.”

  “He didn’t–”

  “No. He didn’t,” I clarified. “But Terry wants me to believe that he did.”

  “I’m not sure I follow.”

  “Last night, she showed up late to your operation, and to top it off, she was flaunting around this ring–”

  “A ring?” Sara had a bad habit of interrupting me whenever she became excited with one of my stories. “You don’t mean…?”

  “That’s what she wanted to sell to me – that Leo had proposed to her.”

  “But that would be ridiculous. He’s been nothing but faithful to you. I haven’t even seen him look at another woman and there’s plenty of yoga-pant-wearing woman at Whole Foods.”

  “Exactly,” I agreed. “Besides, you could totally tell that the ring was fake.”

  “Who was she trying to fool?” Sara shook her head. “Some people just don’t get it, do they? They can’t stand to see other people happy.”

  “Well, it doesn’t matter. Leo and I are still strong.”

  Sara smiled. “Good.” She placed her hand on top of mine. “I love the way he makes you light up. I’ve honestly have never seen you look this happy before and no one deserves to take that away from you.”

  “You know what I was thinking?” I said as I got up and straightened out her flowers once more.

  “What’s that?”

  “That the old me probably would have fallen for it. I used to be so sensitive to the possibility of cheating that I almost always allowed it to ruin everything, but now I’m finally feel confident enough to trust Leo.”

  “Good for you.” Sara shifted slightly and accidently turned on the TV. “I’ve been looking for that all morning!” she exclaimed.

  I laughed. “Well, there you go. If you get bored of reading you can always watch some quality daytime television.”

  “Yeah… quality… right,” she answered sarcastically.

  “Oh, come on, I know you’re a sucker for those lame soap operas.”

  “Am not,” Sara protested.

  “Mhm.”

  “Well, I know you’re a sucker for Leo Thompson.”

  “Yes, I am,” I said with a smile that penetrated deep into my heart.

  16

  Leo

  “How did she do during the night?” I glanced at Sara’s record sheet. Her temperature was still a little high but it was gradually cooling down. A few more hours and she’d be back to normal.

  “Good,” one of the nurses answered. “Although she refuses to take the full dosage of pain medication. I don’t know how she can deal with it. She must be going through agony.”

  “And she hasn’t said anything about it?” I said. “She hasn’t asked you for anything?”

  “Haven’t heard a peep all morning. I told her to press the button if she needed more meds but she hasn’t pressed it even once.”

  “Strong girl…” I whispered to myself.

  “It isn’t good for her,” the nurse announced. “She’s putting too much stress on her body. She should be taking the time to rest and recuperate but she refuses to cooperate with us.”

  “I’ll have a word with her.”

  As I made my way down the hall, I noticed a woman hurrying toward the elevator. Her puffy jacket made it impossible to discern a clear profile, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that she looked exactly like Autumn – and maybe it was Autumn.

  I thought about catching up to her but no doubt, I’d see her in Sara’s room at one point or another. In any case, Sara’s health was more important at the moment.

  So, I turned left and crossed the threshold.

  As soon as I did, I heard the screams of a very angry woman. On screen, the boyfriend tried to defend himself against a tirade of projectile vases but he wasn’t doing so well.

  “Let me guess, he cheated on her,” I said as I stood beside Sara’s bed.

  She was completely enraptured by the show. Her sheets were legitimately balled into her fists and her eyes were as large as the moon.

  I sat down and watched a bit of it with her. I’ll admit the acting was terrible, but there was just something about it that was terribly addictive. “Why do these women always believe the villains of the story instead of their partners? To me, it makes absolutely no sense.”

  “Because they are insecure. They are scared that their partners are going to hurt them so the second they hear something, they believe it because they’ve already convinced themselves it’s true,” she said without breaking eye contact.

  “Wow. I’m thinking you should go back to school for relationship counseling. You’d be great,” I suggested. “You certainly helped me and Autumn. I never thought she would forgive me for what I did let alone trust me but…”

  “She loves you.” Sara finally turned her head to look at me. “Isn’t it obvious? She has loved you from the start and you were an idiot to break her heart but I’m just glad that you made good on your second chance.” She smiled. “Or else I would have made you pay dearly for it.”

  “Jeez. That’s the third time I’ve been threatened by a woman in a twenty-four-hour period.”

  “Third?” Sara raised her eyebrow in question. “Who else?”

  “Well, Autumn claimed she could kick my ass and she’s not wrong.”

  “True.” Sara chuckled. “I wouldn’t pick that fight if I were you.”

  “Trust me, I’m not about to.” My mind conjured up the image of Autumn pinning me to the ground, and I have to admit, it was a pretty nice turn on. To keep my erection to myself, I crossed one leg over the other and placed Sara’s record folder on my lap.

  Sara gave me a funny look but didn’t comment on it. “So, who was the last threat?”

  “Terry. She didn’t want me bringing her home last night.” It was only after I said those words that I realized how bad they must have sounded. “Not like that. I went to a bar last night because I like to have a drink after any successful surgery. Terry was there and she was already drunk out of her mind. I did what was best and sent her home.”

  “That was nice of you considering that she tried to jeopardize your relationship with Autumn.”

  “She told you about that, huh?”

  “Autumn tells me everything. I’m her best friend.”

  “So, she told you that she knew it was just a scam?”

  “Mhm.” Sara nodded. “Apparently the ring looked like it had been bought at a 99-cent store.”

  “I’d argue a 25-cent vending machine but no need to get technical.” I offered a charming smile. “I’m just glad
that Autumn trusts me to the point where jealousy isn’t a factor in our relationship and that she doesn’t have to worry about me running off with some other girl.”

  “Even if that girl is a drop-dead-gorgeous runway model?”

  I could tell that Sara was testing me. “Even then, I’d still pick Autumn. As far as I’m concerned, she’s the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.”

  She smiled. “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear.” She paused to glance back at her show, but apparently it wasn’t very interesting because she quickly returned her attention to me. “So, you better get going on that very important question.”

  “I might need your help–”

  “I’m not asking her for you.”

  “No, no, nothing like that. I wouldn’t mind your opinion about the style. I’m not quite sure what she would like.”

  “Definitely rose gold over regular gold.” Sara went off with a long list. I felt like I needed a notepad to write it all down.

  “How about you just come with me to the jewelers once you’re back on your feet.”

  “You’ve got yourself a deal, doc. But I need you to know that I charge interest.”

  “Interest, huh?”

  “You at least have to buy me lunch.”

  I laughed. “You got it.”

  * * *

  If I was going to pop the question to Autumn then I needed to make sure that Terry would no longer be an issue. Autumn may trust me but the last thing I needed was harassment at the workplace. Not only that, Terry had proven herself incapable of performing her job. If she wanted to be on my team then she needed to be dedicated to saving lives. Romance shouldn’t even be a consideration while she’s on the clock.

  I had a feeling that I wouldn’t be able to get that through to her but nonetheless, I had to try.

  So, I headed for the nurse’s station. “Do either of you know when Terry’s working today?”

  “Oh, she called out,” the older nurse answered. “That woman is always making up some kind of excuse to get out of work. It’s a wonder that she keeps her job.” She shook her head and straightened out her newspaper. One more reason why I needed to get her off my team. I needed someone I could rely on – who my patients could rely on.