“Was Nicholas drinking?” Deborah asked in shock.
“No, it wasn’t him. There was no amount of alcohol in his blood. Anyway, it appears the drunk driver hit him head on and he got crushed pretty badly. He suffered extreme head trauma because of it. The good news is that he was wearing a seat belt. If he hadn’t, more than likely he would have died.”
Died? The thought scared her. She couldn’t imagine a life without Nicholas.
Deborah took a deep breath and then asked, "Was he in a coma when the ambulance driver got to the scene?”
“Yes. Ever since the accident he’s been in a coma. We’ve done a lot of tests and he appears to be stable and we don’t expect him to be in a coma very long, but we’re not one hundred percent sure on just how long it may be. Other than that, he’s bruised quite a bit and he does have a broken arm and two broken ribs.”
“Thank you so much for your help.”
Not only was Deborah extremely grateful for the information, but she was beginning to feel comfortable with the nurse. She had a good feeling that she would provide Nicholas the best care possible. The nurse's motherly feel to her presence made Deborah want to ask what her name was.
“People call me Nurse Anne. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to flag me down. Along with Dr. Stevens, I’m the only other one specifically assigned to Nicholas’ case. Would you like me to show you where his room is?”
“That would be wonderful. I can’t thank you enough.”
“It’s my job,” Nurse Anne replied with a smile.
She then led Deborah down a long hallway lined with rooms filled with patients in intensive care. Deborah took notice of the navy blue scrubs the nurse was wearing that was filled with neon-colored cats.
“I love the scrubs you have on.”
“Why, thank you. I love cats and so one year for Christmas my husband bought these for me.”
“That’s so nice.”
Nurse Anne turned her head quickly and both women smiled at each other.
“Well, here you are. Stay as long as you like. I don’t think we have any scheduled tests to run for a while so you shouldn’t have any interruptions.”
“Thanks again!”
Nurse Anne headed back to her station where she could monitor the patients. Meanwhile, Deborah took some time outside Nicholas’ room to calm her nerves and psyche herself up to what she might see. She definitely was not prepared to see what she did upon entering his room.
There he was lying on the hospital bed covered in white sheets and wearing a white and blue hospital gown. He looked completely lifeless. Attached to him were various cords that monitored different vital signs. Deborah was glad that at least she didn’t hear a constant heartbeat sound like she would in a movie or television show. She knew that if she did, she’d be freaked out that she’d suddenly hear his heartbeat flat line or something to that effect.
She took some time staring at him in disbelief. His usually toned physique looked scrawny and pale. His blond/brown hair was all in disarray and there was no familiar smile on his face. As Nurse Anne mentioned, he had black, blue and purple bruises on his arms and some scratches and bruises on his face as well.
Deborah carefully went up to Nicholas’ side and slightly touched his right hand. She looked up at the monitors and did in fact see his vital signs were all doing really well. She just wished that Nicholas would wake up.
Oh, Nicholas, this is all my fault. If you weren’t on your way to my graduation you would have never gotten into an accident.
Up until that point Deborah did a good job of holding back her tears. However, thinking that he could’ve died because of her made her eyes water. She quickly jerked away from his hand and walked out of the room, not wanting to cry by his side. After taking a couple of deep breaths and still not being able to fully get a grip on herself, she decided to leave the hospital before she bawled for everyone to see.
Deborah walked swiftly down the hallway, ran down the stairs and out the front door. The volunteer lady mentioned something about hoping she has a good day, although Deborah didn’t pay any attention. She was just focused on getting out of there and to her car as fast as she could.
Once she was in the safety of her own car, parked far enough away from any other car, she broke loose. Deborah hid her face in her palms, crying uncontrollably.
“Oh, Nicholas,” she sobbed. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. Please wake up soon! I’m so sorry!”
---------------
The next day was Friday and Deborah had told herself that she was going to try and see Nicholas again.
However, she wanted to first stop by his house – or his mother’s house now, Deborah thought – to see if there was anything there that she could bring with her; perhaps something that she could read to him or set by his bedside for when he eventually woke up.
She figured this way, with something to do that distracted her, she would be able to last longer than the day before when she saw him in the sorry state that he was in. Having spent most of the day yesterday crying and moping around, blaming herself, she was ready to head out and face him again.
Deborah stopped across the street and knocked on the door in hopes for Nicholas’ mom to answer. She didn’t see a car in the driveway, but figured she parked in the garage of which she could not see inside of. Just when she was about to give up hope and turn around to head to her car, Ms. Michaels finally came to the door. She looked terrible with her bloodshot eyes and hair all in a mess. Deborah also noticed that Ms. Michaels was wearing sweats and had a couple of Kleenexes in her hand as well.
“Hi, Deborah. What can I do for you?” Ms. Michaels’ voice was soft and shaky.
“Hi. I was just wondering if Nicholas still had anything here of his that I could maybe bring to the hospital with me when I visit him?”
“Oh,” Ms. Michaels began, a little shocked to hear that request. “Well, um, he did take a lot of things with him, but feel free to go to his room and look around.”
Deborah headed right for Nicholas’ room, not wanting to waste any precious time. When she got there she noticed how different it looked, which was to be expected from him moving out. Deborah gazed through a few boxes and stumbled across a few of his favorite things. She decided to grab one comic book that she could read to him, the model car that she got for him and then a mixed CD with some of his favorite music that she could play softly in the background.
If they let me, she thought.
Closing the boxes back up, Deborah headed downstairs to go to the hospital. She bypassed Ms. Michaels after expressing her sympathy and giving her a quick hug.
“Nicholas is so lucky to have a friend like you. Thank you for visiting him.”
“No problem. I just hope he gets better soon,” Deborah replied not knowing what else to say. She never did know how to respond to someone that thanked her for something that she didn’t feel like she should be thanked for.
With a goodbye, Deborah walked out the door and to her car. She put Nicholas’ things in the bag she brought with her then hurried down the driveway and over to the hospital. The closer she got the more nervous she became, but she knew that she wanted to be there for Nicholas seeing as no other friends may be.
She knew for certain that Alex hadn’t visited him yet at least.
Deborah greeted the volunteer at the front desk, walked up the stairs to the third floor and stopped at the nurse’s station, hoping that Nurse Anne would be around. Not only did she have to ask about playing some music softly, but she wanted to know if there were any updates since the day before.
Some other nurse was sitting at the station, though, so Deborah asked her if Nurse Anne was around.
“She’s here, but with a patient right now. It shouldn’t be much longer of a wait. Is there anything I can help you with?”
“No. That’s okay,” Deborah replied. “I’ll just wait for her. Thanks.”
Deborah figured waiting a little bit longer wou
ld help her calm down a little.
After only a few minutes, Nurse Anne finally arrived. She gave Deborah a smile and apologized for the wait.
“Oh, it’s okay. I just have a couple of questions.”
“All right. What’ya got?”
“Well, I was wondering if there were any updates on Nicholas Michaels since yesterday?” Deborah asked first.
“Let me check.” Nurse Anne looked through his chart and didn’t see anything of significance. “I’m afraid he’s the same.”
She could tell how disappointed Deborah was to hear that so to give her some hope she added, “His tests all keep coming back good though so I’m sure it’s just a matter of time.”
“Okay,” Deborah sighed.
"Was there anything else?"
“Yeah, the only other thing I wanted to ask was if you’d think it would be okay if I played some of his favorite music softly by his bedside?”
“That shouldn’t be a problem. Let me bring a CD player in there for you,” Nurse Anne said with a smile.
“Great. Thank you so much!”
The two of them headed towards Nicholas’ room, Nurse Anne first making a pit stop to grab a CD player. When they got to Room 312, she put a small table by Nicholas’ bedside and hooked the CD player up for Deborah to use. She then left Deborah alone to spend some time with one of her patients.
When Deborah made sure she was alone with Nicholas, she started to talk to him.
“Hey, Nick. It’s me, Debbie," Deborah said, reaching for his hand as she sat down next to him.
"I came by yesterday to see you, but didn't get to stay long. I'm hoping today I’ll do better.”
She spent a few moments in silence with him, just being with him and watching all his vital signs. It had in fact appeared that there was no change, but Deborah remained optimistic.
Nicholas’ weak and lifeless frame still seemed strange to her. She had no idea how to handle someone who was in a coma or what to say to them. So she just figured she’d talk to him like any other time they talked.
“Your mom’s a mess, you know. I saw her today so that I could get some things to bring to you and you could see how worried and sad she is. She wants you to pull through this. We all want you to pull through this. I’m sure she’s been here to see you. At least I hope so. Has anyone else visited you?”
Duh, he can’t answer that, Deborah thought, feeling stupid for even asking.
Good thing no one else is here to hear me talk to myself.
After sitting in silence for a while, Deborah decided to give talking to Nicholas another go.
“So I have no idea what to say to you because you’re in a coma. Maybe I should just pretend you’re sleeping. Then again, I don’t talk to sleeping people either,” Deborah slightly chuckled.
“I can’t wait for you to wake up so I can talk to you about everything that’s happened lately. I want to tell you about my graduation and plans for the future. Or at least I thought I had plans. I’m not sure I’ll stick to them if you’re not well.”
Deborah sat still for a moment, thinking about what she had hoped to do in the next couple of months. Before Nicholas’ accident she was extremely excited and sure she knew what she wanted to do. She even had everything set in stone and picked out. All she had to do was wait a while longer for it all to unfold.
However, now that one of her closest friends was lying in a coma for who knows how long, she didn’t really care if she went through with any of it.
I could always put it off for another year or so, Deborah thought. Right now Nicholas comes first.
When she saw what time it was she realized she had been with Nicholas for quite a while and really had to get going.
“Well, Nick, I’ve got to go. Before I do though, I just want to show you what I brought for your enjoyment. I have a comic book that I’ll put in this tiny drawer here next to your bed. That way you have something to read when,” – If, Deborah thought, – “You wake up. I also have the model car I got for you a while back that I’ll stick by the CD player so you have something to look at and perhaps remember me by. Finally, I also brought a CD so you can have some music on in the background. I won’t put it in now, but when I come back soon I’ll make sure to play some of it for you.”
Deborah reached in the bag and retrieved all three items, showing them all to Nicholas’ closed eyes before putting them where she said she would. She then folded the bag up and stuck it under her arm to bring it back out to the car with her. With one final hand squeeze and smile, Deborah said her goodbyes just hoping that soon Nicholas would be able to wake up and respond.
---------------
Saturday morning came and Deborah contemplated whether or not she should go to the hospital. Having gone the last two mornings, she decided she would mix things up a little bit and go in the afternoon. However, she almost felt that decision was a mistake because the whole morning dragged by so slowly. Even though she found things to keep her busy, every time she looked to see what time it was, certain a lot of time had lapsed, she was disappointed to see that it was merely fifteen or twenty minutes. One time it was a half hour, but even that didn’t seem correct considering what she did in that half hour.
Deborah made herself some lunch and sat down at the kitchen table next to Robyn. It was just the two of them home at the moment. Their mom had to work and she didn’t know where Alex was. It was nice being just her and Robyn though because it meant the house would remain relatively quiet making it easier to think and get things done without anyone bothering her.
The two sisters just shared small talk at the kitchen table while they each finished their respective lunches. For the most part, Robyn just minded her own business and usually kept her nose in a book. Lately she had gotten into writing so she sometimes would carry a notebook and pencil around with her too. These were characteristics that Deborah loved in her sister because that meant she wasn’t nosy. Deborah didn’t like it when people would pry into her life or question anything she did or said, which was bound to happen had her mom or brother been home.
“So what are you going to do today?” Deborah asked Robyn as she put her dirty plate in the sink.
“Not a whole lot. Other than going out for dinner tonight with mom that is. What about you?”
“I think I’m going to head over to the hospital to see Nick, but I’ll be back in plenty of time to go out with you guys.”
“Cool. Hey, how is Nick doing?”
“As far as I know he’s just the same. You can come with me if you’d like,” Deborah offered.
“No, that’s okay. Hospitals sort of freak me out.”
“I understand. It’s hard being there, but I feel I have to for Nick’s sake.”
Deborah told Robyn she’d see her later and then went to get ready to go to the hospital for a third day in a row. She grabbed her purse and an umbrella because it looked really dreary outside. Not that she’d be outside much, but she didn’t want to get caught in a down pour if that should happen to occur.
When Deborah had reached Nicholas’ room she was shocked that he already had a visitor: her brother.
“Oh, hi, Alex. I didn’t expect to see anyone here.”
“Well, he is my best friend, you know.”
“I know. It’s just that every time I’ve been here I’ve been alone.”
“You make it sound like you’ve been here a lot,” Alex concluded.
“I’ve been here every day since his accident.”
“Why?” Alex asked with his eyebrows scrunched as if her being there was a bad thing.
“Well, he’s one of my closest friends so I feel like I should be here to support him. I’m surprised you haven’t been here as much.”
“Are you saying I’m a bad friend?”
“No. I know you have a job and other commitments and what not.”
Just then Dr. Stevens came into the room to check on Nicholas’ condition.
“I see we have another visitor. Hi,
I’m Dr. Stevens,” he said holding out his hand to shake Deborah’s.
“Hi. Dr. Stevens, can you tell me if there’s been any improvement or any indication if he’ll wake up soon?” Deborah asked in return.
“Unfortunately everything is all the same. He’s in a real stable condition, which is good. We just have to play the waiting game. I don’t expect it to be too long now though.”
Dr. Stevens checked a few things and then left the room, smiling at the two siblings on his way out. It wasn’t long before Deborah and Alex started at it again.
“You know, ever since Nick and Robert have moved in you’ve had some obsession over Nick. You claim he’s a close friend of yours, but I’m starting to wonder if it’s more than that. It’s like you want him to choose between us or something so you’re doing all this stuff for him so he’ll like you better,” Alex accused.
Deborah, furious at Alex's accusation, said, "That is so not true. We just have a lot in common and he’s just always been there for me. I’m not trying to take him from you. He can be a friend to us both, can’t he?”
“Yeah, but you act like you’re obsessed with him or something.”
Just then Alex paused as if a light bulb suddenly went on in his head. “Wait. I know what it is! You’re in love with him aren’t you?”
“No,” Deborah replied with an embarrassed giggle. Without any control, her cheeks started to blush so she looked away in hopes Alex wouldn’t see anything. She was kind of in shock and uncomfortable with the fact that he even mentioned such a thing.
All we are is good friends, Deborah silently assured herself.
“I think Deborah’s in love,” Alex sang with a tease.
“Stop it, Alex. How old are we now?”
“Old enough to finally realize what’s going on.”
“Whatever. Mom just thinks you’re jealous. She told me so a few days ago.”
Again, the two were interrupted by a nurse who just had to quick drop something off. Deborah took that little disturbance to quickly leave so she didn’t have to be alone with her brother anymore.
Growing Up Neighbors Page 16
