Chapter 7

It was early evening before nearly everyone began dispersing from his room. AJ and Howie had decided to leave the following morning to go home. They did make him promise, however, if he needed anything, then he would call them. They hesitantly said their goodbyes to him; after he reassured them several times he would be okay. Bob and Aaron were also leaving the following day, but would be back in the morning before their flight.

“Are you leaving, too?” Nick asked Kevin, who sat on the window seat beside Kristin.

“Nope. We decided to stay around and bug you.” Kristin said.

“Gee, thanks,”

“Actually, we’re going to hang around until you get out of here.”

“Don’t think I can handle him myself?” Riley asked.

“More like you’d never make it out of New York in one piece because you two have the same mental capacity.”

“Ouch.” Nick said. “I’ll remember that, old man.”

A volunteer knocked gently on the doorframe before entering with a tray.

“Sorry to bother you.” She said softly, setting the tray on the table. She left quickly, returning to the cart in the hallway.

“We should probably go get some dinner ourselves.” Kevin stood, and then helped Kristin up. “Riley, want to join us?”

“Nah, I think I’ll keep Nick company for a while.”

“Okay. Well, we probably won’t be back until tomorrow morning. Riley, if you need a room tonight at the hotel, just call my cell phone.”

“All right. Could you do me a favor and get my suitcase out of AJ’s room before he leaves?”

“Sure.”

“Thanks.”

Kevin and Kristin left, hand-in-hand, leaving Riley and Nick alone in the room.

Nick lifted the lid, peeking at what was under it.

“What’s for dinner?” Riley asked.

“Looks to be some type of broth, apple sauce, and wait, there’s more. Jell-O. Wow, let me tell you how excited I am.”

“Hey, apple sauce is good. That means they’re starting to give you soft foods.”

“Oh boy.” Nick mused.

Riley sat down beside him on the bed, adjusting the table so it was in reach.

“Maybe we could get you some silly straws and you could suck your dinner in.”

“Yeah… but there might be an issue with the Jell-O.”

“But that’s not so hard to eat compared to the soup.”

Nick shrugged, defeated as Riley began to help him eat. He ate nearly half before he found himself unable to digest anymore.

“I could really go for a cheeseburger about now.” He said, drinking the remainder of his tea.

“That’s what you think. With something that greasy and heavy, you’d be heaving up your dinner all night.”

“Thanks for that wonderful insight.”

Riley grinned, settling back down in the chair. There was a knock on the door before it opened and Ethan walked in. Riley smiled and wriggled her eyebrows at Nick before Ethan walked across the room.

“How are you doing?” He asked, checking the I.V.

“Good.” Nick replied.

“Any pain?”

“Not a lot. Mostly when I move, though.”

“Okay. But nothing real serious?”

“No.”

“Good. Dr. Resnick has ordered that your NG tube be removed. He also wants you to get out of bed and just walk around the room a bit. I’ll be right back with some supplies.”

As he left, Nick turned to Riley, a look of fear upon his face.

“If it hurts so bad to just move around in bed, how bad is it going to hurt to walk?”

“Nick, you’ll be fine. Yes, it’s going to hurt, but it’ll make you feel better later.”

Ethan returned carrying a tub of items.

“Don’t look so scared,” He said, taking the dinner tray off the table and replacing it with the tub. He quickly took the tray into the hallway before returning to the side of the bed. “Taking this out is a piece of cake, and then walking really isn’t so bad once you’re up.”

He worked fast, taking a towel from the tub and placing it across Nick’s shoulders.

“Have they taught you the pillow trick yet?” Ethan asked.

“No…”

”Ah. Let me share this with you real quick. The pillow trick is using a pillow for everything. Basically, just keep a pillow over your abdomen. When you cough or sneeze, it definitely helps putting some pressure on your stomach, and the pillow does that. Or like now, sometimes the withdraw of the tube will make you gag, and if you just put a bit of pressure on the pillow, it won’t hurt your stomach muscles as bad.”

“Okay.”

Ethan opened the closet and took out a clean pillow.

“Let me get you a pillowcase.” He left again, briefly, returning with a white pillowcase. He put it on the pillow before gently laying it against Nick’s abdomen. “All right. Now, all I’m going to do is take the tape off, and then gently pull this out. I’ll start slow, but speed up because it’ll only irritate you worse if done slowly.”

He took several items out of the tub and set them on the table, before putting the tub in Nick’s lap.

“Just in case.” He said. Pulling on gloves, he dampened a washcloth at the sink, and then set it on the table. Carefully, he peeled off the tape that held the tube onto Nick’s cheek. “Okay. You might feel a bit like coughing, and go ahead if you do. The best advice I can give is to try and hold your breath.”

He sucked in a breath as Ethan slowly began withdrawing the tube. It neared his throat, causing him to gag. As the tube departed from his body, he heaved over the tub, but luckily, it remained dry.

“Just take a few slow breaths. The feeling will pass.”

Slowly, it did, and Ethan offered him a cup of water. He sipped it slowly, then handed it back.

“Better?”

“Yeah.” He replied, leaning back against the pillows. His throat felt raw, even the water stinging it as it went down.

“I’m just going to wash the tape residue off your cheek.” Ethan said as he gently rubbed Nick’s cheek. “Okay. How’s the pain?”

“It’s okay.”

“All right. Let me go get rid of this stuff and we’ll get you out of bed.”

“You okay?” Riley asked as Ethan stepped out.

“Yeah.”

She could see in his face that he was already becoming tired. “Just get this over with, and then you can sleep the rest of the night.”

“Except for the hourly wake up by the nurses as they check your vital signs.”

Ethan returned yet again, a robe and several other items in his hands.

“Okay, here’s the scoop. We’re going to take off your TED hose, put some real socks on, and then we’ll swing your feet to the side of the bed, you’ll stand up, walk around, get back in bed, and then you’re done. Sound simple enough?”

“Easier said than done.” Nick replied.

“True, but once you do this, I can leave you alone for the night.” He shut the door and laid the robe on the bed as he pulled down the blanket and sheet. “Do you mind her being in here? No offense, ma’am.”

“Nah, she’s fine.”

Riley snickered. After being friends for so long and then living together for a while, there was nothing she hadn’t seen, even if it was on accident.

“I’m going to switch your catheter over to a leg bag to make it easier to walk with. It’ll only take a second.” Ethan got a small clear bag off table and kneeled down at the side of the bed. He clasped the catheter shut and moved it over to the small bag, then went into the bathroom to empty the larger bag. Leaving it in there, he returned. He lifted Nick’s gown slightly off his leg and Velcroed an elastic strip around his thigh. Replacing the gown, he pulled the sheets down to the end of the bed, exposing Nick’s leg, in which he had hardly seen for several days.

“What’s with the ugly socks?” Nick asked as Ethan removed them.

“They’re called TED hose. They keep you from getting blood clots in your legs since you’re not moving them.”

“Ah..”

After taking them both off, he replaced them with blue socks that had small triangle grips on the bottoms of them. He then brought down both sets of side rails on the side of the bed.

“Okay. Getting up will be the hardest part of recovering. You’re going to slowly, sit forward and lean on your front hand, and then begin to swing your legs around. You’ll get the hang of it after awhile. You’ll probably need some help for the first several days or so, possibly longer.”

Ethan placed his arm behind Nick’s back and slowly helped him sit up straight.

“Okay, now move your left foot towards the side, then your right.” Nick did as he was instructed and soon found himself sitting on the edge of the bed. Ethan slid the robe over each of Nick’s arms, letting it fall in the back. “Now I’m going to count to three, and you’re going to push yourself up off the bed. I’ll help, though. One…two… three.”

Slowly, Nick lifted himself off the bed and into a standing position.

“Not so bad, eh?”

“I feel cripple.” Nick muttered. “I can’t stand up straight.”

“That’s okay. In a day or so, you will be able to. Your muscles are just sore. Okay, let’s walk.”

Riley remained in the chair, the sight in front of her causing her stomach to hurt. She had left him several years ago in the peak of his career, and in near tip-top condition. And now, he was being helped to just walk, and couldn’t hardly stand.

“How are you doing?” Ethan asked once they made it to the other side of the room.

“Okay.”

“Let’s walk back, and we’ll call it a night.”

They crossed the room again and Ethan helped Nick sit down on the edge of the bed. Taking off the socks, clean TED hose replaced them. He then helped Nick take off the robe, and then slowly sit back against the bed.

“I’ll lay the bed down some, but you might want to wait a while before going all the way down. It’ll help your stomach.”

He changed the catheter bag yet again before replacing the sheet and blanket over Nick’s body.

“Let me know if you need anything.” Ethan grabbed a few extra supplies and left the room, closing the door as he did.

A sweat had formed on Nick’s face, dampening his hair. He lay back against the pillows, exhausted and in pain from the small journey.

“You okay, babe?” Riley sat on the edge of the bed, careful not to disturb his body. She took his hand into hers, holding it in her lap.

“Yeah.” His breathing settled and his body became more relaxed.

“Sleep.” She said. “I’ll stay until you do. And then I’ll be back in the morning.”

“Okay.”

She leaned over and kissed his forehead, pushing his bangs away from his eyes. Slowly, his eyelids grew heavy. His hand became relaxed within hers. She stood slowly, careful not to disturb him. Turning off the light above his head, she slung her purse over her shoulder before leaving.

~

Nick stared at the television, bored of watching reruns and talk shows. He had been awake for what felt like ages. In reality, it had only been about five hours. Dr. Resnick had come in and decided to free him from all the monitors and tubes. Then, one of the nurses had assisted him in a walk, this time, around the hallways outside the room. His father and Aaron had arrived when he returned to his room, but had left shortly after to catch their flight. Aaron promised to come visit as soon as he could. Now, he found himself watching another talk show as the day droned on.

“Wow, look who’s up.” A voice came from the doorway. Riley appeared, a vase of flowers in her arms. “They’re from the tour crew.” She said when she saw the look on his face. It was a large display of exotic and tropical flowers, in several different bright colors.

“I think it’ll brighten up the room a bit,” She laughed, sitting them on the counter beside the sink.

“Thanks.” He said, taking the card from her grasp.

“Who’d you have to impress to get untangled from the mess of wires and tubes?”

“Well, turns out Ethan is gay and-“

“Okay. Shut up.” Riley cut him off as she sat down in his bed beside the recliner he occupied. “Did your dad and Aaron leave already?”

“Yeah, about an hour ago. What have you been doing all morning?”

“Sleeping and business” She smiled sheepishly. “I didn’t sleep much the other night because of the time change, but I think it finally kicked in. I also had a conference call with my company.”

“Is it okay with them that you’re staying?”

“Nick, I own the company. They can’t tell me no. And they’ll be fine without me.”

“Okay. No need to get hissy.”

Riley laughed, rolling her eyes at him. “Can’t you find something better than a talk show to watch?”

“I’ve been trying.” He turned the channels once more, in hopes to find something better on.

“Ooh look. A Lifetime movie.”

“It looks really dumb.”

“They usually are. But it’s better than a talk show or game show.”

Soon, they found themselves deeply engaged in the movie, but as it continued on, became boring and irrelevant.

Hearing soft breathing, Nick looked over to see Riley sound asleep on the window seat. He leaned back further in his chair, allowing his worn out body to take over as he fell into a comfortable sleep.

***

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