Chapter 28

 

By Julie

 

The next few hours passed slowly.  Everyone sat in the cramped waiting room, barely even speaking, for they for so worried about Brian.  Jane and Bob Carter were worried about Nick as well.  Dr. Collins had come down to check him over, but they had received no word on his condition yet. 

 

Finally, Dr. Collins came into the room. 

 

"How's Nick?" Jane asked, standing up.

 

"I'm afraid Nick has gone into a coma.  We're pumping him full of antibiotics, but they aren't getting rid of the pneumonia like they should," Dr. Collins explained.

 

"What can you do to help him?" Bob asked.

 

"We have a new experimental drug that we can try.  It's very powerful, and we have only used it on a few people, but so far, it seems to work well, better than some antibiotics," Dr. Collins said.

 

"Try it," Jane said, without even thinking.  "Do anything you can to help him."

 

"Are you sure you understand the risks?" Dr. Collins asked. "We don't know all of the possible side effects of this drug yet."

 

"What will happen if you don't use it?  He'll die, won't he?" Jane reasoned, tears brimming in her eyes.

 

"It's likely," Dr. Collins admitted.  "You'll need to sign a form for Nickolas to be started on this drug.  I'll have a nurse bring it to you."

 

"Thank you, Dr. Collins," Jane said. 

 

"Have you heard anything on Brian?" asked Jackie, before Dr. Collins left.

 

"No, not yet, Mrs. Littrell," Dr. Collins said.  "I'm sure he's still in surgery.  Don't worry, someone will come talk to you when the surgery is over."

 

Jackie nodded.  "Thank you, Dr. Collins," she said. 

 

He nodded and left the room.  A few minutes later, Becky, the young nurse that was in Nick's room before, came in, holding a piece of paper.  She handed it to Jane and Bob.

 

"Here's the form you need to sign for Nickolas to be started on that new drug," she said.  Jane and Bob both signed it.  "Thank you," Becky said and took the form out of the room.

 

After a few more minutes of waiting, another doctor finally came into the room. 

 

"Are you all here for Brian Littrell?" he asked, looking around the lounge.  Everyone nodded nervously.  "I'm Dr. Hart.  I was one of the surgeons that operated on Brian.  He pulled through surgery and had been taken to recovery again, where he is being monitored."

 

"What happened to him?" Howie asked.

 

"His pancreas ruptured," Dr. Hart said.  "There was a lot of bleeding in his pancreas, but it was hard to detect, and we missed it before.  We were able to repair his pancreas luckily, so once it heals, it will still be able to function."

 

Everyone nodded, relieved that Brian was going to be okay.

 

"Did you get everything this time?" AJ asked, rather testily.

 

"Yes," Dr. Hart said.  "We checked over and over to make sure all of the bleeding was stopped.  But I'm afraid he lost a lot of blood in the surgery.  He will need another blood transfusion.  Would-" 

 

Dr. Hart was interrupted by Harold, who jumped up and said, "I'll donate blood to him.  He's my brother, and we have the same blood type.  B negative."

 

"Thank you," Dr. Hart said, pleased.  "Why don't you come with me, and I'll have a nurse get you started."

 

Harold nodded.  Before he left, Dr. Hart turned back to the rest of the group.  "Are there any questions before I go?" he asked.

 

"You'll have someone come down and tell us when we can see Brian, right?" Jackie asked.

 

"Yes," Dr. Hart replied. 

 

"Okay, thanks," Jackie said.  Dr. Hart offered her a smile and led Harold out of the room.

 

They waited another hour.  Finally a nurse came into the room.  "I'm just here to tell you immediate family members may go down to recovery and see Brian now," she said.  Harold, Jackie, and Harold stood up and eagerly followed the nurse down to the recovery room.

 

"I just want you to know that he's still unconscious," the nurse said as they reached the doorway.  "I'm not sure when he will wake up.  He was given a high amount of anesthesia because the doctors didn't know how long the surgery would take.  It could be another few hours until he wakes up."

 

Jackie and Harold nodded.  When the nurse left the room, they both pulled up chairs to their son's bedside.  Jackie began to cry softly when she got a good look at Brian.  He looked so still and pale.  His chest and stomach were once again bandaged.  He was attached to two IV's, one with clear liquid, and the other with red, Harold's blood.  He also had many tubes attached to him, and he was hooked up to several monitors. 

 

Jackie picked up his limp, pale, hand and gently squeezed it, hoping that Brian would wake up soon.

***

 

The first thing I felt when I opened my eyes was pain.  That horrible pain in my stomach was back.  I tried to cry out, but couldn't.  There was something down my throat.  I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the pain to pass.

 

"Brian?!" I heard a voice call anxiously.  I immediately opened my eyes again and found myself looking up at my mother. 

 

"Mom!" I tried to say, but once again, couldn't.

 

"Don't try and talk, Babyduck," she said gently.  "You just had surgery, and there is a tube down your throat still."  I tried to nod my head, but I felt so weak that it was nearly impossible.  "Oh, Brian, honey, I love you so much," Mom said, bending over and tenderly kissing my forehead.  "You had Dad and I so worried."

 

I tried to remember what had happened, why I had just had surgery.  At first, my mind was blank, but then it all came back to me.  The plane crash, the pain in my stomach, throwing up blood, Nick.  Nick!  Was Nick okay?  I felt frustrated not being able to speak.  I wanted to ask my mom how Nick was doing, but I couldn't utter a single word. 

 

She must have seen the frustration in my eyes because she said, "Baby, are you alright?  Is something wrong?"

 

I didn't know how she expected me to answer her, since I couldn't talk.  But then she pulled a small notepad and a pen out of her purse. 

 

"Do you think you can write, sweetheart?" she asked, handing me the paper and pen.

 

It was very hard to write lying down.  Plus, there was an IV coming out of the back of my hand, and I was very weak.  But still, I was determined to find out how my best friend was doing.  I awkwardly scribbled out "Nick" on the piece of paper.  Mom took it when I was finished and studied it for a moment.

 

"Brian, honey," she started slowly.  I knew this wasn't going to be good news.  "Nick is very sick with pneumonia, honey.  The antibiotics aren't helping much, and he has gone into a coma.  The doctors are trying to give him a new experimental drug to see if that will help him," she explained sadly.  I felt tears well up in my eyes, and I didn't have the strength to reach up and brush them away.  What little strength I had had before, I had used writing Nick's name.

 

Mom reached up and gently wiped away my tears.  She said nothing.  I looked at her carefully and realized her own eyes were shiny with tears.   I mustered my last bit of strength and reached up my arms to her.  She gave me a tearful smile and gently hugged me.  It felt so good to have my mother holding me again, that I didn't want her to let go.  We hugged for a long time, until finally, I felt myself grow sleepy again.  I finally drifted off into a deep sleep.

 

***

 

 

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