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16 – Janine
BLARING LIGHTS AREthe first thing I see when I manage to open my eyes for the first time.Hospital lights maybe, I’m not certain.The incessant beeping of machines around me is so distracting, I know I couldn’t be anywhere else.I try to swallow, only to be stopped by a large tube in my throat.Gasping, I try to claw it out as I gag and squirm, panic setting in.
“Janine, it’s okay.We’re going to get this out.It’s okay.”
A woman’s voice is all I can hear as hands move quickly around my face before someone pulls the tube out.Coughing, I try to swallow over and over again but it seems as though my body has forgotten how.
“It’s okay.You’re in the hospital.Just try to calm down, you’ll be okay.”
Through my blurred vision, I see a woman beside me, holding a cup of water.She carefully brings it to my lips, and I take a small sip, thankful my body remembers how to get it down this time.My throat is scratchy, and I feel drugged, dazed, and a little confused.My face feels puffy and swollen, and when I try to rub my eyes, the sharp stinging sensation stops me.
“You’re in the hospital, Janine,” the woman tells me, “you’ve got a lot of bruising on your face so try not to rub it.You’re in ICU.You were in a bad way when you came in.”
That’s an understatement.
My vision clears just enough for me to see I’m in a room alone, hooked up to a lot of machines.One of my arms is bandaged, I feel some type of compression on my ribs and my abdomen is sore, like really fucking sore.I shift slightly, groaning at the onslaught of pain.It feels as though it’s hitting me from every angle.
“You had surgery for some internal bleeding and damage, you’re going to be very sore.You have some broken ribs, a fractured wrist, and a lot of swelling and bruising, but thankfully you didn’t break any more bones.It’s a miracle you’re alive.”
Yes, it would seem it is.
I look to her, and she smiles down.“I’m going to get the doctor to come in.”
Leaving the room, I turn my head and stare at the mass of machines by my bed.How long have I been here?My mind immediately goes to Ebony and Max.They would be terrified seeing me like this.Are they okay?Did someone hurt them?I need to know that they’re safe.I need to know that Wesley didn’t get anywhere near them.
When the nurse returns with a doctor, I raise my good hand to call her over.Walking to my bedside, she stops and leans down to better hear me.“My kids.Are my kids okay?”
“I’ve just called your husband; he is on his way.As far as I know, they’re okay, everyone is okay.”
Exhaling with relief, I close my eyes again as the doctor begins his checks, asking me questions and going over every damned inch of me.
My eyes only open again when I hear his voice.
His beautiful, broken voice.
“She’s awake.”
