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Guilt settles on my shoulders for not being there when he woke up. No matter what state he’s in, I’m going to be there when he comes to again.
“Are you okay?” I ask her.
“Yes, but I think I’ll go home like the nurse told me to. I don’t know if it was seeing me that set him off for some reason or if it would’ve happened anyway.”
“You should go home and get some rest. They warned us he’d be unpredictable when he woke. I’m sure it had nothing to do with you.”
“Yeah. This is still a good day, you know? He’s awake. It was awful to see him that way though.”
“I know. I’m sorry you saw it, but I’m so glad you were there. He shouldn’t wake up surrounded by strangers. I’m at the shop now. I grabbed some clothes and stuff for him. I’m on my way. If they won’t let me in with him, I’ll stay in the waiting room until he wakes again. I need to be there.”
Once we hang up, I head for the hospital. I’m happy to see Heather is the night nurse assigned to Oliver. She’s kind but in a no-nonsense sort of way. Heather and another nurse named Danny have been with Oliver since the beginning.
Heather’s face lights with a smile when she sees me. “Did Dr. Siva call you?”
“He did.” My phone rang the second Tori and I hung up. He gave me the same news she did. “Is he still asleep now?”
She accompanies me to his room. “Yes, but he may wake again this evening. It’s hard to predict in these first days post coma.”
“Can I stay with him? I don’t want him to wake up alone.”
“You can but buzz me if he opens his eyes. His behavior will be unpredictable.”
“I will,” I promise.
Oliver doesn’t look any different than he has for the last week. All his bandages are off and his visible wounds have healed. A vicious gash of a scar draws a line across one side of his neck from the surgery to repair the damage from the bullet. His hair has started to grow over the scars on his skull, both from the surgery and the draining tube. Nourished only through a feeding tube for over two months, he’s grown painfully thin.
He’s sleeping peacefully, and I’m quiet while I tuck his belongings away in the nearby cabinet. It occurs to me I need to get him a phone. Once he’s awake, I want him to be able to keep in touch when he needs me.
I take a seat in the small recliner in the corner to wait. Hours pass and my eyes fall shut. I’m not sure how long I was dozing but something makes me jerk awake to see Oliver looking at me.
“Oh, you’re awake. Hey,” I say softly, sitting up. “How are you feeling?”
He stares at me until I start to wonder if maybe he’s asleep with his eyes open. “I don’t know. Tired. My head hurts.”
His raspy voice brings tears to my eyes, and I do my best not to start crying. I don’t want to freak him out. I hit the buzzer for the nurse to tell her he’s awake and in pain. I want to rush over to him and hold his hand, but I keep what Tori said in mind. He panicked last time.
“Thirsty.”
A pitcher of ice water sits nearby, and I pour him a cup. He watches me warily when I approach. His hand trembles too severely to take the cup so I hold the straw to his lips while he takes a couple of sips.
The nurse enters and smiles in our direction. She introduces herself to him, and he allows her to take his vital signs while I stand back in the corner. “Vitals are good. We sure are glad to have you back. Your friend, Ella, has been here waiting for you to wake up.”
He blinks at her. “What happened?”
Oh god. At what point do we tell him?
The answer is apparently not yet. “You were hurt, and we’ve been taking care of you. You’re doing much better. The doctor is on his way now to speak to you and answer any questions you have, okay?”
He nods, and the look of confusion on his face cracks my heart.
“I’m going to give you something to help your pain.” He watches while she injects it into his IV and the grimace on his face softens a little.
The doctor walks in and it’s clear he’s been pulled out of his sleep. Fair enough, it’s after midnight. The first thing he does is ask me to step out of the room. It’s tempting to argue. The last thing I want to do is leave, but I know he’s prioritizing Oliver, like he should.
I peek over at Oliver. “I’ll be right outside, okay?”
He doesn’t answer, only stares at me like he thinks I might be a hallucination. The tears spill over as soon as I step into the hall. “He’s awake, Den,” I whisper. “I wish you were here.”
