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Was I getting out of here? I glanced at Aubrey as I tried to sit up.
“Hang on,” Aubrey said before she set her phone down and then helped me adjust as she lifted the bed. I didn’t try to pull the oxygen mask off. My throat was legit killing me.
Retrieving her phone, Aubrey perched on the edge of the bed next to me. She tucked her cheek to the top of my head. Even with the mask on, the smell of smoke seemed to cling to everything.
“The doctor said he’d have recommendations for us within the next couple of hours.”
“How long?” I managed to push the two words out from under the shattered glass coating my throat.
“It’s almost six in the morning,” Yvette said and I groaned. So much hurt, I also felt scummy. “The fire was at midnight?”
“Give or take,” Aubrey said. “We woke to smoke. That was before the alarms started going off.”
I was trying to put it together while they spoke. “What happened to the sprinklers?” Yvette demanded. “Weren’t those buildings brand new?”
They were…they’d just opened them the year before. I coughed, wincing with every squeeze of my chest.
“I don’t know,” Aubrey said. “The police came by, and so did campus security.” She glanced down at me. “They will want to talk to you when you’re up for it. They were being pushy, but TA Douchebag chased them off.”
TA Douchebag? Tired swarmed over me. I’d played back-to-back sets for hours and been less tired at the end of the day. “Ramsey…” I croaked out the name. “He—helped.”
“He’s okay,” Yvette assured me before she cut a look at Aubrey. I followed her gaze. Aubrey let out a little sigh, then pressed a kiss to the top of my head. The wrap of her arm around my shoulders kept me grounded, and I leaned into her as much, or maybe more than she leaned into me. “Aubrey said he’s right there in the hospital with you.”
He was? Before I could look around, Aubrey huffed out a hard sigh. “He’s a cubicle over.” Her voice was low, probably to not carry. Adding to the surreality of the entire experience, I had on an oxygen mask, and we were surrounded by the sterile environment that wavered between blinding white and fugly green. What was it with hospitals?
I tried to clear my throat, but it hurt. A second attempt brought a nurse into our cubicle. Her smile was warm and almost too friendly. Guilt niggled inside of me, but I was too tired to focus on that particular fact at the moment.
“Hi there, I’m Jesse,” she said. “I’ve been your nurse for the last few hours.”
Aubrey scooted out of the way as the nurse checked my vitals. There was an oxygen monitor on my finger, and she got the blood pressure cuff in place.
“The doctor will be in to speak with you shortly, but can you tell me where you are?”
I stared at her for a long moment, then tried to say hospital but the word came out garbled and harsh.
She grimaced in sympathy for me. “That sounds rough. Let’s try some ice chips. We can do those in tiny amounts, and I can switch you out to a nasal cannula. Sound good?”
Honestly, anything sounded great if it involved getting something to drink. There was an IV in, and the numbers didn’t seem to worry the nurse too much.
While she said it wouldn’t take long, it seemed to take forever for them to switch me from oxygen to a cannula. It was easier to breathe, and the ice was ambrosia. Aubrey helped me with the ice chips. Why the fuck was I so weak?
It was hard enough to keep my eyes open. If they were going to release me, I wanted to get out of here. Thankfully, the round with the doctor went easier. He was younger, smiling like he was actually happy to be here, and his eyes held a distinctly sober edge.
He was more than happy with my oxygenation levels. My throat was raw and sore, so I needed to give it all a couple of days. A fact he reminded me about firmly after examining it.
After ordering a few more tests, he focused on me. “We’re going to give this another couple of hours. Drink some water, small sips only. Suck on the ice. I’ll see about ordering you something cold to eat too in a little while. So far, all your numbers look good. We’ll be able to get you out of here soon.”
“Thank you,” I hacked around the words, grimacing even as they came out.
“Take it easy there, Miss Crosse. That’s a valuable voice, and we want to protect it. You should be good in a few days, but we’ll want you to check in with your primary physician. If you don’t have one locally, come back and see me. My sister is a huge fan.”
I didn’t laugh, but Aubrey did. “We’ll sign any autograph you’d like. Just hearing she’s going to be okay is a lifesaver.”
“What she said,” Yvette declared from the phone. “I’ll send something down to the girls once we figure out where everyone will be.”
He chuckled. “That’s great, however getting better is the best thing you can do for her and for me. Any questions?”
I had thousands of them, just not for him. Not right now. Blood work followed him pretty quickly, then they sent me for more x-rays. More, because they’d done x-rays earlier, but I was out.
