Authors: Susan Behon
“
You're crying! What the hell does crying mean?” Tracy looked at the instructions as if they would tell her. “Sophie, what does it say?”
Wiping away her tears, Sophie gave a tremulous smile. “I'm pregnant.”
Tracy pulled her up and hugged her.
“I get to be an aunt! This is going to be one gorgeous baby, Sophie! How do you feel? Are you okay?”
Sophie still had a hold of the stick. She stared at it again and compared it to the picture on the paper. “I'm definitely pregnant. Reed was right. That time in the pickup truck did the trick.”
Tracy's eyes widened. “You got knocked up in a pickup truck? That's flipping awesome!”
“
Why is that
awesome?”
“
I don't know. It's kind of sexy since you guys aren't in high school.”
Sophie turned pink thinking about it. They were definitely acting like teenagers that night.
Forgotten condom and everything.
Reality hit her hard. “Oh my God, Tracy! I'm really pregnant with Reed's baby!” She held a hand over her mouth. “I think I'm going to throw up.” She took some deep breaths. “No, I'm okay.”
Tracy didn't look convinced so she backed up. Her stomach didn't agree with her either. Sophie rushed to the toilet and got sick. Afterward, she washed her face and brushed her teeth.
Sophie came out of the bathroom to another hug from Tracy. “It'll be okay, little mama. Hey, you really are a little mama!” Sophie started crying again. “Are those happy or sad tears?”
She sniffled. “Happy. I have
to tell Reed! Oh, but what if he's busy at the construction site? He's had such a rough week already. I don't want to bother him.”
Handing Sophie her cell phone, Tracy said, “You mean
bother
him with the news that he's going to be a daddy? Yes, definitely bother him! Now!”
* * * *
Reed was having a shitty day. For the second time that morning, he had to go to the Falls Condos site and deal
with another problem. When he pulled in and parked next to the building construction, Ben walked over looking none too happy. Reed grabbed his hard hat off the seat and was about to put it on when his phone rang.
He checked the screen.
Sophie
. Hearing from Sophie might boost his mood. “Hello?”
“
Reed? Hi. Are you busy?” She didn't sound right.
“
No, not yet. What's wrong? Are you okay?”
She
sniffled.
Didn't sound like it.
“I'm very okay. I'm wonderful, in fact. Reed, we're going to have a baby!”
“
What?” The phone slipped out of his hand and landed on the floorboard. He leaned over to catch it when he heard Ben scream, “Reed!” He had to practically lie on the bench seat to get to his phone.
Wait, did Ben actually scream?
That was the last thought he had before a piece of scaffolding
fell on his truck, smashing his windshield and crushing the top of the cab. He thought he'd gotten lucky until something hard hit him in the shoulder and the side of the head.
That's when everything went black.
* * * *
Sophie heard the phone drop from Reed's hand with a
thumpity-thump
sound in her ear.
Must have stunned him too.
She waited for him to get back on the phone, but it was a good
minute before she heard anything. What she heard almost stopped her heart. It sounded like a big crunching boom and an exhalation of breath. “Reed! Answer me! What happened? Reed, say something! Oh God, no.” She tried again. “Hello? Hello? Please answer me!” She listened as hard as she could and picked up the muffled sound of a man's voice yelling, “Reed? Reed? Get him the hell out of there! Call
911!” Simultaneously, the blood rushed from Sophie's head to her feet, her lips started to tingle in panic, and the phone fell out of her hand.
She realized that Tracy was keeping her from falling too.
“
Sophie, what happened? You're as white as a sheet!” Her mouth moved, but words wouldn't come to her. Tracy gave her a little shake. “Sophie? Talk to me!”
Sophie heard herself as if she were
detached from her body, “Reed.” Everything slammed back into focus. “Reed! I think he's hurt. I…I…I heard a crashing sound and someone said to call 911. We have to go to the hospital! Right now!”
Pulling out her keys, Tracy ushered her out the door. “I'll drive you. There's no way in hell I'm letting you behind the wheel in the state you're in.” Sophie ran to the car, pulled the door open, and
rushed inside. “Let's go!”
Tracy peeled out of the driveway and drove as fast as she could to the hospital. “It'll be okay, Sophie. Reed will be fine. Whatever happened might not be that bad.”
Sophie knew it was bad. She knew it from the panic in that man's voice and she knew it in her soul. Reed was seriously hurt. “God, don't let him be dead. Please, let him be okay.” She prayed the entire
way to the hospital.
It seemed to take forever for them to get there. They caught every red light and had to take a detour twice. Tenderly, Sophie rubbed a hand over her belly. Their baby was in there. Reed had to live. She loved him too much to lose him now.
* * * *
They arrived before the ambulance. Tracy let Sophie off at the hospital entrance on her way to the parking lot. Sophie rushed
in and ran to the front desk. The last time she'd been at Madison Falls Medical Center was when her dad died. Since that horrible day, she'd never wanted to come back. The smell of antiseptic and the muted purple tones of the lobby were ingrained in her memory. Instrumental music piped through the speakers was meant to soothe but only managed to grate on her nerves.
A gray haired volunteer with
kind eyes waited behind the front desk. Sophie was moving so fast, she almost plowed into the lady. She tried to calm down. She really did, but panic was sending little prickles all over her scalp and a roaring noise was starting to drown out the ambient music.
“
Who are you here for, dear?” This wasn't the first time the lady had encountered a frantic woman searching for a patient. Her voice
was kind and composed.
On any other day, it might have sounded reassuring, but not today. Not to Sophie. “Reed Sutton. Is the ambulance here yet? He's been in an accident. Is he okay?”
The volunteer, whose nametag read “Mildred” checked the computer. She glanced up at Sophie through her bifocals. “I'm sorry. We don't have anyone by that name here.”
Sophie felt the tears well up again. By that
time, Tracy was behind her with a hand on her shoulder. “It's okay, Sophie. He's just not here yet.”
Mildred, the desk lady, pointed to the left. “There's a waiting room right over there if you want to have a seat. Your friend is right, miss. The ambulance might be on its way here.” She gave Tracy a “take care of her” look and went back to her computer. Tracy pulled Sophie away and made her sit
down on a couch with ugly plastic cushions.
She went to the vending machine and got a can of pop for Sophie. “Drink this. You need to calm down, Sophie. I know you're upset but remember the baby.”
Sophie nodded and held the can between both hands.
This couldn't be happening.
“
I love him, Tracy. I can't lose him. We're going to have a baby.” The last words trailed off when she saw the flashing
lights of the ambulance as it pulled up to the front door.
She stood on shaky legs and watched the EMTs unload a gurney with someone strapped to it. There was blood all over his face and chest and a brace was placed around his neck.
Oh,
God
, is that Reed?
She knew for sure when she saw Ben climb out behind him. He was bleeding too. There was a gash on his forehead and the knees of his pants were
jagged and dirty.
Sophie and Tracy both ran toward the front entrance. The EMTs were speaking into walkie-talkies and wheeling the gurney at a fast clip. Even though the man lying there was unrecognizable with the blood and the bruising, she knew it was Reed by the clothes he had on this morning. Only, that was Reed but he wasn't moving. His eyes were closed and Sophie wasn't even sure if he
was breathing.
She ran with the gurney and asked the guy in front, “Is he alive? Is he okay? Please, is he okay?” The man rushed by her in an effort to get Reed treatment as soon as possible. “I'm sorry, ma'am. We don't know anything yet. Please step aside.” Sophie took a few more steps, but it was Ben who held her back. “Let them help him, Sophie.”
Before she knew it, Sophie was sitting on
the uncomfortable plastic couch again. Tracy and Ben must have led her here, but she didn't remember it. Her pop can was in her hands again. She didn't remember picking it up either.
Ben stood right in front of her as if he weren't bruised and bleeding and in need of medical attention himself. “He's alive, Sophie. He's alive.”
She tried not to cry, but her emotions were everywhere. “What happened?”
He grimaced in pain then explained the accident to her. “Reed pulled up in his truck to help me handle another situation with safety protocol. I was walking toward him when I saw him talking on the phone. He must have dropped it because his head dipped out of view, probably to grab it. That's when I saw the scaffolding. I yelled to him, but it was too late. Part of it had broken off from the seventh
floor and landed on the cab of his truck. If he wouldn't have bent down to get his phone, the crash would have killed him.”
Sophie had never heard Ben say so much at one time, but the words kept pouring out of him. “He got hit in the head with the crumpled metal. There was just enough space that his body wasn't crushed. The impact knocked him unconscious and I think they said his shoulder was
dislocated. That's all I know for now.”
“
Are you okay, Ben? You should go get checked out.”
He wiped his hand across his forehead and looked surprised when he saw all of the blood. “I guess I do. I think I caught some of it too.”
Tracy took him by the arm. “Sophie, I'll be right back. I'm going to make sure Ben sees a doctor. I don't think he realizes how much he's hurt. Will you be okay?”
Sophie nodded. “Get him to a doctor. I'll be right here.” Tracy led a docile Ben to the front desk to get him checked in. Numb, Sophie sat on her aqua green cushion and waited.
She'd started counting the framed portraits of the Med Center's illustrious MDs for the third time. Sophie had to do something to keep the panic at bay. In between counting sessions, she prayed. This was too much like the
day her dad died. The sights, the sounds, and the overwhelming feeling of helplessness were like a horrific nightmare repeating itself.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a group of people rush into the waiting room. “Sophie!” Jack pulled her into a strong hug before letting go. “How is he? What happened?”
She related the story Ben told her, then said, “They won't tell me anything specific
since I'm not family. All I know is that he's banged up but alive.”
Dot was standing behind Jack. She looked drawn and shaky. “Sophie, I'll find out what's going on. One of these doctors will talk to me. Everything will be okay.” Sophie didn't know if she was saying that last part to her or herself.
Keith sat next to her on the other side and put a big hand on her shoulder. “If I know anything,
it's that my brother has a hard head. He's stubborn as hell too so I know he'll make it out of this okay.” He said it with conviction, but she saw the worry in his deep blue eyes.
Sophie was sitting between Jack and Keith when Dot came in pulling a young, bespectacled doctor along by the arm. He seemed to be allowing it for the sake of peace. “Tell them what's going on with our boy.”
The doctor
opened a clipboard and looked down at his notes. “I'm Dr. Anthony.”
He looked around. “Are you all family of the patient?”
Before Sophie could say anything, Dot said, “Yes.” Pointing at Sophie, she said, “That's my son's fiancée. She's family too.”
Didn't see that one coming.
The doctor looked back at his notes, clearly not as shocked by that announcement as Sophie was. “Yes, well, Reed has
suffered injuries from blunt force trauma. He arrived with a dislocated shoulder and some lacerations and contusions. He was lucky nothing was broken. Our main concern right now is the blow he took to the side of his skull. The CT scan shows the presence of an acute subdural hematoma.” Everyone looked at him in confusion. Dr. Anthony explained in layman's terms. “This is bleeding around the brain
that compresses the brain tissue. We have him on a course of corticosteroids in an attempt to reduce the swelling. We'll need to monitor his condition and the extent of the swelling.”
Jack asked, “What if the steroids don't work?”
The doctor sighed as if not wanting to impart this part of the prognosis. “If the swelling increases, he will need surgery immediately to relieve the pressure on the
brain. Unfortunately, too much pressure unrelieved could cause a certain amount of brain damage.”
Dot asked, “How will we know the medicine is working?”
Dr. Anthony gave her an encouraging smile. “The most significant change will be if he wakes up. He's been unconscious since his arrival and the next twenty-four hours will be a critical time in his recovery. Trust me. We will do everything possible
to see to the care of your son.”
Keith asked, “Can we see him?”
The doctor nodded. “He should have been given a room by now. Reception should have the room number. Due to the seriousness of the injury, only family will be allowed visiting privileges.” He nodded a goodbye to the Sutton family and left the waiting area.
All Sophie heard was “unconscious” and “possible brain damage.” Her poor
Reed. He needed to wake up! Jack pulled her to her feet as Dot left once again to get the room information. She came back only a moment later. “Reed is in room 228. Let's go.”
Sophie stood there as Jack, Keith, and Dot walked out of the waiting room. After a few steps, Dot turned around. “Come on, Sophie.”
She swallowed her tears. “But the doctor said it was family only.”