Test of Your Sanity 26

Another hour went by, and still no news of them. JC, Nick, AJ rocked back and forth, their hopes dwindling. Tears fell and dried, eyes reddened and swollen, looks came, and their prayers were more desperate.
�What if she�s not�not�� he couldn�t say it. He couldn�t say she was dead.
�She�s not Nick, don�t worry,� Brian said hoarsely.
Finally, a doctor came to them. �JC, Nick and AJ?� she read off.
�Yeah,� they replied, jumping up.
�Well, let�s just say that they were VERY, VERY lucky,� she stressed.
�What happened?� JC questioned.
�Well�Jessica, I�m afraid, got the worst of it.�
�What happened?� JC asked feebly.
�She suffered internal blood loss, but that was taken care of. She had A LOT of cuts, but of course those are easily cleaned and covered. The big thing is, the lower half of her body is paralyzed.�
JC felt smashed into a wall. �W-what?�
Her face was sympathetic. �I�m sorry. The legs were badly hurt. We don�t know if she�ll ever be able to walk again, but we�re working on it. I�m sorry.�
JC sat back down again. �Baby�oh my god��
�What about Heather?� Nick and AJ asked, jumping at their chance of getting news.
She turned to them. �Heather, fortunately, was luckier. Since she was on the other side of the car, she only got scrapes, bruises, and broke her arm. We�ve got the cast on, and you can visit her, but she�s unconscious.�
AJ and Nick practically pushed each other down trying to get to the door.
�Can I-�
�I�m sorry again. But you can�t see her for about another half hour,� she said sadly.
�I-I understand.� He stared at the wall. In reality, he didn�t understand. Couldn�t he just SEE her? It was bad enough she couldn�t walk, but did they have to keep her locked up?
�I�m sorry,� she said for the umpteenth time. �I�ll report to you if I have any more information for you. Oh and.�
JC looked up miserably.
�You�re gonna have to get a wheelchair for her.�
He let out a breaking sigh and nodded.
Rebecca looked at the slumped man considerately and turned to leave.
�God this is just too much,� JC sighed, holding his shaking head in his hands.
�I know man. But we know you can take it,� Chris assured him.
�No. No I can�t.�
***
�Heather?� Nick whispered, taking her hand.
His heart broke when he saw all the bandages that covered her arms and face. The blood was already seeping through the cotton. The steady beeping from the heart monitor told them that she was still alive but unconscious. They neared, afraid they�d do something wrong and she would go.
�Heather? Please baby wake up,� Nick pleaded softly, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. �C�mon. AJ and Nicky�s here.�
She lay still, the only sound heard was the sound of the monitor.
�C�mon Heather�you�re scaring me�� AJ said.
�Mmm�� she murmured.
Their hearts leapt to their throats, surprised that she moved. Surprised, and relieved.
�Heather!� they cried, coming closer.
Her eyes flew open. �Where�s the�car?�
She sat up straight, but then her face bunched up in pain and she sat back down.
�Don�t move sweetie,� Nick said. �You�ve been cut up pretty bad.�
�Where�s Jessie?� she asked, looking around.
�She�s still in surgery,� Nick said.
�Oh my god Nick,� she breathed. �I thought you guys were in like Nevada or something.�
�We flew over here,� AJ said.
Heather looked at them both. �Oh my god this is unreal.�
�It�s real,� Nick and AJ said together.
Then Nick leaned forward and hugged Heather.
�Watch the shoulder. It hurts,� she winced.
Nick backed up immediately, scared of hurting her even more. �Sorry!�
�It�s ok Nicky. It�s ok.�
�Hey! What about me?� AJ pouted.
She laughed and hugged him too. �Oh man. I have a cast. This thing weighs a TON!�
They laughed, happy to see her taking it so lightly.
�So what�s the update over here?� Lance asked, showing up at the door.
She smiled. �Hey Lance. We were just chillin�.�
�Oh. Just to tell you, Jessie is STILL not out yet.�
Heather nodded. �Ok. Thanks.�
Lance smiled briefly, then left.
�What�s wrong with her?� she asked quietly. She knew Jessie got hit almost directly by the truck, and it was a miracle she was alive.
AJ and Nick looked at each other. �Um��
Fear took over. �What? What�s wrong?�
AJ took a deep breath. �Jessie�she�s�she�s paralyzed.�
Her eyes widened. �P-paralyzed? As in, not moving?�
�It�s only from the waist down,� Nick said quickly.
She sighed in relief. �For a second there I was thinking why didn�t she die instead of can�t doing ANYTHING, man. God.�
Nick smiled at her innocence. She was so oblivious of the chances of her friend living�
�People?�
They turned to face the nurse.
�Yeah?�
�I�m afraid you�ll have to leave now. She needs lots of rest,� she smiled.
AJ nodded and kissed Heather�s forehead before leaving.
�Love you,� Nick whispered, then he kissed her before leaving also.
The nurse smiled as they left and went to the bed. �That�s your boyfriend?�
Heather smiled. �Great isn�t he?�
�Yeah. Dreamy. My name�s Charlotte, and I�ll be your nurse for about 1 day and a half.�
�Great. My name�s Heather.�
�Your friend wouldn�t just happen to be the Asian female in surgery would she?�
Heather nodded. �That�s her. Jessica.�
�Oh.�
�Why?� she asked nervously. Was EVERYONE keeping something from her?
�It�s just�news about her and you are on TV�and your friend was beat up pretty badly.�
�I know.�
�Did you see the thing on TV?� she asked.
Heather shook her head no.
�Then you DON�T know how bad this is. She might be paralyzed for life here. Physical therapy might be at chance. You were the lucky one. Only, someone else paid your consequences.�
Heather looked down into her lap. She knew it was true. She shouldn�t have been so careless and just assume Jessie was gonna be alright. She could�ve been dead�
�She�s gonna live, right?� Heather asked.
The nurse only looked at her.
�Right?� Heather asked.
�I don�t know Heather. There�s a chance she might live, but there�s a chance she might not. You just have to expect both.�
�Thank you Charlotte for raining on my parade� Heather thought bitterly. Then she prayed, �May my friend live. JC doesn�t deserve this�
***
�Can I visit her YET?� JC asked Rebecca.
She shook her head.
�WHEN in hell can I visit her?� he growled through clenched teeth.
�Calm down JC. She�ll be out in a second.�
She peeked into the room. Then another doctor came out and whispered to Rebecca. JC narrowed his eyes, wondering if it was bad. Then Rebecca frowned. Then JC started worrying.
�What ELSE is wrong?!� he cried. �She doesn�t deserve this! She was so perfect��
He wiped the falling tears away, cursing for breaking down again. �She didn�t deserve it�
Rebecca�s face didn�t change. �JC� I�m not sure if you�re gonna like this, but we have some news about Jessica�and it�s not very good.�