Don't Walk Away
Chapter
Eleven
(Five Days Later... Which means, Brady has been comatose for nearly eight days.
Yech.)
Chloe hadn't seen the outside of this hospital in almost eight days, and now she
truly understood how someone could go crazy inside these walls. She didn't want
to leave Brady, that was for certain, but a change of scenery was something she
was desperately hoping for.
She had been spending her days reading the newspaper, and Brady's favorite
magazines to him. Chloe had talked to him for hours on end, reminding him of all
the memories they had together and telling him stories from her pre-Salem past.
She had done everything she could think of to get him to wake up. She had begged
and pleaded and talked to him until she had lost her voice on one particular
night. But, still, he lay motionless underneath his blankets.
The physical therapist came in every day to make sure that his limbs were
getting exercise, so that when he did wake up he would have less trouble moving
and walking. On this particular afternoon, Brady's family had gone downstairs to
eat lunch in the cafeteria, so when the therapist left, Chloe was once again
alone with him.
Chloe sat at his bedside and rested her arms on the handrail. She sighed softly
as she stroked one of his cheeks with her index finger. The same cheek that she
had shaved for him earlier. It was just one of the many duties that she had
taken up in the days since Brady had been here.
"Eight days, Brady. Eight very long days."
Chloe sighed softly and shook her head in despair. "I don't know what else
I can do to get you through this. I feel like I've tried everything. I've
prayed, and begged, and I've been strong through all of this. And, it feels like
we're getting nowhere. Nothing has changed, nothing has improved."
She ran her hand gently over his forehead, letting it rest there for a moment.
"Craig said that the place where they had to shave your head... it's
already growing back. You should have a full head of hair again in no time. And,
your bruises, your cuts... they're all healing, Brady."
Chloe moved her hand to clasp his; she lifted it up and kissed the top of his
hand gently. "You've got to wake up, Brady. You have to. You're healing so
well, you need to wake up so you can enjoy life again. Wake up so I can love
you. Please."
The door behind her creaked when it opened, a sound that had become more than
familiar to Chloe over the past eight days. It hadn't bothered her at first, but
she was about ready to oil the hinges herself at this point. She turned her head
and saw John and Belle come in to join her.
"Hey... How was your lunch?"
Belle shrugged slightly. "Cafeteria food. You think it's okay, but when you
eat it as much as we have... It gets kinda old."
Chloe nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I think it's just a subtle way to keep
people IN the hospital."
Belle smiled and handed Chloe a bottle of colored liquid. "Yes, true. But,
I did bring you some juice."
"Thank you, I appreciate that."
John moved around the bed to Brady's other side and looked him up and down.
"How was physical therapy?"
"Same as usual. But, she did say that when Brady wakes up he's less likely
to have trouble recovering from all this time in bed. He was in such great shape
before, that he should bounce back sooner than most people."
"It's still a long road to recovery, I'm sure. He's got those pins in his
knee and his hip... That's a lot of work."
Belle nodded and replied to her father. "But he can do it. He came back
from being shot in the back, and learned to walk again. He can definitely handle
this."
Chloe looked up at Belle and smiled weakly. She admired Brady and his family for
their amazing strength and optimism in even the worst situations. Chloe had
tried to be strong, but so many times she felt like all of this praying and
wishing was hopeless.
She stood from the chair and motioned towards the door. "I'm feeling pretty
worn out. I think I'm going to go nap for like an hour, then I'll be back."
Belle smiled at her and squeezed her arm reassuringly. Chloe and Belle had been
best friends for a while already, but going through this together had brought
them even closer. The love that Chloe felt for Brady had brought her closer to
his entire family. She had previously only thought of Marlena and John as her
friend's parents, but in the past days, Chloe felt like she had become an
honorary member of the Black family. They had shared in each other's grief,
worries and their love for one person had bonded them all together.
Chloe said her goodbyes to Belle and John and walked out in to the hallway. She
trudged slowly towards Craig's office, as other doctors and nurses that she had
met this week waved or smiled at her. Not only was she closer to Brady's family,
she had grown closer to her own. Craig and Nancy had been there for her every
step of the way, and she knew that without their love, support and caring she
couldn't have survived this far.
She made her way into Craig's empty office. She knew Craig was in a meeting with
hospital staff this afternoon, so she found her usual place on the couch and
settled in. Chloe hadn't had a full solid eight hours of sleep since before all
of this began, only sleeping in short intervals on Craig's couch or in the chair
by Brady's bedside.
She yawned loudly and laid her head against the pillow. If one thing was for
certain, she had no problem falling asleep whenever her head found a place to
rest. It was the staying asleep she was having problems with, especially after
five nights without a single dream.