RED SOX: You gotta believe, again!
FAIR CONDITION
by Phair
Beth was heading for the West Metro’s Information desk trying to think of a really good lie. Something believable. Something to silence additional questions but not so over the top as to be memorable. Perhaps she could be a cousin or something. Or maybe, at the last second, she would remember the name of a board member who could get her the information she wanted. There was still time. She had a good ten feet to go.
“Beth?”
“Dyvette?” Beth was stunned to see her long time colleague and friend from the Parent and Teachers Cooperative approaching her from the vending machines clutching a steaming coffee cup. “Is everything okay? The kids? Mel?”
“Oh no, I thought you knew already,” Dyvette sniffled as she hugged Beth. “The Demings said they talked to you.”
“The Demings? They told me about Lindsey Ash? But,” Beth felt like a fool as the pieces fell together, “Lindsey was one of your kids, of course. You’re the social worker who’s her Proxy now. Dear God, I never put two and two together.”
Dyvette gave a woeful grin, “I thought you realized who she was long before this. Wasn’t that the reason you were so nice to her at graduation? She refused to allow me to attend the ceremony, you know? Said the other kids needed me more at home.”
“No, I didn’t know. And, I didn’t connect you two. I was nice to Lindsey because she was so nice to me,” Beth explained truthfully. “The way she fussed over the dressing room. She wanted every to be perfect for me. I go to so many of these things and people treat me like a commodity. Wait here, smile now, stand over there. But, Lindsey wanted me to be comfortable. She cared about me. Lindsey touched something deep inside me that I’ve only felt before with my Nikki. All the hospital phone info will give out about Lindsey’s condition is FAIR. Tell me Dyvette, how is she doing?”
“The doctors are keeping her pretty sedated. They want the swelling in her brain and along her spine to go down before they bring her around. Which is why I was going to call you tonight.” Dyvette wiped her eyes, “The day after tomorrow, I have to go to court. Lindsey’s birth mother is trying to have me removed as Proxy.”
“She won’t succeed,” Beth was certain.
“Maybe not but it will take me away from Lindsey all day. We’ve been keeping around the clock vigil with her.”
“We? You and Mel?” Beth was overwhelmed with their sacrifice.
Dyvette smiled. “Not just us. The entire FOL: Friends of Lindsey. The Demings, the Pauls, Frannie, Tomas and his girlfriend, Angie and Donny and little Mary. Mrs. Ng is terrified of hospitals…,”
Beth nodded her understanding, “She should be with what she’s been through.”
“So, she’s manning the phone’s getting the fund raiser together. And that’s a great ape to wrestle to the ground. An eclectic group at best coming together to raise money for their common friend. The Vietnamese community, a condiments distributor named Joe, the motorcycle veterans, the guy from the hardware store, the local chapter of the transportation union, every seamstress and tailor in the western part of the state and…,”
“She certainly breeds loyalty among her friends,” Beth felt a knife twist in her gut.
“Too true. Anyway, with going to court and all, I need somebody to stay with Lindsey the day after tomorrow. There’s a three hour gap not covered. I don’t want Lindsey to wake up and be alone. Not when there are so many people pulling for her. I called the head of the board for the Coop, Mrs. Howe, to ask her to send out an email to the membership for a private duty nurse to volunteer a few hours or we could pay if we had to do so. She was all gun ho to do it until she heard it was for Lindsey.”
“What did she say?”
Dyvette said quietly, “Off the record, she said, no descent person wants to help that Ho’s daughter. Beth, could you call her for me and reason with her. I only need an email announcement for help.”
Beth thought for a moment, “No, I won’t call Mrs. Howe.”
“Oh, I see,” Dyvette tried to hide her shock and disappointment. Dyvette thought to herself, “You ask for a favor and if the answer is ‘no’ then you move on without regret.”
“I want to sit with Lindsey myself,” Beth continued, “if it would be okay with you and the FOL.”
Dyvette had to regroup her thoughts. “Of course, that would be great. She knows you and wouldn’t be afraid…, Beth, I don’t want that girl to be afraid anymore, I don’t want her hurt any…,”
A tearful Dyvette was pulled into a gently hug by Beth. Her tears of grief and fear streamed freely in the safe embrace of a friend.
“Dyvette, you’re doing a tremendous job. Lindsey would be proud of you. I’m proud of you,” Beth whispered.
“I’m so afraid,” Dyvette confessed.
Beth winced, “So am I.”
Lindsey was desperately trying to remember something important. It was so faded from her mind that she couldn’t remember if it was a word or a face or a smell. She only knew it was very important. She struggled with the thought, trying to make it bigger and clearer but it was stronger and pushed her back down.
“I’m such a fucking loser wimp pussy bitch,” Lindsey thought to herself. “If I could just get a hold on the hood and pull…,”
The hood in her mental grasp disintegrated in the flash of light beyond her sealed eyelids.
“Damn it! Turn the light on or stick me with something sharp or pull the blankets back while everybody’s yelling at me. How can I work like this?” Ash’s mind screamed. “Why is everybody yelling at me anyway?” she let herself sob. “Ms. Pesco, Mr. Deming, Mrs. Paul, even Angie. I’m letting them all down. How? I’m working so hard to…what? What am I trying to do? It’s not painting or mowing. Can’t remember the last day I held a mower. Can’t even remember today.” Lindsey frowned. “What’s going on? Where am I?”
Her eyelid opened with the help of her tears. She was looking at a TV screen. A kid’s show was doing some kind of sing along. Ash thought about it as she studied the hostess.
“I don’t have a TV. Who’d put on a kiddie TV show when I’m in so much pain? And why is the star looking right at me and singing? And why is Mrs. Pretty wearing glasses? She doesn’t wear glasses on TV.”
“Hello there, Lindsey,” the TV show lady said with tears streaming down her face.
“Mrs. Pretty?” Lindsey croaked.
“Yes, it’s me. Please honey, try to stay awake. Dyvette, I mean, Ms. Pesco is on her way. She should be here in about an hour. It would be so wonderful if you were awake to see her.”
Lindsey tried to shift her position. She heard bells and whistles going off before she even felt the pain. When the pain did hit, it was even worse than the ear piercing mechanical sounds. Her whole body shuddered with the insult to her nervous system.
“You need to stay still. There are lots of machines helping you, right now. If you pull out a wire or connection…,” Mrs. Pretty cautioned.
“What happened to me?” Lindsey interrupted as a nurse raced around the room to shut off screaming equipment.
The nurse shook her head no. Beth nodded. She took Lindsey’s hand and gave a small squeeze to the ice cold fingers.
“Ms. Ash, are you in pain?” The nurse asked without ever making eye contact. “And, if so then where?”
Lindsey ignored to stupid question. “Mrs. Pretty, why am I in the hospital? What happened? Please tell me? I’m so confused,” Her voice broke and she whispered, “and scared.”
“Lindsey, you were assaulted…,”
“Ma’am if you continue then I’ll be forced to get security to escort you out.”
“You can’t do that,” Lindsey started to panic. Her grip tightened around Mrs. Pretty’s hand, “Please don’t leave me. I’ll be good. Please, Mrs. Pretty, don’t leave me.”
“I won’t. I promise, Lindsey. I won’t leave you alone.” Beth shot the nurse a desperate look, “I’m sorry. Please don’t call security. Lindsey and I won’t talk about what happened. Please don’t make me leave her alone. We’ll both be good, promise.”
The nurse took in the pair. She made them wait several seconds before her reply. “You can stay as long as you don’t upset the patient. Is that clear this time, Ma’am?”
“Yes,” both Lindsey and Mrs. Pretty replied with a sigh of relief.
Beth walked into her home happier than she had been in days. Not only did she get to spend time with Lindsey, it seemed the young woman was going to recover. It would be a long road of rehabilitation but Lindsey had clearly turned the corner. Beth felt like a weight had been lifted from her chest. She strolled through her darkened living room humming a pleasant little tune.
“Beth,” Dylan half spoke, half sobbed. “Beth, I’m so sorry.”
“Dylan, what are you doing sitting in the dark,” she clicked on the light, “crying? What’s wrong?”
Dylan was sitting on the couch clutching several sheets of paper, “I wanted to prove you wrong. They said she was gonna die so it didn’t matter ‘cause she’d never find out but now she’s awake. I just made everything worse than it was. You gotta promise not to go back. Don’t see her no more. It’ll be harder for her to figure out…,” Dylan rambled.
“Honey,” Beth sat on the couch next to her drunken husband, “how did you make it worse?”
“I got a buddy of mine to get samples and do a paternity test. She’s my kid. God help me, the little Bastard is mine.”
Beth let out a big breath, “Did you really need a paternity test, Dylan? I didn’t and I don’t even know all the women you slept with. She has your blood type and if she were a brunette she’d look just like Nikki.”
“What am I gonna do?” He moaned and sunk back against the couch.
Beth took a deep breath, “You should tell her. She has the right to know you’re her father. Dad and Nikki have the right to meet her.”
“Are you nuts? She’ll ruin me. That little brat will want money! She’s just like her mother…,”
“You don’t even know her!” Beth shouted and stood. “For God’s sake, Dylan, be a man! Face you’re responsibilities for once in your life.”
Dylan stood and shoved Beth back several feet.
“Not this again,” she cringed.
“What? You want me to go to jail? I used my office to get her DNA and her mother’s. If she squawks then I’m looking at corruption charges. Is that what you want?”
“No,” Beth didn’t look up but she kept backing toward the kitchen.
“Then this stays here. Between a husband and wife. You got that, Beth?” He screamed.
“I got it,” Beth shivered as he grabbed her arm and dragged her to the stairs leading to their bedroom.
