Chapter 8
Keisha wasn’t even sure why she’d called Jaxon.
She had absolutely no reason to, and yet he was the first and only person she could think of to call.
As she sat here in the waiting room outside the ER, nervously waiting on the doctor, she looked up, responding to that inner sense of knowing that Jaxon was here.
He walked toward her, a cup of coffee in his hand.
She looked at the coffee and sighed. “At least you got a cup.”
“I did. Do you want some of it?” He held out the cup.
She smiled, then nodded. “Yeah, we always took it the same way, didn’t we?”
“Still do,” he muttered, “unless you’ve changed.”
“Apparently we’ve both changed,” she noted, as she took a sip of coffee and realized it was a tad on the hot side still, but, other than that, it was perfect. She had several more sips before she handed it back. “I’m surprised you came,” she confessed, surprising herself at her comment too.
“I’m surprised you called.”
She winced. “So am I.”
He looked at her steadily. “What happened to Kelly?”
“I don’t know. I found her on the floor, and she was crying like … she fell.”
He nodded. “Has that happened very often?”
“No, not very often and, usually when it does happen, it’s a sign of seizures or something. I didn’t even realize when I called you what I was doing,” she admitted. “So, if you need to leave, I understand.”
He stared at her steadily. “You called. I said I would come. I’m here,” he declared. “Now we figure out what’s going on with Kelly.”
“She won’t like you being here.”
“No, she probably won’t,” he agreed, “but that doesn’t mean that leaving is the right thing to do.”
She looked over at him and smiled. “It’s always about the right thing with you, isn’t it?”
“No, but it’s often not that hard to determine what’s right and what’s wrong,” he pointed out. “Right now, staying here and seeing what the doctor says is the right thing.”
She sat back, and he passed her the coffee again.
She immediately accepted it, wishing the doctor would show up.
When the double doors to the ER rooms opened, and he stepped through a few minutes later, he looked for her immediately and then smiled.
“Not sure exactly what happened,” he shared, with a nod.
“She’s fallen obviously, but appears to be doing okay. ”
Keisha felt the relief washing through her. “Thank God for that.” She scrubbed her face. “When I found her on the floor, she was barely moving, hardly talking, not fully conscious. I didn’t know what she was saying. I didn’t know if she was awake or asleep,” she muttered.
“No drugs were in her system, so I don’t know if she’s been taking her pain meds or not. It also seems that some of her other medications haven’t been taken on a regular basis. Her bowels are compacted.”
She winced at that and shared, “I haven’t been keeping close tabs on her these last few days. I’ve been pretty busy.”
“She’s an adult, and she’s perfectly capable of looking after herself,” the doc stated.
“Sure, but, for everybody in life,” she pointed out, “it’s easier when you’re not alone.”
“Oh, that I understand,” he agreed, with a beaming smile. “I just don’t want you blaming yourself if you weren’t there to confirm whether she took her meds as she was supposed to.”
“Right, well, … let’s hope that she’ll be okay. May I take her home?”
“In a little bit. We’ll do a couple checks on her just to confirm everything is as it’s supposed to be,” he replied.
“I’m not worried about her, but she hasn’t kept her appointments in the last year, which is unfortunate, but we do tend to see that avoidance sometimes with patients who are struggling a little bit … mentally.”
“Mentally?” she repeated, frowning at him. “Are you thinking she’s depressed?”
“I don’t know if it’s more depression or just low energy levels or a lack of self-care. … We tend to see these symptoms sometimes,” he explained carefully, “when their personal care drops.”
“Ah.” Keisha nodded. “I guess that’s possible. She’s been a little upset lately.”
“Anything in particular?”
“No, not really,” she said, with a smile. “Just upset at … where she’s at in life.”
“Ah, well, counseling is probably a really good answer for that.”
“She stopped going a while back,” she shared, “and I’ve been trying to get her to return, but, so far, she’s been resisting my efforts.”
He didn’t say anything immediately, but he nodded. “We see that too,” he added. “Maybe suggest art therapy or even bring her to your clinic to hold a dog or a cat. That helps so many people.”
Keisha sighed. “She doesn’t want to leave the house and acts so rudely when I force her out that I don’t care to try anymore.”
The doctor gave her a knowing smile and nodded. “Give us a little bit of time to talk with her, to see where she’s at health-wise. She’ll be home today for sure, but maybe go have breakfast or something. Then you and your husband can come back a little bit later.”
She sighed. “Thank you. May I see her now?”
“No, not at the moment,” he stated. “Just give us a little time to treat her and to make some assessments. Then you can come back and see her afterward.” She frowned and he smiled. “She’s fine—honestly.”
“I know, but I want to see her.”
“You can absolutely see her,” he replied, then hesitated. “I didn’t want to have to tell you, but she doesn’t want to see you right now.”
She stared at him. “I see. … Well, that’s pretty clear.”
“No, it’s not clear at all,” he countered, with a thoughtful nod. “I’m not sure what’s bringing that on, but I’ll talk to her. Give me a chance to spend some time with her while she’s here. I think I may bring in a specialist as well.”
She frowned at him and asked, “You mean, a psychologist?”
“Yes, somebody who can see if she’s in an okay state of mind.”
And, on that note, she looked at Jaxon.
He nodded. “Come on. Let’s go get some coffee and some food.” Then he led her outside.
She stared at the parking lot. “Why do you think she doesn’t want to see me?”
“It depends,” Jaxon suggested. “If she fell, she may feel bad because it’s a reminder that she can’t look after herself.
You may have reacted to this fall by reaming her out because she wasn’t looking after herself, and she wanted to avoid all that.
You and I both know there could be a multitude of answers to that question. ”
She groaned, rotated her shoulders slightly, and replied, “You’re right. That sounds very much like her.”
“She’s never …”
“She’s never what?” she asked, with a challenging tone.
“I would say, she has never appeared to be an easy patient.”
She stared at him and realized he was trying to couch his words and to not upset her. She really had no business being upset, not when he’s the one who came at her request. “You’re right. She’s not been easy, but then her life isn’t particularly easy either.”
“Of course not,” he agreed, “and I didn’t mean any insult.”
“I’m just supersensitive,” she shared, with a wave of her hand.
He pointed out to the parking lot. “Come on. We’ll take my truck. You got any favorite breakfast spots?”
“There’s the one,” she began, turning to him.
He nodded, heading to a spot they had been to many times.
As they pulled up to the front of the restaurant, she sighed. “This does feel like old times.”
He parked and nodded. “Let’s go.”
She hopped out on her side, and, as they walked inside the restaurant, she realized he had reached out a hand, and she had accepted it.
They still held hands as they walked into the restaurant.
She stared down at their intertwined hands as they followed the waitress.
“How did we fall back into this?” she whispered.
“I don’t know,” he said, with a shrug, “and I hate to tell you, but it feels kind of right.”
She wasn’t sure what to say to that. As they took a seat, he dropped her hand and waited for her to sit, with that same old Southern charm that came so easily to him.
It had always been a boon in the relationship because it always made her feel as if he cared.
And that was the thing. He did care. He had always cared.
As she slipped into her spot, she looked over at him. “Thank you for coming.”
“Of course,” he said.
“I didn’t think you would.”
“I wasn’t sure I would either. We were just setting up the work for the day,” he shared, with a smile, “and my boss was like, ‘Nope, get going.’ So, given a free pass to leave, … here I am.”
“But he’s not really your boss, is he?”
“If you’re asking if I’m getting paid, the answer is no. I’m not getting paid. If you’re asking if he’s leading the team, and since we’re all there to help and to be part of the team,” he explained, “then yes. … He’s the boss, and, when you’re on a team, you follow the boss and the team.”
She waited for the waitress to leave after delivering their coffee. As Keisha picked up her cup, she asked, “That’s something that would fit right along the line for you, isn’t it?”
“Meaning?” he asked curiously.
“Just that you’re used to working as part of a team.”
“I am,” he confirmed. “It’s a lot like the military and how we lived.”
“Right, so being part of a team right now is something that would make you feel comfortable.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “It is comforting to know where you stand with people and to know that they have your back.”
She immediately flushed. “I guess I had that coming.”
“I didn’t mean it in that way,” he said, “but you asked, and I was just trying to explain how having a team be there for me is huge.”
She didn’t say anything for a long moment, and then finally she nodded. “I never really had much of that.”
“No, it doesn’t seem like you have,” he acknowledged, as he pondered it. “At least from what I know of your life, that’s not something you’ve really been exposed to. In a way, it’s too bad because it’s been huge for me. It’s amazing to know that I have people there for me, no matter what.”