27. Lizzy
“My tummy hurts,” Milli moans. She’s thrown up off and on throughout the entire day.
I’ve given her Tylenol and tried to push fluids a little at a time, but nothing is working.
Cameron and I have been in touch all day.
I’ve assured him I’ve got things handled, and I’m doing everything we collectively can think of.
“I’m sorry, Mills. If I could, I’d take all your pain away. Do you wanna try taking another sip of this?” I offer, holding up the Pedialyte. “It should help you feel better.”
“No, my tummy hurts,” she groans quietly and curls into a ball on Cameron’s bed. She’s exhausted, and I’ve tried everything I can think of to help her.
Picking up my phone, I call my mom.
“Hey, honey, how’s Milli doing?”
“She’s not getting any better, Mom. She’s got a low-grade fever of one hundred point seven, and I can’t get the medicine to break it.
She can’t possibly have anything left in her stomach, and I’ve tried to push a small sip of Pedialyte every half hour or so.
But she keeps saying her stomach hurts. Maybe she’s pulled a muscle?
I don’t know what more I can do. Nothing I’m doing is working, and she’s miserable. ”
“I think it might be time to take her to urgent care, Liz. They’ll make sure she’s not dehydrated and give her some anti-nausea meds to make her stop vomiting. If something else is going on, they’ll get to the bottom of it.”
Glancing at the clock, I see it’s past six. “I think urgent care is closed.”
“Then take her to the emergency room.” Mom’s tone is no-nonsense, and I quickly stand to gather the things I’ll need.
“Okay, Mom.” I nod, decision made.
“I’m gonna pack a few things for Milli and get her into the car. I also need to call Cameron and let him know what’s happening.”
“Are you okay to drive?”
Trying to keep level-headed and not freak out, I tell her the truth. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”
“Want me to call Lanie and have her meet you there?” Mom offers.
“Yes, please. Who knows how long I’ll be there, and I could use the company.”
“Okay, sweetheart. I’ll do that. Please keep me informed. I’ll be waiting to hear from you. I love you, and I’m so proud of you.”
“I love you, too, Mom. I’ll be in touch.”
With that, I hang up the phone and call Cameron.
It rings four times, then goes to voicemail.
Crap. He’s probably at the concert and won’t be available for hours.
When his message beeps, I take a deep breath and fill him in.
“Hi, Cameron. I’ve just gotten off the phone with my mom. She thinks it’s time I take Emilia to the hospital to get checked out. Hopefully, they’ll give us some anti-nausea meds and make sure she’s not dehydrated. I’ll text you when I know more since you won’t be able to hear this over the music.”
The moment I hang up, I text him the same information, then go into action. Grabbing her diaper bag, I walk to Milli’s room and restock it. I pack a change of clothes and her favorite blanket that’s now clean from the wash. I also grab a stuffed animal to snuggle with, should she feel scared.
Then I find my purse and slip on my hoodie and shoes from the hall.
Making sure I have my charger and wallet, I rush to the kitchen and grab the medical form from the bulletin board Cameron’s signed, giving me permission to have Emilia treated should we need it.
I’ve never been more thankful for being prepared in my life.
In all my years of watching kids, I’ve never needed this form—until now.
Loading everything in the car, I return to Cameron’s room to wake a now-sleeping Milli. Lifting her from the bed, her hot little body clings to mine. “Where are we goin’?” she softly whispers.
“Let’s get you to the doctor. Hopefully, they’ll get you some medicine, and you’ll feel better soon.”
“My tummy hurts, Iz,” she whines as I buckle her into her car seat.
“I know, sweet girl,” I say, brushing her hair from her face. “The hospital is only a few minutes away, and I’ll get you the help you need.”
*****
When I pull up to the emergency room, my sister and Ryan are waiting at the door.
I don’t think I could love my family more than I do in this instant.
I no sooner pull up to the curb than Ryan comes around and reaches for my keys.
“Here, let me park for you. Get Milli inside, and I’ll be in as soon as I can. ”
When I lift Milli out of her car seat, she clings to me once again. “My tummy hurts, Iz.”
“I know, sweet girl. We’re here to get you some help.”
Being in a small town, the emergency room can either be crowded or fairly empty and usually no in-between. I’m relieved to only find a few other people in the waiting room when I walk up to the intake desk.
The man at the desk asks, “What brings you in today?”
I explain as succinctly as possible what’s been happening with Milli and give him the permission-to-treat form with all the relevant information. He makes a copy. Then he takes her vitals and asks her a few more questions. Eventually, we’re sent to the waiting room to be called back for triage.
As Lanie, Ryan, and I wait for Milli to be seen in a quiet corner of the hospital waiting room, a loud commotion can be heard from the entrance. When I look up, I find Sloane and Raven frantically walking toward us with Jax and Finn not far behind them.
“Wh… what are you doing here?” I ask when they sit down beside us.
“We heard Milli’s sick,” Sloane says as if it should explain everything. I should’ve known better when Mom called Lanie, they all would come—what I didn’t expect was all the guys in tow.
“How are you doing, kiddo?” Finn asks when Milli looks his way.
“My tummy really hurts, and I keep getting sick,” Milli croaks miserably, and my heart continues to break for her.
Looking at everyone, I point out the obvious, “You know they’re not gonna let us all back there, right?”
Raven shrugs. “Where you go, we go. We can’t let you go through this alone.”
“Besides, we can’t just sit around twiddling our thumbs, knowing you’re here,” Finn interjects.
“No kidding,” Sloane adds. “I’d feel utterly useless sitting at home. Besides…” She reaches out and pats Milli’s leg next to her. “We can’t let this sweet girl go through this alone.”
“We’ll stick around until we know what’s going on with Mills,” Jax assures me. “Do you need anything, Liz?”
Shaking my head, I pull my phone from my pocket. When I see my message to Cameron is still left as delivered, I sigh. “Only for the concert to end, so my message can be seen.”
I choose my words carefully because there’s no way I want to draw attention to Cameron in front of Milli. I know he’ll get here as soon as he can. Besides, until we know what’s going on, there’s nothing any of us can do but wait.
Jax winces, then looks to Milli. Reaching for his own phone, he stands and says, “I’ll see if I can do something.”
Jax steps away, and I assume he’s reaching out to someone at the label, but the moment Milli moans again, my focus is on her.
Rocking her in my arms, I brush the hair from her face. “I’m here, sweet girl.”
“It hurts, Iz.” Her voice is weak and miserable and utterly heartbreaking.
“We should be seen shortly. Just a little longer,” I promise.
My family talks around me, but my focus is on keeping this poor girl calm and comfortable. She’s got her blanket wrapped around her and although she’s like a personal radiator in my arms, I just rock and do my best to soothe her.
Relief washes through me a few minutes later when we hear, “Emilia Kruse?”
“Right here,” I say, attempting to stand, but my feet don’t feel steady, so I sit down and readjust her before trying again.
Finn offers, “Want me to carry her?”
“I’ve got it. But could you get her bag?”
“I’ll get it,” Lanie says, catching up to me. “I’m going back with you.”
“Right this way,” a man in his early thirties says as I approach. “I’m Daniel. I’m a pediatric nurse. I’m gonna get you into a room where we can further assess what’s going on. Can you tell me what’s wrong?”
Milli’s voice is weak, and my heart aches as she explains, “I’m sick. My tummy hurts really bad.”
“Can you tell me what’s been going on?”
I quickly go through her symptoms, starting with when it happened and how long she’s been sick. By the time we get to the room where they’ll examine her further, he knows the entire story.
“Let’s get her lying on the bed. Can you show me where it hurts?”
With one hand, Milli reaches for mine as the other rubs along her lower abdomen. “Right here.”
“Mind if I have a look?”
As Daniel goes through the motions of completing his exam, I feel utterly helpless. Milli’s cooperative and answers his questions. That is until he presses lightly on her stomach. Instantly, her tiny body contorts, and I’m sure my family can hear her cries from the waiting room.
“I’m so sorry.” He quickly pulls his hand back. “I won’t touch you there again. Is it better now that I’ve stopped?”
Milli nods but keeps her grip on my hand tight.
“I need to start an IV and get some blood work started. I’ll also page the pediatric doctor on call to get things rolling.”
In a well-practiced move, he pulls things from the cabinet beside us and says into his radio clipped to his shoulder, “Page Pediatrics. I need Dr. Wilks to room seven, STAT.”
Holy shit. This is more serious than I thought.
Glancing to my sister to ensure she heard the same thing, panic sets in when her wide eyes meet mine. Needing to keep my reaction under control for the sake of the precious girl beside me, I force myself to close my eyes and breathe slowly.
“Emilia?” Daniel says, reaching for an iPad on his cart and handing it to her, “I need to place an IV in your arm so we can get you the medicine you need. Do you want to watch a show while I do this?”
The iPad is loaded with various cartoon icons. Seeing one of her favorites, I point out, “Do you want to watch Bluey?”
Emilia nods and presses the icon herself.