Chapter 10 #3
Christine saw the relief in Diane’s eyes when good old Harry came into the hospital waiting room hours later and said, “Babe. Aw, babe,” in that gruff tone he had. He dropped the takeout bags he’d brought on a nearby table and wrapped Diane up in his arms.
To Chrissy’s surprise, Jeff was right behind him with a box-o’-Joe, a bag of fixings, and stack of cups from Dunkin’.
He set his pile down beside Harry’s, then he came to her and wrapped his arms all the way around her shoulders, making her feel small and safe.
Christine rarely tolerated that kind of needy bullshit, but for right then, she allowed it.
She leaned into her husband, because that’s what husbands were for.
She smelled his shave lotion and she closed her eyes.
“I don’t know what to do,” she whispered.
“There’s nothing anyone other than the doctors can do right now, Chrissy,” he said, and pushed her hair up off her forehead. “When there is, you bet your cute ass we’ll be doing it. I promise. Whatever it takes.” He lowered his voice even further. “Does she even have insurance?”
“She didn’t six months ago,” Christine said softly, “but she had a birthday. Her Medicare kicked in.”
He nodded, glanced back at the others. “How are you holding up, Jenna?”
“I’m terrified I’m losing my mom,” she said. “She’s kind of all I have.”
“You have us, honey,” Diane said.
“I was about to say the same,” Christine said.
“You’ll always have all of us,” Bonnie added.
From the distance, down the hall a male voice said, “I’m here for Rosa Sandoval? They said there was an accident. Please.”
“Are you family?” That was a familiar voice, one of the nurses.
“I—I am, in a way, I—”
Christine stepped into the hallway and saw the man standing at the nurses’ desk, stammering. He was handsome, tight dark curls with silver frosting and the jawline of a god.
She said, “Excuse me?” and he looked her way. “You were asking about Rosa?”
He nodded and hurried toward her. His brown eyes were round with worry, and dark with pain. He had a slight accent, Spanish she thought. “Yes. If you know anything, please—”
“She was in a car accident,” Christine said. “We don’t know her condition yet. Come this way.” Christine started back to the waiting room and he fell into step beside her. “If you’re a friend of Rosa’s, you’re welcome to wait with us. I’m Christine.”
“Thank you,” he said. “I’m Alberto.”
Christine raised her brows. Not the Alberto, surely?
They walked into the waiting area. “Alberto, these are Rosa’s other two best friends, Diane and Bonnie,” Christine said, watching the man’s face. “And you must already know Jenna.”
“No, he doesn’t,” Jenna said.
“He’s a friend of your mom’s,” Christine told her.
Jenna shook her head. “No, he’s not. I know all Mom’s friends.”
Diane and Bonnie rose from their orange plastic chairs to flank the young woman protectively.
“Who are you?” Jenna asked. “How did you even know about the accident?”
He lowered his head. “My name is Alberto Luis,” he said, and his accent came stronger when he said his name. “I’m on your mom’s emergency contact list.”
“Why?” Jenna asked.
“Because, Jenna, I’m… I’m your father.”
“Ho. Lee. Crap,” Diane said, and she tightened her grip on Jenna’s elbow.
Jenna stiffened, lifted her chin, furrowed her brow and said, “Well fuck you, then.”
A doctor their age with unapologetically silver hair cut in short layers and a trademark white coat, entered the waiting room and everything else fell away as they quickly gathered around her.
She said, “Rosa is stable and starting to regain consciousness. Before I go any further, I need to confirm you’re all on the list of folks I’m allowed to discuss her condition with.
” She looked down at an electronic tablet.
“Jenna Sandoval, Diane Maisy, Christine Schlotski, Bonnie Tucker, and Alberto Luis.”
“That’s all of us,” Diane said. “Please tell us she’s going to be all right.”
The doctor lowered the tablet and made eye contact with each of them as she spoke.
“She’s alive, and she’s stable, so not in any danger of dying at this time,” she said.
“She has a concussion. We were concerned about the brain, given her condition, but so far, so good. She has a cracked rib, a dislocated left shoulder, and a hairline fracture in her clavicle, all on the left side. But we haven’t found any internal injuries. ”
Jenna gave an open-mouthed sigh, then frowning said, “Given her condition?”
“Yes. Given the glioblastoma, I think it might—”
“What?” Bonnie asked.
“Blastoma? Isn’t that cancer?” Jenna whispered.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Christine demanded.
The doctor looked stunned. Then Alberto said, “I can explain.”
They all looked at him like he’d just announced he was a visitor from another planet. The notion that this handsome stranger could possibly know more about their best friend than they did—more about Jenna’s own mother than Jenna did—well it was ludicrous!
“I don’t want you to explain. I want to see my mom,” Jenna said. “Right now. Take me.” And she stomped out of the room with the doctor hurrying behind her.
Christine looked at Rosa’s long-ago summer fling, Alberto, and said, “Well? Start talking.”