All Over Again
Chapter Ten
I would die for you
Lay down my life for you
The only thing that means
Everything to me
Cause when you’re in my arms
You make me prouder than
Anything I ever could achieve
You make everything that used to seem so big
Seem so small since you arrived
The doors of the elevator at the Chicago County Hospital opened slowly and Bo and Nora rushed off of it into the waiting room. The scene was grim. Selma, Len, Rachel, and Hank sat in one corner of the room and all had obviously been crying. Selma looked up when Bo and Nora entered the room and a fresh batch of tears sprung to her eyes. She stood and rushed over to her daughter, embracing her tightly.
“I’m sorry Nora. I’m so, so sorry,” Selma cried into her shoulder.
“Shh mama, it’s not your fault.”
Selma pulled away. “But it is. If I had watched Matthew more carefully this never would have happened. It’s all my fault.”
Tears streamed down Nora’s face. “No mama, you couldn’t have done anything. Accidents happen. Where is Matthew? Where’s my baby?”
Rachel stood, wiped her own tears that had began again, and walked over to her mother taking her hand. “C’mon Mom, I’ll take you to him.”
“Thank you Rikki.”
Rachel opened the door and started to lead Nora out when Bo grabbed her arm stopping them. “Red?”
Nora managed a sad smile. “I’ll be ok Bo. I need some time alone with Matthew.”
On Angel’s Wings
An angelic affirmation
Angel’s Wings
Like letters in the sky
Now I know no matter what the question
That love is the answer
It’s written on Angel’s Wings
Rachel led Nora down the hall to the pediatric ICU. Nora could feel her stomach churn when they entered from the smell of antiseptic and the sound of a thousand beeping machines. They walked down the hall to room six where Rachel hung back and Nora walked close to the glass doors and placed her hand on it lightly.
Her other hand raised instinctively to her mouth to stop the sobs when she saw her son for the first time. He looked so small and frail lying in the hospital bed. His right arm was in a cast, there was a large bandage over his left eye, and his entire body was covered in purple bruises. Nora became mesmerized by the rise and fall of his chest as the respirator forced air in and out of his lungs. There was an I.V. in each arm and numerous wires keeping track of his heart rate, brain activity, etc.
Tears were spilling down Nora’s cheeks when Rachel touched her shoulder. “Do you want me to go in with you?”
Nora shook her head. “No. I need to be alone with him.”
Nora quietly slid the glass door open, stepped inside the room, and closed it behind her again. She walked over to the bed and leaned over kissing Matthew lightly on the forehead. She pulled the nearby chair over to the bed and sat down next to it taking Matthew’s hand in her own.
“Mommy’s here Matthew. You just be strong. I know you’ll be ok. You won’t leave me. I… I don’t know if you can hear me but if you can remember that I am always here for you. You can’t leave me. I love you.”
I often wonder why
Someone as bad as I deserves to be
As happy as you make me
So as the years roll by
I’ll be there by your side
I’ll follow you wherever your heart takes me
Cause you make everything that used to seem so big
Seem to be so small since you arrived
Bo stood on the balcony, the cold Chicago air making him shiver. He heard the door to the balcony open and felt someone walk up beside him but he never turned to face the person. He just continued to concentrate on the boats in the river.
“How’d it happen Hank?”
Hank sighed and leaned down onto the rail of the balcony. “There isn’t much to tell. Selma took Matt to the park and he was playing with some boys when he chased a ball out into the street. There is no one to blame for anything. The woman that hit him was going well under the speed limit but it all happened so fast she couldn’t stop in time. She’s a mother of four herself and apparently she’s having a hard time with it.”
“Damn it Hank. Why did this happen to Matthew? Haven’t he and his mother been through enough this year?”
“I know Bo. Mind me asking why you showed up here with Nora?”
Bo couldn’t help but smile at the memory of their time on the ranch. “We met up by chance in Texas and I happened to be with her when she got the call about Matthew. I couldn’t let her come alone.”
Hank sensed there was more. “Are the two of you getting back together?”
“No comment.”
Hank smiled. “I think that answers my question adequately. I’m glad she had you with her. She’s going to need all the support she can get right now.”
“I think I’ll go give her some support right now,” Bo replied before patting Hank on the back and leaving him alone on the balcony.
On Angel’s Wings
An angelic affirmation
Angel’s Wings
Like letters in the sky
Now I know no matter what the question
That love is the answer
It’s written on Angel’s Wings
Bo opened the door to Matthew’s ICU room quietly and walked up behind Nora. He swallowed hard when he saw the little guy in the bed. No matter what had happened over the past two years he loved Matthew like he was his own. All he wanted to do was take away all his injuries and all his pain. He would gladly take Matthew’s place if only it meant Matthew could be ok.
He placed a hand on Nora’s back and she looked up at him with glassy eyes. Bo sat on the edge of the bed and faced her. “Hey Red, how’re you holding up?”
Nora took a deep breath. “I can’t stand to see him like this Bo. What if…”
“No! Nora don’t even think of it. Matthew is your son. That makes him a fighter. He’s going to be ok,” Bo said as a woman walked up outside the room and looked at the chart. “Nora, the doctor.”
Nora and Bo stood and hurried outside the room to meet with the doctor. “Doctor, I’m Nora Buchanan. Matthew’s mother. What exactly is wrong with my son?”
The doctor shook Nora’s hand warmly. “I’m glad you are here Ms. Buchanan. I’m Dr. Southall. Your son is in serious condition. Most of the damage from the accident was on Matthew’s kidneys. There was so much damage that we were forced to put him on a ventilator and put him into a drug induced coma. Your son is going to require a kidney transplant as soon as possible.”
Nora wiped away silent tears and nodded her head. “Ok, what can we do?”
“Well, we need for you to go down to the lab and have a compatibility test. The best chance for Matthew is if a family member can donate. Your parents and your daughter have already gone down for testing but we would like for you to be tested also.”
“Of course, I’ll go now. Bo?”
Bo leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I’ll sit with Matthew while you are gone.”
“Thank you,” Nora replied before following the doctor down the hall.
Bo stepped back into Matthew’s room and sat in the chair Nora had vacated and took Matthew’s hand. “Hang in there little buddy. Just hang in there.”
Now anyone who’s found a touch
Of heaven in their lives
Know the way I feel with
My baby at my side
That’s why I can’t bear to be
To far away
I know that God must love me cause
He sent you to me
Everyone was gathered in the waiting room nervously waiting for news from their compatibility test. Hank was on the phone with the assistant D. A. in Llanview, Selma and Len were sitting quietly in the corner holding each other’s hand, Rachel was pacing back and forth in front of the window, and Bo sat on the couch with Nora laying down next to him, her head in his lap. Dr. Southall entered the room and they all gathered around her.
“Well?” Nora asked expectantly.
“We won’t know the results for awhile. In order to be a match a donor has to be compatible in four of six areas. It takes a little while to test each of the areas. Just try to relax. You can go see Matthew again in about an hour.”
The doctor left and Bo rubbed his face with his hands. “I can’t stand this. I have to do something.”
“What?”
“I’m not sure but I have an idea,” Bo replied before heading out the door of the waiting room.
On Angel’s Wings
An angelic affirmation
Angel’s Wings
Like letters in the sky
Now I know no matter what the question
That love is the answer
It’s written on Angel’s Wings
A while later Bo walked back into the waiting room. Nora walked over to him and hugged him tightly. “Have you heard anything yet?”
Nora shook her head. “No. Where’d you go?”
“I went down to the lab and donated some blood. They always ask in cases like these that family and friends donate blood so I thought what the hell. I can’t help Matthew but I might as well help someone.”
Nora kissed him lightly. “That was a very nice thing Bo.”
Just then Dr. Southall walked into the room. Five sets of eyes looked at her impatiently and she smiled. “Good news. We’ve found a match.”
Love is the answer
It’s written on Angel’s Wings
To Be Continued….
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