We'll Recover Together

In The Hospital

Miranda had just hung up the phone from talking to her mother. She was relieved that she was able to tell her mother what happened without her having a complete meltdown.

Miranda had a heart attack and she had been at Seattle Presbyterian for hours before anyone there took her seriously. She knew what was going on with her body, but they did not believe her.  She almost died because the doctors didn't know how to listen to their patients.

Thank God she was able to call Maggie Pearce and get her to come to the hospital. Maggie performed a keyhole cabbage surgery with the chief of the hospital. It was touch and go for a moment, but she was able to bypass the LAD with a graft.  Miranda will have a quicker recover than if they had done a sternotomy.

Now she was on the phone with her son trying to calm him down. She just told him that she was in the hospital and the reason why.

"A heart attack...mom no... Wait was that they reason you called me in the middle of the day. Why didn't you tell me?"

Ben could hear his voice cracking because they were on speaker, and Tuck was steady getting hysterical Miranda began to cry hearing her son break down and now she was getting herself riled up.

Her monitors started beeping fast causing the nurses and doctors to rush in.

"Baby...baby you have to calm down pleaseeeeeeee. Here give me the phone."

Miranda did as told and let the staff check her out.

"Tuck....Tuck son listen she's okay. She's okay.....the doctors have fixed what was wrong and she's going to be fine. I need you to be strong and calm because when you get upset your mom gets upset and we have to keep her calm. Okay?"

Tuck took a deep breath and softly said

Okay?

He was trying to get his crying under control and Ben could hear Tuck softly talking to his son in the background also telling him the same thing.

"Can I see her? I want to see my mom."

"Of course, you can. You have your dad bring you in the morning. That would make her so happy.

"How long will she have to be in the hospital?"

Ben looked over at Miranda as the nurses and doctors ensured she was ok. They looked back at Ben and gave him a nod that she was fine. He nodded back and put his hand on her covered leg.

"She has to be here a few days and then she will have to be home for a while to recover. You may have to stay with your dad until she gets her strength back."

"No, I don't want to stay here I want to be home with you and mom. Why can't I be with her?"

He said loudly. Miranda touched Ben's hand on her leg and motioned for the phone. He handed it back to her and she spoke weakly.

"Hey, my baby just listen to me. I know you want to be with me, but I need you to stay with your father for a while. We will tell him to bring you home every day after school so I can see your beautiful face. But mommy needs time to recover so this does not happen again. Can you do this for me?

Tuck sighed and agreed.

"I love you my sweet boy and when you come tomorrow, I want to hear that presentation you did today. okay?"

"Okay and I love you too."

Tuck and Miranda talked for a little longer and she asked to talk to Tucker. When he got on, she told him that she wanted to see her son and to call the school to excuse him for the day. He needed to get his homework emailed so that she could spend some time with him tomorrow. Tuck agreed and said he would bring him around 10:00 tomorrow. She thanked him and they disconnected the call.

Miranda handed the phone back to Ben and he put it on vibrate and put it on the charger in the corner where her things were.

Ben looked at Miranda's heavy red eyes.

"Baby your meds are kicking in. I need you to lay back and rest you have been through so much today"

She looked at her husband and pouted. She needed him next to her, so she patted the side of the bed motioning for him to lay next to her.

Ben stood up and took off his shoes and got in the bed next to her. He put his arm up around her head. He took her hand and kissed it laying back but not before looking at the numbers on her monitors. He leaned back carefully not to get tangled in any of the leads she had on her. She laid her head back and closed her eyes.

Ben sighed deeply knowing that this had been the first time he had been in a bed with his wife since he told her about his career change.

She was so angry with him and until today she wanted no parts of it or him. When he was waiting on her to come out of surgery, he called his boss and told him that he was quitting. He couldn't let his career change be the reason why he lost his wife.

The captain understood but told him to take some time. Maybe things would change. That's exactly what happened. When Ben told Miranda he quit, she told him to call his boss back. He deserved to be happy and even though the job terrified her, she was not going to stop him.

He was conflicted. He knew her worrying would not stop and he had to make sure she was well and really meant what she said before he went back. Ben looked over at Miranda and she was asleep. The medicine they gave her had kicked in and she was now knocked out.

He slipped out of the bed and went to the bathroom. He ran warm water to splash on his face. He looked in the mirror and all of the stress and torture of the day hit him. Ben broke down and started crying. He had come so close to losing his wife. He just could not imagine a life without her.

His tears were of relief that she was alive and some of it was still from the hurt he felt. She did not tell him when she first felt her symptoms. She was in the car with him and knew something was not right and yet she said nothing.

Even though in her own way he knew she was sorry for doing that to him, it still stung. She recently told him that she had to get used to doing things on her own and he guess she meant that. However, he was still her husband and no matter what he should have been the first person she called.

Ben got himself together and opened the door to the bathroom. He looked at his wife who was still sound asleep. He also looked at the monitor assuring himself that she was alright. He grabbed his cell and quietly walked out of the room.

He took his phone and called his sister Roz to let her know what happened and that he was probably going to need her help at the house with shopping and cleaning. She told him she would do whatever he needed. After ending the call with his sister, he just sat on the bench outside of Miranda's room with his head in hands. Maggie walked up and sat next to him.

Feeling her presence. Ben looked at her and hugged her

"Thank Maggie.... thank you for saving her life. I don't know how I can live without her."

Ben began to cry again

Maggie held on and said.

"Ben, she's going to be okay. We just have to make sure she takes the time to recover."

She let go of the embrace and looked at him.

"We will get her out of here as soon as we can.  You will not go to our hospital so we will get her up and in a chair tomorrow.   We'll make sure she is walking in around 3 days and if she can walk a flight of stairs in a few days, I will send her home to finish her recovery. You will be there with her right?

"Yes, I will"

"Good. You get some rest too. You will not do her any good if you are not getting any rest. Promise me."

"I promise. Maggie thank you again."

Maggie touched his hand receiving his thank you and stood to walk to the nurse's station. She needed to give orders for Miranda for the night.

Ben stood and went back into Miranda's room. She was still asleep, so he slipped back into the bed being careful not to wake her. He gently kissed her cheek and closed his eyes to find the sleep and also needed.