Muscle Memory

💃CHAPTER FOUR🕺

“talk to me.” A nurse at the desk called.

“we have sixty-five-year-old man, chest pain and dyspnoea, possible MI. and a young woman, car versus pedestrian, traumatic head injury, transient Loss of consciousness, regained consciousness at the scene GCS 10, dropped to 7.” He introduced them as the paramedics wheeled them behind him.

The elevator pinged, opened, and the trauma surgeon ran to the scene and started giving orders. Mr Selman was to be moved to the cathlab where the diagnosis of heart attack will be confirmed and the clot blocking blood flow to his heart promptly removed. They were moving Grace for a quick head CT to determine whatever is going on.

“what can I do?” he asked the man who looked at him and shook his head. “my team will handle this.” He said, “and don’t bother trying to sway me, the man in question is a family of yours and…” he seemed to weighed his statement, “you are no neurosurgery resident.” In other words, he wouldn’t be of any use of to Mr Selman and couldn’t help Grace. Grace. it was Grace, of that he was sure. “I’ll need someone to stay with this boy till his people come around. Someone is on the way.” a paramedic said, leading the boy to a seat. “Can you help with that?” asked Doctor Wills, the trauma surgeon before he bolted again for the elevator.

The boy had stood by the road side watching the scene stunned, then he had bolted back towards Grace about touching her before Dave shouted that he shouldn’t. “Please, I know you want to but it wouldn’t be of any help, I’m calling for the ambulance. I’m very sorry.” And thankfully the boy hadn’t disturbed her, ambulance came in the next two minutes by then the scene had attracted many passer-by, he personally had to move people out of the way for the ambulance. One of them threw him a cervical spine collar he had been constantly demanding for on the phone and he went and stabilized Grace’s neck while they drag Mr Selman out of the car onto a gurney. They placed Grace on a stretcher, bound her and carried her away too.

She was awake, just before the ambulance arrived, her eyes met Dave’s just as he made to put the neck collar around her neck to prevent possible exacerbation of damage to her spinal cord. The thought made him shiver. This nightmare happens to people he never knew, wheeled in for him and his team of surgeons, and they fix them; but today in just fifteen minutes, two people he’s known had surgical emergencies at the same time. It all felt like a dream he might wake up from, but he knew it wasn’t.

There was no recognition in her eyes when they opened, David wasn’t sure if she heard when he said, “please try and remain still. I’m a doctor, I’m here to help.” She didn’t move much, just a little flex of the knee, then her eyes closed again. “Dave?” she asked. Then became quiet again.

The short drive back to the hospital tailing the ambulance, he couldn’t help thinking of the worst possible scenarios. He tried to stay focussed, he had to.

He walked over to where the boy sat alone, “I am Doctor David, I’m sorry_”

“I am not lost, someone is coming for me. So leave me alone.” the boy instantly replied, his face all scrunched. He sniffed.

“is it okay if I just sit over here?” he asked, pointing at the next chair.

The boy was quiet, with his hands over his head staring at the are marble floor as he had been doing before Dave interrupted. I’d throw things at me if I were you. Dave thought. He was to blame for all of this, if he hadn’t slept off, if he hadn’t let someone else take his car for a spin and leave it at a repair station. The boy was sobbing, he was trying so much to hid it, but Dave could hear his irregular heaving, and the way he clenched his hand. There was nothing he could say, he just sat in silence drowning in his own guilt while pinging his fellow residents for update on the two cases.