Despite the trip only being just over an hour and a half long, it still ended up being exhausting to Dec - who had barely had so much stimulation in such a small amount of time, and so by the time the crew pulled up at the Royal Buckinghamshire Hospital spinal chord rehabilitation facility, he was just moments away from falling asleep.
By the time Anne rejoined her son - having been forced to follow the ambulance in her car - he was nearly settled into a room, and a nurse was reattaching his drips and wires to the various monitors.
And Dec himself looked utterly exhausted, eyes barely able to keep themselves open.
The nurse - Hilary, her name was - shared a smile with Anne as she finished re-attaching the final leads, before she wrote something on the clipboard beside the bed, and made to leave the room.
"Can I get you anything, Mrs Donnelly? Cup of tea or coffee?" she queried almost silently, kind brown eyes crinkling a bit at the edges: Anne felt herself warming to the younger woman rather quickly.
"A cup of tea certainly wouldn't go amiss, thank you" she agreed, her own smile turning grateful as Hilary nodded knowingly, leaving the room and closing the door behind her.
Anne turned back to face her son, and chuckled when she saw that he was clearly struggling to stay awake.
"Sleep, little one" she soothed quietly, reaching up and running a loving hand through his hair. "You've had a very big day, and you need your rest."
Dec gave a tired hum of agreement, eyes quickly falling closed and soon the only noise coming from his direction were his snuffly snores. Anne's smile widened fondly, and she settled in to keep watch over her boy.
*****
She had been offered a room in one of the apartments on-site so that she could get some rest of her own, but Anne had politely declined - reasoning that she would like to be close to her son, at least for the first night or two.
Thankfully, the staff were very understanding, and organised for another cot to be brought into Dec's room, already set up for her to sleep in. Hilary had then brought in a tray of food - looking much more appetising than other hospital meals she'd seen, Anne was impressed - and she sat with her for a good fifteen minutes, chatting amicably about their lives and getting to know each other.
Hilary had been working at the facility for nearly twenty years, and she had an air of someone's grandmother about her - even though she was only in her late fifties. Her graying hair was tied up in a loose bun, and her dark eyes were attentive and curious; keen to find out every detail that might be potentially important, but there was also a genuine friendliness about her, something that made Anne feel immediately comfortable in her presence.
Finally, after chatting for nearly half an hour more, Hilary collected the tray and bid them goodbye for now, heading out into the hall to continue her rounds. Anne - feeling much better about this whole situation now - relaxed back into her chair and closed her eyes, falling asleep barely moments later.
Only to be woken many hours later by someone shaking her shoulder.
"Mam?"
Anne's eyes opened quickly at the sound of the voice, though she was a bit surprised to see her youngest daughter and her second eldest son standing beside her.
"What are you two doing here?" she yawned curiously, although part of her was relieved to have them there.
Cam and Martin exchanged a fond look, the former sitting on the arm-rest of the chair that her mother was currently sat in.
"Ali phoned us not long after you left to tell us what was happening, and Mart and I decided to come down in case you needed an extra pair of hands" she explained, not missing the relief flashing ever so briefly in her mother's eyes.
"Besides," Martin added, turning a fond smile down to his little brother - who was still fast asleep - "We wanted to come and see the little daredevil ourselves."
Anne had to smile at that, knowing the real reasons behind their desire to visit. As a mother, especially of so many kids, she had definitely picked up on which siblings were closer than others; and Martin and Cam had definitely been the closest to Declan when they had been younger, even despite the age gap. They had - and clearly still did - absolutely adored their little brother, and would have wanted to see him for themselves; even just to be able to reassure themselves that he was okay.
This became particularly evident when Martin perched himself on the edge of the bed and took his little brother's hand in his own, his much larger one totally swamping it, and Dec smiled in his sleep and snuffled contentedly, turning his head towards his brother.
Martin smiled at that, throat tightening in relief. He'd spent much of the past week - and the four and a half hour drive down from Newcastle - fretting and worried about his little titch, the nickname coming to him as easily as it had forty years ago. He had to suppress a smile at the memory of a three-year-old Declan chasing after him on tiny, stubby legs, while he (at thirteen) had playfully tried to escape from him. He still remembered the spark of mischief in his eyes, the love of play and fun that never seemed to diminish as he'd gotten older, the way he'd used to squeal in delight when he'd scoop him up into his arms and swing him around.
His smile dropped when his eyes fell again on this new image of his brother: lying in a hospital bed, surrounded by wires and drips and beeping monitors; that awful, menacing collar around his neck; body practically skin and bones after over a week of not eating; and a tightness around his eyes and mouth that indicated that he was nowhere near relaxed, even in sleep.
"Mart? You listening?"
Martin was drawn out of his thoughts by the sound of his younger sister's voice, and he hurriedly wiped at his eyes against the familiar stinging sensation that prickled behind them.
"Sorry, you were saying?" he replied, trying to force his voice to sound as normal as possible.
Cam and Anne smiled knowingly at him, before Cam repeated that she was going to take Anne out to get a coffee and asked if he wanted anything brought back.
He declined, waving them off with a tiny smile curling at his lips again.
Once the door closed behind them, and he was left alone in the room, Martin let out a sad sigh as his gaze returned to his brother.
"Oh titch," he whispered mournfully, reaching up to rub Dec's arm. "What have you done to yourself.....?"
At his brother's touch, Dec's breath hitched a little and his eyelids began to flicker - indicating his return to consciousness.
As his eyes opened, blinking blearily around the room before they finally settled on his face, Martin didn't even have to force the grin onto his face this time.
"Heya kidlet" he murmured, squeezing his little brother's shoulder in greeting.
Dec just blinked at him, expression still confused.
"Mart? Wha're you doin' here?" he croaked, voice thick with sleep and still sounding exhausted.
Martin's smile turned fond as he reached up to stroke the side of his head, chuckling as his brother leaned into the touch - well, as much as the collar would let him anyway.
"Cam and I drove down this morning to keep you and mam company" he explained, rubbing the back of his fingers across his brother's unshaven cheek, the thickening stubble tickling his fingers.
"You need a shave, titch" he added amusedly, grinning at the sheepish smile and yawn he got from Dec.
"Aye, I know" he replied, rubbing his non-cannulated hand across his eyes to wake himself up a bit more. "And a shower too, or at least a sponge bath! I totally reek!"
Martin laughed out loud at that, pleased when his little brother joined in, and they laughed at the total grossness of the situation for a few minutes, before Martin was the first to sober.
"Seriously though, kidlet: you okay?" he asked, frowning at the sadness that flashed through the hazel eyes in front of him.
Dec sighed, fiddling with the blanket over his chest, the memories threatening to take over once again.
"I dunno" he finally answered after being silent for a minute or so. "I was so scared, bloody terrified in fact, and then that happens...."
Martin nodded in understanding - it had been bad enough for him, and all he'd done was watch it. He could never even begin to imagine what it had been like for his little brother to actually live it.
"I just can't help but think....." Dec's voice trailed off and a tiny sniffle could be heard from his general direction.
Martin quickly responded by using his other hand to rub at his arm, moving it up and down in a comforting motion.
"Can't help but think what, titch?"
Frightened hazel eyes stared back at him, and Martin caught the suspicious wobble in his bottom lip.
"That I'm not going to get any better. That this is as good as I'm going to get."
It was hard work for Martin not to let his jaw drop at the timid admission, his own fears of that resurfacing at the worst possible moment. He forced them back though, he had to try and stay positive - for his little brother's sake.
"Hey, don't think like that titch" he scolded gently, wiping away his brother's tears with his thumb. "You're going to get better, it's just going to take a bit of time. So no more tears, okay?"
Getting a tiny nod, Dec responded with an embarrassed scoff.
"Sorry, I don't know why I'm so bloody emotional about this" he growled, clearing his throat and taking a deep breath to settle his emotions.
Martin smiled and ruffled his brother's hair.
"Totally get it, kiddo. You're scared, and that's perfectly understandable, and you're probably still really tired out from the drive today, so I wouldn't worry too much about it" he assured, smiling wider when he got a tiny curl of the lips in response.
"That's more like it, that's what we want to see" he teased, giving the sandy hair another playful ruffle and laughing as Dec attempted to squirm away from his hand.
So that was the sight that Cam and Anne walked back in on, and they both happily joined in on the room's lighthearted laughter, pleased that - even for just a moment - things were almost normal.
*****
Unlike Anne, Cam and Martin agreed to stay in one of the apartments on-site, and Cam headed that way after they'd all enjoyed a delicious meal together - tired from the long drive down that morning.
Anne and Martin sat in Dec's room, Anne reading a book that she'd brought with her and Martin texting his wife to give her (and the rest of the family) an update. Dec had been dozing for most of the day, and he was still asleep right now.
It was maybe around eight o'clock when his little brother finally stirred, yawning widely and blinking sleepily around the room. As his eyes fell on his older brother, he smiled tiredly and yawned again.
That made Martin chuckle, and he stood and walked over to the edge of the bed.
"Evening kidlet" he greeted, laughing when the only response he got was another yawn.
"Somebody slept well then?" Anne chuckled from behind them, but their replies were interrupted by the sound of the door opening.
Hilary stood on the other side, and smiled when she walked in and saw that her patient was awake.
"Good evening" she greeted them all, smile wide and genuine as they returned the greeting.
"I'm glad you're awake actually, Mr Donnelly, because I was just coming down to see if you would like to be taken for a bath?" Hilary continued, checking Dec's chart on her way past the end of the bed.
She looked up curiously when she heard him wince, frowning as if expecting to see him in pain.
"Just 'Dec', please" he pleaded softly, shuddering a little as he added "'Mr Donnelly' makes me sound so old!"
Martin snorted at that, while Anne just chuckled and rolled her eyes. Hilary gave a knowing half-smile, dark eyes twinkling kindly - and Dec found himself liking her already.
"And to answer your question, that would be fantastic" Dec continued, pulling a grimace as if he could pick up his own scent.
Martin, Anne, and Hilary - who actually could - were relieved at that.
"Very good" Hilary smiled, bringing over a wheelchair from the side of the room before she poked her head out into the corridor to request the help of a few orderlies.
It was one of the most awkward maneuvers Dec had ever done, but eventually he was sitting up in the chair and being wheeled up towards the dedicated bath suite, feeling oddly excited at the prospect of feeling clean.
Martin accompanied the orderlies and Hilary down the corridor, helping them undress his brother when they finally arrived and then helping to lower his tiny body into the soapy water.
As soon as the warm water lapped as his skin, Dec let out a relieved sigh and he was sure that he would have laid his head back against the edge of the tub if it hadn't been for that horrid collar still around his neck.
Martin was then given the important task of holding his brother's head still while he attempted to wash himself - and not getting too far, bless him, Martin chuckled inside his head. Eventually, the control was handed over to one of the male nurses, who managed to do the job quickly and efficiently, and both boys were grateful for his light chatter that he kept up throughout the process.
Once the bath was over, Martin helped Dec dry himself off, before he was helped back into the wheelchair and taken back to his room - looking and feeling a million times better than before.
Ten minutes later, settled back into his bed (which someone, Martin suspected Anne, had stripped and changed), he sighed tiredly and looked nearly ready to fall back asleep.
Noting that it was nearly nine o'clock, and his own exhaustion that was starting to really make itself known, Martin decided to head off back to the shared apartment that he and Cam would be staying in. He hugged his mother and then his brother tightly, kissing them both goodnight, before he walked out - pleased and relieved that Dec's first day in the facility had been a (relative) success.
Back in the room, Anne sat down on the edge of the bed and stroked her son's head.
"Go to sleep, my little one" she whispered, smiling tenderly at the sight of his heavily drooping eyelids. "Tomorrow's a new day, one that you must be ready to face."
"Mmm......Mam?"
The sleepy question turned her head back to face him, and she was struck with the image of a much younger Declan, lying in bed when he'd had strep throat as a younger lad, looking very much the way he did now.
Anne knew there was only one thing he wanted when he looked at her like that, and she smiled as her eyes stung, touched that - even at forty-three - he still craved her comfort as much as he had as a little boy.
Pulling a chair close to the side of the bed, she settled down and let her hand run through her boy's hair, taking a deep breath before she started to sing very softly.
"I see the moon, the moon sees me,
shining through the leaves of the old oak tree
Oh, let the light that shines on me
shine on the one I love.
Over the mountain, over the sea,
back where my heart is longing to be
Oh, let the light that shines on me
shine on the one I love.
I hear the lark, the lark hears me
singing from the leaves of the old oak tree
Oh, let the lark that sings to me
sing to the one I love,
Over the mountains, over the sea
back where my heart is longing to be
Oh, let the lark that sings to me
sing to the one I love."
Finishing the old song, Anne smiled when she looked up and saw that Dec was fast asleep, head tilted just slightly towards her and hand sleepily holding her own.
Gently extracting her fingers from his loose grip, she bent down and kissed his forehead tenderly.
"Sleep well, my little treasure" she whispered, before padding silently over to her own bed, dimming the light as she went.
*****
TBC.....
*****