Tuesday, December 1st, 2020
Kam's POV
How could he do this? Cris promised me yesterday he would not overindulge in wine. I hope he didn't drink this whole bottle today.
"848, what's your emergency?"
"Please send an ambulance to 3402 Estate Circle! My husband passed out! Please hurry! I think he drank a whole bottle of wine and he is Diabetic! I stuck him with my EpiPen, but he is not waking up!"
"An ambulance is on the way, ma'am! Stay with me on the line! What is your husband's name?"
"Cris Fiore."
"Hang in there with me, Mrs. Fiore."
I heard my dad approaching Cris' office. "Kamea, what......"
"I found him passed out. Daddy, Cris has been drinking more than the amount he is allowed to drink as a Diabetic. An ambulance is on the way."
"I'll call Marco or someone to watch the kids! I'll open the front door as well." My dad left the office.
I held Cris in my arms while I kneeled on the floor. I put his head near my belly, hoping he could hear the twins' heartbeats.
"Cris handsome, please don't die! I can't raise our kids without you. The thought of you not being with us hurts. Please, Tiger, don't leave me."
The tears were falling like a steady stream. My heart can't take it if he dies.
"Mrs. Fiore, are you still with me?" I heard the 848 operator say.
"I'm still here, barely."
My dad came running back into the room. "The ambulance is coming this way," He then says while out of breath. "Marco is at a photoshoot in California but is on his way back to Florida. Bliss and Shane are going to come over and watch the kids. They are on the way. Isabela and Antonio are going with us to the hospital."
Two paramedics came inside with a stretcher. They lowered the stretcher, then placed Cris on it. The stretcher was raised up, my dad helped me off the floor, and helped me out to the ambulance. "I'll wait here, Kamea until Bliss and Shane arrive. Then, I'll make my way to the hospital."
I hugged my dad, then the paramedic helped me in the ambulance. The door was shut, and we were on our way.
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Once we made it to the hospital, Cris was rushed to the emergency room, and I was taken to the waiting room.
I need to stay as strong as I can. I have 5 small children at home that I need to take care of, and two in my belly. As I turned my head to the entrance, I saw Isabela, Antonio, and my dad running inside.
"Kamea, oh my gosh what happened?" Isabela says as she hugs me.
"I found him in his office, laying on the ground. Not too long ago, I smelled wine on Cris' breath, during the day. While traveling to the store that same day, I questioned him about it. He told me he would have more than his daily allowance of wine while I was kidnapped. He promised me that he would quit. And, you will never believe what happened. Chase Dalton's lawyer came to the house. Chase left his businesses and business account to Cris."
"He did what?!" Isabela, Antonio, and my dad were shocked!
"I was just as shocked. When Cris showed me the amount in the business account, I fainted. I can't tell you the amount here while in the hospital. But, what good would any of what Cris received be if he died?" And, after that, I started crying again while rubbing my belly.
"Kamea honey, Cris is not going to die. Please believe that," Antonio says while he hugged me.
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It has been over an hour since Cris was rushed to the hospital. I really am scared. Antonio switched seats with my dad. My dad wrapped his arms around me to comfort me.
"Mrs. Fiore, I am your husband's doctor, Dr. Ivanna Cadaval. Mrs. Fiore, because your husband's blood sugar was dangerously high, he suffered a diabetic coma. His blood sugar level was at 600 milligrams. We are treating him intravenously with fluids, electrolytes, and insulin as well. He is already responding to the treatment and his blood sugar is slowly declining. Thankfully, you found him when you did. We are doing all we can to save your husband. Would you like to go visit him? I can take you to his room. His room number is 648. There is a waiting room on the sixth floor if your family would like to come up."
"Yes, please. Thank you. Daddy, can you come with me?"
"Of course, sweetheart."
We all followed Doctor Cadaval to the elevator. Once the doors opened, we all got on and pressed the six-floor button. It was a short but nervous ride.
Once on the sixth floor, Dr. Cadaval showed Isabela and Antonio to the waiting room.
"Kamea honey, where is your phone? I'll call your friends. I know Layla and Bliss, but not the others."
I took my phone out of my pocket and gave it to her.
"Bliss and Shane are at the house with the kids. Noeli is home with the baby today. Marco is on his way from California. Julian, Andrea, and Carly are in New York. Their numbers are on speed dial. Thanks."
"You're welcome, honey."
The doctor then took me and my dad to Cris' room. I held on to my dad's hand really tight.
When we stepped in, Cris had several IV'S in him. My dad put the chair that was in the room next to Cris' bed. I sat in it, held his hand, and cried.
"Hang in there, sweetheart. Cris is going to make it. While you were kidnapped, I did notice how stressed he was, but it never crossed my mind that he would take that many glasses of wine. I understand the stress part because I have been there. I remember when you went into your diabetic coma, I thought I was going to pull all my hair out, wondering if I was going to lose my daughter. But, you pulled through. Cris is going to pull through too. I'm going to get you something to eat and I'll be right back."
"Thank you, daddy." My dad left the room.
So, I sat there and talked to Cris. "I don't know if you can hear me or not, but please wake up. I can't be mad at you. I'm just disappointed. I can't imagine the stress you were under, but handsome drinking is not the answer. I love you, Cris, and can't lose you. I need you next to me so we can see what our twins are going to be next week. We are going to have seven kids and I can't raise them by myself. I need you there with me." I tried wiping my tears, but it wasn't working because I constantly cried.
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I must have fallen asleep because I felt someone tapping me.
"Kami, I got you a chicken sandwich, fries, and a bottle of water from the Chick-fil-A down in the cafeteria."
My dad knew exactly what to get me. I don't eat like this all the time, so this is a treat. I love my dad. "Thank you, daddy. I'm going back to the waiting room so Isabela and Antonio can come in."
"Okay. I'll carry the food for you." I gave Cris a quick kiss, then we left the room.
As soon as we got to the waiting room, "Isabela and Antonio, I didn't want to take up most of the visiting time. Please go visit with Cris."
"Okay, sweetie. Layla called me back. She says to keep her posted. She is looking for a flight to come to Miami. Julian, Andrea, Carly, Adrian, and Brently are doing the same thing. Marco is close to landing. Shane is going to bring him to the hospital. Bliss and Noeli are now watching the kids. They are going to fix their dinner. Here is your phone."
"Thank you, Isabela."
"You're welcome, honey." Isabela and Antonio left the room, and I ate the food my dad bought for me.
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I didn't realize that I fell asleep until I heard Marco and Shane's voice now in the waiting room.
After yawning, "How long have I been asleep?"
"For the past two hours," My dad says. "Visiting hours are now over. Kami, I want you to go home with Shane and Marco. You need to rest, sweetheart. Take care of yourself and the twins, you here? Isabela is going to stay overnight with Cris. She has everyone's numbers, so she will send updates. Adrian, Brently, Carly, Julian and the rest are going to stay with me at my house. And, don't worry about the kids. Bliss is going to take care of them. She even got them to go to bed, without fussing, especially from Isabella and Kekoa. Cris is going to pull through, understand?"
I had to cry because I love my family and friends. "I understand, daddy. Can I say goodnight to Cris?"
"Of course, sweetheart."
I kissed my dad on his cheek. "Goodnight daddy and I love you."
Marco and Shane went with me to Cris' room. I knocked on the door first.
"We'll wait out here for you," Marco says.
"Thank you." I entered.
" Hi, Mrs. Fiore. I'm your husband's night nurse, Chelsea. I was changing the IV bags and checking your husband's vitals for the doctor. Your husband's blood sugar is coming down very well. He is responding well to the treatment. He will wake up soon. I believe it."
"Thank you, Chelsea. I came to say goodnight."
"You're welcome. I'll be right out of your way shortly." Within 5 minutes, Chelsea was done and left Cris' room. Isabela was sitting in a rocking chair in the room.
I kissed Cris. "Goodnight, handsome, and I miss you."
Then, I kissed Isabela and hug. Goodnight, Isabela."
"Goodnight, Kami." I then left Cris' room.
"Thank you, Marco and Shane, for your support." I gave each one of them a big hug.
"You're welcome, Kam. Let's get you home."
*****************
Narrator's POV
For the next three days, Kam and the family visited Cris.
Antonio, Isabela, and Kalani took turns staying overnight so Kam could get some rest at home. Bliss, Shane, and Marco took care of the kids.
Kamea appreciated everyone for their support.
And, while Kam, Devin, and Marco were in Cris' room, they were surprised.
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Friday, December 4th, 2020
Kam's POV
An extra chair was brought into Cris' room, so Marco, Devin, and I were chatting. Marco and I just happen to glance at the bed and saw Cris open his eyes. We both rushed over to his bedside. I had tears falling down my eyes.
"Daddy is awake, Devin." I was so ecstatic that I didn't realize I was squeezing Devin too tight.
"I'm sorry, baby boy." I sat Devin on the bed with Cris and they cuddled together.
"Cris, you have no idea how happy I am that you are awake."
"I'll go tell everyone the good news." Marco left the room.
"Everyone was worried and missed you. I told the kids you were sick and had to be rushed to the hospital. But, I didn't tell them why. I thought it would be best if it came from you. Rocco and Día may understand because they are smart kids. The others are too young."
"I'm sorry for scaring everybody. And, I am sorry because I broke your promise." Cris had a few tears falling from your eyes.
"The most important thing is that you are okay. We are absolutely going to talk about everything when we get you out of the hospital, understand? You cannot do this again, Cris. I don't want the kids to be fatherless."
"Yes, I promise. But, I want to talk about it now. Why wait?"
"Good boy. Okay. How about I come back later and stay overnight with you? We can talk then. I'll leave Devin, and let your parents come in. Layla and her crew are coming this evening for the weekend."
I blew Cris a kiss, then walked out of his room back to the waiting room. Doctor Cadaval just entered Cris' room.
"Mr. Fiore, your brother came by and told me you had awakened, so I came to check on you. How are you feeling?"
"Thankful that I am awake," Cris answered.
"We are too. And, I know your wife is. Mr. Fiore, your blood sugar was off the charts, causing you to suffer a diabetic coma. Fortunately, your wife found you quickly and got you to the hospital. And, you didn't suffer any internal damages. I'm not going to lecture you about the seriousness of what happened. But, I am ordering you to get a blood monitoring system to watch your glucose levels. And, I suggest you limit your drinking like your wife told you or cut it out altogether."
"Oh, he will be getting the blood monitor. I have Diabetes myself. I never had one, but I will get one for myself too."
"Excellent. Your blood sugar is almost at a normal level. I am going to keep you for a few more days, then I will have you released."
"Doctor Cadaval, I have a doctor's appointment next Wednesday to see the gender of our twins."
"Hmm, okay. How about I set a release date for then?"
"Thank you." We heard a knock on the door. It was Isabela and Antonio. "I'll see you later." I walked out of the room, and in came Isabela and Antonio.
I called Bliss once I stepped out of the room.
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Kam to Bliss: "Hey sis, Cris woke up this morning. Can you and the guys do me a favor? Bring the twins to the hospital. I'll go pick up Día and Rocco from school today."
Bliss to Kam: "That is great news! And, sure we can bring the twins to the hospital."
Kam to Bliss: "Thanks. See ya soon."
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I asked my father, "Daddy, can you ride with me to pick up the twins from school? And, I need to stop at a pharmacy for blood monitoring systems for myself and Cris."
"Sure, Kami. Your uncles are coming for a visit this week. And, they are glad Cris is awake. I called them after Marco told us Cris was awake."
"That is great! I can't wait to see them. Devin is in the room with Cris. And, Bliss is going to bring Isabella and Kekoa."
"Okay. Let's go get Día and Rocco."
My dad and I left the hospital and went to get the kids.
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I am going to surprise them today. It is usually my dad, for which I am grateful. As soon as I opened their classroom door,
"Mommy!" They ran over and hugged me.
"Hi, kiddos. Guess what? Mommy has some great news. Daddy woke up today. I'm going to take you to see him."
"Yay!!! We missed him, mommy," Rocco said first.
"We don't like daddy being sick," Día then says with a sad face.
"We sure don't. But, mommy and daddy are going to talk and make sure daddy never gets sick like this again."
We walked out of the school and headed to my Range Rover. My dad was standing outside, so they ran to hug him.
"Nonno!!!" My dad picked both of the twins up at the same time. "We drew daddy a picture, Nonno."
"You did? I can't wait to see it. Let's get in the car and get some lunch, right Kami?"
"Yes, dad." My kids like Five Guys a lot, so that is where we will go first. Then, it is off to the pharmacy. And, I better stop home to get some clothes because I am staying overnight so we can talk.
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When we walked into the waiting room, I saw Bliss, Shane, Marco, and the twins.
"Mama," Kekoa says as he walks over to me. Isabella is glued to Shane. My baby girl is hilarious. I picked up my baby boy and smothered his face with kisses.
"Hi, Bliss, Shane, and Marco. Thank you so much for your help with the kids. I hope they behaved."
"They did. Isabella sure loves to splash water. She followed Shane everywhere."
"Girl, she splashes me every time. Isabella is starting early with boys and Kekoa is starting early with liking girls. Yeah, so we will be having chats with them and early."
"I just got a text from Layla. Their plane is about to land. They may want to rest, so I'll probably drop them off and then come back for the twins."
"Hey Bliss, I'll drive and follow you. And, I'll come back for the twins."
"Thank you, Marco and Bliss." Bliss kissed Shane. And guess what? Isabella got mad. We all chuckled. My daughter is a trip.
"Isabella, you better behave." Bliss and Marco then left the waiting room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sure enough, Bliss called to say they took Layla and her crew to their house. Marco is here to take the twins home.
"Kami, we will see you tomorrow. Get some rest, understand?"
"Yes, daddy." I gave my dad and everyone a hug before they left. Then, I made my way to Cris' room.
I knocked first, then entered. Cris was watching television. "Hey, Layla and her crew made it safe. They are coming tomorrow."
"I'm glad they made it safely." Cris scooted over and patted the bed for me to lay next to him. While he turned off the television, I put my overnight bag in the rocking chair and then went to lay next to Cris. He started talking first.
"It started the day Bliss called and said you and Layla were kidnapped. I always waited until after everyone went to bed. I would drink up to 4 glasses every night. I looked online to see what I could use to get rid of my alcohol breath. So, I used toothpaste and an alcohol-free mouthwash. I did that every day until you and Layla were rescued. I thought I would have stopped, but I didn't. Even after you both were rescued, I still drank more than the amount of wine I should have been drinking. The day you smelled my breath, I had at least 2 glasses after we found out you were pregnant with twins. The kicker was when Chase's lawyer came to the house, handing over his businesses to me. After the lawyer left, I went to my office, closed the door, and pulled out a bottle of wine that I had hidden in my desk drawer. I drank the whole bottle."
Cris had tears streaming down his eyes the whole time he talked.
"Why didn't you talk to someone about how stressed you were - My dad, your parents, Marco, Shane, or any of the guys? What if you had drunk wine, then drove the kids somewhere and crashed?! You all could have died! Cris, drinking was not the answer. What if one of the kids saw the wine and drank some of it?! That was careless of you, Cris. And, please do not tell me you know. I told you when I first came to your house back in 2018 that the limit was 1 to 2 drinks a day, that was if you drank it every day. I did not say a whole darn bottle at a time! And, you could have died from alcohol poisoning or your diabetic coma. Am I going to have to force you to go to Alcoholics Anonymous?! Again, you could have died!" I tried to remain as calm as I could because of being pregnant, and we are in a hospital. "Were you drinking before the kidnapping?" I had to ask.
"No, you will not have to take me to Alcoholics Anonymous. And, I was not drinking before the kidnapping. That hurts, Kamea. I'm not an alcoholic."
"Yeah well, I had to ask. And, how hurt do you think I was seeing you laying on the floor after drinking a whole, freaking bottle of wine?! Here is what is going to happen - when I get home tomorrow, the wine fridge in the kitchen is going bye-bye. The bar in the basement will only have water or soda. Maybe not the soda. I will think of something else that we all can have. All of the alcohol will be going bye-bye - down the drain. Wine will now be banned from the house. I am not playing, Cris. Now, if you got a problem with that, then too bad. You may be the King of the house, but Queen Kamea is overruling you today. And, don't make a promise you can't keep. I better not find out that you are hiding any wine either."
He sighed, "No, I don't have a problem with it. I only hid it in my office drawer."
"Good boy. And, when we get home, you need to have a chat with the family. I will be by your side. Cris, everybody loves you. Do you want to know what Dia said to me when I picked her up from school today? She had a sad look on her face and said, 'I don't like seeing daddy sick.' We do not want to see you die. We will have seven kids by June of next year. I need you by my side to raise them. Let's get some sleep."
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Narrator's POV
Kamea did her daily routine in the bathroom inside of Cris's room. She ate breakfast with Cris. After breakfast, Kamea kept her promise. She waited until the family came to visit Cris. Then, Kamea told Marco and everyone what she was going to do. Marco went back to the house with her. They poured all the wine in the house out. Kamea and Marco also searched Cris' office from top to bottom to make sure he didn't have any hidden somewhere else.
Cris's blood sugar is now normal. The doctor will release him on Wednesday, December 9th - just in time for Kamea's appointment.
Cris' POV
"I am so glad to be getting out of the hospital."
"And, what are you going to do from now on?" Kamea sternly says to me.
"Never, ever overindulge in alcohol again."
"I will have eyes on you, Cris. I'm not playing. Now, let's go to the fourth floor for my appointment. We can't peek at the sonogram because Layla and Bliss are throwing a gender reveal party for us this Saturday. I am excited about that. They are meeting us on the fourth floor."
Kamea and I held hands while we left the room I was in and walked over to the elevators. She had every right to yell at me. Once the doors opened, we stepped in and pressed the 4th-floor button.
We walked to Doctor Michael's office. She has her own waiting area. Bliss and Layla were in the waiting room. We didn't even need to sit because she was ready for us. We'll see them when we finish.
"Kamea and Cris, come on in. You can go into exam room one. You don't need to change because I am just going to take a blood sample."
Kamea and I walked into the exam room. Kamea then sat on the exam bed. Within 10 minutes, Doctor Michaels entered.
"Okay, your friends in the waiting should be given the results of the testing, correct?"
"Yes. We are having a gender reveal party this Saturday."
"You may want to hold off on the party until next weekend. The testing that I am doing today is called Panorama. I will have the results within the next 5 to 7 business days. I am just going to take a sample of blood and send it to the lab. I will give you a consent form to sign and your friends to sign. I will only give them the sex of the twins. The other results I can email, mail, call or have you come in the office. I will also need their telephone numbers, or they can come to my office."
"Okay. We will let them know once we are done. We will give you our email addresses."
Kamea closed her eyes while the nurse came in to prepare her arm for the blood sample. Within 5 minutes, we were done.
"You can open your eyes now, Kamea. The nurse is going to take your sample to the lab, and I will get those results for you. Here is the consent form. I'll follow you to the waiting area."
After helping Kamea off the bed, we went to the waiting area.
"Hey Bliss and Layla, we won't have the results until next week. So, do you mind switching the party until next Saturday?"
"Sure, we can switch it. That's not a problem," Bliss replied.
"Okay. And, here is a consent form for Kamea and me, permitting you to get the results." Layla and Bliss signed the form. Kamea and I signed the form also and gave our email addresses. We then gave it back to Doctor Michaels.
"Thank you. I will be calling you both after I get the results from the lab. Enjoy the rest of the day." Doctor Michaels then walked back into her office.
"Sorry, ladies."
"Cris and Kam, that is okay. Let's get you guys home."
From what Doctor Cadaval discussed with us, some people suffer far worse with a diabetic coma. I am very fortunate not to have suffered internal damage. I better not mess this chance up. Maybe I should just ban myself from ever drinking again.
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Thank you for reading chapter 66.
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