Chapter 3: Recovery

Boxing Day, 1984, Indianapolis, Indiana

There really wasn't much to do the rest of the day. Doctor Winslow came and introduced himself and said that Bethany had been moved back to the ICU, and that he was happy with her progress. His goal was to get her off the ventilator and out of her coma on Thursday.

"When can we see her?" her dad asked.

"Tomorrow. Right now, she has constant nursing supervision and there are doctors coming in and out. If she continues like she is, we'll move her to our special care wing. It's not as intense as ICU and has more privacy. That's where we'll bring her out of the coma."

"Thanks, Doctor."

Doctor Winslow walked to the elevators, and we sat back down.

"Kara," I said, "I just remembered that Jennifer has an interview at Nuvatec on Friday. I'm going to have to take her there, and I can get my car as well. I suspect my sister will drive us. Do you want to come with us, or do you want to go home to see your mom?"

"How long will you be in Chicago?" she asked.

"We'll go up early in the morning, and if I can get my car from the police and drop it at the dealer, then we'll be back late in the afternoon."

"Maybe I should go see my mom," she said. "I'll just go for the day and come back."

"OK. Of course, this is all subject to change based on what happens with Bethany."

"Are you going to stay with her?" Kara asked.

"If they allow it, yes, and if her mom and dad give permission."

"I know Bethany will want you there," Nora said. "The insurance won't pay for a private room, so it's going to be a bit inconvenient. We'll work something out, OK?"

"OK," I agreed, hoping that I'd be able to stay with Bethany a bit, but I knew that depended on her parents' decisions, at least until Bethany was well enough to decide for herself.

"There's a diner just down the street," Harry said. "Could we buy you kids lunch?"

"Yes, thanks!" I replied. "I'm famished! Let me just call Stephanie and Kathy and let them know how it went. They'll spread the word."

I walked over to the payphone and called Kathy and let her know that the surgery had been successful. She promised to speak with my sister and coordinate on who would call whom. I thanked her, then called Stephanie.

"The surgery went well!" I said.

"Thank God!" Stephanie exclaimed. "I'll spread the word. When will you be able to talk to her?"

"Maybe tomorrow. Did you get in touch with Jennifer?"

"I did. I'll pick her up at the airport in Indianapolis late tomorrow afternoon."

"Good. On Friday, we need to go to Chicago because Jen has a job interview and I want to retrieve my car from the police and take it to the dealer for repairs. If we have time, I'll stop in to see Wen's parents. Kathy's going to get in touch with you so the two of you can coordinate calling everyone with an update. Were you able to talk to Sofia and Karin?"

"Yes. They're both concerned and want to talk to you as soon as possible. Maybe you can call them on Friday from your house?"

"Good idea," I said. "Thanks. See you tomorrow."

We said our goodbyes and then Kara, the Krajicks, and I went to the diner for lunch. When we finished, the five of us took a walk for the fresh air. The Krajicks walked with their arms around each other, while Kara walked with her arm locked around mine. We walked quietly, slowly, and after fifteen minutes, we were back at the hospital. Mr. Krajick checked and there was no change in Bethany's condition. I decided to head back to the hotel for a nap because I was tired, and Nora Krajick said that she'd walk with us.

"Steve, did you call Tatyana?" Kara asked.

"No!" I replied. "Let me do that right now!"

I went to the payphone and dropped in the coins and dialed Tanya's number. As usual, a young man answered and called Tatyana to the phone.

"Stepa! Hello. How is your friend who was shot?"

"That friend is OK. But Bethany was in a very bad traffic accident on Christmas Eve. I'm at the hospital in Indianapolis right now."

"Oh no!" Tanya gasped. "How is she?"

"It was touch and go, but right now it looks as if she's going to make it. She has a lot of injuries and is going to be in the hospital for some time."

"This is terrible! Do you wish to cancel our visit?"

I thought about it and decided that it might be a good idea, but I also knew that Bethany would be upset with me if I canceled.

"No, I want you to come to Chicago. I hope you will be OK with driving with me to Indianapolis to see her a couple of times."

"Of course, Stepa! I know how important this girl is to you! How are you doing?"

"OK, I suppose. I'm tired and upset, but OK. She's hurt really bad, Tanya," I sighed.

"Do you have someone there with you?" she asked.

"Yes. Kara is here. My dad and sister were here yesterday, and so were Kurt and Kathy. Jennifer will be here tomorrow."

"Good. If you need anything, you must call me!" she said firmly.

"I will Tanya. Thanks."

"See you soon, Stepa," she said.

I replaced the handset on the hook and then Kara and I went back to the hotel for a nap. Kara cuddled close and held me while I slept, and I was comforted by her being there. When I woke, I pulled Kara to me and we made love, then took a hot shower together.

"Let's order room service and stay in," I said. "I'm sure that the Krajicks will call us if something happens."

"You're sure you don't want to be at the hospital?" Kara asked.

"It's only three blocks from here, so if we need to, we can get there quickly. It's way more comfortable here than in the waiting room and I don't have my free pass anymore."

"You mean Doctor Barton?" she asked.

"Yes. Hopefully Bethany will continue to improve and they'll take her off the ventilator and bring her out of the coma, which is when I can see her. But that's tomorrow. I can't do anything right now. Let's have dinner and relax."

"OK. Let me look at the menu."

She retrieved the menu from the desk and paged through it.

"This is way too expensive, Snuggle Bear," she said.

"Forget the cost. It's fine," I said. "Just order what you want."

Kara ordered chicken Alfredo, and I ordered chicken Parmesan. I also ordered a bottle of Sutter Home White Zinfandel. While we waited, we cuddled on the couch.

"When are you going to ask her?" Kara said.

"Ask who what?" I inquired.

"Bethany, to marry you," Kara said.

"I haven't made any decision yet," I said.

"You won't let her be alone, Steve. I've watched you these last few days."

"I'm in no state to answer that question right now. Not about Bethany. Not about anyone."

I was glad that Kara didn't press the issue. We sat quietly until our meal arrived and ate in silence. When we finished, I rolled the cart back into the hallway and put out the 'Do Not Disturb' sign. I arranged for a wake-up call at 5:00am and Kara and I got into bed.

"Are you doing OK, Snuggle Bear?" she asked.

"I'm hanging in there. I really don't want to have to deal with Jennifer right now, but I don't have a choice."

"You love her, Steve!" Kara said, lightly rubbing my chest.

"I do, but I really want to handle one crisis at a time! I'm glad Wen is doing better, or it'd be a true nightmare."

"What is she to you?" Kara asked.

"She's a friend. You know that. Plus, I feel responsible for what happened."

"You know, if you run your own business, you're going to have to deal with multiple problems at the same time."

"It's one thing to do that for business. It's a whole different thing with my close friends, especially Bethany and Jennifer. Add in Wen, and you, Kara."

"Me?" she asked.

"You're still going to counseling. You yourself have told me how much you need me. I know you seem better, but I worry about you."

"You've done nothing but good things for me since my problem with Joyce. I told you what I want from you."

"I know," I said. "I'm just worried about whether it's really enough. If you aren't selling yourself short."

"I don't think I am, and I'm the one who gets to decide," she said. "I told you I knew what I wanted from you the very first time you talked to me. I wanted your penis in my vagina, making me feel out of this world. I got that. It's all I wanted. Remember, I was content to just fuck. You changed that, Steve Adams. You could have had this sexy body without any entanglements, but you decided to become entangled.

"I would have let you do all the things we did, as often as you wanted. I know now that it was my way of escaping from my dad and from Kent van der Meer. But oh, what an escape! I can't even begin to describe how much more pleasurable it was than I expected it to be. If I hadn't had my meltdown, we'd have married. But would that have been the right thing? I don't think so."

"You don't want to marry me?" I asked, stroking her hair.

"I won't say 'no' if you ask me, but I don't need a marriage certificate to love you and be with you. Jennifer doesn't. Elyse doesn't. Bethany does, but that's because she's traditional, at least in that way. Sofia, well, she's so confused about what she wants right now that I'm not sure what to say. Her Swedish sensibilities tell her that she doesn't need to marry, but she also doesn't want to share. Neither does Tatyana. And neither does Karin."

I nodded and paused a moment before replying.

"The question I have for myself is whether or not I should limit myself to one girl. I've heard the arguments. I've also seen just how much trouble I can get myself into. I'm not just talking about Callie Shepherd, either. Even if it's a struggle for me, maybe, just maybe, that's what I need."

"What about Elyse?" she asked.

"As my wife?" I chuckled.

"Well, she has offered. But I meant having kids."

"That doesn't contradict the plan in the long run. Elyse already said that once she has her kids, our sexual relationship will be over."

"But then you couldn't get married for ten years," Kara objected.

I sighed, "True. Although I suppose I could make that exception, just as I would for Jennifer. Sex just for the purpose of making babies."

"What do you want, Steve?" Kara asked.

"I don't know. That's the bottom line. If I knew the answer to that question, I'd be able to answer your first question."

Kara was silent for a few minutes.

"Maybe it's not any of us," she said quietly.

"What?" I said.

"Maybe the person you are supposed to be with isn't one of us; isn't one of the girls with a necklace."

"That's kind of out of left field, don't you think? Didn't you just ask me when I was going to propose to Bethany?"

"I did. But I'm not sure that's the right answer any more than when you were ready to ask me to marry you. Do any of us meet all your needs? And if so, wouldn't you have already asked?"

I sighed, "Oh, who the fuck knows?"

"I'm not necessarily talking about monogamy, just that maybe none of us is Mrs. Stephen Adams."

"What do YOU think I should do?" I asked.

"Right now, this very moment, I think you should make love to me," she giggled.

"I think I can manage!"

We made love twice that night and fell asleep in each other's arms.

St. Stephen's Day, 1984, Indianapolis, Indiana

The wake-up call stirred us at 5:00am and, after showers and a continental breakfast in the hotel, we headed to the hospital. I found Nora Krajick sitting with a cup of coffee, so we went to sit with her.

"Do we know what time that they're going to try to bring her around?" I asked.

"Not yet. The doctor will come talk to us around 8:00am. Harry will be here by then. I added you to Bethany's visitor list, Steve. I listed you as her fiancé because twenty-four-hour visitation is limited to family only. I hope that's OK."

I chuckled, "She'll love it. Thanks."

I went and got coffee for Kara and me, and we sat with Mrs. Krajick until Harry and Ed arrived just before 8:00am. The five of us waited together for Doctor Winslow, who arrived a few minutes after 8:00am.

"She's doing as well as we can expect," Doctor Winslow said. "We've started slowly weaning her off the drug that's keeping her out. In about an hour, we'll turn off the ventilator and check her lung function and breathing. If it's OK, we'll leave it off and put her on 100% oxygen by mask. From there, if things go well, we'll move her to a regular room, and then we'll bring you into her room so you can be there when she wakes up."

"Doctor Winslow, how many of us can be in the room with her?" Mrs. Krajick asked.

"I'd like to keep it to two or, at most, three. Any more than that and it's too crowded."

I didn't like the sound of that; that most likely meant her parents and Ed.

"Thanks, Doctor," Harry said.

Doctor Winslow left to go upstairs, and I waited to hear what Mr. and Mrs. Krajick would say. It turned out to be Ed that solved the obvious problem.

"Mom, Steve has to be one of the people there," Ed said. "You know Bethany will insist on it. I can wait to see her."

"Are you sure, honey?" Nora asked.

"Yes, Mom. You know how important he is to her. I've heard her talking to you, especially after he gave her that necklace. I'll see her afterwards."

"Thanks, Ed," I said. "I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome. She's going to love the 'fiancé' bit!"

"I agree!" I chuckled.

I went to call my sister and find out when she'd be in Indianapolis and what time Jennifer's flight would arrive.

"I'll be at the hospital about noon," Stephanie said. "Her flight arrives at 4:45pm from Chicago. I found the airport on the map and it's pretty easy to get there. I'll bring her back to the hospital with me."

"Thanks, Squirt. I suspect we'll be upstairs with Bethany when you get here. Just find out what floor her room is on from the person at the desk downstairs, then come up to the nurses' station on that floor and ask."

"Will do. Do you need anything?" she asked.

"Not that I can think of. Bethany will be taken off the ventilator this morning, which I think is a good sign. Then they'll reduce the drugs that are keeping her in a coma. She's going to be heavily drugged when she wakes up, so I'm not sure how with-it she's going to be."

"I'll see you in a few hours, Big Brother. Just hang in there. She's going to need you."

I sighed, "I know. I'm seriously thinking of calling Tatyana and telling her not to come, but from what I understand from the doctors, Bethany is going to more or less be out of it for a couple of weeks."

"Why don't you and Tatyana just stay in Indianapolis? It's not as if you have a lot going on at home. Dad booked me a room there for Jennifer's whole visit and it's a double so she can stay with me. You can have Kara with you, and then Tatyana. I guess Kara will go home for a bit?"

"She's going tomorrow while we're in Chicago. And Squirt, I'm worried that Jennifer may not be taking care of herself. If she's not, before you bring her to the hospital, feed her, get her a shower, get her to a beauty salon and get her hair done, a manicure, or whatever it is you girls do to look pretty."

Stephanie laughed, "I'll take care of her for you, Big Brother."

"Thanks, Squirt! Do me one more favor? Call Kathy and Elyse and fill them in. Also ask Elyse to call our housemates and to call Jackie."

"Will do," she said.

We said 'goodbye' and I went back to sit with the Krajicks. It was nearly 11:00am before a candy striper came to get us. The five of us went up to a general care floor and met Doctor Winslow in a small conference room.

"She's breathing fine on her own and her lung function is good. Doctor Hicks was in this morning to supervise taking her off the ventilator. All her vital signs are good. The surgery did what it was supposed to do — repair her diaphragm and remove the stress and pressure on her lungs and heart. There's no sign of swelling from her skull fracture, so we started reducing the drugs that are keeping her under. Remember, she's going to be on significant pain killers, so even when she wakes up, she'll probably be a bit incoherent. Are you ready?"